About the Corporate organisation
ABL Health believe everyone has the right to good health and are committed to reducing health inequalities and promoting healthy behaviours through community-driven healthcare services. Making people healthier and happier for longer is at the heart of everything they do.
They are industry leaders in taking services traditionally delivered in a secondary care setting and delivering them in the community. They design services with communities, not for communities.
ABL are the local provider of Sunderland Specialist Stop Smoking Services and were keen to share their knowledge and expertise with Sunderland's VCSE organisations as part of their social value commitment.
What was offered?
ABL has committed to dedicating 40 hours per year for four years to assist local communities throughout the city.
Although ABL is not a local company, it was agreed that sharing skills to aid local community projects would be the most beneficial approach.
A program of support was created that comprised:
· Strategy - Support with the development or review of a strategy document
· Engagement - Support with stakeholder mapping and the development or review of an engagement document
· Bid Writing - Remote workshop on tips regarding successful bid writing.
· Client Feedback - Review existing client feedback forms and suggest improvements where applicable.
· Disability Confident Organisation - Support with achieving disability confident organisation status level 1 or undertaking assessments for level 2. (ABL has Disability Confident Leader status).
· Internal governance structures - Remote Workshop to provide advice on internal governance structures.
· Supporting people in employment - Undertaking CV reviews, providing mock interviews for clients of VCS sector who are long-term unemployed.
Progress to date
ABL has been proactive in fulfilling their social value commitments, and to date have provided:
· Bid Writing Workshop - 16 organisations at the online event with 17 people in attendance.
· Governance Workshop - 8 organisations at the online event with 10 people in attendance.
· Support to review or develop a Strategy document - ABL initially agreed to support one organisation, the Little Company of Calm were successful in their application. Subsequently, two more organisations, Love, Amelia and North East Dementia Care, also applied for support. Following a discussion with Nicole Alkemade, Public Health Lead at ABL, it was determined that assistance could be extended to these organisations as well.
· Disability Confident Organisation - this offer was recently advertised to the Voluntary and Community sector and the Foundation of Light were the successful applicant. ABL will be contacting them to discuss next steps.
ABL's total commitment to social value amounts to £2,708 over four years, averaging £677 per year.
They have already surpassed their initial commitment and will carry on fulfilling the rest of their obligations over the next few months.
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