Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) NHS England and (b) social care providers on increasing opportunities for social prescribing.

The Department and NHS England work closely together to deliver the social prescribing work programme.

I met with representatives of the National Academy for Social Prescribing (NASP) on 13 January, a key stakeholder in this field. At the meeting, I confirmed that the Department recognises the value of social prescribing for addressing the wider determinants of health. The NASP shared reports on the evidence for social prescribing and future opportunities for the development of work that they have identified.