Community Connectors.
The Community Connectors is an Erewash Clinical Commissioning Group initiative through Wellbeing Erewash. It is part of the Wellbeing Erewash Community Resilience work-stream and is a community and person-centered approach to improving health and wellbeing in Erewash. Community Connectors is designed to be led by members of Erewash communities, gathering the views of residents and members of the public.
Why do we need Community Connectors?
There is an abundance of activity happening in our communities, but many people don’t know about them. Connectors are excellent at joining the dots and providing a bridge between local people and health and wellbeing services. The more Community Connectors there are that know about the support available in the community, the more we can all support each other.
Who are Community Connectors?
Community Connectors are people within the community who are ‘Natural Sign Posters’. They help friends, family, colleagues and neighbours find support in the local area. They help people get health support, information on local groups, services and activities within the Erewash borough. Community Connectors are people who have a lot of local knowledge, and may be members of the community who are already supporting others and linking them to resources of some kind. Some might already be actively involved in community groups, forums or activities, and the initiative is looking to further strengthen its connections by working with group, forums or organisations with which we don’t already have a link. The Development Worker from Erewash Voluntary Action recruits volunteer ‘Connectors’ from the local area who want to help enhance and strengthen involvement in their community. In the first 10 months of the initiative we have developed a network of 53 individual and group Community Connectors, and recorded nearly 700 connections. Community Connectors has its own Facebook page (Erewash Community Connectors) and twitter feed (@EVA Connectors) which is another way of sharing information about local services, support and activity in the local area. All Community Connectors get locally tailored training to develop new skills, and have ongoing support from the Community Connectors Development Worker.
For more information, please contact
Jo Hallam, Community Connectors Development Worker,
Email: Jo@erewashcvs.org.uk
Tel: 0115 9466740 or Mobile: 07704 338201

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