A new online tool will make it easier for Peterborough residents to find help when it launches next month.
Here to Help has been developed to give people a simpler starting point when they need advice or support, but do not know which service or organisation to approach first.
Using the online platform, people will be able to describe what is happening in their lives in everyday language and explore relevant local information and options.
The tool can help with a wide range of issues, including money worries, housing, loneliness and social connection, caring responsibilities, work and health, support for families, and practical help in the community.
It can be used by residents directly, by friends or family members supporting someone else, and by staff and community partners during conversations with residents.
It also recognises that people's needs are often connected. A conversation that begins with money worries, for example, may also identify help with housing, health, employment or family circumstances.
Cabinet Member for Adult Services Cllr Neil Boyce said: “Here to Help has been a long time in the making. The original idea came from conversations with residents, partners and professionals about how difficult it could be to know where to turn for support.
“Here to Help is about making that first step easier. You do not need to know the name of a service or understand how local services are organised. You can simply start with what you need help with and explore what is available locally.
“Our message is simple: give it a go. Try it for yourself, try it with someone you are supporting, and tell us what you think.”
Here to Help complements existing services and professional support. It does not replace emergency services, safeguarding routes, statutory assessments or specialist advice where these are needed.
Here to Help can be found at this address: https://www.peterborough.gov.uk/here-to-help
The public launch will continue with a community event in November, giving residents and local organisations the opportunity to find out more, try Here to Help for themselves and help shape how it develops.
Details of the community launch event will be announced shortly.
Here to Help has been shaped with residents over several years and in different forms, beginning with the Tackling Loneliness Sprint in January 2019 when residents, partners and professionals came together to explore the barriers people faced in finding and accessing local support.
They agreed that a tool of this kind could play an important part in addressing those barriers, leading to an original prototype called Local Eye.
The beta (pilot) version of Here to Help soft launched with partners between July and September 2026.
During that period, the tool supported 200 chat sessions and feedback from partners and users helped refine the tool, improve its responses, and make the experience clearer before the wider public launch.
By bringing relevant options together, Here to Help can help residents consider support they may not otherwise have known to look for.
It does not expect residents to understand how local services are organised or to know the name of a particular scheme.