Newsletter - December 2022

LONDON SOCIAL PRESCRIBING NEWSLETTER
ISSUE 23/December 2022

Hello all,

We hope that you are keeping warm and preparing for the Christmas break.

In this month's newsletter we would like to share a few important updates including the exciting news that Healthy London Partnership and Healthcare Consulting have come together as a single team, called ‘Transformation Partners in Health and Care’ (TPHC) (You can read the full announcement here).

TPHC (formerly HLP), through coproduction with partners across the system, have launched a new toolkit for tackling health inequalities in primary care through social prescribing, care coordination and health and wellbeing coaching.

The practical online resource will support GPs, practice managers and others working in primary care establish a thriving workforce that includes social prescribing link workers, care coordinators and health and wellbeing coaches who can focus on the wider social, economic and environmental factors that affect people’s health and wellbeing.

It includes the latest policies, guidance, best practice, checklists, and case studies that will support Primary Care Networks and managers to embed these non-clinical roles to ensure those most in need of support get it in the right place, at the right time, and by the right person.

As always, please feel free to contact us if you have any questions, suggestions or innovative ideas related to social prescribing!

Thank you for all of your hard Social Prescribing work throughout 2022. We wish you amazing, peaceful Christmas that would allow you to embrace this extraordinary time of the year and restore energy to welcome the New Year 2023!

Lianna Martin & Justyna Sobotka

OPPORTUNITIES TO GET INVOLVED

Complete the SPLW temperature check form here.

Being a Social Prescribing Link Worker is a complex and demanding professional role. Although we hope you enjoy your daily tasks and find the role very rewarding, we are also aware of aspects you may struggle with. Therefore, we would like to gain more insight into your experience and perception of the role. We would appreciate if you could spend one minute every month providing information on some aspects of your work in this anonymised form.

SPLW Temperature Check

Become a London Social Prescribing Advocate!: If you are a proactive Social Prescribing Link Worker who would like to contribute to development of Social Prescribing at London regional level click here to learn more and/or to join the SP Avocates Programme. If you have any questions or suggestions related to the programme please contact Justyna Sobotka (j.sobotka@nhs.net).

Contribute to the London Social Prescribing Map: We are working on a new, advanced version of the London SP Map - please get in touch with Justyna Sobotka (j.sobotka@nhs.net) if you would like to get involved.

Join Children and Young People's Social Prescribing in London: Please complete this form if you would like to join the next CYP SP Community of Practice meeting!

Social Prescribing in Secondary Care: Please contact Mollie McCormick if you’re involved with and/or are aware of work directly impacting SP in secondary care, and would like to be involved in a Community of Practice or have a case study of your work developed.

Social Prescribing Innovators Programme (SPIP): Halfway through the programme of support, the 12 front line SP innovation projects across London are making excellent progress in developing a solution to their key challenge! Participants have been trained on QI, Coaching and Evaluation and have been offered Mentoring from external companies.

PCN Toolkit: Using Social Prescribing, Health Coaching and Care Coordination to tackle health inequalities:
TPHC (formerly HLP) have recently launched a comprehensive PCN toolkit to practically support GPs, practice managers and others working in primary care in two main areas:

Using the three personalised care role to tackle health inequalities
Embedding the three roles in systems working with complexity and deprivation

Read more here and browse the toolkit in our Personalised Care section!

Lived experience development opportunity: The Peer Leadership Development Programme is an exciting opportunity for people who want to learn more about personalised care, peer support and coproduction and may potentially be interested in influencing change. The programme helps people with lived experience of health and care develop in their knowledge, confidence and skills to engage with the health system, influence change and provide leadership and empowerment for coproduction and peer support in their local communities and within healthcare. It provides an introduction to the health system, personalised care and opportunity to become part of a community of people making a difference to health and care. The programme is free for people to take part in and can be started straight away here - Click here to join the Peer Leadership Development Programme.

SOCIAL PRESCRIBING
Special Thanks And Recognition

THE QUESTIONS YOU ARE ASKING

Many of you get in touch with pertinent questions many other SPLWs are also wondering. We hope to answer the popular ones here. Email us to submit any burning questions!

Q20: How to contribute to the London SP Map?
A20: Contributing to the London SP Map is easy! You can complete your entry in 5 steps.

See slides available via the FutureNHS Collaboration Platform for a more detailed explanation of each step.

Sign up here using your email address, Twitter or Google account and email Justyna your display name to be added as a new user and to receive a confirmation email.
Click on the Healthy London Partnership text in the right column or access one of the Map shortcuts below.
Use the Add Contribution button located at the top of the sidebar. You can use the magnifier icon to set the exact address location to set your pin on the map.
Choose a category that best describes your entry and input the details of your SP service, Case Study or Proactive Social Prescribing in the fields provided. You can also add media files such as documents (reports, pdf files, newsletters), pictures and videos. It is a great way to showcase your best practice and achievements.
Click on the Add Contribution button to complete the process. Your entry will be sent for approval and added to the Map.

You can always edit your profile information, login, password or contribution or delete your entry. If you have any questions or you’d prefer to add your contribution with our support please email Justyna (j.sobotka@nhs.net).

USEFUL RESOURCES

The Social Prescribing Collaboration Platform is a place for Social Prescribing Link Workers (SPLWs) working with Primary Care Networks (PCNs) to access key documents and updates about Social Prescribing to support you in your role.
SPLWs can also access resources such as webinar recordings, case studies and forums to seek peer support, and link with their regional networks and colleagues. The Collaboration Platform also hosts information relevant to colleagues working as commissioners of Social Prescribing services, PCN staff and ICS/STP staff. Subscribe to NHS England’s Social Prescribing Network and Collaboration Platform.

