Four stories of how communities shape health and wellbeing
Connecting Health Communities, 2023-25
This report, written by Sonakshi Anand and Rebecca Moran, documents the journey and learning from the four areas we supported in the Connecting Health Communities (CHC) programme between April 2023 and July 2025 (Cheshire East, Dudley, St Helens and Wandsworth). Their stories show how service design changes for the better when the lived experience of communities, and of those working alongside them, is heard; and when partners across sectors work together to act on what they hear.
From addressing loneliness, social isolation and stigma in St Helens; to increasing uptake of cervical screening in Wandsworth; to family-centred approaches to tackle childhood obesity in Dudley; and to working towards increasing rates of TB screening with Crewe’s East Timorese community, the initiatives capture both the diversity of local challenges and the shared potential for change.
Following the case studies, we draw attention to some of the broader lessons that have been learnt from across the four areas.
