The 16^th October saw the successful launch event of the new Health and Wellbeing Hub at Aspire’s GL1 facility. Over 40 organisations attended the launch, including those from public, voluntary, community and private sector.

The Hub has three existing partners, which are the Gloucester Community Wellbeing Team (social prescribing specialists), the 2gether Trust (physiotherapists specialising in mental health services), and Gloucestershire Care Services NHS Trust (Macmillan Cancer Rehabilitation Specialists).

From November, Age UK Gloucestershire will also be key partners of the Hub and will be able to provide specialist support for elderly community members. They will be running regular drop in sessions and appointment services, as well as working alongside Aspire to run additional walking sport activities for all Hub clients.

Jacquie Douglas, Chief Executive at Aspire, said: “The launch event went extremely well and we think that this is an indication of the future popularity of the Hub. This facility is set to be a real asset to the Gloucestershire community, contributing to a new culture of health and wellbeing.”

Jacquie continued: “The Hub will provide expert help to support and encourage people towards a healthier and happier lifestyle.”

The Hub is already evolving to better service the Gloucestershire community, as Aspire Sports and Cultural Trust are currently discussing the potential of a prototype service with the local GP Hub partners, marking another significant step forward from the existing GP referral programmes that we are all familiar with. This service could involve community and on-site clinical specialists that would be an active conduit between the Health and Wellbeing Hub at GL1 and GP surgeries.