Neighbourhood health: doing with, not for, communities
September 8, 2026
We were delighted to contribute to an international roundtable at the International Conference on Integrated Care 2026, exploring how integrated care can work with, rather than for, neighbourhoods and communities.
NAVCA brought the perspective of our members: local infrastructure organisations working alongside communities and the wider VCSE sector every day. It was a privilege to be invited and to share the room with such an incredible group of people from policy, practice, research and communities around the world.
The discussion has now been captured in a new paper, How Does Integrated Care Do With, Not for, Neighbourhoods & Communities?
Several themes strongly resonated with NAVCA’s core messaging on neighbourhood health:
• Neighbourhood health must start with the places, relationships and community assets that already exist, not simply reorganise statutory services onto a smaller footprint.
• Communities are not all defined by geography. People connect through shared identities, experiences and relationships, including across neighbourhood boundaries.
• Trusted VCSE organisations and local infrastructure must be recognised and properly resourced as essential partners, not brought in after decisions have already been made.
• Shifting power also means shifting resources. Short-term, competitive funding can undermine the trusted relationships that take years to build.
• Neighbourhood health is a whole-system responsibility. Hospitals, local government, universities and other anchor institutions all have a role to play.
• We need to measure what matters to people and communities, including prevention, connection and wellbeing, not only activity within individual services.
• Equity must be designed into neighbourhood approaches from the beginning; it cannot be assumed that everyone will benefit equally.
One of the strongest messages from the discussion was that changing geographical footprints or structures will not, on its own, change how systems work. Genuine neighbourhood health requires investment in community capacity, different relationships, shared accountability and a willingness to redistribute power.
As the paper concludes, neighbourhood working is not simply about engaging diverse communities. It is about genuinely listening to and learning from people.
