As part of the Coastal Community & Creative Health project, partners have been working together to develop a new dashboard that brings together Blackpool’s health needs assessment data alongside a mapped directory of the town’s arts, cultural and voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) assets.
The dashboard has been designed to support arts, cultural and VCFSE organisations by providing evidence to inform programme development and funding bids, helping organisations identify potential partners, and enabling frontline practitioners to see what is available locally.
The project team is now beginning to consider how the dashboard can be sustained once the research project concludes in October 2027.
There is also potential for the dashboard to support funding bodies by helping them better understand local need and identify which organisations and community groups are active in particular areas across Blackpool.
As part of this work, partners are keen to gather views and feedback on the future of the dashboard.
Linked to the social value commitments encouraged by Blackpool Council and other public sector partners, one option being explored is for the dashboard to be hosted by an organisation, potentially with volunteer support. Arts, cultural and VCFSE organisations could then update their own information directly, helping to ensure the content remains current and relevant.
Public sector bodies could also signpost organisations preparing tender submissions to the dashboard, helping bidders demonstrate their understanding of local needs, identify delivery partners and strengthen the social value contribution within their proposals.
We would appreciate your feedback on this concept. Please direct any suggestions or queries to either Barbara Mezes b.mezes@liverpool.ac.uk or Judith Mills judith.mills@blackpool.gov.uk