Review of the previous Community Plan

Children's Trust

We said: All our schools will be good or better.

We delivered:

• 88 per cent of primary schools and 100 per cent of secondary and special schools rated "Good" or better by Ofsted for Overall Effectiveness
• 74 per cent of all pupils and 64 per cent of children eligible for Free School Meals are achieving a "Good Level of Development" at Early Years Foundation Stage.
• 69 per cent of all pupils and 56 per cent of disadvantaged pupils are reaching the expected standard in reading, writing, and maths at Key Stage 2
• The gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers has narrowed in the Progress 8 Indicator at Key Stage 4
• Delivering over 20 school expansions to provide sufficient Primary School places for Merton's rapidly growing school age population
• New Harris Academy Wimbledon secondary school under construction in South Wimbledon

We Said: We would focus on Children at Risk

We delivered:

• According to the latest Ofsted inspections, 100 per cent of Merton's children's centres are rated "Good" or "Outstanding" and now deliver additional services in areas of the borough with high levels of deprivation
• Community Health Services staff are now co-located in five children's centres to enable stronger collaborative working
• In 2018, 434 families achieved significant and sustained progress under the Troubled (Transforming) Families programme
• A Multiagency Risk Vulnerability and Exploitation Protocol and Panel has been established (2018) to strengthen and integrate the response to adolescents at risk of sexual or criminal exploitation, serious youth violence or harmful sexual behaviour

We Said: We would prevent, deter, and divert young people from criminal behaviour

We delivered:

• Have sustained a strong youth justice performance on First-Time Entrants with a reduction from 88 in 2013-14 to 34 in 2018-19
• The Youth Justice Team, in collaboration with Safer Merton and Police, have delivered bespoke responses to rises in crime; Bike Call In for those arrested for moped offences and a Theft group involving shop lifting victims, resulting in reduction of these crimes
• A Liaison and Diversion service has been established to provide an early screening and sign-posting service at first point of entry into the criminal justice system to ensure that appropriate interventions are available to meet identified needs and that the "health offer" underpins the justice response

Health and Wellbeing Board

We Said: We would support people to manage their own health and wellbeing.

We delivered:

• Social Prescribing was piloted across a number of GP practices in the borough, leading to an increase in self-reported health gains and a significant reduction in GP visits. Recent investment agreed by Merton Clinical Commissioning Group has now expanded the programme to all practices in the borough
• A range of self-care support has been developed and promoted through the One You Merton  and Good Thinking websites
• The Wilson Health & Wellbeing Campus is being designed to integrate health and wellbeing services at a new site to meet the needs of residents
• The Diabetes Truth Programme was developed to connect Health and Wellbeing Board members with residents who have a lived experience of diabetes. The findings helped develop the Tackling Diabetes Action Plan and Merton Mile
• Established a Befriending Service, Exercise for Life and Handyman Service to support older people to live more independently
• Merton received formal accreditation from the Alzheimer's Society, that we were 'working towards being dementia friendly', in July 2018. The Council Tax team are working with the Alzheimer's Society to make Council Tax reductions for people living with dementia easier to apply for – one of the first London boroughs to do so

We Said: We would give each child a healthy start

We delivered:

• The Early Years Hub has improved outcomes for children by increasing take-up of free early education and improving the quality of early years provision
• The Child Healthy Weight Action Plan has trained 378 school staff to raise awareness of childhood obesity and aligned the Healthy Schools London programme with Merton School Sports Partnership to support schools to achieve Healthy School status
• A Daily Mile has been introduced in Merton schools, aimed at getting children to run or jog for 15 minutes daily
• Educational outcomes have improved with a 3% rise in children with Special Education Needs who achieved a "good level of development" at the Early Years Foundation Stage

Safer Stronger Partnership

We Said: We would focus on Youth Violence

We delivered:

• Merton has utilised MOPAC funding to develop and deliver work in schools and youth clubs with the Rhyme & Reason music mentoring project and Gym Box engaging known gang members and those at risk of Serious Youth Violence and gang activity
• Targeted interventions delivered by specialist gangs and serious youth violence workers have seen reductions in serious incidents between specific groups and at specific locations over the last three years
• A Serious Youth Violence Protocol was established between the Youth Justice Team, Police and Transforming Families Team to support workers and partners with recognising early indicators and high risk factors

We Said: We would focus on domestic crime

We delivered:

• Secured MHCLG funding for a full time Independent Domestic Violence Advisor who looks after cases with complex needs and access to refuge space for victims
• 100 per cent of licensed premises in Wimbledon are signed up to Ask Angela, where customers can give a code word to staff if they feel unsafe or threatened, with 95 per cent in the borough overall
• A Domestic Violence & Abuse One Stop Shop is run on a weekly basis and has been for eight years

We Said: We aim to prevent and reduce overall crime, including theft, ASB and misuse of drugs and alcohol

We delivered:

• To reduce burglary, programmes such as Met Trace and Super Cocooning have been rolled out within the borough for the first time
• Merton was successful in its application to become a phase two Local Alcohol Action Areas (LAAA), which uses partnership work to prevent alcohol related crime and disorder and reduce alcohol-related harm. The LAAA areas in Merton are focused around Wimbledon and Mitcham Town Centres
• To reduce theft of motor vehicles, the met-wide Operation Venice has been rolled out. Intelligence-led patrols are based in hotspot areas and bike locks distributed, leading to a 43 per cent reduction in offences in Merton
• According to the latest residents' survey, 98 per cent of residents feel safe during the day, and 84 per cent feel safe at night.

Sustainable Communities and Transport Partnership

We Said: Meet the needs of local businesses and offer a range of plans to increase jobs and skills.

We delivered:

• Local employability Schemes last year supporting 72 residents into work. In particular, the "Towards Employment" programme created 30 plus job starts and 5 apprenticeship starts between September and December 2018. The remaining 37 residents found work through employability programmes offered by partners
• "Take One Initiative" has provided more than 100 apprenticeships for 150 young people over the last two years
• Successful programmes to support young people not in education, employment or training have ensured Merton sits in the top quintile in London. My Futures, Transforming Families, YOT, Towards Employment, and University Programmes have played a crucial role over the years to support young people access education/work opportunities

We Said: Improve physical infrastructure and a vibrant cultural offering.

We delivered:

• Completion of regeneration schemes for Colliers Wood Tower and High Street
• Development of a new football stadium for AFC Wimbledon, 600 homes, squash and fitness facilities, a crèche and a supermarket on the former Wimbledon greyhound stadium site
• From a derelict site, Mitcham Community Orchard and Gardens turned into a community resource with the development of an orchard of fruit trees and a wildflower meadow
• Regeneration of three estates: High Path, Eastfields and Ravensbury remain in progress. The investment will involve more than £1bn over the next 12 years by replacing over 1,000 existing homes and building an additional 1,800.
• Rediscover Mitcham has entered its final phase: adding the bus lane to the town centre to bring footfall back to the pedestrianised street.
• The New Morden Leisure Centre opened in November 2018
• Merton currently has 101 publicly accessible electric fast chargers operating, with another 36 expected to be installed by the end of 2019. Merton is among the top boroughs in London for this expansion
• Merton Council is ranked joint second in London and among the top authorities across the country by Friends of the Earth for its climate change action
• Six kilometres of new cycle routes and 651 more cycle parking spaces have been created across the borough over the last six years