OLDHAM Council has re-opened the doors of its newly refurbished Link Centre.
A proposal to permanently close the facility in Union Street - which offered services and housed support groups and signposting facilities for people with a disability and additional needs - was met by dismay in 2016 as a consultation into its future revealed high maintenance costs and the need to find a provider to operate it.
Users raised concerns over the impact its closure would have on the local community, with a 1,700 signature petition and a demonstration taking place.
But today after several months of renovation, the council announced the re-opening of the venue which will provide accommodation for a range of groups and services that support those most in need with ground floor, accessible meeting spaces.
It also provides office space for a number of health and social care services including a therapy hub and will support Oldham Cares - a new overseeing body - on its journey to align the borough’s health and social care services providing accommodation for staff from both Oldham Council and Pennine Care Foundation Trust.
Cllr Zahid Chauhan, Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care said “After six months of hard work and investment we are pleased to re-open The Link Centre to the public.
“The future of the building has been the subject of much debate with consultations throughout 2017. This resulted in the implementation of a new model to keep the building open.
"The Link Centre has always been key to providing support to our most vulnerable residents and that is why it was so important to preserve it in this way.
“I’m pleased that we’ve found a balance between operating accessible meeting spaces for community groups and providing accommodation for Adult Social Care and therapy teams.
“Bringing staff together to work as Oldham Cares will deliver a better health care experience for our residents through a sharing of knowledge, resources and skills.”
Members of the public can book a room at the Link Centre by visiting www.oldham.gov.uk/linkcentre.
Oldham Cares sees local health and social care systems being brought closer together as organisations including Oldham Council, NHS Oldham Clinical Commissioning Group and a number of their partners and providers - including Bridgewater NHS, MioCare, Northern Care Alliance and Pennine Care Foundation Trust - strengthen how they work together as an alliance.
With the support and co-operation of other partners - including housing providers, employers, local businesses and Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE) - Oldham Cares is focusing on delivering the greatest and fastest possible improvement in the health and wellbeing of the borough’s residents by 2020.
Rather than being a new organisation, Oldham Cares is described as a whole system approach to improving the health and quality of life of patients and residents, and delivering high quality, joined-up health and care services now and in the future.
Cllr Zahid Chauhan added “The local social care system belongs to all of us and that is why we are asking the people of Oldham to take part in The Big Conversation where they can have their say on the way health and social care services are delivered now and in the future.”
The Big Conversation is a predominantly digital campaign, which will give people the opportunity to air their views on a variety of topics, including receiving care closer to home; the case for integrating health and social care; people’s experience of care homes and care packages; the provision of services for people with learning disabilities and mental health problems and dementia.
They are also seeking feedback on their work around safeguarding and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities plus how teams of professionals from different parts of the public sector could work in different ways to join up care.
It also asks the public what their own health and wellbeing priorities are, and how they plan to look after themselves both now and in the future.
NEW proposals to save Oldham’s Link Centre from closure and integrate it with the borough’s wider health and social care arrangements have been approved by cabinet members.
The Link Centre, which offers services, support groups and signposting facilities for people with a disability or some form of additional need, had originally been proposed for closure as the council worked to reduce spending and achieve a balanced budget in 2016.
Following a consultation with the public and people who directly use the Link Centre services, concerns were raised about the impact it would have on the local community, with a 1,700 signature petition and a demonstration taking place.
In January, Cabinet gave approval for a tender to be undertaken to identify a provider who would take over the day-to-day management and running of the building while maintaining continued access for local groups to meeting rooms and facilities.
However ongoing work on the proposal identified additional challenges, specifically issues relating to financial implications to the Council and the level of expectations that would be placed on the successful provider, have left a reduced appetite from the voluntary and independent sector to take on the service provision, leading to a review of the proposal.
The challenges include significant increases in the estimated backlog maintenance costs of the Link Centre from £168,000 to £860,000 over a six-year period, with a further £464,000 identified after this period.
An additional challenges include the integration of health and social care within the borough with the Link Centre seem as a vital asset with a co-ordinated approach.
Councillor Jenny Harrison, Cabinet Member for Social Care and Safeguarding, said: “We went to tender in January 2017 and several challenges have meant that this hasn’t progressed.
“At the same time there has been additional pressures on the council to find accommodation where as the integration of health and social care progresses, staff can be co-located and the Link Centre is seen as a good option for that.”
She added that the proposals would see the upper floors of the Union Street site remodelled to provide space for health and social care staff while the ground floor would also be remodelled to continue to provide accessible rooms for groups that need them.
It is also envisaged that access to health and social care professionals in a single site will develop a strong
response and work with voluntary and community groups who provide a range of preventative and early engagement support will further improve the Link Centre as a facility. and strengthen the delivery
model.
The proposal is dependent on securing capital investment for the internal infrastructure
developments.
The cabinet report added that: “Whilst this model will no longer see the provision of an “in house” ‘Link Centre’ service, it will still meet those gaps identified during the consultation process, specifically, access to facilities and meeting rooms for local groups, in a safe and accessible environment.”
