Imagine two identical health programmes serving deprived areas. Both are hitting their outcome targets, but one is doing a lot more. Somehow, its service users are not just in better health, they are also happier and more confident. A small but significant number who were unemployed have found jobs, in some cases taking whole families off benefits. These families are eating better and taking more exercise. Their children’s attendance at school is better and their results are improving. It is obvious which approach is more satisfying for healthcare professionals and more attractive to cash strapped funders. Altogether Better’s evidence-based community health champion approach is delivering this social value.

Altogether Better has been working with a number of partners including the Department of Health to share learning about the community health champion model and increase the voice of patients and communities in shaping health and social care services. Working in partnership with the NHS Confederation, Altogether Better aims to develop a network of community health champions across England, support localities to replicate the values and principles of the community health champion model, and respond positively to some of the important questions and challenges which need to beaddressed by health leaders, decision-makers and commissioners.

Altogether Better is working with others to articulate the rationale and build the evidence base for the Health Champion approach.  Through this they are able to demonstrate a significant impact on health and wellbeing and have the potential to reduce costs to the health system and beyond.

They have built a comprehensive evidence building framework for their Big Lottery Funded Programme. 

Aim

Building on four years’ experience of recruiting, training and supporting more than 17,000 volunteer community health champions, it is Altogether Better’s ambition to continue to work to create social value by unlocking the assets and resources of individuals and communities to create healthier communities and better quality health services.

Altogether Better's mission is:

To work together to activate the full potential of Community Health Champions to improve the health and well being of their communities

They do this by:

-Strengthening the voice of Community Health Champions
-Co-producing solutions which support health and well being
-Growing a transformational network
-Influencing policy and practice

Mission: “Unlocking the power of communities to transform lives”