Community Connectors and wellbeing
Local connection, practical signposting and wellbeing support in the community.
In this section
- Get Community Connector support — What the service can help with and current availability.
On this page
- What Community Connectors are for
- Local wellbeing
- Helping people navigate support
- What the council does not replace
- How the service will operate
What Community Connectors are for
Community Connectors form part of Greenhaven Council’s local community support role. Their purpose is to make it easier for people to find useful local support, activities, organisations and civic routes, particularly where the difficulty is knowing who to approach rather than needing a specialist statutory service.
The service is intended to connect rather than duplicate. A Community Connector can help make local opportunities and support easier to navigate, identify the appropriate organisation for a need and strengthen links between residents and community activity across Greenhaven.
Local wellbeing
Greenhaven Council also has a responsibility for local wellbeing. In a council setting, that means supporting the conditions that help people participate in community life, remain connected to others and find appropriate local support. It complements the council’s work on communities, neighbourhoods, volunteering, recreation and resilience.
Wellbeing in this context is not the same as NHS treatment or statutory social care. Greenhaven Council does not acquire those functions simply because it has a local wellbeing role.
Helping people navigate support
When operating arrangements are in place, Community Connectors will provide clear, practical information: what local support exists, who runs it, who it is for, how to make contact and whether another public authority is responsible. Where another public authority is responsible, the resident is directed to that organisation rather than being passed through an unnecessary council process.
What the council does not replace
Community Connectors are not clinicians, social workers, police officers or emergency responders. Where a matter belongs to a specialist service, the council’s role is to signpost or coordinate appropriately rather than present a local connector as a substitute for professional or statutory intervention.
How the service will operate
No Greenhaven Community Connector service is currently open because the council has not commenced. When it does, this page will provide the operating route, eligibility or access information where needed, contact arrangements and any published service standards.
What you can expect
Community Connector support is optional, proportionate and normally short term. It is intended for residents who would benefit from help connecting with local civic life, not as a compulsory onboarding process or a condition of living in Greenhaven. Ordinary council information and accessible public services remain available without a Connector.
Onward routes
Where a resident needs education, employment or specialist wellbeing support, the local service will direct them to the public service responsible. Safeguarding, policing, justice, immigration and citizenship decisions remain with the organisations responsible for those functions.
Who is responsible
| Organisation | Role affecting Greenhaven residents |
|---|---|
| Greenhaven Council | Delivery of Community Connectors and local integration support once the council is operating and the necessary local records and service routes are in place. |
| Ministry of Infrastructure, Communities and Local Government | The local government and communities framework for Community Connectors and local integration. |
| Department of Wellbeing and Civic Care | National wellbeing, civic care and safeguarding policy within its responsibilities. |
| Department for Education | Education services and education support where a resident's need concerns education. |
| Department for Work and Skills and National Employment Service | Employment support, work readiness and related employment routes. |
| National immigration and citizenship services | Immigration, entry, residence, settlement and citizenship decisions. Greenhaven Council does not make or alter those decisions through local integration. |
When the service opens
- who can ask for Connector support and how to make contact;
- the type of practical help a Connector can provide;
- what information the council records and why;
- how a resident can end the support or ask for another route; and
- the organisations to which the council may signpost or refer a resident where appropriate.