Health and Wellbeing News, Events and Opportunities – October 2025
October 23, 2025
Welcome to Cumbria CVS’s Health and Wellbeing News, Events and Opportunities for October 2025. This page will be updated regularly, so we are delighted you have landed here today and hope that you will keep coming back for updates during the month.
Lots of the News, Events and Opportunities information will also be appearing in our regular Health and Wellbeing Bulletin. This Bulletin is sent out to all current members of our two Networks: Action for Health and the Mental Health Provider Forum. If you have found this page useful why not join either or both Networks by following these links:
News – we will be using this as an opportunity to pick out particularly important/interesting articles from our most recent Bulletin and/or highlighting information that might be time sensitive.
Events – we will be using this as an opportunity to highlight events of interest to organisations interested in health and care issues including Network events. Most of these will be local Cumbria events but some maybe regional.
Opportunities – we will be using this to highlight health and care focused funding and project opportunities, representative roles and working groups you might want to get involved in and much more. These will focus on Cumbria but may also include regional opportunities.
If you’ve seen something you think we should be sharing, let us know! Email us:
Clare Edwards claree@cumbriacvs.org.uk
Holly Ferguson hollyf@cumbriacvs.org.uk
Sarah Penn sarah.penn@cumbriacvs.org.uk
EDEN area – Family Matters therapy sessions to start at Penrith Family Hub
Family Matters therapy sessions to start at Penrith Family Hub.
The council is one of six local authorities taking part in a national pilot programme to work with families who need therapeutic support.
Click here for more information
COCKERMOUTH area – Latest News from Cockermouth Linking Lives
The latest latest news from Cockermouth Linking Lives. Click here to read the newsletter.
COUNTYWIDE – Cumbria Cerebral Palsy Charity – Transport for Vaccinations
For adults and families with children that have Cerebral Palsy. We offer friendly and confidential support in the community by helping with all aspects of life including form filling, applying for funding, inter agency working and home visits for those alone or struggling with issues.
Cumbria Cerebral Palsy also has the ‘Resource Day Centre’ for adults with a variety of disabilities, based in Carlisle. Please contact us for day rates.
OFFERING FREE LIFT AND 1 TO 1 SUPPORT FOR WINTER FLU JAB
This winter we are offering people with Cerebral Palsy 1 to 1 personal support with transport to attend medical appointments such as getting the WINTER FLU and COVID VACCINATIONS.
If you or someone you know has Cerebral Palsy, or for more information please get in touch:
Janet Gordon Adult Community Support Worker: janet.gordon@cumbriacerebralpalsy.net Tel: 07733 203 945
Jude Armitage Families/ Children Support Worker: jude.artmitage@cumbriacerebralpalsy.net Tel: 07715 079429
Deborah Hields Day Centre Manager: Deborah.Hields@cumbriacerebralpalsy.net Tel: 01228 549449
NORTH CUMBRIA NHS area – Money and practical support “Link and Think”
When
6th, November 2025 from 12:00 to 15:00
Location
The Rooms Penrith, Penrith Parish Centre
St Andrew’s Place,
Penrith, CA11 7XX
A networking event for link workers and voluntary sector organisations in North Cumbria NHS area with a focus on money and practical support. Link workers will learn more about the support available to people who are in the area, and what some of the barriers and challenges might be to accessing it.
A networking event for link workers and voluntary sector organisations in North Cumbria NHS area with a focus on money and practical support.
Link workers will learn more about the support available to people who are in the area, and what some of the barriers and challenges might be to accessing it.
A light buffet lunch will be provided free of charge on arrival.
Link workers will be able to find out more about third sector services across North Cumbria, whilst VCFSE organisations will be able to find out more about the role link workers can play in helping people access their services
Click here to book onto the event.
COUNTYWIDE – Beginners Guide to the Cumbria Observatory – home of all the best data on our county
Do you struggle to find good, reliable data about the people you work with and where they live?
Could you do with good, reliable data to support project development or funding applications?
