Placing debt and benefits advisers in GP surgeries could ease pressure on the NHS and improve patients’ health across the country, a pilot test shows.
The Financial Shield project, run across 34 GP practices in South London, found that more than half of participants reported improvements in their physical or mental health after receiving tailored financial support, with around one in three saying they needed fewer GP appointments afterwards.
The scheme has government backing and embeds financial support link workers in primary care settings to help patients deal with debt, apply for benefits and negotiate with creditors.
It was launched in 2020 by the charity Impact on Urban Health and the Centre for Responsible Credit, and is understood to have supported more than 1,100 people, many of them living with long-term health conditions.
Participants reported a combined £1.67m in financial gains, largely through benefit claims and debt relief. Around 350 people also received temporary protection from rent or council tax enforcement.
However, the Financial Shield evaluation of the trial also warned that many participants’ incomes remained “inadequate to meet basic needs” even after receiving support, with consequences for health and housing, and recommended that welfare changes undergo health impact assessments to avoid undermining NHS prevention goals.
The London Health Board has previously endorsed the principle that every resident should have access to free welfare advice, estimating that between £2bn and £3bn in benefits go unclaimed across the capital each year.
Damon Gibbons, director of the Centre for Responsible Credit, said the results demonstrated the close relationship between financial wellbeing and health.
“Financial stress is a health issue,” he said. “By increasing incomes and giving people breathing space, we can prevent crises that cost far more to the NHS and councils later on.”
Michael Parsons, of Impact on Urban Health, said the model had allowed doctors to focus on medical care. “Embedding financial support in surgeries helps tackle the root causes of stress while GPs focus on treatment,” he said.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson expressed support for the trial, saying it “reflects our commitment to holistic, joined-up support – easing pressure on GPs and expanding opportunity”.
A spokesperson added: “The link between finances and health is clear, which is why we launched a £1.5m trial this summer to support people back into work.”
The trial sits alongside broader efforts by the Government to address record levels of economic inactivity caused by long-term illness. Around 2.8m people in England are out of work due to health conditions, a trend ministers say is holding back economic growth and adding strain to public services.
As part of the same approach, the Government is also expanding a separate scheme that embeds careers advisers and employment specialists in GP surgeries and health centres.
The £1bn Connect to Work programme aims to help up to 300,000 sick and disabled people find jobs, with officials arguing that closer links between health, debt and employment support could reduce the welfare bill and lift people out of poverty.
Officials say the reforms aim to reduce the number of people signed off as “not fit for work” – a phrase used in 93 per cent of the 11 million fit notes issued electronically last year – and to encourage “proactive employment support” within neighbourhood health services.
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