Regional win for Cornwall and Isles of Scilly collaboration in the NHS Parliamentary Awards

Health, care and community services across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly are celebrating the success of their ground-breaking work which has been announced as regional winner in this year’s NHS Parliamentary Awards. The national awards are organised by NHS England, with nominations invited from all English MPs

The entry in the ‘Excellence in Healthcare’ category highlights the collaborative approach across our local integrated care system which sees NHS and social care teams working with community and voluntary partners at scale to support our residents.

Among the partners involved in this work are disAbility Cornwall and Isles of Scilly, Home First, Age UK Cornwall, Volunteer Cornwall, CHAOS Group, Pentreath and Humans Cornwall, the Short Term Enablement Planning Service (STEPS), Cornwall Voluntary Sector Forum (CVSF) and NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board.

Together they are helping people to stay independent in their own homes by providing support that avoids hospital admission or enables earlier discharge. This includes:

• the Community Gateway helpline; which took 48,000 calls and provided 7,000 personal support plans over 1 year, and is open 365 days a year
• the network of more than 50 community hubs; which has supported roughly 1 in 4 people in Cornwall
• Penhallow ‘Home from Home’; which offers step down care for people leaving hospital
• The Hospital to home reablement service; which supports 56 people a week to leave hospital

The judges said “This shows the huge potential of integrating community support into health and care services. A model that could potentially be emulated across the country.”

They commented on “a terrific example of what can be achieved by working with more than 60 voluntary organisations to make a real difference to people across Cornwall” and noted that “tens of thousands have been helped to stay well and to get home quicker after hospital treatment.”

Local residents who have been helped by these services include James, who was helped with transport to appointments following a stroke, Margaret, who had food shopping after her hospital stay, and Bill, who was introduced to his local community hub after the loss of his wife.

Kate Shields, Chief Executive Officer, NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board said:

“This award provides well deserved recognition for the amazing teams who put people’s needs at the heart of the services they deliver every day. I am delighted that those involved have been recognised in this way and I’m so proud of them.

“I want to thank our local MPs who supported the nomination for ‘Excellence in Healthcare’. Our intention is to make personalised care the universal model for how we provide health and care services across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, and I look forward to seeing this way of working continue to flourish in the future.”

Jane Johnson MBE, Chief Executive, disAbility Cornwall and Isles of Scilly said:

“We are thrilled with the recognition for this incredible programme of work, which sees providers transcending boundaries to align their services for seamless provision, ensuring people receive the right support, in the right place and at the right time.

“This collaborative spirit is delivering high-quality wraparound care, leveraging a wide range of resources to address and overcome the root causes of inequalities.”

Ian Jones MBE, Chief Executive, Volunteer Cornwall said:

“The health and care system in Cornwall has come a long way over the past couple of years, showing how trusted relationships across the public sector and community sector can provide integrated yet personalised approaches to strengthen people’s health and wellbeing.

“The recognition of this award is welcomed, however there is still so much more that can be achieved.”

Emma Rowse, Chief Executive, Cornwall Voluntary Sector Forum said:

“This award is a testament to the power of collaboration. As a voluntary and community sector, we know we’re able to deliver the best services when we work together and that also means working in partnership with our commissioners.”

Regional winners will now go on to represent the South West in the national awards ceremony being held in Westminster on Monday 14 October.