Partnership Working in Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges:
[1] Senior Imroc Consultant
[2] Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy
[3] Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College
[4] Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College
[5] Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’
[6] Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Grenfell Recovery College’
[7] Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College
Introduction
The first Recovery and Wellbeing College in the UK was developed in 2009 and to date there are some 220 Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges across the UK and 26 other countries worldwide. Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges were co-created by mental health professionals and other subject experts, working alongside people utilising mental health services, and and co-production lies at the heart of their operation.
The 10 year health plan for England, ‘Fit for the Future’ (DHSC, 2025) emphasises the importance of a shift ‘from hospital to community’ and ‘from sickness to prevention’. Since their inception, Recovery and Well-being Colleges have done just this (see Perkins et al., 2012, 2018). They are based on educational principles and offer a range of co-produced, co-facilitated, recovery-focused courses that are designed to promote well-being, help people to manage the challenges they face and to move forward in their lives. Courses and workshops span a wide range of subjects, for example: understanding and managing mental and physical health problems, coping with other life challenges, rebuilding a life with mental and physical health challenges, promoting well-being, helping people to develop life-skills and confidence outside services, and developing social networks within communities. They are inclusive and open to all,
integrated with their communities and statutory mental health services and form a bridge between the two: people do not have to demonstrate particular ‘diagnoses’ or ‘degree of severity’ to access a College, neither do they have to be accessing particular services (see Perkins et al., 2018). They therefore act as a direct access, community based, prevention service for people experiencing challenges in life that might otherwise necessitate their using secondary services. At the same time, for those who already experience mental health challenges they have an important role in ‘secondary prevention’: helping them to rebuild their lives and make connections within their communities that promote recovery and decrease the likelihood that their difficulties will recur.
People can choose to use a Recovery and Wellbeing College, and select from a prospectus any courses they think will be helpful to them – they do not have to be referred by someone else or assessed for their ‘suitability’. Therefore they offer people greater choice and control, in line with the ‘10 year health plan for England’ vision of: “a patient-controlled NHS, that provides real choice, real control and real convenience for patients. (DHSC, 2025, p83). This choice and convenience is further enhanced by Recovery Colleges offering on-line as well as face to face courses, in line with the third key-shift outlined in the ‘10 year health plan’: the shift ‘from analogue to digital’ (DHSC, 2025).
Although initiated within the mental health arena, Recovery Colleges have expanded to include courses and workshops for those with a range of physical health conditions and people facing a variety of life challenges. They thus move away from a system “organised into multiple, fragmented silos” (DHSC, 2025) and “break down current barriers between … mental and physical health … health, social care, voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations and local communities, and … primary and secondary care.” (NHS England/National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health, 2019, p.4)
Importantly, partnership working is a ‘golden thread’ that should run through all facets of Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges. As the ‘10 year health plan for England’ states, no-one has a monopoly on expertise and good ideas: “GPs, NHS Trusts and NHS FTs, community services, independent sector providers, voluntary orgnisations and social enterprises have ideas, networks and drive to transform outcomes for patients.” DHSC, 2025, p82). Recovery and Well-being Colleges bring together the expertise of mental health and social care professionals with that of people who themselves experience mental health challenges, expertise of voluntary and community sector organisations (VCSE), and other local establishments (like libraries, local businesses and universities).
Whilst enormously beneficial, partnership working is not always easy, and partnerships may take many forms. This paper explores types of partnerships that have been successful for Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges, and how Colleges have identified partners with whom to work. It then explores the advantages and challenges of partnership working, and what makes a good partnership. Finally, the ways in which Recovery Colleges, working in partnership, support the realisation of the three key shifts required in the 10 year health plan for England (DHSC, 2025). In doing this, the paper draws on the experience of partnership working of 6 diverse Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges from across England:
Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College
Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy
Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College
Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College
Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Grenfell Recovery College’
Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’
(See Appendix for a brief description of these Colleges)
We hope that this paper will be of use to both Recovery Colleges who are wanting to develop and extend their partnership working as well as other parts of health and care systems who might learn from the experience of Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges.
Forms of Partnership Working
Across the 6 Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges, 4 different forms of partnership working can be discerned:
1. The College is set up as a partnership.
For example, the Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College was established in 2016 as a partnership between Inclusion Thurrock – part of Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (MPFT; provider of Individual Placement and Support for SMI, NHS Talking Therapies, and other mental health services in mid and south Essex), Thurrock and Brentwood Mind the local mental health charity, and Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT - the local mental health Trust, with responsibility for secondary care mental health services). As such it brings together expertise and a diverse workforce across voluntary sector, primary and secondary care including people with lived experience and mental health Occupational Therapists.
Earlier in 2025, the Recovery Colleges across mid and south Essex were recommissioned using the ‘structured dialogue approach under the Provider Selection Regime’[1]. This approach maintained the Partnership delivery model by bringing together the three incumbent providers whilst maintaining the involvement of Thurrock and Brentwood Mind and EPUT. There is huge strength in the partnership model; allowing partners to build on and scale up what is strong, maintain local knowledge and benefit from an expanded diverse workforce. However, resource and time is needed to develop a unified strategy which requires additional resource, time and has the potential to reduce flexibility. The new Partnership consists of Inclusion – part of MPFT, Provide CIC (Community Interest Company) and Trust Links.
[1] The Provider Selection Regime (PSR), effective from January 1, 2024, introduces a flexible approach to procuring healthcare services, which includes a specific process for dialogue and negotiation, particularly within the competitive process. This structured dialogue replaces the rigid, mandatory competitive tendering processes that were common under previous regulations, fostering collaboration and integrated care. See https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/the-provider-selection-regime-statutory-guidance/2. The College is provided by one agency but works in close partnership with a wide range of voluntary sector and community partners.
