Unlocking the Social Value of Community Spaces for Wellbeing
Good Boost****: Transforming Community Places into Wellbeing Spaces
Across the UK, over 30,000 community venues—leisure centres, libraries, community halls, and faith-based spaces—represent one of our most underused national assets for health and wellbeing. The Global Social Prescribing Alliance (GSPA) champions the shift from illness treatment to prevention, aligning with UN SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing.
Good Boost is showing what’s possible. Operating in 280+ community venues, Good Boost delivers personalised therapeutic exercise and education programmes that help people with long-term conditions improve mobility, confidence, and social connection.
A new white paper provides a first-order estimate of the social value generated by the Good Boost model, grounded in real-world participant data and UK government methodology:
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0.14 WELLBYs average improvement per participant over 12 weeks
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£2,140 social value generated per participant
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£129.60 average cost per participant
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Social return on investment: 1:16.5 (Every £1 invested delivers £16.50 of social value)
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11.7x more cost-effective than benchmark NHS programmes delivering a WELLBY These results demonstrate substantial wellbeing gains and financial value for individuals, communities, and the wider health system.
This work highlights a transformative opportunity: By reimagining community venues as inclusive wellbeing spaces, programmes like Good Boost can drive prevention-focused healthcare, foster social inclusion, and make wellbeing a shared social asset.
Quotes from the report:
“By unlocking the potential of our community spaces, we can transform prevention into action, creating healthier, happier communities while delivering real social and economic value. Good Boost shows what’s possible when wellbeing is placed at the heart of community spaces.” — Gareth Presch, CEO, Global Social Prescribing Alliance (GSPA)
“Our analysis shows that Good Boost delivers statistically significant improvements in wellbeing for people living with long-term conditions… The scale of social value generated is both credible and compelling.” — Prof. Helen Dawes, University of Exeter
“This analysis demonstrates robust evidence of wellbeing improvement across a large, diverse cohort… Good Boost represents a replicable and effective model for delivering measurable health impact in real-world community settings.” — *Dr. Mae Mansoubi, University of Exeter *