The Thriving Communities programme has been a fundamental part of our work in supporting grassroots organisations in the delivery of social prescribing over the last four years. Through our regional teams and partners across the country, we have worked with thousands of people in the voluntary sector, built connections with the health system, provided tailored support and directly funded local activities.
The programme's achievements have included:
The Thriving Communities Fund
The £1.8 million Thriving Communities Fund was an innovative programme of grants dedicated to supporting social prescribing activities in local communities, working in partnership with Arts Council England, Historic England, Money & Pensions Service, Natural England, NHS Charities Together, Sport England, and NHS England.
The Fund supported 37 projects across England, delivering 3,772 sessions. 414 volunteers participated, contributing an average of 300 volunteer hours per project.
The evaluation shows the life-changing impact of social prescribing, with activities supported by the fund reaching over 10,000 people.
The programme was successful in reaching groups more likely to experience poor health and less likely to get the health support they need:
- 45% had a long-standing health condition or disability – nearly twice the national rate
- 39% lived within the top 30% of the most deprived communities in England
- 34% were from black and global majority backgrounds
Regional Social Prescribing
We commissioned host organisations in each region to develop and deliver work under the Thriving Communities programme. The seven regional teams were made up of members of the local voluntary sector as well as representatives from our national partners – like Natural England and Sport England. Together these teams provided an amazing range of support to local organisations who are receiving social prescribing referrals, and hugely improved connections with the health system.
The work of our Regional Leads varied according to their local context, but included:
- The Learning Together programme, which brought together local voluntary sector organisations to develop skills, network and learn through webinars and Action Learning sets
- Regional webinars, workshops, conferences and newsletters – covering anything from funding opportunities to children and young people to green social prescribing
- Integrated Care System maturity reports, which provide an excellent snapshot of social prescribing across England and recommendations
- Setting up and taking part in regional networks with Local Infrastructure Organisations and health bodies
- Case studies and examples of project that are thriving
- Maps of local link worker distribution
- Surveys and reports to help us develop a ‘whole system approach’ to social prescribing
Examples of specific activity in different regions included:
- Supporting the Reading for Wellbeing project in the North-East, working with a network of libraries to host Community Reading Workers in disadvantaged areas
- Setting up financial literacy pilots in the East of England, in partnership with the Bank of England and the Money & Pension service, to enhance to local financial wellbeing offer
- Working with the Ubele Initiative, an African diaspora-led infrastructure plus organisation in London, to produce a report on Reimagining Social Prescribing: Perspectives and Experiences from Black and Racially Minoritised Communities
- Supporting park yoga schemes in the South-West
These are just a few of the groundbreaking accomplishments of the Thriving Communities teams across the country. A huge thank you to all our Regional Leads, and to the host organisations that supported them – as well as to the many partners that we’ve worked with.
Looking ahead
The Thriving Communities programme closed in September 2023, in line with our strategy, but we will continue to support social prescribing at a regional and local level. Through engagement with the new Integrated Care Partnerships and their constituent members of healthcare providers, local authorities, VCSE alliances and others, we will provide guidance and support to ensure social prescribing continues to develop and expand. Our new team of Senior Advisors will advocate for the benefits and value of good social prescribing, and help system leaders develop strategy, commission services and evaluate their approaches.
Our National Leads will continue to provide expertise on the natural environment, heritage, arts and culture and physical activity, as well as on social prescribing for older people and for children and young people. In each case, they work closely with large national organisations, local projects and NHS bodies.
We will continue our successful webinar series, focusing on different aspects of social prescribing and showcasing grassroots projects – from funding to supporting men’s mental health to setting up ‘buddying’ schemes.
We have a large and growing bank of resources on our website for use by grassroots organisations. These include our previous webinars, our Green Social Prescribing toolkit, funding advice, a new report on evaluation tools used by voluntary sector organisations to measure success, and a very wide range of case studies from the Thriving Communities programme and beyond.
We have also set up a new innovation network, for local, regional and national organisations looking to explore new opportunities in social prescribing.
Finally, we will build on the legacy of the Thriving Communities Fund through new funding opportunities for social prescribing at ‘grass roots’ level. We are launching the Power of Music Fund in November and are excited to be exploring new ‘shared investment funds’ for social prescribing to support local provision, across the country.