For example, Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College is part of South West Yorkshire Partnership Foundation Trust but works with 58 partners across the Wakefield and West Yorkshire area. Similarly, Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College is delivered by Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust but works with 10 voluntary sector and community partners across Hull and East Riding. These Colleges therefore bring together the expertise within secondary services, with the wide range and depth of knowledge of many diverse community partners.
3. The College is set up as a partnership and works with a wide range of community partners.
For example, Coventry and Warwickshire’s Recovery and Wellbeing Academy combines the first two models. It was set up as a partnership between a voluntary sector mental health organisation – Coventry, Warwickshire and Worcestershire Mind – and Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership Trust. These two organisations are the lead partners, but they also work with some 26 other partners in the area, thus combining a wide range of expertise. Although not involved in the production of this paper, Dorset Recovery Education Centre is another interesting example of this type of organisation where the lead partners are a mental health NHS Trust and a lived experience led organisation: Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust and Dorset Mental Health Forum came together to form a ‘Wellness and Recovery Partnership’ under whose auspices the Recovery Education Centre was established, thus “putting lived experience expertise hand in hand with professional and technical expertise”[11]. Together, they create partnerships with community organisations and community assets across Dorset.
4. A College sets up partnerships to serve a specific group or area.
For example, within Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust’s Recovery and Wellbeing College, there have been two initiatives of this type. First, the ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’ was a partnership set up between the Trust’s Recovery and Wellbeing College and a General Practice, and was specifically designed to bring together both of these sources of expertise to provide a Recovery and Wellbeing College in a General Practice. Second, following the Grenfell Tower fire, the Grenfell Recovery College was established by Central and North West London’s Grenfell Health and Wellbeing Service (established to support the wellbeing of the community affected by the Grenfell Tower fire). The Grenfell Recovery College brought together different community groups (including Residents Associations and voluntary sector organisations) and the Trust’s Recovery and Wellbeing College to create a College that brought together a range of experience and expertise necessary to assist anyone affected by the Grenfell Tower fire, whether or not they were diagnosed with mental health challenges or utilising mental health services.
Partners Involved in Providing Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges
The partnerships involved in providing Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges and their courses/workshops span a wide range of mental and physical health providers and community organisations. Across the 6 Colleges involved in preparing this paper, these have included:
A range of statutory services like Secondary Mental Health Services, Primary Care, Local Authorities, Social Services, JobCentre Plus
Mental and physical health voluntary sector organisations (local and national)
Non-mental health charities and voluntary sector organisations, including, for example, The Woodland Trust, Local Allotments, Asylum Seeker and Refugee organisations
Residents Associations
Community Groups
Libraries
Football Clubs
Local Universities
Local businesses
The nature of partnership working between these agencies and organisations may take many forms:
Partnering in the delivery of the Recovery and Wellbeing College as a whole
Partnering with an organisation, or individual from that organisation to co-produce and co-facilitate a specific course or workshop
Partnering with an organisation to be able to use their space to run courses or workshops free of charge
Partnering with a commissioned statutory organisation or team to work together on a shared goals around prevention and public health
Partnering to serve a particular group of people, often one that is underserved by existing other services
Occasionally some partners are paid for providing facilitators and trainers, but for the most part, no money changes hands: partners work together because it is mutually beneficial to do so and provides a better service for those they are set up to assist.
Sometimes partnerships are informal with no written contracts, but most Colleges have some form of written agreement. Where a Recovery and Wellbeing College is set up as a formal partnership between two or more organisations, there is usually a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’. Where a College works with a variety of partners, most Colleges have partnership agreements that variously cover things like:
Shared values
Boundaries and expectations
References from other organisations they have worked with
Roles and responsibilities for both organisations and individuals
Timelines for delivery
Funding
Logistics (e.g. tech needs, refreshments etc.)
Decision making
Liability insurance checks
DBS check information
Shared safeguarding policy
How do Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges Identify Partners?
There is no one approach that Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges have adopted to identify partners.
Sometimes potential partners are invited to come together to establish the College.
“At the inception of the Academy, stakeholder events were held, where potential partners were invited along to find out about Recovery Colleges and co-create Coventry and Warwickshire’s College and asked if they wanted to become partners in the Recovery and Wellbeing Academy.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
Sometimes partnerships arise out of specific contracts or funding opportunities.
“A new contract started April 2025 with Inclusion (part of Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust) appointed as Lead Provider for the Mid & South Essex Recovery Colleges’’ area and 2 new partners - Provide CIC (Mid Essex area) and Trust Links (Southeast Essex area) - to cover new previously unserved CCG area Basildon, Brentwood, Billericay and Wickford.” (Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College)
“This partnership project emerged when funding was secured to meet an identified need. Evidence suggested that the top 3% of GP attenders required around 10% of the primary care resources, and that these encounters are not necessarily productive for improved health and wellbeing.” (Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’)
However, most partnerships are formed to fill identified gaps in provision and develop organically via word of mouth, contacts in local networks and recommendations.
“We ask people what they think is missing or what would be relevant and seek partners who can meet these needs.” “As time progressed partnerships built naturally by word of mouth and natural links and CWPT sought partners out by networking/promotion ... often other organisations approach us to become partners” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
“We identify good partners through recommendations (from both students and professionals), need to cover a particular topic (and therefore researching reputable organisations), and through our local networks that we are members of (such as the Wakefield Positive Mental Health Network).” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“Sometimes we go looking for something specific that has been suggested at our Focus Group and other times they make contact with us.” (Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Why engage in partnership working? The advantages of working with partners
Partnership working in Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges can enhance and extend what Colleges are able to offer as well as reaching out to more people and improving relationships both between different organisations and between services and the communities that they serve.
1. Partnership working maximises resources: bringing together a greater range of expertise in order to deliver the diverse range of courses that people want and need.
