Expansion of community development approaches

In October 2016, a 10-year approach to transforming health and social care was launched by the Department of Health, in a document entitled Health and wellbeing 2026: Delivering Together. This ambitious plan, the Health and Social Care Transformation Programme, was the response to a report produced by an expert panel, led by Professor Rafael Bengoa. The panel had been tasked with considering the best configuration of health and social care services in Northern Ireland. Delivering Together set out a long-term roadmap, together with initial priorities, to make an ambitious start towards this reform of our health and social care system.

As part of the Delivering Together programme, various work streams were established, including a community development work stream, which was set up in January 2017 to examine how best community development can contribute to the transformation process.

The work stream was tasked to set a clear direction and expand community development approaches to reducing health inequalities in Northern Ireland. The full report and summary document available below chart the progress of this initiative and present an implementation plan for how this work should be taken forward.