How Green Social Prescribing Could Save Your Parks Service

Green Social Prescribing (GSP) offers the opportunity to link the health benefits of parks to those who would most gain by spending time in a park. This benefits:

• The patient/resident – a prescription for nature is better than one you take
  to the chemist

• The NHS – because it saves money                               

• The GP – whose workload is cut

• Deliverer of activities – who has more participants and a strengthened case for funding and support for the activity

• The park – which has more users, whose health is being improved

• The parks service – which can make the case for parks to the health sector and the council, and secure/protect funding

To find out more about the potential, benefits and processes of Green Social Prescribing. Read the full essay.

June 2022

By John Thorne, Parks for Health Partnership Manager, Camden and Islington.