One of the most important benefits of partnership working is that it enables Colleges to bring together a greater breadth and depth of expertise. At their inception, Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges were designed to bring together subject expertise and the expertise of lived experience. No one organisation, whether it be a Secondary Mental Health Trust or a voluntary/community sector organisation, can possibly hope to contain within it all the subject or lived experience expertise necessary to develop the range of courses and workshops needed promote the recovery and well-being of diverse populations. Mental health workers may have expertise in mental health areas, but they are typically not experts in social security benefits, housing, employment, the needs and challenges of refugees and asylum seekers, or those living with a range of physical health conditions. Working collaboratively with other organisations enables Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges to bring together in one place a range of different expertise.
“Our partnerships enable us to not only deliver the course content that people want to see (working with the right organisation, who specialise in a specific topic/area rather than the core RC team assuming we know the right information), but it also crucially helps us to support others to use local services or alternative provisions that are often more useful for their long term wellbeing (such as local art groups, charities, allotments, etc.).”(Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“The purpose is to utilise all different Mental Health sectors - voluntary, primary and secondary – to have representation in different networks to create better accessibility and awareness of the Recovery College. Different organisations have got different specialisms and knowledge to bring to the table which when utilised in a balanced way adds to the overall Recovery College offer.” (Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College)
2. Partnership working in Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges better enables Colleges to address specific issues and reach out to specific groups of people and communities (often those who are underserved by existing service provision and helping to decrease health inequalities), and build trust within communities and between different sectors and organisations.
Equally important is the role that partnership working plays in enabling Colleges to effectively reach out to different sectors of the communities they serve. It enables Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges are to be genuinely inclusive of the full range of communities they serve, and address the challenges that different groups experience in a manner that is acceptable and accessible to those communities.
It is widely recognised that statutory mental health services do not serve some communities well (see Centre for Mental Health, 2020). There are some individuals and communities who have lost faith in statutory organisations, often because they have had adverse experiences with such services in the past. Offering a radically different approach to that offered by most statutory health and social services, the Recovery and Well-being College can help to rebuild this Trust by working in partnership with local communities and trusted organisations within them.
Similarly, there has often been historical lack of understanding, resulting in mistrust and rivalries between statutory and voluntary/community sectors, as well as competition for scarce resources. Partnership working enables us to understand each other better, build trust and thus maximise our collective resources for the benefit of those who use them.
“Partnership working for us also helps us to build back trust and relationships; people who don’t trust utilising a non-government organisation for their health and wellbeing can be introduced to community services and charities that are often best placed for their needs. Likewise, people who engage with charities as they have lost faith in the NHS previously can be supported to trust the NHS again by engaging with a partner of ours who is facilitating through us for example.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“The Grenfell Recovery College was set up so that anyone who is affected by the Grenfell Tower fire could attend Recovery & Wellbeing workshops regardless of whether they have used secondary mental health services. The Grenfell Recovery College was set up in June 2019 as a result of a collaboration with different community groups, Grenfell Service User Consultants and staff from the Grenfell Health and Wellbeing Service. … The purpose of partnership working is to plan workshops together in partnerships based on mutual trust and respect, drawing on a variety of life skills and lived experience to co-produce and co-deliver workshops in the community that develop local resilience and agency. The work has enabled us to build greater trust with the community in a context where there has been a lack of trust. It has enabled us to share knowledge in spaces which the community trusts. It has strengthened connections with the community and enabled us to focus workshops on topics that are culturally relevant and topics that specific groups have requested.” (Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Grenfell Recovery College’ )
“It was recognised that replicating the college model within a General Practice (GP) setting, targeting those who attended the general practice more frequently might effect a positive change in the health and wellbeing of individuals (improved self-management of their health condition & greater interdependence with their community) but also in how they used services.” (Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’)
3. Partnership working can also extend the reach of both the Recovery and Wellbeing College and their voluntary/community sector partners.
Many Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges have limited resources and no dedicated space in which to operate. Similarly, many small voluntary and community sector organisations struggle with resources and getting their voices heard. By working together capacity can be enhanced.
“We are a small College with no dedicated facilities, without partnerships we would struggle to deliver the wide variety of courses and sessions that we do, either through them providing facilities or facilitators.” (Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“We have had to utilise partnerships to be able to deliver our RC offer. For the first seven years, the College only had two allocated staff (totalling 1.8 whole time equivalent workers). Although we now have a team of 8 (totalling 6.59 whole time equivalent), we still rely heavily on partners to support us with the co-production and co-facilitation of almost all of our courses…”
“We do not have our own base and so need good partnering relationships with local venues to enable us to deliver across the district in multiple sites at an affordable rate.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
4. Partnership working can enable people utilising the Recovery and Wellbeing College to access services and opportunities in the local area.
Key principles of Recovery Colleges include that they are progressive “actively supporting students to move forwards in their lives” helping students to “explore possibilities outside services where they can move on in their lives and work”: to be “integrated within their community and within mental health services and serve as a bridge between the two” (see Perkins et al., 2018). Partnership working enhances the ability of the Recovery and Wellbeing College to be such a bridge: enabling those utilising the College to access opportunities in the local area and enabling people to access specialist services if they need them.
“…it also crucially helps us to support people to use local services or alternative provisions that are often more useful for their long term wellbeing (such as local art groups, charities, allotments, etc.). Having a reciprocal partnering agreement in place ensures that not only can we introduce people to these groups and organisations, but they do the same to us. This hopefully helps people to reach the right support sooner.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“We do act as a bridge for students to experience the NHS and the VCSE and to build trust in new or different organisations.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
Ensuring Quality in Partnership Working
Ensuring Quality in partnership working in Recovery Colleges is important. Clearly, the negotiation of partnership agreements and Memorandums of Understanding described above have sought to ensure Quality Standards in a number of ways, including:
Establishing boundaries and expectations at the outset and on an ongoing basis
Supporting partners to understand the processes, procedures, ethos and underlying values of the College
Support to understand and move towards better co-production
Quality assurance based on continuous feedback
Quarterly Partnership Board Meetings to keep things on track across the system, offer training and information, sharing of ideas/bids etc.
