
Our Directors

Prof Helen Stokes-Lampard PhD FRCGP
Chair
As outgoing Chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP), Helen has shaped policy and led the strategy of the college to ensure the ‘voice’ of general practice and GPs is understood and represented. Helen will step down from the role in November. Helen is also a part-time GP partner and a Professor in the Medical School at University of Birmingham (Chair of undergraduate GP Education). Previously, she has held the post of RCGP Honorary Treasurer, the first female to hold this position. Prior to training as a GP, Helen worked in Obstetrics and Gynaecology, experience that shaped her clinical and academic inspirations. Helen is naturally enthusiastic and dynamic with a sense of humour and plenty of pragmatism.

Our Constitution
At our launch in October 2019, we were set up as a Company Limited by Guarantee (No. 12275770) with an initial team of six directors and the five key aims shown on this website. The aim now is to define our future work.
The next phase of the Academy development (between November 2019 and March 2020) will be to seek charitable status and recruit additional board members. Recruitment will seek representation from a number of sectors, including the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector.
It is important that the Academy is an independent, not-for-profit, charitable organisation, which is representative of all partners involved in social prescribing, providing a strong voice for the movement.
Moving forwards, we will work closely with stakeholders across sectors at local, regional and national level to co-produce the Academy work plan. This will build on the work to co-produce the format and purpose of the academy over the past year, which has included people with lived experience, VCSE organisations, social prescribing link workers, government departments, ALBs, arts, sports and nature-based organisations, and local government.
We plan to launch our full programme of work in the new year and look forward to working with partners across the country. We want to thank all those who have supported our journey so far and share our mission to develop and advance social prescribing.