4th International SPN Conference Resources.
All sessions from the 4th International Social Prescribing Network Conference in March 2022 are now available on YouTube and an abstract book is available to download here.

Supporting our NHS people through menopause: guidance for line managers and colleagues.
NHS England has launched national guidance for line managers and colleagues experiencing menopause. Three in five people believe their menopause symptoms have a negative impact on them at work and nearly one in three said they had been unable to go into work because of their symptoms. With over 75% of the NHS workforce being women, it is essential that we create a supportive working environment so that our NHS people can stay and thrive through the menopause. The guidance can be used alongside existing guidance and policies and includes practical tips and advice for line managers and colleagues: NHS England » Supporting our NHS people through menopause: guidance for line managers and colleagues

Creating spaces for community and patient wellbeing
The Health Creation Alliance (THCA) have shared a report drawing on learnings from the community on how to create spaces for wellbeing. Taken from 10 different communities that typically experience poor health outcomes, the learnings have informed 12 recommendations for creating spaces that support communities to create health.

Proactive Social Prescribing.
This video provides an overview of proactive social prescribing, benefits and implementation.

Personalised Care Roles in Primary Care
This video provides an overview of each of the three roles (Social Prescribing Link Workers, Care Coordinators and Health & Wellbeing Coaches), their unique contribution and what the day to day role might be like.

NCL Training Hub: spotlight on Personalised Care
What is personalised care and why is it important?
Personalised care means people have choice and control over the way their care is planned and delivered. It is based on ‘what matters’ to them and their individual strengths and needs. This happens within a system that makes the most of the expertise, capacity and potential of people, families and communities in delivering better outcomes and experiences.
Personalised care represents a new relationship between people, professionals and the health and care system that enables people to have a voice, to be heard and be connected to each other and their communities.
The Personalised Care Institute provides CPD accredited training in Personalised Care via free, short online courses for all primary care staff. These include Shared Decision Making, Personalised Care and Support Planning and Core Skills.

Getting Through This Together campaign toolkit
Thrive LDN have developed a new shared campaign for London called Getting Through This Together in response to the increased cost-of-living pressures. It aims to encourage Londoners to strengthen their social networks with family members and friends, and trusted others in their community, as well as highlighting the professional support and advice services which are available.
Search the hashtag #ThroughTogether on Twitter for more information.

Call for sharing! - Grassroots and SP services supporting wellbeing for mental health
Great Mental Health Day is on January 27th 2023. The day aims to get Londoners talking about mental health and wellbeing and raise awareness about the great services, groups and initiatives that exist locally. This year’s theme is celebrating the power of community kindness and using the day as opportunities to tell the story of how Londoners have come together for one another during a challenging year. You can find our more about the day here.

Please reach out to Becky Downer or James Ludley if you are aware of any grassroots organisations or SP services doing great work in this area who might be happy to share resources, tools or services!

Moving Healthcare Professionals Programme - Evaluation. Access here.

The Moving Healthcare Professionals Programme (MHPP) is a national programme led by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) – formerly Public Health England (PHE) – in partnership with Sport England. Its aim is to support healthcare professionals to increase their knowledge and skills, and incorporate physical activity within routine care to support quality improvement and better patient outcomes.

Proactive, personalised care for High Frequency Users
Find out more about how Social Prescribing Link Workers, Health & Wellbeing Coaches and Care Coordinators can support those at higher risk of hospital admissions and help reduce winter pressures in the recently published guidance by NHSE: Supporting High Frequency Users (HFU) through proactive personalised care, delivered by Social Prescribing Link Workers, Health and Wellbeing Coaches and Care Coordinators.

Reducing Loneliness in Over 50s through Social Prescribing – Webinar Summary
London Plus recently co-hosted a webinar alongside the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. The webinar was titled ‘Reducing Loneliness for Over 50s through Social Prescribing’. In short, this webinar focused on tackling loneliness in older people using social prescribing activities. The topic was delivered by Neighbourly Lab, Age UK Barnet and Age UK Islington. The slides for each presentation, along with brief descriptions of each, are available here.

EVENTS, WEBINARS AND TRAINING

09/01/2023 - 19/02/2023: Getting Started with Large Scale Change.

10/01/2023, 9:30 - 11:00 am: Financial Wellbeing and Social Prescribing.

11/01/2023, 1:00 - 2:30 pm: More Than an Art Group: The Relationship Between Creative Health and Social Prescribing.

25/01/2023, 12:00 - 1:00 pm: National Academy of Social Prescribing International Evidence Collaborative.

30/01/2023, 12:30: Understanding musculoskeletal health for social prescribing.

Leadership Learning Zone (LLZ)
The Leadership Learning Zone is a flexible e-learning resource that takes a learner on an interactive exploration of key areas of leadership development. LLZ offers 22 Modules including interactive activities to support the leadership journey of learners with relevant, bite-sized modules. To access the London Leadership Academy LLZ please visit and register for free here: lon.leadershipnhs.uk

Deep End: Workshops
This series of workshops explores challenges faced by those working in deprived communities and focuses on practical ways to effect change. Access the list of workshops and dates by visiting the sign up page here.

HEALTH INEQUALITIES

CARE COORDINATORS
& HEALTH AND WELL BEING COACHES