The Government has published a new interim report in advance of its Major Conditions Strategy, setting out the case for change and a strategic framework.
The report highlights the role that social prescribing plays in person-centred care, and indicates that it can play a greater role in future:
“We will… need to ensure the health and care system is able to take a holistic approach to mental and physical health, supporting people to live well, maximising opportunities for recovery and rehabilitation where possible, and supporting people to manage their own health both through prevention and ongoing management.
“As part of this, we see significant possibilities in developing our approach to social prescribing, and will be exploring this further as part of the development of the major conditions strategy.”
The report describes social prescribing as “one of the most exciting and impactful developments in rehabilitation in recent years”, and commits to exploring the possibility of expanding it into new parts of the health and care system.
We welcome the recognition of the impact of social prescribing in the report, and the commitment to exploring how it could be expanded further.
The evidence clearly shows that social prescribing can support people living with a wide range of health conditions, play a key role in prevention and rehabilitation, and take pressure off the NHS.
With growing challenges facing the health system, we need to build on the successful roll-out of link workers, and ensure that more people can benefit. We look forward to working with the Government and the NHS on the next steps
