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Hello everyone, 

Do you notice that autumnal feel to the air now? Did you manage to grow your own veg? Have you been outside in nature this summer?  It has been the weirdest few months I can ever recall but there is something very evocative about the cusp of summer into autumn and the feel of the air.  Despite what happens around us nature continues uninterrupted and there is something very timeless and calming about that.      

As we start September there is a real sense of working out how to do things differently.  The pandemic shone a light on some awesome people and communities and social prescribing everywhere excelled in supporting the most vulnerable, as ever.  We can hold on to the unexpected positive learning from the pandemic.  But there are still conundrums to work out, maybe now we are ready to face the fact that the road ahead is different and now more than ever collaboration and communication is essential. 

This newsletter focuses on reports that have gradually been coming out about the impact of Covid-19 particularly on community and the VCSE as well as ways forward.  I particularly want to invite you to a  free webinar next week which sees the launch of 2 reports. 

The first report is by TCV  - How Do We Sustain Social Prescribing In The Wake of Covid-19?. This was funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and I was delighted to work with Craig Lister and team on this report.  This report explores the funding pressures on social prescribing schemes before and during the Covid-19 pandemic.  As you know sustainable funding for social prescribing is dear to the SPN's heart and this report will make recommendations to the NHS, local authorities and the VCSE sector to ensure the social prescribing is funded and delivered in ways that are sustainable, collaborative and accessible to all.   


The second report  is from National Voices, which is the coalition of  health and social care charities in England. Their report - Rolling Out Social Prescribing - understanding the experience of the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector  - was commissioned  by NHS England to gather perspectives from the VCSE sector on the ongoing roll out of social prescribing link workers in the NHS. The report will make recommendations on key issues such as funding, measurement, partnership and inequalities.

So join us all on the 9th September 10-11.30 am at this free webinar to hear more.

In the meantime, I hope you are keeping well.
Keep social prescribing!

Marie
Co-Chair, Social Prescribing Network

 

ESTEEM Awards for 2020

I hope you have had chance to see the nominated people and their stories about their efforts of providing different aspects of social prescribing during the lockdown? 
 

 To see their stories, click here.

To make a nomination, fill in the online form.
 

Social Prescribing - Why I am flying the Flag in Medical School

Our latest blog is from Hardeep Lotay, a 5th year Cambridge University medical student on why he is passionate about social prescribing.  You can check it out here.
 

DEFRA & Social Prescribing

The latest plans from the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs includes a £4 million programme to support green prescribing, it is so exciting to see more government agencies recognising the power of social prescribing.  You can view a transcript of the speech from Environment Secretary Geroge Eustice here and the short video from DEFRA on Twitter.
 

How has the UK's Covid-19 response affected loneliness 

 

What works wellbeing has published How has Covid-19 affected loneliness? This briefing highlights findings from the Covid Social Study, as part of their ongoing data analysis work with Dr. Daisy Fancourt and her team at University College London.

Key findings
  • The least lonely people in the population actually got less lonely in the weeks following lockdown (the bottom line in the chart).
  • Living with others or in a rural area, and having more close friends or greater social support were protective factors. 
  • Loneliness increased over this period for people who already reported feeling lonely prior to lockdown.

Submission to House of Lords covid-19 committee on "Life beyond Covid

 

The Culture, Health and Wellbeing Alliance convened member and partner organisations to submit a response to the House of Lords covid-19 committee call. The Social Prescribing Network was delighted to be involved with this and you can acess the findings and the submission to the House of Lords covid-19 committee here
 

A health impact assessment of the 'staying at home and social distancing policy' in Wales in response to COVID-19 pandemic

Conducted by Public Health Wales, the Main Findings report provides a comprehensive appraisal of the potential health and well-being impacts of the Staying at Home and Social Distancing Policy (commonly referred to as ‘Lockdown’) on the population of Wales in the short, medium and long term.  It was carried out rapidly in real-time and draws upon learning from international evidence, latest data and intelligence and the views of expert stakeholders.

