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.
Kirklees have taken a ‘right worker, right support, right time’ approach to engaging young people involved in the criminal justice system and affected by criminal exploitation. Their Youth Engagement Service brings together colleagues from various youth services and through their consistent engagement approach, has allowed Kirklees to provide support to previously unreached children who are at risk of offending or are already involved in the criminal justice system.
A police-led pilot initially run in Tameside and Bury and now operating across Greater Manchester seeks to use police data in collaboration with youth justice services and local authority children’s services in order to make ‘invisible’ children in need of support, visible.
In Derby and Derbyshire, local government, the NHS and voluntary sector organisations have set up a partnership to encourage innovation and new ways of working in sexual health. The approach is helping to tackle some of the problems caused by the fragmentation of the system.
Vending machines offering free sexual health tests are offering alternative way to access HIV and STI testing kits in an effort to reach groups who may traditionally face stigma accessing these services.
In 2020 the south London boroughs of Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham sought to tackle the inequalities faced by black, Asian and Latin American people by commissioning a sexual health promotion service to work with these communities.
Bedford Borough, Central Bedfordshire and the City of Milton Keynes, have introduced new ways of working by embracing digital technologies and other innovations deployed during the pandemic to improve access to all the services provided from STI testing to contraception.
Portsmouth’s sexual health workforce has been upskilling frontline staff from other services to have healthy conversations about sexual health and in particular pregnancy planning. Staff including midwives, health visitors and social care workers have all received tailored training.
Women across Liverpool have easier access to a range of services, including contraception, thanks to a network of clinics, hubs and pharmacies. It has ensured that no woman in the city is more than a 15-minute walk from a contraception service.
In East Riding a mobile sexual health clinic has been established, allowing staff to take services direct to where people are. It forms part of a multi-pronged approach to reach out to local people, especially the young.