Go back Chippenham, Corsham & Box Primary Care Network
Social Prescriber
The closing date is 20 September 2025
Social prescribing empowers people to take control of theirhealth and wellbeing through referral to link workers who give time, focus onwhat matters to me and take a holistic approach to an individuals health andwellbeing, connecting people to diverse community groups and statutory servicesfor practical and emotional support. Link workers also support existing groupsto be accessible and sustainable and help people to start new community groups,working collaboratively with all local diverse partners.
Social prescribing link workers will work as a key part ofthe primary care network (PCN) multidisciplinary team. Social prescribing canhelp PCNs to strengthen community and personal resilience, reduce healthinequalities (in relation to timely access and outcomes) and wellbeinginequalities by addressing the wider determinants of health, such as debt, poorhousing, and physical inactivity, by increasing peoples active involvementwith their local diverse communities. It particularly works for people withlong term conditions (including support for mental health), for people who arelonely or isolated, or have complex social needs which affect their wellbeing.
Main duties of the job
Action referrals.
Provide personalise support to individuals to take control of their health and wellbeing. Co-produce a simple personalised care and support plan.
Work with and build good working relationships with a diverse range of people and communities.
Educate non-clinical and clinical staff within their PCN on what other services are available within the community and how and when patients can access them.
About us
Formed in 2019, Chippenham, Corsham and BoxPCN is an enthusiastic, dynamic, and friendly PCN made up of 5 GP surgeries,serving 61,000 patients. We areconstantly striving to improve patient pathways and health care outcomes and weare developing innovative ways of working more closely together.
Job responsibilities
Referrals
Promote social prescribing, its role in self-management,addressing health inequalities and the wider determinants of health.
As part of the PCN multi-disciplinary team, buildrelationships with staff in GP practices within the local PCN, attendingrelevant MDT meetings, giving information and feedback on social prescribing.
Be proactive in developing strong links with all localagencies to encourage referrals, recognising what they need to be confident inthe service to make appropriate referrals.
Work in partnership with all local agencies to raiseawareness of social prescribing and how partnership working can reduce pressureon statutory services, improve health access and outcomes and enable a holisticapproach to care.
Provide referral agencies with regular updates aboutsocial prescribing, including training for their staff and how to accessinformation to encourage appropriate referrals.
Seek regular feedback about the quality of service andimpact of social prescribing on referral agencies.
Be proactive in encouraging equality and inclusion,through self-referrals and connecting with all diverse local communities,particularly those communities that statutory agencies may find hard to reach.
Meet people on a one-to-one basis, making home visitswhere appropriate within organisations policies and procedures. Give peopletime to tell their stories and focus on what matters to me. Build trust andrespect with the person, providing non-judgemental and non-discriminatorysupport, respecting diversity, and lifestyle choices. Work from astrength-based approach focusing on a persons assets.
Be a friendly and engaging source of information abouthealth, wellbeing, and prevention approaches.
Help people identify the wider issues that impact ontheir health and wellbeing, such as debt, poor housing, being unemployed,loneliness and caring responsibilities.
Work with the person, their families and carers andconsider how they can all be supported through social prescribing.
Help people maintain or regain independence throughliving skills, adaptations, enablement approaches and simple safeguards.
Work with individuals to co-produce a simple personalisedsupport plan to address the persons health and wellbeing needs based on thepersons priorities, interests, values, cultural and religious/faith needs andmotivations including what they can expect from the groups, activities, andservices they are being connected to and what the person can do for themselvesto improve their health and wellbeing.
Where appropriate, physically introduce people toculturally appropriate community groups, activities, and statutory services,ensuring they are comfortable, feel valued and respected. Follow up to ensurethey are happy, able to engage, included and receiving good support.
Where people may be eligible for a personal healthbudget, help them to explore this option as a way of providing funded,personalised support to be independent, including helping people to gain skillsfor meaningful employment, where appropriate.
Seek advice and support from supervisor and /oridentified individual(s) to discuss patient-related concerns (e.g., abuse,domestic violence, and support with mental health), referring the patient backto the GP or other suitable health professional if required. Support communitygroups and VCSE organisations to receive referrals
Forge strong links with a wide range of local VCSEorganisations, community, and neighbourhood level groups, utilising theirnetworks and building on whats already available to create a menu of diversecommunity groups and assets, who promote diversity and inclusion.
Develop supportive relationships with local diverse VCSEorganisations, culturally appropriate community groups and statutory services,to make timely, appropriate, and supported referrals for the person beingintroduced. Work collectively with all local partners to ensure communitygroups are strong and sustainable
Work with commissioners and local partners to identifyunmet diverse needs within the community and gaps in community provision.
Encourage people who have been connected to communitysupport through social prescribing to volunteer and give their time freely toothers, building their skills and confidence and strengthening communityresilience.
Encourage people, their families, and carers to providepeer support and to do things together, such as setting up new community groupsor volunteering.
Work sensitively with people, their families, and carersto capture key information, enabling tracking of the impact of socialprescribing on their health and wellbeing.
Encourage people, their families, and carers to providefeedback and to share their stories about the impact of social prescribing ontheir lives.
Support referral agencies to provide appropriate informationabout the person they are referring. Provide appropriate feedback to referralagencies about the people they referred.
Work closely within the MDT and with GP practices withinthe PCN to ensure that the social prescribing referral codes are inputted intoclinical systems (as outlined in the Network Contract DES), adhering to dataprotection legislation and data sharing agreements.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* NVQ Level 3, Advanced level or equivalent qualifications or working towards
* Training in motivational coaching and interviewing or equivalent experience
Experience
* Knowledge of the personalised care approach
* Understanding of the wider determinants of health, including social, economic, and environmental factors and their impact on communities, individuals, their families, and carers
* Understanding of, and commitment to, equality, diversity, and inclusion.
* Knowledge of community development approaches
* Local knowledge of VCSE and community services in the locality
* Knowledge of how the NHS works, including primary care
* Understanding of the needs of small volunteer-led community groups and ability to support their development
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Employer name
Chippenham, Corsham & Box Primary Care Network
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