In England, the NHS Long Term Plan stated that over 1,000 trained social prescribing link workers (within primary care networks) would be in place by the end of 2021, then rising further with the aim that over 900,000 people can be referred to social prescribing schemes by 2024. 

Research suggests that pharmacists are mostly involved in social prescribing as referrers (i.e. identifying patients that could potentially benefit from social prescribing). Structured medication reviews, the Discharge Medicines Service and the New Medicine Service provide important opportunities for pharmacy professionals across the primary care pathway in England to identify and refer people to some form of community support.  

Examples of social prescribing interventions that pharmacy teams have carried out include community gardening initiatives; projects to address inactivity such as exercise classes; running mental health support sessions; combating loneliness; and increasing the quality of life for patients with diabetes through community education projects. 

In June 2022, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in collaboration with the National Association of Link Workers released a position statement on pharmacists and social prescribing to raise awareness and encourage appropriate referrals. Recommendations included the need to increase awareness of social prescribing and access to dedicated training for pharmacy teams. 

In Northern Ireland, there are pockets of good practice, one example being the IMPACTAgewell – Mid & East Antrim Agewell Partnership (meaap.co.uk). Another is the establishment of a social prescribing development board to map current provision and deliver a more sustainable approach. 

Social prescribing in Scotland is predominantly locally commissioned (e.g. weight management schemes) but national guidance on the use of social prescribing for mental health has been developed by NHS Health Scotland in partnership with the Self-Management and Social Prescribing National Advisory Group. 

In Wales, social prescribing is an area of increasing activity with direct relevance to public health where community pharmacies, although not formally involved, still play an important role.