From Community Roots to Published Research: How We Co-Authored a Scientific Paper on Green Social Prescribing.
The Bora Shabaa Community Garden at the allotment site.
We’re delighted to share that our article, “Green social prescribing delivered by community organisations supports wellbeing among ethnically diverse communities in England,” has now been published open access in Discover Public Health.
This publication represents far more than a research output. It is the culmination of a genuine collaboration between NHS researchers, academics, and six community organisations working at the heart of ethnically diverse communities in Hull and York.
Why This Study Mattered
Green social prescribing (GSP) connects people to nature-based activities — such as gardening, walking groups, and outdoor sport — to support mental health and wellbeing. While the evidence base for GSP is growing, much less is known about how it works for migrants, refugees, and ethnically diverse communities, particularly those living in highly deprived areas.
At the same time, we know these communities face structural barriers: racism, discrimination, immigration uncertainty, socioeconomic deprivation, and reduced access to safe green space. If GSP is to reduce inequalities rather than inadvertently widen them, we need evidence grounded in real community contexts.
That is what this study set out to do.
A Truly Collaborative Model
From the outset, this was not research “done to” communities — it was research done with them.
Six community organisations formed a collaborative partnership to deliver green social prescribing activities including:
- Community gardening and food growing
- Walking groups in urban and rural green spaces
- Outdoor sport and physical activity
Crucially, community leaders were not just delivery partners; they were co-applicants, data collectors, and co-authors. We ran evaluation training sessions to build capacity in data collection and research methods, ensuring that skills remained embedded beyond the life of the funded programme.
This co-production approach strengthened both the research and the organisations themselves.
The Bora Shabaa Community Garden at the site base.
What We Found
Across 143 participants — representing 12 ethnic groups, with 62% living in the most deprived 20% of neighbourhoods in England — we found encouraging evidence of wellbeing benefit.
After six months:
- Around two-thirds of participants either maintained or improved their wellbeing across life satisfaction, feeling worthwhile, happiness, and anxiety.
- Anxiety showed a statistically significant reduction.
- Just over half of participants experienced a decrease in anxiety scores.
But numbers only tell part of the story.
Through qualitative interviews, three powerful themes emerged:
- Community organisations as trusted providers
Participants did not access GSP through healthcare services. Instead, they came through trusted community networks and word of mouth. Trust, safety, and cultural familiarity were central to engagement. - Nature as connection to heritage and culture
Green spaces were not neutral spaces. For some, gardening evoked childhood memories of “home.” For others, it provided opportunities to learn about UK nature and culture. Food growing and sharing became a bridge between identities. - Green space as relief and restoration
Many participants were living in small, crowded accommodation or hotels. Outdoor spaces offered calm, sensory relief, freedom, and movement — benefits that went beyond what indoor activities could provide.
Importantly, this work took place during a period of significant community unrest and racist riots in Hull. Despite this, wellbeing was sustained or improved for many participants — highlighting the buffering role of trusted community anchors.
What This Means for Policy
One of the most striking findings was that none of the participants accessed green social prescribing through healthcare referral pathways.
Access happened through:
- Community organisations
- Family and friends
- Informal networks
If green social prescribing is positioned solely within primary care referral systems, we risk missing those most affected by health inequalities.
Our findings suggest that community organisations are not peripheral to GSP — they are central access points. Investment, flexibility in commissioning, and co-design with community leaders are essential if GSP is to address inequity meaningfully.
Lessons from the Research Process
Co-authoring this paper was itself a learning journey.
Supporting community partners to collect quantitative data using validated measures (ONS4) revealed important cultural and linguistic challenges. Concepts such as rating wellbeing on a 0–10 scale did not always translate easily across languages or worldviews. These insights will shape future evaluation design.
The process reminded us that methodological rigour and cultural sensitivity must go hand in hand.
Most importantly, this publication demonstrates that community-engaged research can meet academic standards while remaining grounded in lived experience.
The allotment.
A Collective Achievement
This paper represents:
- Cross-sector collaboration between NHS, academia, and voluntary sector organisations
- Community capacity building in research and evaluation
- Evidence to inform integrated care systems and commissioners
- A contribution to the growing literature on equity in social prescribing
We are incredibly grateful to the participants who shared their experiences and to the community leaders who trusted us enough to undertake this work together.
We also extend our heartfelt thanks to Dr Hannah A. Armitt, Anthony Hurd, Tracey Dorey, Alexis Foster, Helen Butt, Michele Davy, Divine Charura, Dawda Jatta, Rose Matadi-Nawamo, Angela Murden, Adedamola Ogunfidodo, Esther Rehema, Sharifa Rizaee, Tracey Scott-Townsend, and Maureen Twiddy for their commitment, expertise, and collaborative spirit in bringing this important work to publication.
Publishing open access ensures the findings are available to practitioners, commissioners, researchers, and communities alike — without paywalls.
Please do share the paper widely. We hope it contributes to ongoing conversations about prevention, equity, and the essential role of community organisations in public health: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12982-026-01515-y?utm_source=rct_congratemailt&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=oa_20260218&utm_content=10.1186%2Fs12982-026-01515-y
Many thanks and God Bless,
Team Bora