Standardised training of all facilitators
Staff members attending each other’s courses
In addition, some Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges have established ‘Quality Assurance’ or ‘Editorial Panels’ involving their partners, and students.
“To ensure co-production and adherence to the ethos of the recovery college model, the Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing college has an editorial panel in place to review course content and materials. Over the years this has adapted to eventually bring us to the version we have today, which works well. The panel consists of and is open to anyone with an interest in the development of the College and its offer, including volunteers, staff, partners and students. When a new course has been co-produced, it is then sent to the panel electronically (along with all materials) and a pro-forma to complete to let us know whether they think the course shows obvious co-production, fills a need for the area, is educational and not a form of therapy, and then to make general suggestions should there be any improvements needed (even changing the name of the course if appropriate). Panel members have two weeks to respond with their thoughts and, whilst sent to all members, there is no obligation to review every course; only the ones they have the time and interest in. Following the review, areas for improvement are sent back to the co-producers for altering and then the course will either go back through the panel if large changes have been made, or it will then be passed for going live.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Challenges in Partnership Working: Key Learning About What Makes a Good Partnership?
“Relationships, communication and building a good rapport between organisations are key to good partnerships … always keeping the people who utilise the College at the heart of everything we do together.”
Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing AcademyPartnerships do not just ’happen’ – partnership working takes time, and finding that time can be difficult if resources and personal are stretched with other commitments.
“For me as Team Leader it is finding the time to maintain a good working relationship” … but finding the time is important “I have learned that we need our partners to provide additional resources for our College.” (Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Personal relationships and trust are critical and changes in personnel in the partner organisations can be particularly problematic.
“When people change, more time has to be given to nurture the new relationships as all this really does hang on good relations. Time needs to be given to learn systems, style and expectations again.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
Openness and a willingness to learn together are vital, and this requires mutual respect, trust and appreciation of each other’s expertise. No one individual or organisation has all the answers – it is critical that we genuinely value what each other has to offer.
“Different organisations have got different specialisms and knowledge to bring to the table which when utilised in a balanced way adds to the overall RC offer.” (Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College)
“Having a breadth of knowledge and further skills to support a wide variety of courses and audiences, this means that we don’t have to be the expert in all fields. It keeps the Academy/RC fresh and humble and helps to promote the culture of collaboration” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
It is important that partners understand each other: in sustaining partnerships, regular communication and mutual understanding are essential. Without this, partnerships are likely to break down. Different organisations have different priotities and perspectives. We need to be open and honest about what each partner thinks if we are to bring together our different skills and perspectives in a way that is of value to those served by the College.
”When good collaborations happen, honesty is often important … Find out how the Partner views your organisation - get honesty” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
“…willingness to enter with an open mind to explore each other’s starting points to build mutual understanding and discover the unique ways of working.” (Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College)
“We try to understand the different constraints and limitations of all the different partner organisations and enable within these limitations – such as time, funding limits and staff numbers. Feedback is given with humility and grace and not from a stance of “we know best”. Good partnerships always start with good listening and flexibility.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
“We sustain them by regular communication. As the Team Leader I will meet up with our partners for a coffee and chat to see if there is anything happening I need to be aware of.” (Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Reciprocity is of the essence. All partners must get something out of the relationship. There must be benefits for both partners in the partnership as well as to those who attend any courses and workshops that are co-designed and co-produced.
“If they are supporting us, we want to be able to support them in some way (e.g. administrative support, advertising, reputation building, applying for funding).” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“Find a way of working that forms a reciprocal relationship, that way they aren’t just offering us a course for nothing, we are supporting them also (e.g. support them in accessing funding that they wouldn’t be able to access otherwise, such as NHS charities together or health inequalities funding, or support their advertising and admin with our existing offer).” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“An important aspect of our learning has included the importance of knowing what the respective KPIs [Key Performance Indicators) are for the different organisations involved in partnerships and how we can achieve these for all partners.” (Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Grenfell Recovery College’)
“The joint benefits. Without our partners we wouldn’t be as successful as we are.” (Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“If it’s a venue, keep them sweet! Costs are ever increasing whilst funding is decreasing, so we have to take any discount or freebie where we can get it.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Differing values, expectations and outcome measures can jeopardise partnerships. If the partners disagree about things like the values on which the partnership are founded, what is expected of the different partners who takes responsibility for what and issues of safety management then partnerships can break down. Good partnerships are founded on a base of shared principles and values but flexibility is important. Different organisations work in different ways: it is important not to be rigid about all processes and adopt a ‘common sense’ approach.
“Good partnerships always start with good listening and flexibility.” (Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College)
“Our overall ethos is to promote an inclusive, accessible and flexible way of working collaboratively and in co-production with our partner agencies, and colleagues in designing and delivering Recovery College workshops which reflect and respond to diverse community needs.” (Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Grenfell Recovery College’)
We need to trust that all partners will deliver to the expected standard and the Recovery and Wellbeing College needs to provide support to enable partners to do this. Boundaries and expectations need to be set between partners at the outset, and each partner must do what they say they will do – reliability is an important enabler of trust between partners.
“A good partnership is one that’s reciprocal and reliable” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
‘Partnership Agreements’ can be important in ensuring that all partners are ‘on the same page’. Such agreements need to outline the shared values and expectations on which the partnership is founded, together with defining the scope and boundaries of the partnerships and the expectations of each partner (including such areas as safety, safeguarding, confidentiality and insurance).
“Partnerships are built on reciprocal respect, the value of collaboration, trust and to support one another to achieve delivery all without any financial recompense. A partnership agreement is signed to ensure confidentiality, to safeguard students and to all work together within the expectations, boundaries and the ethos of recovery colleges. “ (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
Often Colleges have used a standard ‘one size fits all’ partnership agreement, but experience suggests that this does not necessarily work well for all types of partnership. For example, a different partnership agreement may be required when the College partners with an organisation to use their space to run courses, and when the partnership is to co-design and co-deliver a course or workshop, or when the whole College is a partnership between more than one agency. Therefore, some Colleges are working on developing different partnership agreements for different types of partnership.
