7/29/2019 Healthwatch Leeds Letter to Stakeholders

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Dear Stakeholder

We are writing to you to let you know that we are pleased to have been awarded the contract todeliver the local Healthwatch in Leeds. The Healthwatch Leeds consortium is made up ofLeeds Involving People, Touchstone, Inclusion North and Health Together, part of the institutefor Health and Well-being at Leeds Metropolitan University.

Our consortium combines in-depth knowledge and experience of working with groups that findit hard to access services and rarely have a voice; local knowledge of systems; extensiveexperience of involvement activities and nationally recognised expertise in research, buildingevidence and developing policy for community engagement.

Our Mission is to strengthen the collective voice of the public in order to improve the quality ofhealth and social care in Leeds.

To achieve this, Healthwatch Leeds will engage members of the public and train a growingconstituency of volunteers - who will be individuals drawn from users of services and the publicin general, particularly those who are seldom heard within existing involvement mechanisms,such as young carers or people from BME communities.

We will support many volunteers to have a variety of roles from being Health Champions in

their communities and workplaces, to sitting on the Health and Wellbeing and HealthwatchLeeds Boards.

We hope to work with a broad, engaged and growing network of organisations, groups,charities, statutory and private partners who will be Friends of Healthwatch Leeds, with whomwe will work in close partnership.

This is an incredibly exciting time for involvement in Leeds and we believe all stakeholders willbenefit from the new arrangements described in this letter. Our promise is that we will work withyou with integrity and transparency whilst being solution-focused at all times. The challengeahead is to work together, to learn together and to be part of the delivery of excellent healthand social care services to the citizens of Leeds.

In the coming weeks and months, Healthwatch Leeds will be in touch with you to find out whatyour needs and expectations of us are but, in the meantime, do not hesitate to contact theconsortium members below.

Alison LoweCEO Touchstonealisonl@touchstonesupport.org.uk0113 271 8277

Judy WhiteDirector of Health TogetherJ.White@leedsmet.ac.uk0113 8121920

Samantha ClarkCEO Inclusion NorthSamantha@inclusionnorth.org0113 262 6409

Jagdeep PassanCEO Leeds Involving PeopleJagdeep.passan@leedsinvolvement.org.uk

0113 2374508