North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has spoken this afternoon about the importance of ‘prevention ‘ and ‘inclusion’ at a Bevan Foundation and Big Issue Cymru event, which he sponsored.
Speakers at the event included Lord John Bird, founder of The Big Issue and now a cross-bench peer, Sophie Howe, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, and Victoria Winckler, Director, Bevan Foundation.
Mr Isherwood stated that ‘Prevention’ and ‘Inclusion’ is vital if people and organisations in Wales are going to address the major challenges facing the country.
He said:
“Sticking plasters are just not enough – we need to find the underlying causes and do something to address them. Prevention means taking practical action to stop problems arising in the first place.
“To use an analogy – if people keep falling into a river, would it not be better to build a fence upstream to stop them falling in rather than endlessly rescuing them before they drown?
“Inclusion is also vital. People across the political spectrum are now talking about an ‘economy that works for all’. And we need a society that works for all too.
“Too many people in Wales have their future blighted because they do not have access to the basic things in life.
“We need to fully embrace Co-production, moving beyond rhetoric and consultation to doing things differently in practice, with service professionals, services users and their communities working side by side to provide solutions.”
Mr Isherwood also spoke about homelessness and the need to address the increasing number of rough sleepers.
He said:
“One of the most basic human requirements is shelter. Having a safe, secure, warm and dry home is a fundamental need, and a means to wider sustainable community regeneration. Legislation passed by the National Assembly for Wales requires local authorities to prevent homelessness - the causes are often complex and there is much more to be done.
“At last September's Digartref Ynys Môn and Bangor University event in the Assembly, we heard homeless young people themselves debating youth homelessness in Wales.
“They said young people living in supported accommodation could have a host of issues to deal with and may struggle with this alongside studying and assignments.
“Young people living in supported accommodation have created a ‘Youth Shed’ in Denbigh. When I visited this Grwp Cynefin project, the young people told me that this provided a safe space for them to develop and prepare themselves for independent living.
“Whilst questioning the First Minister about this in February, I told him that these young people are calling for him to support their call for every town in Wales to have a Youth Shed.”
“Although the Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act puts in place a system where people are full partners in the design and operation of care and support, too many are saying that engagement with them feels like tokenism”.