Thread by @simonjduffy

Following up on @olliehart7 tweets with on @LouHaigh @katejosephs @SouthYorksMayor @roz_davies @markgamsu @simonjduffy @EmmaLatimer3 @gavinNHS w. one concrete example of where we have the capacity to act differently and solve our own problems: #socialcare
[Pls. forgive thread]

We don’t just need to invest in #socialcare - we need to rethink it from the grassroots up. It means combining respect for Disability (ie. Human) rights with creating the conditions for inclusive and supportive communities. In practice this means #neighbourhoods.

We saw with #COVID that communities could self-organise - but the most effective communities were also already organised, networked and their own grassroots architecture. e.g. see this @wearenewlocal blog:

newlocal.org.uk/articles/dont-…

There are more and more communities coming together to think this way. Check out the @DemeMove website and the communities represented there:

neighbourhooddemocracy.org/members

Communities like Frome have already demonstrated the power of connecting people - street by street.

citizen-network.org/library/organi…

Ultimately this is about solving problems Upstream - before the problems become bigger and the solutions become more institutional (and expensive):

citizen-network.org/library/headin…

The good news is we have lots of examples of great practice in South Yorkshire to build on. For example @pfgdoncaster has been showing the power of peer support at a neighbourhood level for over 10 years:

citizen-network.org/library/growin…

And Councils like @BarnsleyCouncil [see @LowderWendy] have been changing governance, values and structures to build on people’s sense of local pride in their community:

citizen-network.org/library/headin…

Global reforms, like Local Area Coordination also demonstrate the value of focussing on community connection before responding with services. This recent book sets out much of the relevant research:

citizen-network.org/library/power-…

And all of this is just to scratch the surface. Our #sheffield webinar series Its Our Community brought together advocates, experts, academics to explore these issues - and there was a high level of consensus:
citizen-network.org/work/its-our-c…

Yet we still struggle to make headway in #sheffield and #southyorkshire generally. There are 142 neighbourhoods in the City - but we do next to nothing to reinforce their identity, power, connectivity or capacity to share learning:
sfnr.org.uk/future-sheffie…

The obstacles are various: old-fashioned commissioning, lack of faith in citizens, partisan politics, bad excuses (EU procurement rules!) and an unwillingness to find new and better solutions.
citizen-network.org/library/the-fa…

But there are so many solutions - on the ground and written up [see @citizen_network] - let's make the change and commit to a strategy of deep and meaningful reform - investing in people and communities.
citizen-network.org/library/catego…