LGBT Healthy Living Centre SWOT Analysis - DOC

							LGBT Healthy Living Centre SWOT Analysis:
Presentation to Spectrum Housing Forum 19 January 2006

A LGBT Healthy Living Centre for Brighton & Hove?


Spectrum and Brighton & Hove Primary Care Trust invited LGBT services and
groups, the PCT, Council and the Police to identify the strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats in progressing the following target in the LGBT Community
Strategy. Responses were grouped and summarized to give a cross-section of views.


LGBT Community Strategy: Health: Objective 1: target 2
Set up a Healthy Living Centre specialising in the needs of the LGBT community:
providing a range of health and community services, offering support, signposting
and ongoing research into the needs of the community.


Strengths
 better planning, coordination and communication between NHS, Council, Police
  and community in tackling inequalities and meeting needs
 safe, accessible, inclusive and integrated services
 information hub and gateway to other services
 space for coordinated programme of workshops, group-work, training and social
  activities to tackle isolation and dislocation from mainstream
 access to LGBT-specific health care
 cost effectiveness of sharing a building
 evidence of need from Count Me In, etc


Weaknesses
 collapse of Safety Forum, AVI, Resource Centre - haven't we learned the
  lessons?
 funding, funding, funding
 insufficient trust between sectors and agencies
 false separation from mainstream
 energy and resources diverted from other work?
 does the community really want it?
 will a one-stop shop really improve access?
 Is there capacity for the strategic planning?
 good location critical to success
 potential political football?


Opportunities
 potential savings to NHS if ill-health prevented
 increased partnership working
 pooling of resources and skills
 safe accessible alcohol-free alternative to 'scene'
 reverse burnout from constant fire-fighting
 flexible to adapt to range of drop-ins, surgeries from agencies wanting to provide
  targeted services
 benefits of multidisciplinary approach
 most excluded not accessing mainstream model?
 better signposting and gatekeeping for range of services
 process can tease out service delivery issues re: generic versus specialist


Threats
 community lacks strategic planning skills and experience
 fear of ghettoisation just as the mainstream is listening
 specialism will let mainstream off the hook?
 funding just isn't there
 culture of mistrust, lack of community capacity and resources unable to support
  strategic development
 unknown take-up of potential NHS services
 unrealistic community expectations
 ownership/accountability/management
 great idea but we're not ready yet


So what needs to happen now?
Spectrum proposes that, if there is a consensus for progressing the action point, a
short-life multi-agency working group is set up to:
 identify funding for and a process to manage a feasibility/development/research
  project
 propose how to consult with and involve the community and any potential
  stakeholders


At Spectrum’s Housing Forum on 19 January 2006 it was agreed to circulate
the findings to local services to see whether a working group should be set up.


contact:     Arthur Law, Coordinator,
             Spectrum LGBT Community Forum
             6 Bartholomews, Brighton BN1 1HG
             tel: 01273 723123 / 07973 138832
             arthur.law@spectrum-lgbt.org