New £2m fund to help older people stay healthy next winter
23 Apr 2014 12:30 PM
The new funding will help community and
volunteer-led projects provide extra support to older people next
winter.
he
fund will support volunteer-led projects to play a vital role in helping older
people stay healthy or recover quicker from illness. These projects can in turn
help avoid unnecessary pressure on A&E services or delayed discharges from
hospital.
Find out more about the
fund and how to apply.
There are already a number of volunteer-led programmes
providing support in this way. These include:
- discharge schemes that help older people make the
transition from hospital to home
- well-being initiatives carried out by community-based
volunteers to keep older people healthy, including nutritional improvements,
exercise programmes and community engagement
Minister for Civil Society, Nick Hurd
said:
We
want to make sure that older people have the support they need next winter.
There is already some excellent work being done in the voluntary sector and
this partnership is about finding the best programmes and supporting them to do
more.
It
is also about building a case to encourage more commissioners to look at the
wider role that the voluntary sector can play in supporting people in their own
homes.
About the fund
The
fund is now open for applications, and the programme will run this winter until
March 2015.
The
Social Investment Business Group administers the fund on behalf
of:
- the
Cabinet Office’s Centre for Social
Action, which supports programmes that encourage people to create positive
change through social action
- the
National Tripartite, a group made up of NHS England, Monitor, the Trust
Development Authority and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Care,
set up in May 2013 to work on local improvement plans for A&E
standards
The
Social Investment Business Group
The Social
Investment Business Group (SIB Group) is the largest social
investor in the UK. It exists to help social enterprises, charities and
community organisations support the people and communities that are most in
need.
The SIB Group manages:
- the
Futurebuilders Fund, Social Action Fund and the Investment and Contract
Readiness Fund on behalf of the Office for Civil Society in Cabinet
Office
- the
Social Enterprise Investment Fund for the Department of
Health
- the
Communitybuilders Fund, endowed to parent charity the Adventure Capital Fund by
the Department for Communities and Local Government