Ways to Wellness UK

10/09/2026

More than 720,000 people die by su***de worldwide every year. Over half before the age of 50.

People living in the most deprived areas of England have a higher risk of su***de than those living in the least deprived areas. Health inequalities can impact not only people's physical health, but their mental health, as well.

Chronic pain, isolation, financial difficulties, housing insecurity, relationship difficulties and lack of support can all contribute to feelings of despair and emotional distress.

At Ways to Wellness, our pilot projects show how a 'whole person' approach, rather than treating one issue in isolation, can help people feel supported and better able to cope.

That's why we support ***dePreventionDay's mission to change the narrative on su***de, encouraging individuals, communities, organisations, and governments to have open, honest conversations about su***de and suicidal behaviour.

If you're worried about someone, ask directly. If you're struggling yourself, you don't have to carry it alone.

Find out more about World Su***de Prevention Day: https://www.iasp.info/wspd/

Find out more about Ways to Wellness: https://www.waystowellness.org.uk/

01/09/2026

What happens when you join up care and offer people a listening ear?

We spoke with Angela Telford, a Specialist Inpatient Pain Nurse with the North East and North Cumbria NHS ‘Waiting Well’ team, a programme that supports people on the waiting lists for surgery.

Ways to Wellness has played a key role in offering holistic non-medical support to patients who feel as if their life is on hold while they wait for their operation.

Angela told us: "The social prescribers really helped us. They're really looking at the person's whole life and supporting them in lots of different areas, not just one."

Our latest blog explains how active listening and non-medical, holistic care can support better outcomes. ⬇️

Hear from our Perioperative Social Prescribing (PROSPeR) project partner Angela Telford, a Specialist Inpatient Pain Nurse with the ‘Waiting Well’ team at The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust , who sat down with us to explain how the type of support advocated by Ways to Wellnes...

28/08/2026

This is a reminder that our office will be closed on Monday, 31 August, for the summer bank holiday.

We will reopen on Tuesday, 1 September.

Have a great long weekend.

27/08/2026

We have noticed a common theme across our ‘Telling the story of your impact using data’ sessions so far: many people know they are sitting on useful information, yet they don’t know how to do more with it.

It is one thing to show someone’s wellbeing has improved; it is another to show how:

️️➡️ Did they start getting out of the house more? ️
➡️ Did they become more physically active?
➡️ Did they return to work or volunteering?
➡️ Did they feel more able to manage their own health?

That wider picture matters because social prescribing rarely affects just one part of someone’s life in isolation.

By using to tell that story, we can best demonstrate the value of social prescribing to individuals, communities and the wider health and care system.

Join us either in-person in Middlesbrough or online via the link below.

Our latest blog from Sonia Townend talks about how organisations can harness the information at their fingertips to secure more opportunities ⬇️

https://www.waystowellness.org.uk/newsblogs/the-case-for-better-storytelling

24/08/2026

Last chance to attend our 'Telling the story of your impact using data training’ in person at Middlesbrough on Tuesday, 8 September.

So far, people have told us they feel more confident in handling their data and using it to tell their social prescribing story.

If you would like to understand how to set up a database, build a dashboard, collect case studies from clients or visualise your data in a more impactful way, sign up below. ⬇️

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1994003845178

Join us in person to learn how to share your social prescribing stories using data in a clear, powerful way!

20/08/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined our cohort at the 'Telling the story of your impact using data' training in Carlisle yesterday!

We asked people what they planned to change after doing our one-day training. They left with tons of brilliant ideas, including:

✅ Creating infographics to promote service to GPs
✅ Finding case studies to showcase real patient stories
✅ Building a database with evidence from their work
✅ Embedding outcome measures at the end of each intervention
✅ Building a dashboard to present information in a more interesting, easier-to-read way

If you would like to learn how to use your data in new and interesting ways, we still have training available in Durham, Middlesbrough and online.

Join the Durham training this Friday, 21 August ➡️ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1993659210366

Join the Middlesbrough training Tuesday, 8 September ➡️ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1994003845178

Join the online training Wednesday, 9 September ➡️ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1997496581045

14/08/2026

"The social prescribers are really looking at the person's whole life and supporting them in lots of different areas, not just one.

One of the major things about this project was that people had time to sit with these patients. If a patient has chronic pain, they often feel like they're being a burden to everybody; they think, 'Nobody's listening to me, nobody cares, nobody really believes that I'm in pain.'

The fact that we could fund this project and give the healthcare professionals and the social prescribers time to sit with these people and actually listen to them — the patients really felt validated and accepted, and they felt like the healthcare professionals understood them better.”

Angela Telford, Waiting Well NICP Operational Lead, speaks to Ways to Wellness about collaborating on the TAPER2 project, aimed at helping people reduce painkillers ahead of surgery, which we supported as part of our PROSPeR with Waiting Well (Perioperative Social Prescribing) project.

Read more about PROSPeR ➡️ https://www.waystowellness.org.uk/prosper

12/08/2026

Last chance to sign up for two of our in-person 'Telling the story of your impact using data' training sessions next week.

We have a few places left in Carlisle and Durham.

Sign up for Carlisle on 19 August ➡️ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1993654801178
Sign up for Durham on 21 August ➡️ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1993659210366

10/08/2026

Six months ago, our 'Living Well with Pain' group at Cruddas Park Surgery became fully patient-led. We're pleased to say it's still going strong.

Due to our test and learn approach, our support is often time-limited, so building sustainability into projects is never far from our thinking. It's wonderful to see this group continuing to be a place of real support long after we stepped back.

Learn more about how we drew on a Team-Based Learning approach to set the group up ➡️ https://www.waystowellness.org.uk/newsblogs/testing-an-idea-learning-together-and-leaving-something-behind

07/08/2026

Civil society will be ‘central’ to Andy Burnham’s devolution plans, according to the new Prime Minister.

This reflects a truth we've been demonstrating for more than 11 years: organisations close to communities aren't just delivery partners, they're strategic assets.

Their insight, relationships and evidence should shape how devolved systems are designed.

If devolution is to succeed, especially for regions such as the North East, whose levels of healthy life expectancy are lowest, civil society should not be consulted after priorities have been set.

It should help determine those priorities from the very start.

Read more from our CEO Sandra Mitchell-Phillips ⬇️ https://www.waystowellness.org.uk/newsblogs/we-agree-civil-society-at-heart-of-devolution

Hear from our CEO Sandra Mitchell-Phillips about our take on the Downing Street Partnerships Unit devolution update issued to civil society and charity leaders this week. “We are fortunate that Newcastle upon Tyne has been taking steps towards reducing health inequity by becoming a Marmot city, m