Agenda item

Following the success of the prototype, it was agreed to further test the approach by setting up a short-term model to run from Harlesden Library for two days a week as the second phase of development. The short-term model provides further opportunities to trial the approach and to continue to develop the hub partnership while building a business plan for a longer-term, sustainable model. The second phase of the Harlesden Hub was officially launched on 2March 2017.

This report provides an update on second phase of the community hub model in Harlesden.

Fiona Kivett (Change Manager, Performance, Policy and Partnerships) delivered a presentation which provided Members with an update on the second phase of the community hub model in Harlesden. She reminded Members that the Harlesden Hub was a result of the Outcome Based Reviews (OBR) carried out in collaboration with a range of partners and residents and aimed to rethink some the challenges faced by Brent. Ms Kivett outlined the aims of the Hub which had been designed during the prototype phase in October 2016: 

·         The Hub had adopted a model that was owned and delivered by the community;

·         The Hub was well-connected as relationships with various stakeholders were built;

·         The Hub provided a joint assessment of need as residents had experienced difficulties navigating the system and duplication of assessment of need;

·         The Hub had supported the process of building resilience as it ensures self-help and independence were key components to the service delivered.

Ms Kivett spoke about the environment at the Hub which allowed connections to be made and meaningful interactions to take place. This made it possible to identify and understand residents’ problems rather than them having to fit a set of criteria in order to access a service. She drew Members’ attention to Figure 2 on page 16 of the Agenda Pack which showed the broad range of organisations working in partnership at the Harlesden Hub. Ms Kivett explained that new partners had been added to the second phase of the project and she highlighted that the core group of organisations was shown in green, with partners delivering sessions and activities (both ad-hoc and regular) in blue.  

In terms of feedback and observations, Ms Kivett commented on the approach; the offer / scheduling; attendance and publicity. She also outlined presenting needs based on the feedback from partner organisations who had interacted with residents at the Hub. The drop-in model and the patient approach were highlighted as in some cases residents had to visit the Hub more than once to resolve their enquiry. It had been decided to try to arrange specific sessions at certain times of the week as this would be easier for visitors to remember and for the team to promote. An issue identified was that some organisations were not honouring their commitments, while, on the positive side, a number of local people had approached the team, expressing desire to give something back to the community. The most frequent reasons why people visited the Harlesden Hub were related to Council Tax Support and benefits enquiries (including Housing Benefit). Footfall had varied and it had been hard to predict, with individual sessions being more popular than group ones. It had been identified that most people had complex needs, among which support with form filling and dealing with health, distance and language issues which had prevented them from visiting the Brent Civic Centre. Ms Kivett presented two case studies to the Committee – one related to a Housing Benefit enquiry and one about an individual referred to Brent Works for support with securing employment. 

Ms Kivett informed Members of the Committee that phase two of the Harlesden Hub had been running since March 2017 and it would run until the end of March 2018. She said that the team would then look at what was working well and what could be replicated in other areas of the Borough, with an aim to develop a community hub framework and a business case outlining the process and the resources required. The Committee heard that the third phase would be an on-going delivery of a community-led service.

In response to a question that related to the expansion of the model to other parts of the Borough, Ms Kivett said that Central Middlesex Hospital had been considered and community research had been carried out to determine a model that would be fit for purpose. In addition, the College of North West London had expressed an interest for a pop-up prototype at their Willesden campus.

Members of the Committee enquired about the main reasons why residents were reluctant to visit the Civic Centre and whether officers from other sites, such as the Civic Centre, could exchange practices with colleagues working at the Hub. Ms Kivett said that the team was keen to share the lessons learned and that arrangements had been made for Customer Services staff to work at the Hub for a day so they could take their learning back to their colleagues. However, Ms Kivett acknowledged the danger of replicating the Civic Centre and the One Stop Shop models and this was seconded by a Member of the Committee who said that community empowerment and involvement had to remain the drivers behind the Harlesden Hub. As far as reasons for not coming to the Civic Centre were concerned, physical ability, cost of travel and cultural barriers were seen as main deterrents.

A Member of the Committee asked if the issues mentioned in the case studies could not be dealt with at elected Members’ surgeries and if it would be helpful to collaborate with Members. Ms Kivett said that this was a good suggestion and the Committee heard that councillors from the Harlesden ward had been holding their surgeries at the Harlesden Library.

RESOLVED that

(i)    The contents of the Delivering the Next Phase of the Harlesden Community Hub report, be noted; and

(ii)  An update on the outcomes from the second phase of the Harlesden Community Hub be provided to a future meeting of the Committee.