Agenda item

(Mrs. S. Wyle, Director of Health and Environmental Services, attended in connection with this item.)

            The Committee considered the undernoted report:

            “1     Relevant Background Information

1.1    Belfast is one of 100 cities around the world to be awarded a Smart Cities Challenge grant - worth an estimated $400,000 in consultancy work– which will provide Belfast City Council and its partners with access to some of IBM`s top experts.

1.2    Each city has to work on a different city problem.  The key differentiators for Belfast were the issues of ‘segregation’ and ‘persistent deprivation’.

1.3    A team of 6 top ‘IBM experts’ from across the globe (4 from the US) will spend 3 weeks looking at these issues in Belfast from Mon 16th Sept – Fri 04th October. They will interview key players in the city and will look at the stark statistics around health deprivation, segregation and sectarianism.  By taking an external view of these issues and the underlying causes and using research and techniques such as predictive modelling, the team will provide a route map for the city and its partners to develop new approaches to deal with these problems.  

            1.4    This type of approach will be vital to the new function of community planning. The route map will provide recommendations on how the city needs to work collectively with government departments to share information and develop more joined up, evidence based solutions to resolve some previously intractable issues.

2       Key Issues

2.1    The ‘aspiration beyond segregation’ project proposes to:

·        Focus on 2 small geographical areas with some of the worst health indicators and to examine the statistics / perceptions and underlying issues including the effect of segregation as a manageable sized case study.  The two areas agreed are Upper Springfield / Black Mountain/Highfield and Inner East, including Short Strand; a population size of 10,000 is considered appropriate;

·        Look at evidence of what works here and elsewhere;

·        Use predictive modelling and some live interactive approaches, including live data created from a social survey using social media;

·        Determine what services are needed in local areas to address locally specific issues;

·        For Whiterock / Black Mountain - attempt to predict what community assets and services would be placed within the Whiterock Community Corridor – Phase 2.

·        For Inner East the link could be made to the potential for new joined health / educations facilities, the review of facilities at Templemore or any other regeneration scheme for the area.

·        Develop a model and a route map for decision-making on dealing with local disadvantage including better provision of services and facilities.

2.2    The route map could then be used to inform the review of Leisure, the provision of community assets, community based programmes and local investment and regeneration decisions. It could also support the development of a framework for local delivery of the OFMDFM programmes around Delivering Social Change and Building United Communities and could support better decision making on the provision of facilities and services in communities.

2.3    It could therefore not just have potential for BCC but also for other organisations investing in and providing services to the city such as Health and Social Care, education, BRO etc when collaboratively determining the level and type of provision which should be made in areas of the city and it could influence decision making around One Public Estate Programmes.  Ultimately it could create a decision making platform for Community Planning and Local Area Regeneration Plans.

2.4 There will be a number of opportunities for Members to contribute to the initiative, as follows:

All Members will receive an invitation to the Opening Event in the City Hall on Tuesday 17th September from 12.00pm – 2.30pm  (lunch will be served and there will be a short workshop).

A workshop will be held with the IBM team, the Party Group Leaders and local Elected Representatives in the two case study areas after S,P&R on Friday 20th September from 12.30pm – 2.00 pm (lunch will be served).

All Members will be invited to the closing event at which the findings will be presented in the City Hall on Thursday 3rd October at 12.00pm – 2.00pm (lunch will be provided).

3       Resource Implications

         Financial

         This consultancy is provided by IBM as a philanthropic initiative.

Human Resources

A project team has been established involving a range of officers across Health & Environmental Services, Chief Executive’s Development and Finance & Resources Department.  This is also supported by IBM officers.

Asset and Other Implications

None

4       Equality and Good Relations Considerations

There are no known equality and good relations considerations associated with the IBM Belfast Challenge at this time. 

5       Recommendations

Members are asked to note the project update and consider attending the relevant events as listed above.”

            During discussion, the Director of Health and Environmental Services indicated that a communications plan for the project was being developed and that she would distribute it to the Members of the Committee in due course.

            After further discussion, the Committee noted the information which had been provided and approved the programme of events, subject to arrangements being made for the IBM representatives to meet individually with any Political Party who so wished.