The 'go to' organisation for Local Government improvement in Scotland

Specific impacts include:

• Wider awareness and investment from Aberdeenshire Council from the beginning of the work in Fraserburgh, due to unique nature of the Project Lead being embedded as an employee into Aberdeenshire Council
• Strengthening connections with community planning partners (Police Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Services, Aberdeenshire Public Health and NHS Grampian) has been beneficial in developing a strong network, clear structure and focus on place-based working
• The programme’s data focused approach has been well received, complementing workstreams already being undertaken in Aberdeenshire. This has allowed partners to develop their understanding of the current situation in Fraserburgh, whilst also identifying crucial gaps which will be explored further and help to provide greater context to the Project Town profile.

Our story so far

The Shaping Places for Wellbeing Project Town of Fraserburgh is slightly different to the other six project towns in the programme. The Project Lead position is employed by the local authority, Aberdeenshire Council, rather than being employed by the Improvement Service. This difference has meant that there has been a wider awareness and investment from the Aberdeenshire local authority from the start of the work in Fraserburgh.

To bring Fraserburgh on as a Project Town, the position of Project Lead (along with the post of Community Link Lead once recruited) was funded in partnership between Aberdeenshire Council and Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership, which secured full engagement from these two key stakeholders from the start. The Shaping Places for Wellbeing Programme is also supported by the Aberdeenshire Community Planning Board, with the requirement to provide annual reports of progress to the board. This has resulted in key community planning partners being more aware of and supportive of the project work being done in Fraserburgh.

The links with community planning partners, including Police Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Services, Aberdeenshire Public Health and NHS Grampian has proven to be of great benefit in developing quick and meaningful engagement with these stakeholders and in developing the network around the project. This has been evident through the representation on the Steering Group and the high level of engagement in those meetings. It has also facilitated strengthening of the connections between organisations within the community planning partnership, as it has provided an opportunity for collaboration through a clear structure and focus on place-based working, an area of work being undertaken by each partner separately. This can be highlighted in the following quotes below:

The data focused approach that has been adopted by the Shaping Places for Wellbeing Programme has been well received in Fraserburgh and the wider Aberdeenshire area. The work undertaken by the Public Health Scotland Local Intelligence Support Team (LIST) colleagues, to develop project town profiles, has complemented work streams already being undertaken by Aberdeenshire Council data analysts. The combination of these pieces of work has led to a rich quantitative foundation to initiate, inform and frame discussions around Fraserburgh, the inequalities being experienced, key health concerns and challenges that can be identified and addressed. This data focused work has allowed partners to develop their understanding of the current situation in Fraserburgh. This can be highlighted in a quote below from Tom Fowler, Principal Information Analyst at Public Health Scotland Partnership Team:

It has also allowed for them to identify where they feel that the data is not providing the full picture. These gaps will continue to be explored as the qualitative information is added to the Project Town profile and the voices and experiences of the communities in Fraserburgh are explored, to provide greater context, something that all partners are enthusiastic and supportive of.