Published date: 12 May 2022
Wellbeing hub for 50 social prescribing groups opens in Deepdale football stadium
On Saturday 9th April Lancashire Recovery College opened its doors to The Wellness Hub that will be home to 50 social prescribing groups creating a “hub of humanity” for Preston residents to access support and learning opportunities.
NHS Property Services (NHSPS) transformed the old café that sits within one of the stands of Deepdale Stadium, home to Preston North End, whose charity foundation partly funded the refurbishment.
The project is a great example of NHSPS’ social prescribing programme which bridges the gap between clinical care and community wellbeing services by creating internal and external space to raise the profile and impact of community-led health and wellbeing activities.
Opening the new hub was Dr Sakthi Karunanithi, Director of Public Health, Lancashire County Council who welcomed the addition to the local area praising the work done by all involved in renovating the site and preparing it for service delivery. The ribbon cut was followed by a Championship fixture between Preston North End and Queens Park Rangers.
NHSPS have worked closely with PNE Community & Education Trust to build on the extensive community and learning provision they already provide and will be developing the space in partnership to ensure the Deepdale community benefits from the strategic partnership.
Our Social Prescribing Community Manager, Rachael-Ann Taylor, went to visit The Wellness Hub. Watch the video to see the hub in action:
Kayley Riley, Senior Portfolio Optimisation Manager NHSPS, said:
“We are delighted to be opening the doors of the new Wellness Hub at Deepdale, this will play a key role in the delivery of community care based in the heart of Preston. The space was previously underutilised which was such a waste, but now with some joint investment from all partners it will be a home for Social Prescribing and Community lead activities. A fantastic achievement by all involved.”
