The National Academy for Social Prescribing has joined 21 other health and research organisations from across Europe to launch the Social Prescribing-EU programme (SP-EU), which will test how social prescribing can support the health and wellbeing of vulnerable communities.
Funded by a €6.9 million grant from Horizon Europe and the European Commission, and led by Charité in Berlin, the five-year programme aims to improve access to health and care services for LGBTIQ people, refugees and first-generation immigrants and older adults who live on their own.
Social prescribing is a way of bridging the gap between primary healthcare and non-medical support. It enables doctors to refer patients to a Link Worker, who can get to know the patient and help them access groups, activities and services in their community.
This could, for example, mean helping someone who is struggling to cope with loneliness to join an art group or a walking group, where they can meet new people and do something they enjoy. Or it could involve supporting someone who cannot sleep because they are worried about debt to navigate the benefits system or access debt advice from a charity.
Social prescribing is a personalised approach, which aims to break down the barriers people face to having good health and wellbeing. However, there is more to do to ensure it is tailored to support people in vulnerable groups and meet their specific needs.
The SP-EU programme will include a randomised control trial of social prescribing across eight countries, focusing on LGBTIQ people, refugees and first-generation immigrants and older adults who live on their own. It will also carry out a qualitative analysis in five European countries, exploring the factors that help and hinder progress.
The study will build on positive evidence from existing social prescribing programmes across Europe and the world. Social prescribing has been an established part of NHS care in England since 2019, with more than 3,500 Link Workers now employed across the country. Robust evidence shows improvements in health and wellbeing, and wider social and economic benefits.
There are a wide range of non-medical factors that negatively affect people’s health, and social prescribing is one of the most promising approaches to mitigating these. If successful, the SP-EU programme could help to transform healthcare systems across Europe.
The programme was publicly launched on Social Prescribing Day (19th March).