You can access the main findings, executive summary and supplementary information here,
 

Publications

Evidence for gardening approaches as a social prescription 
'What is the evidence for the impact if gardens and gardening on health and well-being: a scoping review and evidence-based logical model to guide healthcare strategy decision making on the use of gardening approaches as a social prescription' (2020) by M. Howarth et al. seems timely with the increased interest in gardening activities that have been seen during the lockdown.  The full paper is available via BMJ Open.

Calls for Evidence and Conference papers

Call for evidence - Migrant Health Guidance
Public Health England, in collaboration with University College London and the International Organisation for Migration, is undertaking an evidence review to inform their Migrant Health guidance and policy directions. 

The review will aim to address two main questions:

1. What social prescribing approaches have been evaluated for international migrants in the United Kingdom?

2. How have social prescribing approaches enabled primary healthcare, voluntary and community sector specialists to refer migrants to local and non-clinical services?

PHE are interested in  to know about social prescribing services providing food security, legal advice, financial advice, housing support, employment assistance and language services to address the upstream social determinants of health and wellbeing. They are also interested in how services have mobilised during these times of social upheaval instigated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Submissions should be sent to migrationhealth@phe.gov.uk by Friday 30 October 2020 at 5:30pm using the pre-specified criteria / formats. Details of this are available here https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/social-prescribing-approaches-for-migrants-call-for-evidence
 


Call for papers - Arts, Creativity & Health

Arts, Creativity and Health: A Special Issue for the Journal ‘Public Health’. Call for Papers - Deadline 30th September 2020

This special issue will welcome submissions from across the spectrum of arts and culture to include: performing arts (incl. music, dance, theatre), visual and creative arts (incl. painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, crafts, design, photography, film), museums, libraries (including reading and creative writing), archives and other types of heritage, such as archaeology and natural heritage, where creative tasks and activities have been invoked to support health and wellbeing. Through a mix of commissioned articles and a dedicated call for papers, we seek to attract submissions that cover original research and reviews across a diversity of topics including, but not limited to: intervention studies; programme evaluation; longitudinal studies; applied arts and health; arts-based methods, co-production and participatory methods and methods development; social prescribing; health humanities; topical papers (e.g. creative responses to the COVID pandemic).

Editors: Dr Hilary Bungay, Reader in Health Services Research, Anglia Ruskin University; Professor Helen Chatterjee, Professor of Biology, University College London; Professor Susan Hogan, Professor of Arts & Health, University of Derby.

Further details available at: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/public-health/call-for-papers/call-for-papers-arts-creativity-and-health



Call for papers - Rural Health and Care Wales Virtual Conference
The Rural Health and Care Conference, “Optimising Rural Health and Wellbeing, now and in the future”, is being held as a virtual conference this year over 2 days on the 10th and 11th November 2020.

You can download the paper submission form here. The closing date for submission of applications is 18th September 2020, please contact anna.prytherch@wales.nhs.uk for inquiries. 

Registration for the conference will be free of charge and registered delegates will get access to all presentations, both live and pre-recorded, and be able to vote electronically for poster submissions. Registration to attend will open in September 2020.
 


Other resources 
 
Parents 1st Conference 

Parents 1st UK is hosting a 2-day virtual event 13-15th October to hear how quality peer support, starting in pregnancy, makes a real difference to parents, babies, families and communities – even more so during these troubled times. Speakers include those leading and delivering successful initiatives, researchers, funders and innovators.

  • Come together to share learning about adapting to COVID-19
  • Explore sustainability and funding issues with a presentation from the National Lottery Community Fund
  • Hear the latest research about ‘what works’
  • Listen to inspiring stories from volunteers, pregnant women and fathers
  • Connect with practitioners who are coordinating initiatives
  • Join an on-line community that is passionate about perinatal peer support
For more information and booking, visit Eventbrite.
 
Do you have something you would like use to share? Tweet us @SocialPrescrib2 or send an email to socialprescribing@outlook.com

You can sign up to our newsletter and access resources on our website: www.socialprescribingnetwork.com

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