Aberdeen’s health and social care partnership has shone a light on all the projects it supported last year.
The Health Improvement Fund (HIF) runs each year, and looks to improve health and well being in communities across Aberdeen.
It can award community grants of up to £5,000 to eligible projects.
A new report outlining its success in 2019/20 has now been published, where 77 schemes were funded – a total of £155,686.47 across the city.
Over half of the applications received were awarded cash, with the highest numbers falling under the categories of primary prevention and self help/self management.
One of the funded projects was VSA’s community dementia resilience scheme.
Based at VSA Airyhall, it supported 3,500 people with dementia across the city. The money was used to make the most of technology to bring patients closer together through the purchasing of iPads, a camera and a TV so they can detail life stories.
It also used the money to purchase a jolly trolley.
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Children’s and family director at VSA Anna Garden said: “We were thrilled to receive funding from the Health Improvement Fund, which allowed us to purchase a jolly trolley.
“The trolley is fantastic and can be used to facilitate a range of activities, including karaoke, interactive quizzes, themed discussion giving audio and visual prompts. The information uploaded can be personalised and relevant to individual circumstances.
“We’ve been able to use it to support life story and reminiscence work undertaken at Airyhall by finding both archived video footage, photographs, and songs from specific eras and also those that families have provided. We’ve also had the opportunity to trial the trolley in our residential settings which has been invaluable in providing entertainment to older people during lockdown.”
Charity Community Food Initiatives North East (CFINE) was awarded £4,900 to purchase fridges to be used for food in its pantry.
Dave Kilgour, development work manager at CFINE, said: “CFINE welcomes the fantastic support provided by the Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership Health Improvement Fund which has enabled the purchase of high calibre retail standard refrigerator equipment for our Community Pantry here at CFINE.
“Community Pantry members have benefited from the wide range of good quality, healthy and nutritious frozen and chilled surplus FareShare food.
“CFINE’s Community Pantry developments have an important role to play in supporting families struggling to make ends meet and are contributing to tackling food poverty and insecurity in the city and promoting healthy eating.”
Dave Kilgour, development work manager at CFINE, said: “CFINE welcomes the fantasticsupport provided by the Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership Health Improvement Fund. It has enabled the purchase of high calibre retail standard refrigerator equipment for our Community Pantry here at CFINE.”
Of all applications received, 49 were for the city as a whole, 29 were in Aberdeen North, 34 in Aberdeen Central and 36 in Aberdeen South.
In 2019/20, grants increased from £2,500 to £5,000 for new initiatives that will improve health and wellbeing.
Allocations of funding are decided on by groups in each locality, guided by a scoring process based on the Health Improvement Fund principles. The groups are made up of community representatives, health and social care partnership staff, the third sector, and other staff.
Lochside Academy used its money to create a board game, designed to promote wellbeing.
It was designed by an S2 pupil at the school, Sean-Paul Gordon.
The game requires those playing to travel from Marischal College to Lochside Academy via landmarks such as Union Square and Aberdeen Beach, while picking up choice cards with positive well being messages allowing them to move forward a number of squares.
Sean-Paul Gordon, Lochside Academy’s wellbeing game creator and designer said: “I enjoyed getting to be creative making the game and making sure it was colourful.”
Persley Castle Care Home received funding to purchase music equipment for a new music project. The project aims to promote good mental health and well being through music for all the residents and staff.
Music has evoked special memories for the residents of when they used to dance at the Beach Ballroom
Health improvement officer Charmaine MacKenzie said: “We’re delighted that the Health Improvement Fund has been able to support so many innovative projects right across Aberdeen over the past 12 months. The fund has helped kick start scores of schemes the length and breadth of the city, which are meeting local needs, contributing to people’s health and wellbeing and bringing communities together.
“Meantime, we understand the impact that the current pandemic is having on our communities. We can assure projects who received funding in 2019 that we will be flexible around timescales. We are happy to discuss any questions with funded projects who are considering making any changes to their projects, to ensure they are in line with Government and health advice.
“Our team is still on hand through this challenging time, so please contact us at nhsg.neighbourhoodhif@nhs.net if you have any queries.”
For more information on the Health Improvement Fund, it can be found on Facebook and Twitter, or via its website at https://bit.ly/2AF36Wy
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