Social Prescribing Link Worker

Job description

Job responsibilities

Take referrals from GPs, nurses and other practice staff, from across the PCN.

Provide personalised support to individuals, their families and carers to access community-based activities and support that can help them to take control of their health and wellbeing through co-producing a simple personalised care and support plan and introducing people to appropriate activities, groups and services as described above

Managing and prioritising your own caseload, in accordance with needs, priorities and support required by individuals. It is vital that you have a strong awareness and understanding of when to refer people back to other health professionals/agencies, as appropriate or necessary.

Build ongoing relationships with local infrastructure organisations, community activities and support services to increase knowledge of the community support offer, and work collaboratively to develop effective partnership working to support the community offer to be sustainable, identifying gaps in provision, nurturing community assets and sharing intelligence on gaps or problems with commissioners and local authorities

Promote social prescribing as an approach across the PCN and wider agencies, including its role in supported self-management, in addressing health inequalities and the wider determinants of health, reducing pressure on statutory services, improving access to healthcare and improving health outcomes, and in taking a holistic approach to care.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Experience of working directly in a community development context, adult health and social care, learning support or public health/health improvement (including unpaid work)
• Experience of supporting people, their families and carers in a related role (including unpaid work)
• Experience of supporting people with their mental health, either
• in a paid, unpaid or informal capacity
• Experience of working with the VCSE sector (in a paid or
• unpaid capacity), including with volunteers and small community groups
• Experience of data collection and using tools to measure the impact of services.
• Experience of partnership/collaborative working and of building
• relationships across a variety of organisations.
• Ability to maintain effective working relationships and to promote collaborative practice with all colleagues.
• Ability to work flexibly and enthusiastically within a team or on own initiative.
• Knowledge of, and ability to work to, policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety.
• Have awareness and understanding of when it is appropriate or necessary to refer people back to other health professionals/agencies, when the persons needs are beyond the scope of the role for example, when there is a mental health need requiring a qualified practitioner.

Desirable

• Experience of working as a social prescriber.

Skills and Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge of the personalised care approach. Utilises the evidence base for social prescribing interventions and activities.
• 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 including asset-based community development and community resilience
• Knowledge of IT systems, including ability to use word processing skills, emails and the internet to create simple plans and .
• Able to work from an asset-based approach, building on existing community and personal assets.
• Understanding of the needs of small volunteer-led community groups and ability to contribute to supporting their development.
• Ability to organise, plan and prioritise on own initiative,
• including when under pressure and meeting deadlines.
• High level of written and oral communication skills.
• Confidently approaches difficult conversations.
• Able to provide motivational coaching to support peoples behaviour change.

Desirable

• Local knowledge of VCSE and community services.
• Knowledge of how the NHS works, including primary care and MDT working

Qualifications

Essential

• NVQ Level 3, Advanced level or equivalent qualifications or working towards
• Demonstrable commitment to professional and personal
• development

Desirable

• Training in motivational coaching and interviewing or equivalent experience

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 details

Employer name

Cheltenham Peripheral Network

Address

c/o Leckhampton Surgery

17 Mooreend Park Road

Cheltenham

Gloucestershire

GL53 0LA

Employer's website

https://www.leckhamptonsurgery.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)