​​Taking Charge Together launches in Bury this Friday

Residents across the borough are invited to join the conversation about the future of health and social care in Greater Manchester at a special launch event at Kay Gardens, Bury town centre from 10am to 4pm on Friday 4 March 2016.

Residents are encouraged to board the Key 103 media bus to share their struggles and successes in making healthy lifestyle choices, as the Greater Manchester region prepares to take responsibility for a £6 billion health and social care budget.

The local picture will also be introduced via the borough’s new locality plan.A key theme throughout the locality plan is preventing poor health and intervening quickly with care and support when it is needed, as is making sure people have the support and information they need to take an active part in their own health and wellbeing. With closer working and better co-ordination between services, accessing health and social care will become much easier in the future.

Alongside the main event visitors will also be able to get their blood pressure checked, find out what theburydirectory.co.uk has to offer and, weather permitting, take part in a Zumba session delivered by Bury Leisure intructors in partnership with I Will if You Will.

Stuart North, Chief Officer for NHS Bury Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) said: “We want local people to get involved in the Taking Charge Together campaign. This feedback will help to inform how services should look in the future and help us to deliver the greatest and fastest improvements in health and wellbeing for local people.”

Cllr Andrea Simpson, Chair of Bury’s Health and Wellbeing Board added: “It’s really important that our community has the opportunity to contribute to the conversation being captured across Greater Manchester, and to find out about plans to make a difference locally and what these plans will mean to local people.

“The launch event also gives everyone a great opportunity to see what a fantastic range of tools and opportunities are already in place to help our communities stay fit and well.”

To find out more about Greater Manchester health and social care devolution visit httwww.gmhealthandsocialcaredevo.org.uk/.To fill in a quick survey and join the conversation about everything from exercise to mental health visit www.takingchargetogether.org.uk.

-ENDS-

For further information please contact the council’s press office on 0161 253 6096.

Editor’s notes

More than two thirds of early deaths in Greater Manchester are caused by behaviours which could be changed.

Nearly 25% of the population have a mental health or wellbeing issue which can affect everything from health to employment, parenting and housing.

The feedback from Taking Charge Together will be used to help Health and Social Care bosses tackle some of the worst health outcomes in the country, by:

• revealing insight into what the people of Greater Manchester believe blocks or enables healthy choices;
• helping health and care officials to design services that can deliver the greatest and fastest improvement in the region’s health and wellbeing;
• Identifying great work in the region that can be celebrated and developed at scale across the region.