Going Local Service Criteria

Going Local is your local Social Prescribing service, available to residents of Adur & Worthing who are registered with a GP in Adur or Worthing. 

GP's and local agencies can make referrals to the Going Local Social Prescribers who will then connect people to local services and support. Self-referrals are also accepted.

During our initial contact we have up to an hour to explore the person's worries and how these are impacting on their health and wellbeing. We can help the person focus on what matters most to them through shared decision making and support planning.  We connect people to community groups and agencies for practical and emotional support. We collaborate with local partners and community groups to ensure people are able to access the services they provide. 

We may operate a waiting list dependent on current referral numbers. Where possible we will initially contact the person referred within 10 working days. 

A Social Prescriber might help a person with signposting and referring onto

• Accessing ways of improving emotional wellbeing, this might include befriending schemes, peer support, or arts and leisure activities.
• Social aspects of healthy living which include diet and exercise, as well as non-medical support to manage a long term health condition.
• Finding employment, volunteering opportunities, or learning a new skill.
• Tackling money, housing, or benefit issues.
• Practical support at home and keeping safe.
• Becoming digitally included.

Who we work with

• Ages 18+
• Those who have consented to the referral.
• People who are experiencing loneliness, low level mental health needs or have difficulties managing health conditions. 
• People who would like to be supported to connect with local organisations and services.

We are not able to work with people who are

• People under the age of 18.
• People in Emotional/Mental Health distress or in Mental Health Crisis. We can however explore other issues that could be exacerbating a Mental Health condition - in these circumstances they would require existing Mental Health support to be in place.
• Known to be aggressive or violent.
• Unable to make their own decisions. If someone has a carer who is their point of contact, we can support them via their carer. In these cases can the referral be made in the name of the carer. 
• In need of Safeguarding Intervention - please contact Adult Social Care (01243) 642121 in this circumstance. 
• In active addiction without specialist support in place.
• We cannot hold people on our caseloads where they are not ready to engage with another service/other services.
• Where we are not the suitable service for someone who is referred, we will instead inform the referrer of the appropriate place to connect the person too. This includes the Young Person Social Prescribing project for people aged 8 to 17. 

As Social Prescribers we

• Empower people to make changes themselves. 
• Offer tailored support for a wide range of issues that affect a person's health and wellbeing.
• Respect the person's choice and decisions - based on what matters to them rather than referral reasons.
• Help someone to build a network of support.
• Provide short term interventions.

What we are not

• We are not support workers, we provide a short-term intervention to help someone build a network of support - and then we finish our engagement. 
• A Social Prescriber is not a Social Worker.
• We are not Medical Professionals or Counsellors.
• We do not provide financial, benefits or debt advice but can refer to the correct services for this support.
• We are not an Advocacy service. 
• We are not an emergency service.
• We are not a Form filling service.
• We do not case manage for other services.