Greater Manchester leaders in local government, health and the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector (VCSE) have signed a new GM VCSE Accord to work together in a collaborative way to tackle entrenched inequalities.
The original GM VCSE Accord was signed in November 2017 by the Mayor of Greater Manchester on behalf of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), with several hundred representatives of the VCSE sector. Similarly, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership and the VCSE sector in GM was signed in January 2017, setting out a new way for VCSE organisations and the health and social care sector to work together.
The new GM VCSE Accord replaces both the 2017 Accord and the 2017 MoU and sets out an agreement between the Greater Manchester Mayor, Combined Authority and the Greater Manchester Integrated Care System with the VCSE sector, based on a relationship of trust.
This new single, forward facing agreement, builds on the substantial engagement undertaken with our sector to produce the VCSE Policy Paper, which was published in January 2020 and sets out a 10 year vision for the VCSE sector in Greater Manchester. The Accord also takes into account our learning and reflections from the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2021 report of the GM Independent Inequalities Commission, the Marmot report ‘Building Back Better in Greater Manchester’, and the development of the GM Integrated Care System (ICS).
As part of the Accord refresh process, we facilitated engagement sessions across all local infrastructure organisations and key GM VCSE networks, as well as with the GMCA, ICS and other key public sector partners.
The agreement is underpinned by our shared vision for the city region as set out in the Greater Manchester Strategy (GMS) – which is also being refreshed and renewed following its original publication in 2017. The Accord will act as a framework for the VCSE sector’s role in the delivery of the GMS vision and in the thematic strategies and delivery plans that exist to deliver the GMS vision. The VCSE sector will be involved in the development, governance and delivery of the GMS including co-design of relevant activities.
You can view the final version of the Accord, as well as documents produced as part of the refresh process here