Social prescribing: the link in the chain

Sometimes the simplest things can make the biggest difference; it just takes someone to bring everything together and that’s what our social prescribing service are best at. Karen from the team met a gentleman from Iran who is an asylum seeker living in our area and speaks very limited English. He is keen to learn the language and to keep fit, so Karen went with him to Our Warm Welcome where he could find a Farsi speaker to interpret for him. She helped him to get a gym membership and found that he had appointments to go to the college to enrol on courses.

He was keen to carry on going to Our Warm Welcome to join the English conversation group but he struggled to get there and to college for his course, which was an hour’s walk away. Karen asked around if anyone had a bike he could use and found one at Wonderland, but it needed mending so Karen got in touch with Pedal Power, who pointed her in the direction of the Bike Shed. The Bike Shed mechanics soon had the bike in roadworthy shape and Karen sorted out lights, pump, helmet, lock and a hi-vis vest to make sure the client could cycle safely and that his bike would stay where he left it.

“It’s a great outcome for him,” says Karen. “Now he can get to his classes and improve his English, go to the gym and keep physically healthy and meet up with friends who speak the same language so he doesn’t feel so isolated. It’s brilliant to see how all the fantastic groups in St Helens have played their part in helping him.”