Involving people and communities

Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care System - NHS Cheshire and Merseyside and Cheshire and Merseyside Health and Care Partnership combined - is committed to involving people and communities to identify what will help to improve their health and wellbeing and to work with us to shape services.

Healthwatch, the Voluntary Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE) sector, our councils, hospitals and other partners already have well-established ways of engaging with people and communities, and we need to build on these strengths and assets. We want our approach to be one of evolution, not revolution.

If we are to help reduce inequalities and continuously improve health and care outcomes for all, we must engage and communicate well and listen to the views and experiences of people and communities in relation to their health and wellbeing.

10 key principles that will guide how we work with people and communities
  1. Put the voices of people and communities at the centre of decision-making and governance at every level of the ICS.
  2. Start engagement early when developing plans and feed back to people and communities how their engagement has influenced activities and decisions.
  3. Understand your community's needs, experience and aspirations for health and care, using engagement to find out if change is having the desired effect.
  4. Build relationships with excluded groups, especially those affected by inequalities.
  5. Work with Healthwatch and the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector as key partners.
  6. Provide clear and accessible information about vision, plans and progress, to build understanding and trust.
  7. Use community development approaches that empower people and communities, making connections to social action.
  8. Use co-production, insight and engagement to achieve accountable health and care services.
  9. Co-produce and redesign services and tackle system priorities in partnership with people and communities.
  10. Learn from what works and build on the assets of all ICS partners - networks, relationships, activity in local places.