Are you interested in learning more about specific issues like housing, employment, crime etc?
Why not join us at this session?
17th November 2025 from 14:00 to 15:00 – Online via MS Teams
The Beginners Guide to the Cumbria Observatory will provide a brief introduction to the Cumbria Observatory and talk you through how to find the data and information most useful to you, your organisation and the people you work with.
What is the Cumbria Intelligence Observatory?
The Observatory is a fantastic local website that brings together existing research and analysis resources throughout Cumbria. The site works jointly with partners, to provide information and intelligence. It’s all arrange in easy to locate sections that include:
• Ward profiles
• Population
• Children & Young people
• Housing
• Health & social care
• Crime & community safety
• Deprivation
• Economy & employment
• Environment
• HDRC
You can identify and source detailed profiles of geographic areas including Cumbria as a whole, the unitary council areas of Cumberland and Westmorland and Furness, former districts, wards, LSOAs and a number of other geographies within Cumbria.
If you can’t make the session and/or want to do a bit of research before why not head to the website
https://www.cumbriaobservatory.org.uk/
Click here to book onto the event
COUNTYWIDE – Join the Holistic Employment Meeting 06.11.2025 12.30pm to 3.30pm (inc. FREE Lunch)
Step Forward into Volunteering and Employment invites you to join the next Holistic Employment Meeting on Thursday, 6th November.
The H.E.M will take place at Cumbria CVS, Shaddongate, Carlisle, with spotlight speakers and lunch included.
This is a fantastic opportunity to meet with others who provide supported employment services, coming together as one group, all working towards the same goal, but in our own unique ways. You can find out more about other services and providers in the local area, as well as share with others the work you do.
To find out more and book your place below or send us an email to stepforward@cumbriacvs.org.uk
Click here to book onto the event
NORTH CUMBRIA NHS area – WorkWell has just landed in Cumbria a survey to help develop the service
Here’s hoping that you have heard about the NEW WorkWell service launched in Cumbria at the beginning of October. To support the ongoing development of this service people who may have used and/or want to use the service are being asked to complete a survey.
WorkWell is a new service. It will help people with health problems to:
• stay in work, or
• get back to work.
We know that more people in North East and North Cumbria are out of work due to poor health than in most other parts of the country. We want to change that.
Your views can help shape the developing service. Please fill in our WorkWell survey and share it with others. The survey is open until 3rd November. If you need any help filling in the survey, please contact nencicb.involve@nhs.net
Follow the link below to find out more about WorkWell in North Cumbria:
https://cumbriahealth.co.uk/workwell-north-cumbria/
Follow the link below to find out more about WorkWell in South Cumbria:
https://cumbriahealth.co.uk/workwell/
COUNTYWIDE – 10 year Workforce Plan – call for evidence
If you have any evidence or expertise in supporting health and care staff, the government would like to hear from you as part of consultation on the new 10 Year Workforce Plan. It will build on the 10 Year Health Plan to set out how we will deliver a new workforce model with staff who are aligned with the future direction of reform and have real hope for the future.
The government wants to hear from anyone with relevant evidence, including:
• trade unions
• royal colleges
• employers
• charities
• those with expertise by experience
10 Year Workforce Plan – call for evidence document – GOV.UK
10 Year Workforce Plan: call for evidence – Department of Health and Social Care
NORTH CUMBRIA NHS area – Healthwatch and NENC ICB survey about Pharmacy First, NHS App & GP extended access
In partnership with the region’s Healthwatch, the organisation that acts as a voice for communities, we’ve launched a survey to gather feedback on three specific NHS services designed to help people access care more quickly and conveniently: the NHS App, Pharmacy First scheme and GP extended access service.
As we gear up for winter, helping people to feel better faster is really important. So, we are keen to highlight these fantastic services, but we also want to hear about people’s experiences through a short survey. Feedback will show us where we can do better and help us improve patient experiences. Please take part in the survey and share it with friends and family. Healthwatch will be out and about around the region, also gathering views.
Click here to complete the survey.
