National Academy for Social Prescribing Invitation to Tender – Evidence and Practice Sharing Lead
We are seeking a freelance partner or organisation to coordinate the work of academic partners to build the social prescribing evidence base and share good social prescribing practice across the social prescribing community over 10 days a month during the period of October 2020 and 31st March 2021. View here for more information and to view the key responsibilities required for this application. Email your applications to enquiries@socialprescribingacademy.org.uk by 5pm Wednesday [...]
The National Academy for Social Prescribing receives registered charity status
The National Academy for Social Prescribing is very pleased to announce its successful application to the Charity Commission, becoming the first charity dedicated to the development of social prescribing. Speaking at the meeting of the board of Trustees, Chair, Helen Stokes-Lampard commented: “Trustees and staff are delighted that NASP has now been registered as an independent charity, and we are committed to supporting social prescribing to thrive across the [...]
£5 million for social prescribing to tackle the impact of COVID-19
The National Academy for Social Prescribing (NASP) has been awarded £5 million in funding to support people to stay connected and maintain their health and wellbeing following the COVID-19 pandemic. The National Academy for Social Prescribing (NASP) has been awarded £5 million in funding to support people to stay connected and maintain their health and wellbeing following the COVID-19 pandemic. Social prescribing to help tackle loneliness, improve wellbeing [...]
National Academy for Social Prescribing – Invitation to Tender for Regional Coordination
We are working with partners to develop new regional development programmes to help local voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) groups provide innovative support for communities most impacted by COVID across England, including London, South East, South West, Midlands, East, Yorkshire & North East and the North West. This work will help social prescribing link workers to connect people most impacted by COVID to community support. Our partners include [...]
Orchestras and UK health and wellbeing
Sarah Derbyshire MBE from Orchestras Live; Fiona Harvey from Association of British Orchestras and Matthew Swann from City of London Sinfonia give and update on how the UK’s professional orchestras are playing an increasingly active role in this country’s health wellbeing and social care sectors. It might come as a surprise to learn that the UK’s professional orchestras are playing an increasingly active role in this country’s health, wellbeing [...]
Academic Partners Collaborative
We are inviting academic partners to work with us to establish a social prescribing academic partners collaborative, map the existing social prescribing evidence base and curate on the NASP website, create easy evidence summaries, identify evidence gaps and work with partners to prioritise future research needs with research commissioners. The closing date for applications is Friday 21 August 2020. View our Academic Partners Collaborative Brief. If you have any [...]
Finance Specification
We are looking for partners to work with us to set up financial, payroll and IT systems. It is likely that NASP will create up to 20 staff/ secondee roles within the first year of operation. If you can offer all or any of these services, please submit an expression of interest to enquiries@socialprescribingacademy.org.uk by 5pm Friday 31 July. View our finance specification on our website. If you have [...]
Communications Specification
We are looking for a communications service to help support the exciting and extensive work that the National Academy of Social Prescribing has planned. The brief outlines the support that we are looking for to help us ‘make some noise’ about social prescribing and all that it has to offer. If you are similarly enthused and engaged by this challenge, we would love to hear from you. For more [...]
Building inclusive communities
As the first trustees of NASP, we launched our first strategy just three months ago, with the following opening line: “We want people to be able to live the best life they can. A life that is defined by them. Not one that is limited by the place in which they live, who they are, or the resources available to them.” Social prescribing presents a major opportunity to break down [...]
The real value of care: a reflection for Carers’ Week 2020
Bev Taylor, from NHS England’s Personalised Care team, has played a major role in gaining mainstream support for social prescribing across the NHS in England. Here she reflects on what she learnt from the unsung heroes in her life, who taught her what caring really means. When I started working on social prescribing at NHS England, nearly five years ago, I’d just lost my dad and my mum-in-law, [...]
Never Waste a Crisis
Tim Anfilogoff, Head of Community Resilience for Herts Valleys CCG gives his reflections on Social Prescribing and Covid-19 in West Hertfordshire. In 2014, Herts Valleys CCG, in partnership with Herts County Council, commissioned four voluntary organisations to provide six community navigators. This service was built on HertsHelp which is a county-wide single point of access for expert triage to 12,000 entries on the community database. The navigators [...]
Southbank Centre – Art by Post
This month Southbank Centre launches Art by Post, a unique scheme which aims to reach people who are isolated and unable to access the internet by delivering free booklets of creative activities through the letterbox. The poetry and art activity booklets are designed for people living with dementia and long term health conditions, and are designed to keep participants’ minds active, help them feel connected to others and improve [...]
Making people’s days
Alistair Clarke, MBE FRSA is chair of Social Enterprise Solutions writes about what it's like working in a social prescribing project during COVID 19. “I can’t use a computer. My husband could, but he died last November.” I’m on the phone to a woman in Blackpool in her 70s and I’m working on a social prescribing project in partnership with a number of GPs’ surgeries. I’m checking on [...]
The proven power of reading
Karen Napier, CEO of The Reading Agency, explains how the national charity’s Reading Well programme is tackling life's big challenges through the proven power of reading. Recent research from our World Book Night campaign shows that reading is proving more important than ever as the nation adjusts to life in lockdown. Nearly 1 in 3 people surveyed last month told us they are reading more in social isolation [...]
Coronavirus (Covid19) pandemic validates the role of Social Prescribing Link Workers
This blog from Christiana Melam, CEO of the National Association of Link Workers sets out a compelling argument for recognising the role of social prescribing link workers in responding to the COVID pandemic. If you are interested in finding out more about the organisation and how they support link workers join @nalwuk #LinkWorkerChat on 5th May, 6-7pm to learn more or contribute to discussions. Coronavirus (Covid19) pandemic validates the [...]