Partnership working may present challenges some of the key principles on which Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges are founded (see Perkins et al., 2018), and some flexibility may be required.
For example, co-production is a core value of Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges, but it is not possible to assume that all partners will be familiar with the practice of co-production from the start: the process may be one of encouraging and enabling better co-production over a period of time.
Similarly, a key feature of Recovery Colleges is that they are ‘open to all’, while some partner organisations may be commissioned to work only with specific cohorts (based, for example, on age or geography) or their services may be means tested. Sometimes partners can be flexible:
Our partners can often “see what we’re trying to achieve, so as long as they get a few people in each group that meets their specific requirements (e.g. come from a specific part of Wakefield) then they are happy to go ahead and it doesn’t matter if others in the group don’t meet their requirements.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
However, if the partner has no flexibility, it may be necessary to terminate the partnership:
“… it is too unfair for those who did not meet the criteria. Ultimately, it isn’t a partnership we can work with: they don’t have the same values as us and it therefore isn’t a right fit.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
There may also be a case for offering some courses to a specific cohort of people, for example single sex courses to cater for the needs of Muslim communities or domestic abuse survivors, or those affected by the Grenfell Tower fire.
“Some of our partnerships are developed to support specific groups of people, whether they approach the College to work with us, or we approach them with an idea. Specific examples of this currently include our work with our Admiral Nurses around dementia and supporting loved ones with the emotional and practical side of caring for someone with dementia, and our work around disordered eating, partnering with regional experts and disordered eating services to offer a course around understanding disordered eating (open to those living with disordered eating and those wishing to understand more to support someone else).” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Partnership breakdown can be problematic. In practice this is not a regular occurrence but when it does happen it may arise for a number of reasons (like a partner not doing what they say they will do or factors beyond either partners control like financial difficulties).
“We have only ever had a few of occasions when a partnership has had to cease. Some of these have been because the small CIC or individual’s company has gone under (sometimes due to finances, sometimes personal circumstances/illness) and in this case we don’t really have any option but to try and find an alternative partner who would be able to fill the gap. Some of these have been because of reliability. In these cases, we remind the partner of their agreement obligations and the impact the unreliability has on our students, but ultimately if they continue, we let them know we have to terminate the partnership because of the negative impact on students (and our reputational damage). We have then sought an alternative charity to fill the gap.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Navigating funding issues can also be a challenge.
“Challenges are definitely finances – some partners we’d love to work with can’t do it for free and we can’t fund them. It them means that people miss out on something of need or someone else who ends up running it with them might then not be accessible to all.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Typically funding is short, and usually partnerships do not involve any money changing hands.
“We ask partners to find their own funding.”(Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
“Will they just do it [provide their input] for free if we ask them?” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Such an approach can often be successful because both partners get something out of the partnership. For example:
“We support them in accessing funding that they wouldn’t be able to access otherwise, such as NHS Charities Together or Health Inequalities funding, or support their advertising and admin with our existing offer.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“We do have unofficial “deals” e.g. to have a free venue if we deliver some training for an organisation’s community. This good-will goes a long way.” .” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
If a partner needs funding to participate in the Recovery College, it may be possible to help them to find this elsewhere:
“Can we support them to find funding through external funding bids, or local initiatives that are going on?” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Given funding limitations, it is only in very occasional circumstances that a Recovery and Wellbeing College can provide a partner with resources.
“Is it unique to the area and in which case we can justify paying for this from our RC budget as it is something unavailable anywhere else?”. (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Historically, rivalries have sometimes existed between statutory and voluntary/community organisations. In Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges, if attention is paid the good communication and mutual understanding, such rivalries are not common. When they do occur it is often around issues of duplication and fear of losing funding or competing for funds.
“When there are different partners sometimes, they have courses that are similar.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
“On the odd occasion we do have a rivalry, it tends to be either new organisations that don’t realise we already offer something and they try to duplicate it (very rare and in the end we usually work together to support one another with reach and offer), or more often a commissioned service will duplicate or not wish to work in partnership. Sometimes I think this is out of fear of losing funds, but our commissioners are really keen on collaboration and coproduction so would prefer if we did work together.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“I would say that we are conscious around not duplicating what already exists in a very similar form within our locality.” (Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College)
While it is important to be conscious of not duplicating things that are already available elsewhere, the need for collaboration and joint working is emphasised both in national policy (DHSC 2025; NHS England/National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health, 2019), and by most local commissioners. This means that the likelihood of securing funding is often increased. Our partnerships enable us to not only deliver the course content that people want to see (working with the right organisation, who specialise in a specific topic/area rather than the core RC team assuming we know the right information), but it also crucially helps us to support others to utilise local services or alternative provisions that are often more useful for their long term wellbeing (such as local art groups, charities, allotments, etc.) if organisations work in partnership. In minimising rivalries and maximising opportunities for partnership working, it is vital that Recovery Colleges are part of local networks and partnership arrangements.
“We’re quite fortunate as VCSE rivalry often isn’t an issue for us due to being part of many VCSE networks with shared agendas. It often has the opposite effect in fact. For example, the VCSE organisation can apply for external funding to deliver something through the RC [Recovery College] – they keep the money so it supports their organisation, but we have access to both a partner and therefore “teaching funds” we wouldn’t normally be able to access as a statutory body.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College).
Partnerships are valuable: sustaining them requires attention and regular review of partnerships is important. Continuing communication is necessary so that the partnership can respond to challenges, changes of circumstance and difficulties that arise.
