The South London Listens Summer Showcase: celebrating the south Londoners making a difference

Last week, the NHS and Local Authorities in South London joined Citizens UK to host the South London Listens Summer Showcase and Reception.

NHS leaders, community groups, and VCSE organisations from across south London came together for an afternoon of celebration, appreciation, and harnessing the power of collective action. The event highlighted ongoing efforts to address mental health concerns, tackle the wider determinants of ill-health, and build strong lasting relationships between communities and statutory services.

South London Listens is a community partnership tackling systemic barriers to good health and wellbeing across south London and addressing mental health recovery. Born out of the COVID-19 response and ongoing cost-of-living pressures, it brings together local communities, the NHS, and local authorities to prevent ill-health and support communities to thrive by working together to identify the solutions that really matter most to them:

1. Mental health, social isolation and digital exclusion
2. Work and Wages
3. Children, young people, and parental mental health
4. Access to mental health services for migrants, refugees and diaspora communities
5. Health and housing

Community initiatives celebrated

The hosts for the event were South London Listens community leaders Jojo Sangrado Ford from St Barnabus, Mitchum, Jesse Ashiegbu, from Ndukauba CIC in Greenwich, and Janet Emmanuel from St William of York, Lewisham. They shared their own transformative work in the community and led the celebration of key achievements from across south London. This included:

• The Recovery College: delivering culturally sensitive Spanish courses for the Latin American community for parents and children with ADHD.
• Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, Healthwatch Greenwich and Greenwich Council forging new partnerships with community organisations through the Be Well programme
• Health and Housing Coalition: YMCA St Pauls/Wimbledon shared their work tackling the link between health and housing through joint work with the NHS, local authorities, and residents across south London.
• Mlesh3UK: working with South London Listens to engage the Arabic community to dismantle mental health stigma and offer tailored support.
• Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network: advocating for health justice and equitable care for migrant populations.

Commenting, Jojo Sangrado Ford said: “It was good to see strength and power in our community especially from so many different voices”. Jesse Ashiegbu added: “So many achievements. So much gratitude. And above all, the power of ordinary people doing extraordinary things in their communities truly shone through.”

The meeting marked a key moment for South London Listens, as the first meeting for Jane Bailey, following her appointment as Chair of South London and the Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust – and in her role as Co-Chair of the SLL Taskforce, having taken over from Sir Norman Lamb. She was joined by fellow Co-Chairs, Ann Beasley, Chair of South West London St Georges NHS Mental Health Trust and the Rt Rev Dr Rosemarie Mallet, Bishop of Croydon. Together they strongly welcomed the progress being made and spoke about the vital importance of building partnerships to prioritise good health and mental wellbeing.

Bishop Rosemarie Mallet said: ”South London Listens brings together people from community groups and health institutions who care deeply about the wellbeing of the whole community. This gathering shows again and again the zeal and commitment to put that care into action.”

Ann Beasley, remarked: “A couple of weeks ago, the NHS published its 10 Year Plan. This is a huge opportunity for all sectors to work together, build prevention, and support people at the earliest signs of anxiety and uncertainty. Our work with South London Listens is showing how this can be done – and must be central to the NHS’s plans moving forward.”

Jane Bailey, Chair of South London and the Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust added: “I am delighted to begin working as part of this powerful partnership, South London Listens. Working with communities to improve population health has been passion of mine through my career, and I believe collaboration and partnerships can truly drive transformational change. In today’s challenging world, better outcomes only come when we unite our efforts.”

Launch of Be Well Micro-Grants

Be Well is the flagship programme as part of South London Listens empowering grassroots organisations to both provide practical wellbeing and mental health support to their local diverse community, signpost to health and social systems and take collective action on mental health.

The meeting saw the launch of a new round of micro-grant’s for South London Listens Be Well organisations. Be Well micro-grants programme provides up to £800 for individual recipients or £2,000 for those collaborating with other community grants to support community-led health and wellbeing projects.

Presentations by past Be Well micro-grant recipients also showcased how small grants have made a big impact to local residents. Recent success stories highlighted included:

• Bahai Community: addressing food insecurity and empowering young people.
• SACCO (Sutton African and Caribbean Cultural Organisation): hosting ‘Friendship Friday’ sessions for elders.
• SMHF (Sutton Mental Health Foundation): running peer-support drop-ins at Sutton Library.
• I AM IN ME: partnering with a local church to host a three-day mental health conference for young people and families in Lambeth

Janet Emmanuel, whose church St William of York received a Be Well grant last year, reflected:
Be Well grant recipient, reflected: “For us, the grant was invaluable. It funded drop-ins for senior citizens, nature walks, and a transition fun day for primary pupils heading to secondary school.”
As this showcase demonstrated, collaborative action can improve lives and tackle some of the issues that matter most to residents. The next round of Be Well micro-grant funding opens on later this summer, giving more local community groups the chance to address the health concerns that matter most to their communities and make a difference to people’s lives. For more information visit Be Well Champions — South London Listens.

Looking Forward: South London Acts

The hosts closed the meeting by announcing plans for the South London Health Assembly on Tuesday 21st October – 6.30-8.30, which will include a key focus on the system-wide work taking place to tackle the health impacts of housing, as well as showcasing the plans underway to support the development of healthy and equitable neighbourhoods.

Visit South London Listens to sign up for South London Listens updates and find out how to get involved.

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