England’s First Prevention Demonstrator: Opportunities for Greater Manchester and its VCFSE sector
Greater Manchester has been chosen as England’s first Prevention Demonstrator, an initiative announced in the Government’s 10-Year Health Plan earlier this year. It marks a step toward transforming public services with a more ‘preventative’ approach.
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) was named as the first prevention demonstrator in the UK Government’s 10 Year Plan for Health in July. It will take a community-led preventative approach to the provision of public services which means fixing the foundations of a person’s life – such as housing, and access to education and employment opportunities – as a means of preventing ill health from social and economic detriment and improving lives, as well as reducing pressure on acute and crisis services.
The Prevention Demonstrator will be building on the Live Well Model of service delivery, which brings together services such as health, employment support and debt advice at a neighbourhood level working with the voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector, providing a blueprint for the rest of the country.
Warren Heppolette has been appointed to lead this work, seconded from NHS Greater Manchester where he was Chief Officer for Strategy, Innovation and Population Health. Warren has been closely involved in the GMVCFSE Leadership Group’s Commissioning and Investment sub-group which aims to improving standards and practices for the benefit of the VCFSE sector. He has said:
"The Prevention Demonstrator is a chance to show the country what’s possible when prevention is hardwired into public services. Instead of waiting for people to fall into crisis or for existing problems to escalate, we will be proactive, investing in prevention, early intervention and community-led health, care and support.
“Greater Manchester is uniquely placed to lead that shift. It’s an extension of the work we’ve built together since the early days of devolution and the lessons remain powerful: when we align resources to local need, build deep partnerships, and stay accountable to place, we unlock the full potential of integrated care and public service reform.
“We’ll be showing the country what can happen when we focus on prevention, early intervention and supporting the person, rather than the crisis or condition. This means unblocking barriers and going further to wrap support around people where they live.
“Shifting how public services work in partnership with people and communities is crucial, and we’re going to show how it’s done.”
Read more in the Greater Manchester Strategy 2025–35.
An opportunity for Greater Manchester
The Demonstrator presents a significant opportunity for Greater Manchester to bring together the discussions between Greater Manchester and across government in relation to devolution and the integrated settlement (the single pot of funding that has replaced a system of separate funding pots from different Government departments giving Greater Manchester more freedom and flexibility), as well as Live Well and neighbourhood working, innovation and growth, health and economic inactivity, the NHS GM Sustainability Plan, and the relationship between prevention and proactive care and improvements in NHS performance.
In addition to designating Greater Manchester as Prevention Demonstrator, the government have agreed to a number of other supporting actions including an expansion of the Integrated Settlement to include a wider range of funding streams linked to prevention and reform. For example, further employment support, tackling multiple disadvantage, and preventive activity in relation to health and families.
An opportunity for the VCFSE sector
We believe that the VCFSE sector is at the heart of this transformation, as the system moves towards prevention, neighbourhood delivery, and the provision of targeted interventions. Our sector understands the needs of the communities we support, and we have always taken a preventative approach, meeting people where they are and improving their lives from the outset.
VCFSE organisations will play a key role in the delivery of the Live Well model, offering social prescribing, community resilience, and wraparound support, working alongside health, social care, housing, and employment services to provide holistic support.
In terms of service provision, from tackling loneliness and mental health to supporting families and reducing violence, VCFSE groups should be leading on innovative, community-based solutions.
Moving forward, we hope to continue to work with colleagues across the GMCA and NHS GM to ensure plans reflect local needs and assets, and that the VCFSE sector have a clear and central role in delivery, with sustained and flexible funding.
What’s next?
Initial activity is focussing on bringing together the components of the ‘demonstrator’ work in Greater Manchester, including Live Well’s model, into a focussed programme with an evaluation framework, a flexible funding model and governance structures.
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