UOK Lead Provider, Southdown, through its latest Impact Report for 2023-24 has once again demonstrated its commitment to improving lives and communities across Sussex.
Key achievements highlighted in the Report include:
- Supporting More People: Southdown increased the number of individuals they supported by 5% year on year, reaching 11,367 people.
- Positive Feedback: According to their 2023 Client and Tenant Satisfaction Survey, 90% of their clients and tenants expressed overall satisfaction with Southdown’s support, and 87% reported that their services have positively impacted their lives.
- Expanding Mental Health Services: They launched UOK East Sussex after securing a five-year contract to lead community mental health support across the region. As the lead provider of the UOK Brighton & Hove, they continued to develop the network partnering with 18 providers city-wide.
- Enhancing Crisis Prevention: Southdown’s Staying Well mental health crisis prevention service in Brighton & Hove transitioned to an open access model, embedding a Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust clinician within our team. This shift led to a remarkable 165% increase in the number of people supported. Their Staying Well services in Eastbourne and Hastings are in the process of following suit in 2024.
- ‘Good’ Care Standards: All of their learning disability support services received a ‘Good’ rating from the Care Quality Commission, with some areas marked as ‘Outstanding’.
- Safe and Decent Housing: As a landlord for 502 tenants, Southdown reported 99.8% compliance with the Decent Homes Standard, the social housing benchmark for what tenants should expect from their home, making sure it is safe, warm, and decent.
- Addressing Homelessness: They supported 1,074 individuals through their Rough Sleeping Initiative and Complex Needs Homeless Service across East Sussex.
- Fair Compensation: Southdown ensured all employees received a pay increase, with all salaries above the real living wage.
- Introducing the Southdown Beacon: Southdown launched a new, bespoke, psychologically-informed framework to guide their work with people who access their services and their colleagues.
- Partnership working: Southdown conducted research with service commissioners, partners, and the wider Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprise sector to gather feedback on how they do things. This led to five actionable steps to develop what they do to be the best partner they can.
- Development of Community Mental Health: Southdown’s Chief Executive, Neil Blanchard, alongside other colleagues, played a role in supporting the development of community mental health across Sussex. Neil represents the VCSE sector in various governance structures and is a founding member of the East Sussex VCSE Alliance. He also chairs the Sussex Mental Health VCSE Strategic Leadership Group, working to expand the role of the VCSE in shaping and delivering non-clinical mental health services.
Neil Blanchard, CEO Southdown, on the development of community mental health across Sussex.I passionately believe through such involvement, together, we can ensure services for our clients and wider communities will improve.
Looking Ahead
As Southdown continues to expand its reach and impact, the focus remains on innovation and collaboration. The organisation plans to enhance its digital services and continue building strong partnerships with local authorities, the NHS, and other community organisations to ensure that even more people can benefit from their services.
For more details on Southdown’s achievements and future plans, read their full Impact Report
