Social Prescribing Link Worker

Job Title: Social Prescribing Link Worker (SPLW)

Responsible to: Forest Green PCN Business Manager

Accountable to: Forest Green PCN Clinical Director

Hours of work: 16 – 20 hours per week.

Salary: £14.81 per hour

Forest Green PCN is seeking a dedicated, empathetic, and passionate Social Prescribing Link Worker to join our team. As a collaborative network of four member practices, we are looking for a proactive individual who is committed to understanding and supporting our patients.

Social prescribing empowers people to take control of their health and wellbeing through referral to non-medical 'link workers' who give time, focus on 'what matters to me' and take a holistic approach, connecting people to community groups and statutory services for practical and emotional support. Link workers support existing groups to be accessible and sustainable and help people to start new community groups, working collaboratively with all local partners. Social Prescribing particularly works for people with long-term conditions (including support for mental health), for people who are lonely or isolated, or have complex social needs which affect their wellbeing.

Take referrals from GP practices within primary care networks and voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations when required.

Provide personalised support to individuals, their families and carers to take control of their wellbeing, live independently and improve their health outcomes. Develop

trusting relationships by giving people time and focus on 'what matters to me'. Take a holistic approach, based on the person's priorities and the wider determinants of health. Co-produce a personalised support plan to improve health and wellbeing, introducing or reconnecting people to community groups and statutory services.

The role will require managing and prioritising your own caseload, in accordance with the needs, priorities and any urgent support required by individuals on the caseload. It is vital that you have a strong awareness and understanding of when it is appropriate or necessary to refer people back to other health professionals/agencies, when what the person needs is beyond the scope of the link worker role – e.g. when there is a mental health need requiring a qualified practitioner.

Draw on and increase the strengths and capacities of local communities, enabling local VCSE organisations and community groups to receive social prescribing referrals. Ensure they are supported, have basic safeguarding processes for vulnerable individuals and can provide opportunities for the person to develop friendships, a sense of belonging, and build knowledge, skills and confidence.

Referrals

1. Promoting social prescribing, its role in self-management, and the wider determinants of health.

2. Build relationships with key staff in GP practices within the local Primary Care Network (PCN), attending relevant meetings, becoming part of the wider network team, giving information and feedback on social prescribing.

3. Be proactive in developing strong links with all local agencies to encourage referrals, recognising what they need to be confident in the service to make appropriate referrals.

4. Work in partnership with all local agencies to raise awareness of social prescribing and how partnership working can reduce pressure on statutory services, improve health outcomes and enable a holistic approach to care.

5. Provide referral agencies with regular updates about social prescribing, including training for their staff and how to access information to encourage appropriate referrals.

6. Seek regular feedback about the quality of service and impact of social prescribing on referral agencies.

7. Be proactive in encouraging self-referrals and connecting with all local communities, particularly those communities that statutory agencies may find hard to reach.

8. Meet people on a one-to-one basis. Give people time to tell their stories and focus on 'what matters to me'. Build trust with the person, providing non- judgemental support, respecting diversity and lifestyle choices. Work from a strength-based approach focusing on a person's assets.

9. Be a friendly source of information about wellbeing and prevention approaches.

10. Help people identify the wider issues that impact on their health and wellbeing, such as debt, poor housing, being unemployed, loneliness and caring responsibilities.

11. Work with the person, their families and carers and consider how they can all be supported through social prescribing.

12. Help people maintain or regain independence through living skills, adaptations, enablement approaches and simple safeguards.

13. Work with individuals to co-produce a simple personalised support plan – based on the person's priorities, interests, values and motivations – including what they can expect from the groups, activities and services they are being connected to and what the person can do for themselves to improve their health and wellbeing.

14. Support community groups and VCSE organisations to receive referrals

15. Forge strong links with local VCSE organisations, community and neighbourhood level groups, utilising their networks and building on what's already available to create a map or menu of community groups and assets.

16. Encourage people who have been connected to community support through social prescribing to volunteer and give their time freely to others, in order to build their skills and confidence, and strengthen community resilience.

Data capture

1. Work sensitively with people, their families and carers to capture key information, enabling tracking of the impact of social prescribing on their health and wellbeing.

2. Encourage people, their families and carers to provide feedback and to share their stories about the impact of social prescribing on their lives.

3. Work closely with GP practices within the PCN to ensure that social prescribing referral codes are inputted to System One and that the person's use of the NHS can be tracked, adhering to data protection legislation and data sharing agreements with the clinical commissioning group (CCG).

Clinical Governance

1. Work with your line manager to undertake continual personal and professional development, taking an active part in reviewing and developing the roles and responsibilities.

2. Adhere to organisational policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety.

3. Work with the Clinical Director to access regular 'clinical supervision', to enable you to deal effectively with the difficult issues that people present.

Miscellaneous

1. Work as part of the team to seek feedback, continually improve the service and contribute to business planning.

2. Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in a timely and effective manner.

3. Duties may vary from time to time, without changing the general character of the post or the level of responsibility.

The postholder will have access to appropriate clinical supervision and an appropriate named individual in the PCN to provide general advice and support on a day to day basis.

Job Type: Part-time

Pay: £14.81 per hour

Expected hours: 16 – 20 per week

Benefits:

• Company pension

Application question(s):

• Are you happy to commute to the below practice locations?

Brook Street

Mitcheldean

GL17 0AU

Valley Road

Cinderford

Gloucestershire

GL14 2NX

Drybrook Road

Drybrook

Gloucestershire

GL17 9JE

Work Location: In person