Case studies

Six core service partners are working together in Solihull to deliver treatment and support to people with alcohol problems. The Solihull Integrated Substance Misuse Service (SIAS) is led by the local mental health foundation trust in partnership with a range of voluntary sector providers and the council’s social care team.

The project aim was to help the council build an effective, sustainable counter fraud capability. This was achieved through fraud awareness to promote an anti-fraud culture and investigating and pursuing those found to be committing fraudulent behaviour.

Solar was created to transform Solihull’s local provision from a four-tier 0-17 Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) model with high service thresholds into an integrated approach with improved access for young people and families and better partnership working.

Solihull Council has embarked on a scheme to deliver an alternative source of affordable low carbon energy to the town centre. The network will distribute low carbon heat and power from a single energy centre directly into town centre buildings. The energy centre at the heart of this network will provide a range of renewable and low carbon energy solutions including air source heat pumps and gas combined heat and power.

In response to the current climate of decreasing funding and increasing customer demand, Solihull Council identified that a number of front-line service areas would benefit from the introduction of next-generation, integrated online self-service e-payments, e-forms and digital booking systems.

Like many local authorities across the country, one of the challenges facing Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council as part of its COVID-19 recovery planning, was adapting and advancing its existing commitment to developing its towns and local centres.

‘Grow our own’ is an important ethos at Somerset Council. T Level placements are one element of a variety of early career routes into the council, and T Level opportunities are making the council an attractive local employer to young people.

At the start of the pandemic the council set up a homelessness cell - which led to many rough sleepers being encouraged off the streets and into accommodation.

The council and local NHS have identified social prescribing as a key priority in terms of encouraging self care. They are working with the Richmond Group of Charities and local partners to spread social prescribing equitably and sustainably across the county. This forms part of our resource on self care.

Community Employment Hubs have been set up in various locations across Somerset West and Taunton (SWT). The hubs offer flexible support to people who want to overcome personal barriers to their skills development and employment prospects. The holistic approach and ethos of the hubs contribute towards the confidence, self-esteem, social interaction, health and wellbeing of attendees. The hub model has proved to be a success and the aims are to develop and expand the provision to ten hubs across the district delivering employment, apprenticeships, skills development as well as training support and information by mid-2022.