Third Sector Rural Road Trip by Alan Clevett, SVE Trustee
Our Chief Executive, Natalie Masterson, and I recently had the opportunity to spend a day in the company of Annemargaret Black and Allan Rennie, who are respectively the Chief Officer and Chair of the Integration Joint Board for the Clackmannanshire and Stirling Health and Social Care Partnership. This was part of the continuing development of a strong working partnership between the HSCP and the Third Sector and comprised a road trip visiting three of our SVE member organisations in Stirling's rural locations, along with much conversation during our travels!
Our first stop after leaving our Stirling office was Camphill Blair Drummond in its beautiful setting overlooking the Safari Park from its extensive grounds, where Gerry McKeown, the Development and Enterprise Manager, gave us a warm welcome. The HSCP already commissions services from Camphill Blair Drummond. We focused mainly on the day opportunities and enterprises that they have developed for people with learning disabilities. Camphill offers a home, meaningful activities, and opportunities for personal development for adults with learning disabilities and other special needs. In all, around 200 people live and work within Camphill, including young people who visit from overseas to provide care and support for those living in the community. Gerry showed us the working bakery, the gardening areas, and arts studio, all part of their programmes to develop employability skills for both service users and as a pipeline for the health and social care workforce.
We then travelled to Aberfoyle Memorial Hall to meet the team from Strathard Community Trust, which covers Aberfoyle, Kinlochard, Stronachlachar, and Inversnaid. The team, including Kate Bovril, enthusiastically talked us through their projects that improve the health and wellbeing of the local community, keeping people connected and active. Projects include a volunteer-run community driver scheme, which connects volunteer drivers with the area’s medical centres, hospitals, dentists, and optometrists. Sustainability and access to locally grown food are also key aims, including a growing garden and a community larder. One of the latest projects involves encouraging local people in Aberfoyle to become more active by taking up bowls at the local Bowling Club, simultaneously expanding the use of the club facilities, including the clubhouse, for community events. Last year, the Strathard Community Trust received funds from the Scottish Government Community Mental Health and Well-being Fund, which is hosted by SVE.
No time for lunch... but on to Killearn Kirk to join volunteers and participants at the Killearn Thursday Club! This is a busy and enthusiastic 'third age group' run by volunteers, including Maureen Blackmore, who welcomed us to the group that provides social connection and afternoon tea to mainly retired members of communities. A successful group here in Killearn, and we then had the chance to talk with Frank Deas from Sustainable Killearn and Killearn Communities Futures Trust. Frank highlighted various projects, including the thriving Killearn Village Hall, and initiatives around sustainability, health and well-being, as well as the typical rural community issues, including a lack of transport to medical facilities and hospitals, and facilities for those with special needs. Killearn is typical of some of our rural locations facing a lack of 'young volunteers' to support local groups, as well as the complex needs of an elderly population.
Our journey back to Stirling enabled us to recap on the great work we had observed in action and to recommit to the new HSCP Locality Plans for our Stirling locations, which SVE is determined to deliver working with our third sector colleagues and our Health and Social Care partners. Huge thanks to everyone we met on our road trip, including Gerry, Kate, Maureen, and Frank, for hosting us.
By Alan Clevett
SVE Trustee. and
IJB, Forth Valley Health and Social Care Partnership, Third Sector representative.
