East Leeds Health For All - annual review

Touchstone East Leeds Health for All (ELHFA) aims to reduce health inequalities and promote local health improvements. In 2015–16, we used community development approaches and engaged with local communities and partner organisations to improve health and wellbeing directly as well as addressing wider determinants of ill health. ELHFA ran eight different project activities that promote healthier lifestyles and wellbeing. People who accessed our services improved on average from 0.6 to 1.2 points on all the seven areas of outcomes on the Wellbeing Wheel measures.
Our Activities Include:

Magic Monday: A weekly drop-in session aiming to reduce isolation and promote health and wellbeing. Service users benefit from learning new skills while socialising and making new friends.
Louis Le Prince Afternoon Club: weekly session aiming to build confidence for older men and women through information and advice, and arts and crafts activities.
Plan to Change: provides peer support and a safe space for people who have experienced or are affected by alcohol dependency.
Men’s Swim and Gym: physical activities programme with embedded peer support.
Women’s Swimming Group: Women only group aimed at improving physical health.
Cook for Life: cooking and healthy eating courses for both men and women.
Computer Classes and online Job Search
Boston Towers Weekly Drop-in: provides information and advocacy support on a wide range of issues including financial matters, bills, housing, employment, etc.

Other Developments
We are currently running music therapy sessions (through a student placement from Nordoff Robins), arts therapy (in partnership with East Street Arts) and English Conversation Class (in partnership with Path Yorkshire) to complement our activities. We also successfully ran an evening Winter Wellbeing Café for 12 weeks on Saturdays between January and April 2016. ELHfA had a Roma Café@Touchstone delivered from our premises and supported by ELHFA staff for 12 Weeks.