As a voluntary group, working in Calderdale, Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group has free virtual training available so you can work with the local NHS. The Engagement Champions programme, delivered by Voluntary & Community (VAC) on behalf of Calderdale Clinical Commissioning Group supports voluntary and community sector organisations to undertake training for their staff or volunteers to become an accredited ‘ Engagement Champion and then seek the views of the organisation’s members to inform health service changes. Engagement Champions is about capturing the views of residents, especially those who are seldom heard, specifically in relation to health. Community and voluntary organisations are so well placed in communities to engage with residents.
The NHS has a legal duty to involve local communities/communities of interest when health changes are being considered and the training provides the knowledge and skills needed to carry out engagement and consultation work on behalf of the NHS locally. The training is free and once trained volunteers will be able to give their community organisation the opportunity to be approved providers of engagement for the NHS locally with the potential to carry out paid work.
The training is spread over 4 sessions (currently delivered online). The training provides an understanding of how the NHS works and why the NHS is required to involve local communities in changes to services. It covers methods and approaches to engagement and consultation which can be useful skills for your own personal development and benefit your organisation and also key information about equalities and safeguarding. Participants are asked to complete a practical task asking service users to complete a survey.
The benefits of training as an Engagement Champion are:
- being offered opportunities to carry out surveys or run focus groups
- the opportunity to earn money for your organisation
- being invited to local events where you can meet with the people and organisations involved in shaping local health services.
The next virtual Engagement Champions training runs on the following dates:
Tuesday 21st September, 10am – 12.30pm: Session 1 – How the NHS Works.
Tuesday 28th September, 10am – 12.30pm: Session 2 – Legal and statutory obligations for engagement.
Tuesday 5th October, 10am-12.30pm: Session 3 – Engagement Methods & approaches.
Tuesday 9th November, 10am-12.30pm: Session 4 – Equalities, Safeguarding and Evaluation.
All session are held online and last from 10am – 12:30pm. Attendees need to be able to commit to attending all 4 sessions.
If you are interested or want more information please email engagement@cvac.org.uk or visit our website for more information. Please also see information attached. You can also find us on twitter Engagement Champions – CVAC VAC 🧡 on Twitter: “We are looking for our next cohort of #Calderdale Engagement Champions! Working with @CalderdaleCCG, Engagement Champions give their communities a voice around NHS consultation & engagement! Find out more – https://t.co/klHAqvWrSF #improvingLocalLives @kaushal_dipika https://t.co/3emYRnBnSC” / Twitter
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