Living Well Rutland

We all need help or advice from time to time. We might have a problem or want to make a change for the better. Whatever the reason, it can sometimes be hard to know where to get the information and support we need.

Rutland County Council works with lots of organisations to support and care for people at every stage of life. After looking closely at these services, we think we can make them easier to access for everyone. This is why we’re creating Living Well Rutland.

Living Well Rutland will combine lots of community services that support people in different ways, even if they’re provided by different organisations. We want to help families and communities by making information and support much easier to find – whether it comes from Rutland County Council, local health services like the NHS, or voluntary groups.

Keep reading to learn more about our plans.

We already have a network of buildings that form part of our local library service, but why stop there when they could do so much more?

As well as being places to access books and computers, we want our library buildings and other community facilities to promote healthy living by offering advice and information that helps people support themselves and keep well.

Because they’re your libraries, we also want these buildings to be community and warm spaces where people can meet and spend time together, whether it’s for coffee mornings, reading clubs, youth groups or toddler sessions – whatever your community needs to stay connected.

Our staff and volunteers will be more than just librarians. They’ll be a helpful source of information about the full range of local services that are available to people in Rutland.

You’ll see physical changes to some of our library buildings, as we turn them into new Living Well Centres that can provide a much broader range of services. This includes Rutland County Council’s Family Hub, next to Oakham Library.

We plan to make these changes and have our new Living Well Centres fully up and running before the end of 2025 – combining our existing library and Family Hub services. In the meantime, you can still find information about our current library services online.

You can also drop into a library building or phone us if you have any questions or want to know more.

Health and wellbeing is key to a happy life. We want to promote good mental and physical health at every age, as well as helping people avoid illness.

Lots of organisations are trying to do this at the same time, which means there’s plenty of opportunities to work more closely together. If we do this, we can have a much bigger impact.

Living Well Rutland wants to lead this simple but important change. Our Living Well Centres will be open to different groups and professionals, so we can support health and wellbeing programmes that are tailored to local needs. This could include family support, wellbeing services, information, NHS services, community learning and warm spaces.

Living Well Services will also offer:

• parenting advice
• emotional and mental health support
• befriending services
• adult social care
• access to voluntary groups
• SEND support
• youth groups and mentoring
• early years and development advice
• movement and physical wellbeing activity

The Active Rutland Hub at Oakham Enterprise Park will become part of the Living Well Rutland offer and remain a centre for physical activity, exercise and wellbeing services.

While we’re making these changes, you can still find lots of information about sport and staying active by visiting the Active Rutland and Active Together websites.

It’s never too late to make a positive change in life. You can always learn a new skill, switch career or retake a qualification you missed out on when you were younger.

As well as promoting health, community and physical activity, our new Living Well service will be the home for Rutland’s 19+ and adult learning offer.

Living Well Rutland will replace the Rutland Adult Learning and Skills Service (RALSS). This means you’ll still be able to study things like English, Maths and IT, explore a variety of arts and crafts, learn a new language, build independent living skills and more.

We’ll keep our Rutland Adult Learning Centre at Oakham Enterprise Park and make more community learning opportunities available through our Living Well Centres, as these open. This will include targeted support for anyone who’s out of work or underemployed, with access to guidance and IT equipment to help you grow your skills.

While we’re making these changes, you can still look up courses and learning opportunities that are available by visiting the RALSS website.

You can also contact RALSS by emailing: adultlearning@rutland.gov.uk or calling: 01572 758 122.

Community libraries. Health and wellbeing. Adult learning. Look closely and you’ll see how Rutland’s communities can benefit from combining these services together, as well as joining more closely with other organisations who provide similar types of help and support.

This is the idea behind Rutland County Council’s new Living Well Service and why we’re excited to share our plans with you as they develop.