“The partnerships are mostly maintained through partnership agreements, updates and regular contact with those active partnerships. We hold review meetings after courses with partners who have co-facilitated and they are also involved in our editorial panel when they wish to be.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“A willingness to repair things if they go wrong/rupture is key.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
However, with all the good-will and communication in the world, there will be occasions when partnerships don’t work out, or when changed circumstances make it difficult for the partnership to continue. In such instances:
“If it isn’t working, don’t drag it out. Find another organisation that fits what you’re trying to achieve more.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
Finally, it is important to celebrate partnerships: to collect and share feedback and outcome measures and recognise what it has achieved.
Partnership Working: Making Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges Fit for the Future
The Government’s ‘Ten Year Health Plan’ (Department for Health and Social Care, 2025) describes three key strategic shifts that are required to create an NHS that is fit for the future:
‘From hospital to community’: moving away from a focus on hospitals to ensure that more care is available in the neighbourhoods and communities in which people live.
‘From analogue to digital’: maximising the use of the new technologies available.
‘From sickness to prevention’: moving towards the primary prevention of ill-health preventing ill health, and secondary prevention by minimising the impact problems on the person’s life as well as catching and addressing problems early.
Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges that work in partnership with a range of different organisations are well placed to contribute to and support these three strategic transformations.
From Hospital to Community
Partnership working ensures that Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges are embedded within their communities and can form a bridge between hospital and community. Located within communities, they are designed to promote the recovery of those utilising secondary services and assist them to move on in their lives. They also act as a community-based resource for anyone in the local community who is experiencing challenges in their life that might otherwise lead them to secondary mental health services.
“By working with a wide variety of organisations in partnership there was a parity in relationship status across the systems. This was deemed to be groundbreaking at this time and enabled a bridge from health to VCSE services. It also supported VCSE partners to add the ‘value’ of the partnerships to bid for funding. We act as a trusted promoter of VCSEs. The Recovery College leads have links with the MH alliance leads.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
“We have a fantastic relationship with both our alliance and our VCSE networks (I’m one of three leads for one of the networks at our alliance meetings, even though I’m employed by a statutory body). Our Trust and our commissioners view the Recovery College as exactly that, a bridge between the two. We make connections, support both sides and have set the way for both sides working more collaboratively on many projects across the district. We were even taken as an example to an international “spread and scale” event to show how this can be done.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
From analogue to digital
Recovery and Well-being Colleges have often been seen as trailblazers for digital transformation within their organisations – the use of technology has greatly increased their reach and effectiveness. During the period of Covid restrictions, most Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges were quick to adopt new technologies to enable them to offer on-line courses, podcasts and e-learning to replace face to face ones. Finding that these facilitated access for many people, these virtual courses have continued to complement face to face offers, and use of digital mediums for students to gain information, explore what is available, and register themselves for courses and workshops on-line has continued to progress.
“In terms of digital transformation, we have always been a bit of a guinea pig for our Trust: often they test new resources with our team before rolling out to the whole Trust. Additionally, as a Recovery College we have been paper-light since 2019, print almost nothing, use digital resources to communicate (e.g. text messages). We host around 40% of our courses online and are open to anyone in the world to attend therefore. The Recovery College is part of the “digital district” network, who all share an aim of reducing digital poverty and improving access.” (Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)
“We can lend students tablets to access our on-line courses and signpost to council digital accessibility courses via learning hubs/libraries.” (Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College)
“On our new website we offer online courses supporting accessibility from very rural areas where people often report increased isolation and lack of support.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
From treatment to prevention
Partnership working enables Recovery and Welbeing Colleges to be available to anyone in their local community, thus they are not solely part of the ‘treatment’ service of secondary care but also an open access ‘prevention’ service. For those who already live with mental health challenges and receive secondary services, they are important in ‘secondary prevention’: helping people to manage the problems they face themselves, rebuild their lives, and make those connections and networks in the community that both promote recovery and decrease the likelihood of recurrence of their difficulties. For those experiencing difficulties and challenges in their lives but do not receive support from services, they provide an easily accessible community-based resource that can help them to resolve these difficulties thus decreasing the likelihood that their problems will escalate.
“Participation resulted in students having a greater understanding of illness and prevention, along with greater confidence in managing their condition and wellbeing. A sense of increased connection to their community enabled individuals to see how they could manage their condition more independently and therefore utilise time spent with their GP more productively. Results indicated … a positive impact on reducing frequency of attendance and improving the quality of consultations.” (Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’ )
“The Recovery College was set up so that anyone who is affected by the Grenfell Tower fire could attend recovery and well-being workshops … Our overall ethos is to promote an inclusive, accessible, flexible way of working collaboratively and in co-production with partner agencies … in designing and delivering workshops which reflect and respond to diverse community needs…. What has been particularly notable in the workshops is the diversity amongst the people who attended. A high percentage of individuals came from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds. Ages ranged from 18 to 70 years and a large percentage of individuals also identified as having a disability.” (Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Grenfell Recovery College’)
“We pride ourselves on achieving the our aim of having 50% of people who enrol on courses open to secondary care services and 50% who are not receiving any support. Hence already supporting the agenda of ‘treatment to prevention’ and not labelling and grouping people together dependent on service (e.g. secondary or primary) care and making pathways needlessly more complicated. This way the service is truly “open to all” and enhances a culture of ‘reduced presumptions’ based on services or care being received. In essence, this model meets a person where they are at, with no prejudice, stereotype or judgement. It’s just people supporting people, with everyone contributing to the learning experience and often identifying ‘they are not alone’ on their recovery journey.” (Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy)
“Prevention is our main bread and butter now. This past year, using information gathered at enrolment, we have been able to quantitatively show we are operating as a prevention service:
48% of new students identified their primary identity as “member of the public”, finding us through things like Google and Facebook, instead of through an existing service they were using.
We enrol an average of 50 brand new students a month.
