Financial Shield is piloting a new approach to improve support for people with health and financial problems in Lambeth and Southwark, with the potential for national roll out.

Funded by Impact on Urban Health, the project forms part of their wider programme to improve outcomes for people with multiple long-term health conditions.

Financial Shield will be tested with over 2,000 people in Lambeth and Southwark through to the end of September 2025. Led by the Centre for Responsible Credit, the pilot brings Primary Care Networks, social prescribing teams, and creditors together with advice and community based support agencies to provide a holistic response to people’s financial and health support needs.  You can find out more about the members of our Financial Shield partnership here.

Why a Financial Shield is needed

The clear links between physical, mental and financial health have been evidenced in a report published by Impact on Urban Health. The report analyses the diversity of Lambeth and Southwark where nearly every other resident is from a Black, Asian, Mixed, Arab or other ethnic minority and health inequalities are clearly apparent. The report indicates that many residents’ health issues and problems with money exacerbate each other. It also shows that the pandemic has widened the health gap between those living in the most deprived and affluent communities.

Financial Shield is proactively targeting residents with, or at risk of developing, long-term health conditions and who are likely to be experiencing financial difficulties, and will provide these with a holistic response to get ‘Back on Track’, the branding we are using for our resident facing communications.

The project is designed to drive improvements in people’s health trajectories, financial situation and debt repayment, and bring tangible cost savings to the NHS, through reduced use of NHS appointments and admissions. The pilot will include a cost benefit analysis to measure outcomes and an independent review to encourage a national roll-out. 

We will be regularly sharing updates on progress and insights from our evaluation activities through a national Financial Shield Learning Network. To stay in touch, sign up to our mailing list here.

How will the Financial Shield work?

Financial Shield is:

• Creating new pathways to support. We are working with local GPs and creditors to better identify and target people for support.

• Embedding new Financial Support Link Worker roles within social prescribing teams. We are providing advice on benefit entitlements, grants and discretionary payments, and debt problems alongside health support.

• Providing residents with more time and space, without the threat of debt enforcement, to address their financial and health problems. Creditors, starting with the two local authorities and four housing associations have agreed to follow a new Joint Debt Protocol, the first of its kind in the UK.