First point of contact in each practice

The programme expects every workplace where an operates to identify a first point of contact — sometimes called a "social prescribing champion" — for general advice and support.

What this role does

The first point of contact:

helps the develop effective working arrangements with all staff in the workplace
ensures everyone in the team can support the role and refers appropriately
is the everyday "small things" person — IT problem, room booking, who to ask about X
escalates to the clinical supervisor when needed.

It is not the same as the clinical supervisor (the named individual responsible for clinical oversight), although the same person can do both.

Why this matters in practice

frequently work across multiple practices or sites within a primary care team or organisation. Without a named contact in each, they spend their first months working out who to ask for what — wasted time, and a friction that erodes the role.

A good first point of contact:

is genuinely available, not just nominally
understands what work looks like
introduces the to the team and to people the will work with
takes seriously any flag the raises about referral quality or pathway issues.

Choose carefully

The first point of contact role often falls to a practice manager, a senior receptionist, or a specific clinician. The best choice is whoever is most consistently present and most genuinely interested in personalised care.

A simple onboarding for the contact

Spend an hour with them at the start. Cover:

what the does (and doesn't do)
how referrals come in and what good referrals look like
escalation routes for safeguarding and clinical concerns
the supervision arrangements
how to contact you if something needs raising.