How Advicenow can help you help others
Amanda Finlay CBE, Chair of Law for Life, which runs Advicenow has written a helpful blog which provides a summary of lots of useful resources. This information may be particularly helpful for social prescribing link workers during the COVID period. Firstly I want to say thank you! As an older person staying at home in the coronavirus crisis, I want to thank all the social prescribing link workers [...]
Music for people living with dementia in the Covid-19 lockdown
Grace Meadows, Senior Music Therapist and Programme Director, and Phil Hope, Senior Associate at Music for Dementia have written a blog to show how Music is a big part of Social Prescribing and how Music for Dementia 2020 is helping during COVID-19. 850,000 people living with dementia and their carers are inevitably experiencing increased anxiety at being unable to spend time with relatives and loved ones at this time. [...]
Time to Come Together
Nicola Gitsham, Head of Social Prescribing for NHS England and Improvement has given us some useful tips and resources to share with Link Workers in her new role within in NHS England and Improvement Last week saw my official first day as Head of Social Prescribing at NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE). I’ve been informally leading the work since Christmas, but I was looking forward to a [...]
National Emergencies Trusts provides £5 million funding to local groups responding to COVID 19.
The National Emergencies Trust has announced £5m of funding will be distributed to front line charities today helping those most impacted by the coronavirus outbreak, thanks to the generosity of the UK public, major charitable trusts and corporate donations. So far, around half of the £16m total pledged to the Coronavirus Appeal has been given out and will be distributed through the UK Community Foundations to 45 local community [...]
Helpful new COVID 19 resource – Personalised Wellbeing Plan template
We’re keen to support people through COVID 19, particularly where people are self-isolating or shielding and need support to stay safe at home. We’ve worked with partners to provide a Personalised Wellbeing Plan template, which can be used by anyone who is self-isolating, family, friends, healthcare professionals and carers to summarise a person’s personal circumstances, and the things that matter most to them at this time. Personalised wellbeing plan [...]
Practicing Distance, Seeking Connection
James Sanderson, CEO of National Academy of Social Prescibing. In difficult times, we all need the ability to talk, to connect, to feel reassured that we are not alone. Many of us will have strong support networks available to us and positive family relationships. But others will lack these connections for a myriad of reasons. We know that the impact of this can be devastating, and that people [...]
Coronavirus
The facts We want to support people who are working in communities to reduce the impact of Coronavirus and its effect on daily life. The starting point is to make sure that we all have correct and current information. The links below are regularly updated: The UK Government’s coronavirus information For individuals, you can find medical guidance on coronavirus on the NHS website. For clinicians, the NHS England and Improvement website [...]
Launching our vision, a social revolution in wellbeing
In their second blog, Prof Helen Stokes-Lampard and James Sanderson discuss NASP's strategic plan, A Social Revolution in Wellbeing We believe that being able to connect and strengthen relationships between people and their communities is perhaps more important than ever right now. People have a myriad of individual gifts that can sometimes go unnoticed by services if the focus is purely on what’s wrong. And, whilst some people have [...]
£1 million investment in local communities announced, to help people live healthier lives
The National Academy for Social Prescribing has today launched its blueprint for supporting social prescribing across the country which includes a £1 million fund and backing from major national partners – Arts Council England, National Garden Scheme and Southbank Centre. The Academy also calls on each local NHS body to develop a local social prescribing plan to outline how they will work with local community groups and the voluntary [...]
Signposting the way ahead for social prescribing
In her first blog for NASP, Prof Helen Stokes-Lampard takes a quick look back - and signposts the way ahead for social prescribing. We have a bold ambition. We want to enable people to live the best life they possibly can by supporting them to connect with their community in a meaningful way. It has been a very busy few months for all of us at NASP, as we [...]
Board meeting confirms next steps for NASP
The NASP Board had its first full meeting today (Wed 18 December) and signed off the important next steps for the Academy. Some of the immediate priorities are to secure the future format of the organisation and it was agreed that an application for charitable status would be made in the new year. Having supported the Academy to reach this stage, it was agreed that Jonathan Marron and James [...]
Social prescribing: new national academy set up
The academy will help more people benefit from arts, sport and leisure activities across the country Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock is setting out his ambition for every patient in the country to have access to social prescribing schemes on the NHS as readily as they do medical care. Social prescribing involves helping patients to improve their health, wellbeing and social welfare by connecting them to community [...]
Army of workers to support family doctors
An army of advisers will be recruited to help patients live fitter, healthier lives and combat anxiety, loneliness and depression under plans to ramp up social prescribing set to be launched by NHS England this week. Around half of GP appointments are not directly related to medical conditions, according to experts. Growing evidence shows that referrals to community services such as exercise or art classes, history groups and even [...]
The power of the arts and social activities to improve the nation’s health
Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock speaks to the King's Fund about the benefits of social prescribing. I love my job. I get to see brilliant doctors and inspirational nurses, courageous paramedics and committed carers. I get to meet people who save lives each and every day. Yet, there were some perks to being Culture Secretary. You’d get to go to the Tate, the National, the Royal Opera [...]
For More Information
Find out more about social prescribing with NHS England at www.england.nhs.uk/personalisedcare/social-prescribing
Contact the National Academy for Social Prescribing at enquiries@socialprescribingacademy.org.uk
