Interview with a social prescriber: “Homeshare should be more embedded in social care – it’s an excellent initiative.”
For social prescribing, homeshare provision is a sustainable option which sits within health and social care and enables social prescribers to offer tailored support to enrich the lives of people across generations, and across local communities.
It is especially beneficial for older people living with mobility issues, Dementia or Parkinson’s, adults with support needs or disabilities, and younger people who have a housing need. Social prescribers can also utilise homeshare for families who have children or young adults with physical disabilities or learning difficulties such as autism, ADHD or Down’s Syndrome.
Senior Social Prescriber, Ruth Grainger, who works across the Borough of Wandsworth communities talks to Share and Care Homeshare about the growing collaboration between social prescribing and homeshare, which can support communities at scale.
Q: What is your opinion on homesharing?
Homesharing is an excellent initiative. The whole premise behind it is to keep people living in their own home as long as possible, it’s really person-centred and that’s what social prescribing is all about; putting people at the centre of their own care, and connecting people within communities. Homesharing and social prescribing share the same values.
Homesharing is an invaluable service, which delivers impact across many areas. It benefits older and younger people, and also has a knock-on effect across many different areas within the health and social care sector, more than you would imagine – and I think it should therefore be more embedded in social care.
Q: Is there a level of awareness of homesharing within social prescribing?
Absolutely. Within my team, we certainly discuss homeshare and quite a few colleagues signpost people to homeshare initiatives. For social prescribers, the key challenge is getting the message across to people that it’s ok to share your space with someone else, as initially people can be concerned about this aspect. What’s important is for us to explain and demonstrate the benefits of homeshare and the difference it can make to people’s lives.
Q: What is the main challenge around social prescribing and homesharing?
People can be concerned about having someone else live in their space, so one of the key aspects for us as social prescribers is to reassure people that homesharing is a safe and well-vetted service. It’s about helping people understand that homesharing is a positive move and there are endless benefits.
There is some great information from Share and Care Homeshare that we run through with people, and the videos showing householders and sharers are absolutely fantastic as you can see first-hand the difference it is making to people’s lives, and hear directly from those living in homeshare arrangements.
Q: Would you recommend the homesharing route to other social prescribers?
I would definitely recommend that social prescribers consider homeshare and make people aware of how it works, and why it works so well – explain the benefits, from the practical aspect, to the companionship of having someone else in the house to have a chat and a giggle with!
My tip is that it’s also worth persevering with people – they may initially knock the idea back, but keep it on the table and keep referring back to it if it suits their situation.
Also, remember it’s a very easy referral process for social prescribers. We can simply give Share and Care Homeshare a call, refer the individual, and they manage the rest from there.
If you’re a social prescriber and you would like to know more about homeshare, or refer someone, please get in touch with our team, we’d be happy to help!
You can find out more Here