Innovation in local government is about improving the lives of the people in our
communities. Browse through our case studies to see the many innovative programmes councils are involved
in.
The ‘Talk Community’ approach sees Herefordshire Council working in partnership with communities, businesses and residents to offer wellbeing advice, support and signposting to services.
Healthy Start is a national scheme which helps young families and those pregnant on low incomes to access nutritious food, milk and vitamins. Figures are published on its take-up at local authority level, with one of the best rates of take-up being County Durham. In February 2023 the England average uptake was 63.5 per cent, while the figure for County Durham was 73 per cent.
Suffolk is receiving increasing numbers of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC) with a diverse range of needs. To meet the resulting challenges, the council has developed a large dedicated UASC and care leaving team with specialist knowledge and experience.
In January 2022, the uptake rate of the Healthy Start scheme in Hounslow was 49 per cent After implementing a series of awareness raising and educational interventions, the uptake was 57% in January 2023. Following another year of more targeted promotion of the scheme, the uptake was 71 per cent in 2024.
The Hackney Early Interaction Project is a pilot project which has gathered and applied learning on how local services can best facilitate children’s early language development. The project has taken a deep dive in to one neighbourhood in the London Borough of Hackney, by mapping and building on the strengths of current local systems to enhance the universal and early language offer in the community. The Hackney Early Interaction project has been funded through the North-East London Integrated Commissioning Board (NEL ICB) Place Based Partnership from September 2022-March 2024.
Lancashire developed a mapping tool to map required service expectations across their network, which helped them understand geographical service delivery patterns, highlighting gaps and areas of good practice.
This case study delves into Doncaster’s innovative approach to public health for families, highlighting the strategic integration of services and the adoption of digital solutions to enhance health visiting services.
Spanning 12 distinct districts, Lancashire’s health visiting service operates across a vast geographical region reaching into rural, urban, diverse and deprived areas.
As part of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, local authorities are shaping enhanced services delivered through transformed hubs to ensure all families can access the support they need and improve health and education outcomes.
As part of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, local authorities are shaping enhanced services delivered through transformed hubs to ensure all families can access the support they need and improve health and education outcomes.