The Value of Connectedness in Communities

World Social Work Day takes place on 19 March 2024. This year’s IFSW theme ‘Buen Vivir: Shared Future for Transformative Change’, is rooted in the Global Agenda and emphasises the need for social workers to adopt innovative, community-led approaches that are grounded in indigenous wisdom and harmonious coexistence with nature.

BASW England are hosting a lunchtime webinar called 'The Value of Connectedness in Communities' and have the pleasure of welcoming Sarah Coogan-Hill & Donna Edgely from Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust along with Vivien Cooper & Coral Histed from Challenging Behaviour Foundation who will be speaking at the event and discussing the following topics;

- alternative approaches to services
- promoting wellbeing and connectedness to nature
- impact of restricted access to the outside world

There will be an opportunity for attendees to participate later on in the event within smaller breakout rooms, where you will have the opportunity to discuss topics with peers and speakers in greater detail. 

About the Speakers;

Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust provide mental health, learning disability and autism services to people in Greater Manchester and beyond. Covering a wide range of conditions they run many services to support those in need in the local communities and further.

Sarah Coogan-Hill, RMN, BSC, NMP
Sarah is a registered mental health nurse and is an operational and clinical lead for physical health and treatment within Pennine Care Foundation NHS Trust, which covers 5 boroughs within Greater Manchester.

Donna Edgley
Donna is a social worker (previously Approved Mental Health Practitioner and AMHP assessor), within Pennine Care Foundation NHS Trust. Donna is currently a Senior Manager, Community Mental Health Services/ Strategic & Operational Lead, with responsibility for a variety of services including, Community Mental Health Team (CMHT), Early Intervention Service (EIT), Structured Clinical Management Service  and wider bespoke system projects within the borough.

In their presentation Sarah and Donna will share details of the Greenspace projects which was initially piloted in EIT and expanded to CMHT.  Some of the boroughs who have access to the project, have high levels of depravation and all individuals accessing the project, have a diagnosis of a severe mental illness. Both of which are associated with health inequalities and poorer health outcomes. The projects set out to think about supporting people with an SMI and improve their wellbeing in a more innovative and person-centred way, by collaborative and partnership working with 2 established organisations, Petrus and Lancashire Wildlife trust. The 2 projects were initially funded by NHS E but are now embedded using other funding streams.

Challenging Behaviour Foundation is a registered charity that was founded in 1997 by Vivien Cooper OBE, the parent of a child with severe learning disabilities whose behaviour challenges. At CBF, they provide information, support and run workshops to help make a difference.

A lifelong, co-produced action plan to support people with learning disabilities to live good lives in their local community 

Children, young people and adults with a learning disability, including people with learning disabilities with behaviours that challenge, have the same right to live good lives in their local communities as everyone else. However, the current system makes it too difficult for them and their families to receive the right support, in the right place, at the right time. 

The Challenging Behaviour – National Strategy Group (CB-NSG) is a multi-stakeholder group that includes people with lived experience, family carers, VCSE organisations, and people working across the system. 

This presentation looks at how all parts of the system, including social workers, can work together to support people to live good lives in, and as part of, their local communities. 

We will be covering: 

• Early intervention 
• Multi-agency working 
• Working with people with a learning disability and their families 
• Avoiding admission to inpatient units and supporting people to be discharged successfully 
• The importance of community – how to build and maintain connections

You can read more about the CB-NSG here. 

BASW members who are unable to view a personalised message above are encouraged to log-in prior to booking for this event to ensure professional development is recorded within your membership record & to ensure you are able to attend for free.

Taster session available for non-members of BASW.* Non-members of BASW keen to learn more on the benefits of membership and receive updates on the valuable work we do are welcome to sign-up to our communication updates here. When you sign-up, you’ll automatically receive a registration code that can be used to waive the admin fee. 

*Subject to availability. Terms and conditions apply.