The Adult Care and Community Wellbeing offer: preventative services that support health and wellbeing
The County Council provides, commissions or funds a wide range of free practical and helpful services, all of which aim to supporting individuals and communities in need. This is an ongoing, long-term commitment of the Council, aiming to improve health, wellbeing and community resilience and helping prevent the deterioration of need. Access to such services becomes even more needed when families experience the additional pressures of increased costs of living.
Services provided, commissioned or funded by the Council include:
The Lincolnshire Carers Service (provided by Carers FIRST)
Practical free support includes:
- Identifying entitlement to carer and welfare benefits, other related benefits and practical assistance with claims as needed, on a household basis
- Carer personal budgets which can be used creatively and flexibly to meet need and achieve positive outcomes (eligibility criteria apply). For example, these have been used to support digital access to services and address social isolation.
- Access to a wide range of other free or reduced cost support for carers such as carer grants.
- Works closely with a wide range of partner services and organisations to maximise support for carers
Information, advice and support for carers – Lincolnshire County Council
The Wellbeing Service
Practical free support includes:
- Assistance with applications for Personal Independence Payments
- Access to digital support for people needing help with online forms and services
Domestic abuse support service (provided by EDAN)
Practical free support includes:
- Refuge accommodation
- Support to escape abusive relationships and situations and establish a safe household
- Range of holistic advice and practical support to achieve the above, including housing advice, employment, welfare, money advice and personal development
Lincolnshire Domestic Abuse Specialist Service (ldass.org.uk)
Voiceability
- Free advocacy for adults with social care needs
Lincolnshire Housing Related Support Service (provided by Framework)
Practical free support includes:
- Holistic advice and support to enable vulnerable individuals to maintain a tenancy. Employment, welfare, money and personal development support
Framework Housing Association | For Your Future (frameworkha.org)
NHS Healthchecks (provided in primary care)
Free pro-active healthchecks
- Designed to maintain good health and prevent longer health conditions developing
- Aimed at a targeted cohorts, eligibility criteria apply
- Signposting and referrals
One You Lincolnshire
Practical free support to improve adult health and wellbeing includes:
- Support for all ages to give up smoking, including free access to nicotine replacement therapies
- Free support to achieve a healthy weight, move more and drink less.
- Free access to a virtual gym and apps
- Free support to children to achieve a healthy weight, targeted in areas of highest deprivation in Lincolnshire
- New free pilot strength and balance service for frailty, targeted cohorts, commencing shortly
- Strong ‘make every contact count’ partnership working with Primary Care, Carers Service, NHS Health checks
- Eligibility criteria apply
Citizens Advice
The County Council contributes to funding the core service countywide, together with the district councils. Citizens Advice provides:
- Free impartial and confidential advice, information and support on a wide range of practical and civil legal issues such as debt, benefits, employment and housing
- Receives referrals and signposting from a very broad range of partners
Adult Social Care
In terms of accessing our services – including assessments for social care, we are focusing on widening the routes by which people can contact us. This includes introducing online assessment tools which can help to point in the right direction for social care help.
Household Support Fund
- LCC receives the Household Support Fund - over £10 million to date, and a further £5.4million allocated for October 2022 to 31 March 2023. We work with District Councils on how to distribute to those who need it most.
- LCC distributes a large proportion of HSF through schools in the form of vouchers to families with children entitled to free school meals for holiday periods. The remainder has been distributed through District Council in previous rounds.
- Eligibility criteria apply.
LCC’s Early Help team and support for young carers
Practical free support includes:
- Help, advice and solution finding for children and young people in need and their families, including young carers. Close working links to schools and other helpful services.
Holiday Activities Fund (HAF)
The HAF programme is a government funded initiative that provides free holiday clubs in Lincolnshire over the summer, Christmas and Easter holidays. Managed by LCC, it is designed to ensure a high-quality, enjoyable experience for children and young people providing healthy and nutritious meals and physical activity. Children and young people who attend HAF clubs develop a greater understanding of food, nutrition and other health-related issues, make new friends and have the opportunity to take part in fun and engaging activities. Eligibility criteria apply.
- Partnerships
- Housing Health and Care Delivery Group (HHCDG)
- Financial Inclusion Partnership (FIP)
- Cost of Living Challenge group
- LCC administers the HHCDG and is an active participant on the FIP steering group. Each partnership group oversees a range of collaborative actions, many of which will support people with the cost of living.
- This includes for example working to deliver an expanded home energy efficiency advice service (Lincs 4 Warmer Homes) offering residents improved access to funding for measures and practical advice; and linking into existing income maximisation services.
Contact details
If you would like to talk to our Information Signpost Officer you can call 01205 820 892 or email info@healthwatchlincolnshire.co.uk