Since the introduction of new physical promotional materials that we leave in places like GP surgeries, family hubs, or at events we attend, we have seen an increase in enrolments of 57% in the same period compared to last academic year.
We have achieved a 100% friends and family score this year.
To do a lot of this, we have broadened what we offer topic-wise and we work with 16 and 17 year olds… We go out to many more grass-root services, other statutory services (e.g. housing and DWP) and VCSE groups to ensure that we catch people before they need to come into secondary services and we work really closely with our SPA team (Secondary Mental Health Services Single Point of Access Team) to ensure that they direct people to us instead of clinical services where at all possible.”
(Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College)Conclusion
The essence of Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges is that they bring together ‘subject experts’, ‘experts through lived experience’ and the communities that sustain them. The range of both subject expertise and expertise through lived experience is greatly enhanced through partnership working, as is the ability to respond to the needs of the College’s communities and ensure that all within those communities are served. Partnership working is not easy, and mutual mistrust between different sectors – primary care, secondary care, voluntary and community sector organisatons – has often resulted in siloed working and a failure to bring together all the expertise, ideas and commitment that exists. Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges have demonstrated that it is possible for different organisations, from different sectors, to come together in a spirit of mutual trust, understanding and respect and by doing so greatly enhance the service offered to those who utilise them and the communities of which they are a part.
Through effective partnership working, Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges are well-placed to support the ‘three key shifts’ that lie at the the heart of the transformation of health and care services described in ‘Fit for the Future: 10 year Health Plan for England’ (DHSC, 2025). They should therefore continue to be a central part of health and care services and become part of the new neighbourhood health services for those experiencing a range of health and life challenges If other services are to contribute to this plan’s vision of “a system that provides real choice, real sontrol, and real convenience” for people (p.83) and utilise “ideas, networks and drive to transform outcomes” (p82) then they may have much to learn from the experience of Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges who work in partnerships.
-
Centre for Mental Health Commission for Equality in Mental Health (2020) Mental health for all? The final report of the Commission for Equality in Mental Health. London: Centre for Mental Health
Department for Health and Social Care (2025) Fit for the Future. Ten Year Health Plan for England. London:HMSO
NHS England/National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health (2019) The Community Mental Health Framework for Adults and Older Adults. London HMSO
Perkins R, Meddings S, Williams S, Repper J (2018) Recovery Colleges 10 Years On, Nottingham, ImROC.
Perkins, R., Repper, J., Rinaldi, M. & Brown, H. (2012) Recovery Colleges, Implementing recovery Through Organisational Change Briefing Paper, London: Centre for Mental Health
Appendix
Brief descriptions of the Recovery and Wellbeing Colleges involved in the production of this paper.
Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College
The Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College, part of the South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, opened its doors in 2014 as an 18+ service, changing to a 16+ service in 2022. At time of writing (June 2025), the College has 1877 students, 6.61 WTE (whole time equivalent) staff, 58 partners, 117 tutors, 30 registered volunteers, delivering approximately 74 course sessions per term. In the academic year 2024-25, Wakefield Recovery and Wellbeing College received 4159 session bookings across four main topic areas; understanding and managing mental health, understanding and managing physical health, physical activity, skills/hobbies.
Wakefield sits within West Yorkshire, with a population of approximately 358,000 people. During the 2021 census, it was noted that this was an 8.4% increase from the 2011 census, evidencing the second largest population percentage increase across Yorkshire and The Humber[1]. Wakefield is a complex district with a mix both urban and rural areas, including a modern city centre with a rich history surrounding arts and culture, and many towns with strong mining heritage.
Coventry and Warwickshire Recovery and Wellbeing Academy
The Recovery and Wellbeing Academy started in 2017, delivered in partnership by Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust (CWPT) and Coventry, Warwickshire and Worcestershire Mind (CWWM). CWWM are the commissioned lead for the service and CWPT leads the collaboration of partnerships with further VCSE organisations. The service is for anyone 18+ and is completely free of charge, delivering sessions both face to face in community settings across Coventry and Warwickshire, and live online. All courses and sessions can be found and accessed via the enrolment website[2].
At present (July 2025) the Academy has 31 partners, some of whom deliver sessions directly via the Academy and some who support indirectly with accessibility, venue hire and signposting. The Academy works closely with Peer Support Workers who offer their lived experience as part of some sessions. The Academy has 5.2 WTE (whole time equivalent) CWPT staff 3 WTE CWWM staff.
In the academic year 2024-25, the Academy received 3500 enrolments across 306 Courses and 586 sessions, with an average of 77 courses and 147 sessions per term.
Coventry City has a population of approximately 345,300 and as of 2021, is the fourth most densely populated of the West Midlands' 30 local authority areas, with around 25 people living on each football pitch-sized area of land [3]. In comparison Warwickshire is a county and has a population of 599,153 (ONS, 2021). A significant portion of Warwickshire is rural in nature, despite the concentration of population in the main towns. The south of the county and the north of the county differ significantly in their demographic make-up.
Inclusion Thurrock Recovery College
Mid and South Essex Recovery College is a partnership between Inclusion[4] (part of Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust [5]), Provide CIC, Trust Links, Thurrock and Brentwood Mind [6] (TB Mind - a local charity), and Essex Partnership University NHS Trust [7] (EPUT). Inclusion is the lead contractor for the wider Mid and South Essex Recovery College Partnership. The following information relates to the team responsible for delivery in Thurrock and Brentwood provided by Inclusion working with TB Mind and EPUT. - WTE: 0.2 MH Operational Lead, 1 Recovery College Lead, 1 Health Trainer, 1 Senior Administrator and 1 Wellbeing Practitioner, 1 RC Co-ordinator, 1 Peer Trainer, 2 x volunteers via TB Mind and 1 Occupational Therapist via EPUT. Therapists from the Inclusion NHS Talking Therapies service support with course delivery and the college has the support of students to enhance development. The College has 678 active students, and 769 graduated students registered (30/07/2025). During the Summer Term we delivered 85 sessions. We offer roughly half of the courses online and in person across various accessible venues. It offers a wellbeing service which is free, confidential and all about CITIZENS – Thurrock’s communities and residents.
