Get your sauna listed on social prescribing networks.

Would you like to offer free or paid sessions to those who really need to access it in your community? Follow this guide to find out how you can access the digital social prescribing platform used by health, care and community organisations to connect people with local non-clinical support.

What is Joy?

Social prescribing connects people to activities, groups and services in their community that support practical, social and emotional needs affecting health and wellbeing.

Joy is an online platform that is used by health and community care organisations across the UK to recommend local activities for improving health and wellbeing. It currently serves over 18 million patients and residents across the UK, spanning more than 2000 organisations engaged in social prescribing and health coaching, including primary care networks & individual GP surgeries, to integrated care boards and local authorities.

Being listed on Joy does not guarantee referrals, but it can make your sauna more visible to local health and community partners.

Browse socially prescribed saunas on Joy

Why should I list my sauna through Joy?

A Joy listing may help your sauna:

There are a lot of misconcepts about what saunas are in the UK. People might have bad memories of poor quality ones they’ve tried in the past. They might see them as purely for leisure rather than for health. Or they might just be '“for people not like me”.
Presenting sauna to a wide-ranging demographic in a healthcare context helps to shift mindsets and encourage new people to give it a try.
Sauna is a great way to meet new people and doesn’t require skills in maintaining relationships or conversation.
Bathers say they find it instantly calming, and research from the British Sauna Society and University of Greenwich (Newson et al. 2026) found that users reported wellbeing improvements related to the sense of belonging they felt from shared sauna rituals
Many from the social prescribing network are active on Joy every day. Save hours from making connections with those in your area, rather than needing to find them and reach out individually.
If you are operating as a CIC or non-profit and need to prove your community outreach and impact, joining the Joy platform is a great way to showcase it. 25,000 patients are referred through the Joy app each month.
We hear from many sauna owners that they want to offer free or discounted sessions to those who would most benefit from the physical, mental and social impact of authentic sauna bathing and rituals.
But few know the best way to offer these. A platform like Joy gets it to the right people at the right time.
By listing your sauna to be recommended through primary care networks, GP surgeries, and local authorities, you can make your sauna available to many more people in your local area.

Am I set up to offer socially prescribed sessions?

You’ll need to think carefully on whether your sauna and environment is appropriate for people who may be new and unsure about sauna, anxious, isolated, living with health conditions or unsure about attending alone. Some may be unsure about wearing swimwear in front of others or would only bathe in gendered sessions.

Consider whether you can provide:

Additional care and guidance for first-time bathers
Training for your staff on how to handle those with specific access or mental health needs
Access to drinking water and nearby toilets
Clear changing and showering arrangements
Transparent and considerate accessibility information
A calm, non-intimidating environment
Safeguarding awareness
Processes for handling concerns or incidents
Clarity on who should seek medical advice before attending and who should avoid sauna altogether

What can I offer as socially prescribed sessions?

Before creating your listing, you’ll want to consider what you’re prepared to offer. You might choose:

One introductory sauna session
A package of sauna sessions
Specific rituals or support sessions that bring people with similar struggles or backgrounds together

Sessions can be offered free or paid.

Once you’ve decided, sign up to the platform and set up your organisation.

You’ll then need to create your listing, which you can find instructions for here.

A good listing should answer:

What is the session and what to expect
Who is it suitable for?
Do people need to book?
Can someone come alone?
What should they bring?
Are beginners welcome, and what support is available?
Is the site accessible?
What are the health concerns that should avoid sauna or seek advice?

Do not make unsubstantiated medical claims. Avoid saying that sauna treats, cures, heals or protects against anything. You can talk about sauna supporting healthy lifestyles, maintaining wellbeing, fostering social connection etc.

Good references for listings can be found from saunas already on the app like the Community Sauna Baths and Solace Sauna.

After you submit your listing, it will be reviewed by Joy before going live. It will take around 24 hours.

Optional: become a blue tick listing

You do not need to complete this step to create a standard listing, but some sauna businesses may want to show that they are a ‘blue tick’ organisation that passes more stringent criteria. You can apply for this by completing Joy’s SAFER framework due diligence check which looks for: