Reconnect
Using a whole systems approach to improve health and wellbeing
Reconnect is a pioneering, countywide Early Help and Prevention service commissioned by Essex Public Health and Essex County Council Adult Social Care. Delivered by Sport for Confidence CIC, the programme positions physical activity as a preventative tool to support better health, wellbeing, and independence for adults with disabilities and long‑term health conditions.
With funding from Active Essex and building on the foundations of the successful Prevention and Enablement Model (PEM), Reconnect strengthens opportunities for people with disabilities and long‑term conditions to live more active, fulfilling lives. The programme focuses on meaningful engagement, personalised support, and creating accessible pathways that help residents stay connected to their communities.
Read more and take a look at the process here.
Outcomes of focus:
- Increase physical activity
- Decrease physical inactivity
- Increase overall quality of life
- Support independence
- Enable and Empower: by access to good quality information and advice to have choice and control over the support they access
- Ensure safety
- Build Social Connections: maintain or regain their connections to their own home, family and community
Active Essex has played a central role in the development of the Reconnect programme by leading the case for investment. In particular securing commitment from Essex Public Health and Adult Social Care and ensuring the service is contract‑managed effectively.
As a key system partner, we have worked across health, social care and community networks to raise awareness of the service, encouraging appropriate referrals and supporting other frontline teams to integrate physical activity into prevention pathways. Alongside this, Active Essex always actively identifies opportunities for Reconnect to contribute to wider system challenges, including reducing health inequalities, supporting independence, strengthening community resilience and embedding physical activity as a core component of preventative health and social care across Essex.
Sport for Confidence is the core delivery partner, but the service is strongly supported by all Local Authorities and by the leisure centres that host activities. Essex Public Health and Adult Social Care have also played a key role, providing investment and linking the programme into local care teams and wellbeing services for cross‑referrals. In addition, the service has seen substantial clinical engagement, with a growing number of referrals coming from Allied Health Professionals and GPs.
Analysis of the shortened Active Lives survey shows a clear rise in physical activity levels among participants, alongside a reduction in inactivity. The Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework further highlights the positive impact of the service, with significant improvements from pre‑ to post‑engagement.
The proportion of people feeling they had choice over their care increased from 53% to 76.3%, and those feeling in control of their daily life rose from 25.1% to 39.4%.
Reports of having adequate social contact grew from 48.8% to 74.9%, while individuals able to spend enough time doing things they value increased from 35.3% to 71.1%.
Importantly, the percentage of people who felt that receiving help undermined them dropped from 27.4% to 10.6%, and those who felt support improved their self‑esteem rose from 42.6% to 71%.
Difficulty accessing information and advice also decreased, falling from 12.7% to 5.2% after receiving support.
Key Learnings and Challenges
- Demand has been consistently high since the start of the contract, highlighting strong need for early help and preventative support
- Long waiting times were a major initial challenge, reaching 16 weeks at peak
- Progressive reductions in waiting times demonstrate effective adaptation and improvement (16 → 12 → 9 → 9 → 6 weeks)
- Maintaining timely access is essential, with the service aiming for a maximum six‑week wait for first assessments
- Introducing Heidi Health (AI tool) significantly sped up initial assessments and supported more efficient workflow
- Sport for Confidence adapted operational processes, enabling smoother movement through the service
- The service successfully met its six‑week target, showing strong collaboration, innovation, and commitment to responsiveness
Reconnect has helped drive wider system change, improving inclusivity and accessibility for residents to engage in physical activity across Essex. Sport for Confidence has supported leisure centres to become more accessible through staff training and additional equipment, with a notable rise in Pool Pod use in centres hosting the programme. Transport barriers have also been reduced; individuals who need a disability bus pass can now receive the required supporting letter from OTs, including those within Sport for Confidence, rather than relying solely on GPs.
While the service is commissioned until the end of 27/28, discussions are underway to extend delivery for a further two years to 29/30.
