A recent editorial in The Lancet stated that “social prescribing undoubtedly has a part to play in addressing the social determinants of health” and highlighted “a need for effective interventions that bridge the gap between social wellbeing, physical health, and mental health”. It focused on the progress made in England and in more than 30 countries around the world.
However, it also questioned the strength of the evidence base for social prescribing, and highlighted the need to optimise the approach. In response, we wrote to The Lancet to draw attention to major recent research that was not referred to in the article. You can read our letter below.
We welcome The Lancet’s focus on the positive potential of social prescribing, and agree with its conclusions that there needs to be ongoing research and increased investment in voluntary and community groups.
Social prescribing is not a substitute for addressing the broader economic and social conditions that shape people’s health and wellbeing – but it can play a key role in the shifts we need to see in our approach to healthcare.
Read The Lancet Editorial and our response.
The Growing Evidence Base for Social Prescribing
The Lancet Editorial rightly highlights the potential for social prescribing to help address social determinants of health, but it risks underestimating the evidence for its effectiveness.
Although we recognise the need for more research, recent studies have addressed some of the key challenges you identify. A major National Institute for Health and Care Research-funded evaluation, which analysed 4 million patient records over 6 years, showed that employing social prescribing link workers was associated with a range of positive outcomes.2 The evaluation of the cross-government green social prescribing programme, with over 8000 participants, showed statistically significant improvements in mental health.3 System data analysis suggests that social prescribing is associated with reduced pressure on health-care systems.4
There is also a range of ongoing research, including the Social Prescribing-EU programme, which is carrying out randomised control trials in eight countries, and studies focused on social prescribing for children and young people.5
Social prescribing is not a panacea and is not designed to tackle all the social and economic challenges that affect people’s health. However, it is an important bridge between the health system and non-medical, community-based support.
As your Editorial concludes, investment in community-based support is key. We worked with more than 100 organisations to develop new funding models to support local charities, groups, and services, particularly where the need is greatest.6 Government support for these proposed models would help build on the success of what has been achieved so far.
Professor Kamila Hawthorne, Chair, The National Academy for Social Prescribing
Charlotte Osborn-Forde, Chief Executive, The National Academy for Social Prescribing
1 The Lancet. Social prescribing: bringing community back to health? Lancet 2025; 406: 103.
2 Wilding A, Agboraw E, Munford L, et al. Impact of the rollout of the national social prescribing link worker programme on population outcomes: evidence from a repeated cross-sectional survey. Br J Gen Pract 2025; published on June 5. https://doi. org/10.3399/BJGP.2024.0542
3 Haywood A, Dayson C, Garside R, et al. National evaluation of the preventing and tackling mental ill health through green social prescribing project: final report. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Sept 4, 2024. https://www.shu.ac.uk/centre regional-economic-social-research/ publications/gsp-final-report-march-2021-to june-2023 (accessed Aug 20, 2025).
4 O’Connell Francischetto E. The impact of social prescribing on health service use and costs: examples of local evaluations in practice. National Academy for Social Prescribing. Nov 15, 2024. https://socialprescribingacademy. org.uk/read-the-evidence/the-impact-of social-prescribing-on-health-service-use-and costs/ (accessed Aug 20, 2025).
5 Fancourt D, Burton A, Bu F et al. Wellbeing while waiting evaluating social prescribing in CAMHS: study protocol for a hybrid type II implementation-effectiveness study. BMC Psychiatry 2023; 23: 328.
6 The National Academy for Social Prescribing. Envisaging a social prescribing fund. Dec 11, 2024. https://socialprescribingacademy.org. uk/resources/new-report-calls-for-social prescribing-fund/ (accessed Aug 20, 2025)
