What Healthwatch will do – Healthwatch Blackburn with Darwen will make a positive contribution to the successful local achievement of outcomes set out in national frameworks for the NHS, primary care, adult social care and public health. Particular attention will be paid to:

  • Improved patient and user experience.
  • Improved communication.
  • Improved satisfaction with health in local area.
  • Greater patient and public involvement in health and social care.
  • Strong relationship with commissioners, the Health &Wellbeing Board and the Health and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee
  • Improved access to services.
  • Improved people’s understanding of their rights (consumer champion) and taking a human rights-based approach to championing their rights
  • High public Awareness/Profile of Healthwatch.
  • Good image/trust of Healthwatch with the public.
  • Gathering views and understanding the experiences of patients and the public.
  • Making people’s views known.
  • Promoting and supporting the involvement of people in the commissioning and provision of local care services and how they are scrutinized.
  • Function Four: Recommending investigation or special review of services via Healthwatch England or directly to the Care Quality Commission (CQC)
  • Providing advice and information (signposting) about access to services and support for making informed choices.
  • Making the views and experiences of people known to Healthwatch England (and to other local Healthwatch organisations) and providing a steer to help it carry out its role as national champion.
  • NHS Complaints Advocacy

Health and Well-being Strategy

The workplan has been aligned against the three main strands in Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council’s Health & Well-being Strategy.

  • Start well
  • Live well
  • Age well
  • All Ages

Our priority projects for 2024 -25 are:

  • Young Health Champions programme incorporating projects on mental health support, uptake of HPV vaccine and eating disorder Arfid
  • Programme gathering residents’ and carers’ experiences of domiciliary care.
  • Project on uptake of bowel screening in the borough with a focus on the south asian heritage community.
  • Project on uptake of cervical screening in the borough with a key focus on young south asian women.
  • Project exploring people’s experiences of support for bereavement.
  • Project exploring support for carers, with a focus on effectiveness of carers assessments.
  • Enter and Views programme – covering care homes (including LD care homes) and GP practices.