Social Prescribing Link Worker in Ely

The post is a full-time post (37.5 hours) and the successful candidate will be deployed across any of the practices within Ely PCNs, depending on service need. It may also be necessary to provide cross-cover for annual leave, sickness and similar situations.

This job is about helping people work out what they need to improve their health and wellbeing; and then supporting them to make practical and realistic plans to change things for the better. The role very much involves helping the person connect into their own local community networks of family, friends, and organisations, and helping the person navigate existing health and social care services when needed.

Over the last seven years, our Social Prescribing Link Workers have become key members of our GP Practice teams - highly valued and appreciated by the GPs and Practice team colleagues, and also by the frontline staff from other organisations working across the East Cambridgeshire Neighbourhood. We have seven Social Prescribers in our team, one for each of our seven Network practices. All Social Prescribers have regular support and supervision from our Lead Social Prescriber and Neighbourhood Practice Lead and are encouraged to develop their skills within the role.

Main duties of the job:

• The post-holder will work directly one-to-one with patients who need help with non-medical aspects of their lives. This will include supporting people with emotional, social and practical support, including:
• Getting help with housing
• Getting help with transport, mobility, and accessibility
• Accessing advice around money, debt, and benefits
• Managing forms and correspondence
• Making meaningful social connections
• Connecting with mental health services and social services
• Maintaining healthy lifestyles, activities, and exercise
• Finding and maintaining employment and meaningful activities
• Getting help with activities of daily living and assistive technology
• Getting help with any family or caring responsibilities they may have.

The Social Prescriber is not expected to be expert in each and every area above, but is expected to be a skilled generalist: able to rapidly get a good understanding of the patients' own views, needs, and wishes, know what help is available, and how to access it.

Furthermore, over time, Social Prescribers develop a detailed picture and understanding of their local community - what's available, what isn't, what works, and what doesn't and this intelligence helps identify areas of greatest need and the priorities for community development. Many of our Social Prescribers have had great success working with others to set up groups and activities in their local GP patches.

About us:

Primary Care Networks formed in 2019, grouping General Practices into local clusters, with the aim of supporting Practices and driving improvements in population health and wellbeing at a community level. Ely PCNs are a network of seven of the eight GP Practices in East Cambridgeshire and, in total, look after over 90,000 patients registered at one of our seven GP Practices.

Working alongside the GP Practice teams, Ely PCNs support 50 staff, including Social Prescribers, First Contact Physios, Care Coordinators, Health and Wellbeing Coaches, a Recovery Coach, Pharmacy Technicians, and Clinical Pharmacists. Ely PCNs has a full-time manager, a Lead Nurse, and GP Leads for Diabetes, Frailty, Heart failure, and Mental Health. We have two forward-thinking Clinical Directors and excellent relationships with our local partner organisations. We have a reputation as an innovative PCN that can successfully deliver.

Key aspects of the role:

• Provide personalised support to individuals, their families and carers to help them take control of their health and wellbeing, live independently and improve their health outcomes.
• Develop trusting relationships by giving people time and focus on what matters to them.
• Take a holistic approach, based on the person's priorities.
• Work with individuals to co-produce a simple personalised support plan to address the person's health and wellbeing needs based on their priorities, interests, values and motivations.
• Take referrals from a wide range of agencies.
• This is a community-focused post. The post-holder will be expected to work with clients and colleagues in the community across East Cambridgeshire.
• Access to their own vehicle is required.
• This is a hybrid role and will involve working from home, working from practices, attending meetings and working in the community depending on the needs of the service and the clients.
• All social prescribers are expected to attend every Wellness Hub / Solution Finding Group, in person.
• The role will require managing and prioritising your own caseload, working both independently and as part of a team.
• Draw on and increase the strengths and capacities of local communities, enabling local VCSE organisations and community groups to receive social prescribing referrals.
• Work collaboratively with all local partners to contribute towards supporting the local VCSE organisations and community groups to become sustainable.
• Educate non-clinical and clinical staff within their PCN multi-disciplinary teams on what other services are available within the community.
• Build relationships with staff in GP practices within the local PCN, attending relevant MDT meetings.
• Be proactive in developing strong links with all local agencies to encourage referrals.
• Meet people on a one-to-one basis, making home visits where appropriate.
• Help people maintain or regain independence through living skills, adaptations, enablement approaches and simple safeguards.
• Seek advice and support from the GP supervisor and/or identified individual(s) to discuss patient-related concerns.
• Forge strong links with local VCSE organisations, community and neighbourhood level groups.
• Work with commissioners and local partners to identify unmet needs within the community and gaps in community provision.

The above is not an exhaustive list.

Qualifications:

• Essential: GCSE grade C or equivalent in Maths and English.
• Desirable: Evidence of further general education (e.g. further GCSE passes, A-Levels etc), further training and qualifications relevant to the role, NVQ Level 3 in relevant role.

Experience:

• Essential: Two years experience of working in adult health and social care, or related sectors.
• Desirable: Experience of supporting people, their families and carers, working with the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise sector.

Personal Skills and Attributes:

• Essential: Enthusiastic about supporting individuals and communities, ethical, non-judgemental approach to working with people.
• Desirable: Excellent communicator, ability to build strong working relationships.

Knowledge:

• Essential: Good understanding of patient confidentiality, broad knowledge of how the NHS, voluntary and statutory sector works.
• Desirable: Knowledge of the personalised care approach, community development approaches.