The Recovery College is all about providing a relaxed and informal educational approach to wellbeing and recovery for people who experience difficulties with, or have an interest in, mental health and wellbeing. We create a safe place where people can come together to learn ways to live healthier, happier and more fulfilling lives. Our belief is that recovery is a journey of discovery, to find hope, happiness, health and opportunities. All courses are free of charge and open to anyone, aged 18 and over residing in Mid and South Essex or working in a caring or professional role within these areas.
Inclusion, Thurrock and Brentwood Mind and EPUT directly deliver the Recovery College across Thurrock and Brentwood (council, VCSEs and friends of) to contribute to improving the emotional wellbeing of young people aged 18-24. We support parents, teachers and professionals providing opportunities to those working with young people. We work with these groups to provide expertise and offer selective activities in their existing programmes. In the past also serving a few 16+ students with a special community lead local development fund in Tilbury.
We will be starting to cater for the population of Brentwood once we have established new venues for in person courses.
Humber Recovery and Wellbeing College
The Humber Recovery & Wellbeing College, delivered by Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust, has a Youth Recovery College (ages 11 to 18) and an Adult Recovery & Wellbeing College (ages 18+). The College has 3,974 students (26th June 2025) with 1 WTE Team Leader (managing 3 teams), 2 WTE Practitioners, 1 WTE Digital Communications, Marketing Admin Officer and 2 volunteers. We have 2 Bank staff as well other Trust staff who deliver additional specific sessions.
We have approximately 10 partners across Hull and East Riding and these partnerships range from providing facilitators / session leaders to venues; some of these partnerships are paid and others are free of charge.
The College delivers sessions face to face in community settings across Hull and East Riding, an area of approximately 960 square miles, and also has an online platform with e-learning courses and podcasts.
Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Grenfell Recovery College’
The Grenfell Recovery College was set up in 2019 so that anyone who was affected by the Grenfell Tower fire of 2017 could attend recovery and wellbeing workshops regardless of whether they have used secondary mental health services. The Grenfell Tower fire happened on 14th June 2017 in the Notting Dale ward of North Kensington, within the London borough of Kensington and Chelsea in which the Grenfell Recovery College now operates.
The London borough of Kensington and Chelsea is a borough with huge social and health inequalities. As an example of this, there is a life expectancy gap between the north and the south of 17 years for males and 18 years for women. The borough is culturally very diverse with 50 nationalities speaking 80 different languages. North Kensington is an area with a strong sense of community and a long history of resistance and activism against poverty, inequality and oppression. Many in the community are still campaigning for justice and accountability for the 72 victims of the Grenfell fire and the bereaved and survivors 8 years on from the fire.
The Grenfell Recovery College developed from a collaboration between the NHS Grenfell Health and Wellbeing Service, the Central North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College and different community groups in North Kensington. It now operates as a small off-shoot to the main Recovery and Wellbeing College to serve the ‘Grenfell affected’ population. Staff consist of 3 part-time Grenfell peer trainers who are also Grenfell Health and Wellbeing Service User Consultants and 2 Grenfell Health and Wellbeing Service staff members who have some protected time for the Grenfell Recovery College within their main roles. A recent ‘snap-shot’ analysis of the Grenfell Recovery College showed that between December 2024 – June 2025 a total of 22 workshops were delivered across 3 community organisations with 162 attendances. What has been particularly notable in the workshops is the diversity amongst the people who attend. A high percentage of individuals come from diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds. Ages range from 18 to 70 years and a large percentage of individuals identify as having a disability.
Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College’s ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’
This partnership project emerged when funding was secured to meet an identified need. Evidence suggested that the top 3% of GP attenders required around 10% of the primary care resources, and that these encounters are not necessarily productive for improved health and wellbeing. It was recognised that replicating the college model within a General Practice (GP) setting, targeting those who attended the general practice more frequently might have a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of individuals (improved self-management of their health condition and greater interdependence with their community) but also in how they used services. The GP Practice was located in an inner-city area of high deprivation with an extremely diverse patient population of 7800 people. The project was funded for a time limited period and ran for 8 months.
The Central and North West London Recovery and Wellbeing College ‘Healthy Living in Practice Project’ co-produced 23 courses and workshops, with equal contribution from those bringing lived experience of utilising health services, especially those accessing the GP practice, and those who brought professional expertise. A focus group with those accessing the GP practice services provided the Recovery College Team with a depth of understanding about the challenges encountered by people accessing the primary care services. The project name, Healthy Living in Practice, did not mean anything to the focus group, who preferred Recovery & Wellbeing College in Practice, to strengthen the partnership between the practice and the college and replicate the College’s already successful branding. It was also felt that singling out those service users with frequent GP use, could result in alienation and people feeling they were being negatively judged. The parameters of the programme were therefore extended to all of those utilising the practice. Although the initial intention had been to use rooms within the practice, their accessibility was limited so partnerships were formed with community venues that facilitated greater social inclusion for students.
An evaluation of the project showed that participation in the College resulted in people gaining greater confidence in managing their health conditions, improved wellbeing and increased connection to their community. The frequency of their GP consultations decreased as they were able to manage their condition more independently and utilize time spent in GP consultations more productively.
[1] https://www.ons.gov.uk/visualisations/censusareachanges/E08000036 [2] https://www.recoveryandwellbeing.co.uk/ [3] https://www.ons.gov.uk/visualisations/censuspopulationchange/E08000026/ [4] https://www.inclusion.org [5] https://www.mpft.nhs.uk [6] https://thurrockandbrentwoodmind.org.uk [7] https://www.eput.nhs.uk