Identifying the active ingredients and contextual factors of social prescribing when used to support the mental health of children and young people: a qualitative study.

Mariana Willmersdorf Steffen, Aisling J Murray, Imaan Mohammed, Francois van Loggerenberg, Paul Heritage, Jennifer Y F Lau

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In one paragraph

Article in European child & adolescent psychiatry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

5citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

Psychosocial interventions to support parenting among parents with cancer: A scoping review.Asia-Pacific journal of oncology nursing · 2026
Review
Social prescribing as relational early intervention to improve children and young people's mental well-being: an interpretive descriptive qualitative study in the North of England.BMJ open · 2026
Article
Barriers and facilitators to implementing social prescribing in child and adolescent mental health services: a qualitative analysis using the consolidated framework for implementation research.Frontiers in health services · 2026
Article
Understanding the successes and challenges of a social prescribing program for children and youth in Canada: a qualitative evaluation.Frontiers in public health · 2026
Article
Building self-determination through the lens of the Circle of Courage: a qualitative evaluation of a social prescribing program for children and youth in Canada.BMC primary care · 2025
Article

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Mariana Willmersdorf SteffenYouth Resilience Unit, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK. m.steffen@qmul.ac.uk.

Aisling J MurrayYouth Resilience Unit, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0000-1817-1420

Imaan MohammedPsychology Department, Royal Holloway University of London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0001-4503-2829

Francois van LoggerenbergYouth Resilience Unit, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5317-7983

Paul HeritagePeople's Palace Projects, School of the Arts, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7432-5404

Jennifer Y F LauYouth Resilience Unit, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8220-3618

Funding

Economic and Social Research Council LISS DTP

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Recent years have seen a rise in mental health challenges among children and young people (CYP), while frontline treatments remain limited. Social prescribing (SP), a holistic approach using community resources to empower individuals in managing their health, offers a potentially more sustainable and acceptable option for supporting CYP's mental health. Although early evidence is promising, little is known about how SP works. Following the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) framework for developing and evaluating complex interventions (Skivington et al., 2021), this study explores the active ingredients and contextual factors of SP in supporting CYP mental health. Nineteen professionals involved in delivering SP to CYP with mental health difficulties were interviewed. Through template analysis, four active ingredients were identified: (1) SP offers a holistic approach that involves tailoring programmes to a young person's needs, interests and their readiness, (2) SP offers young people an opportunity to exercise agency in defining their care pathway and engaging in their recovery journey, (3) The development of a professional but unpressured supportive relationship with a skilled adult is an important factor in SP, and (4) SP offers a safe space for young people to discuss their emotional needs and health. Additionally, four contextual factors influencing SP delivery were identified: (1) Supportive organisational environments, (2) Parental buy-in, (3) Public awareness, and (4) Barriers to access. Defining these active ingredients and contextual factors can help consolidate SP for CYP's mental health, contributing to its wider adoption and impact.

Indexed as

Mental DisordersMental Health ServicesSocial SupportAdolescentAdultChildFemaleHumansMaleQualitative ResearchSocial PrescribingYoung AdultActive ingredientsChildrenMental healthSocial prescribingYoung people

Identifiers

PMID40381007

DOI10.1007/s00787-025-02734-5

PMCPMC12592259

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.