This blog was written by the Virtual Village Hall team.
The Virtual Village Hall is a free, online activity hub and community designed by the charity, Royal Voluntary Service. It helps people stay mentally and physically active, socially connected and having fun, supporting them to better manage their health, including long-term conditions. There’s everything you’d expect to find at a typical community centre or village hall, only virtually. On average, more than 20,000 people use the service each month. Health & Social Care professionals are finding it helpful too, particularly for social prescribing. Our goal is to get the Virtual Village Hall to every person in the UK that would benefit from it.
“I’ve never come across anything similar to the Virtual Village Hall to refer patients to. It’s great to be able to share a link with patients and encourage them to try something new. There’s something for everyone, no matter what their age or interests. The most helpful sessions for us are the arts and crafts, yoga and mindfulness as we have very little provision of those kinds of activities locally. I’ve recommended the VVH to other social prescribing colleagues too and we have it listed it as one of our key signposting resources.”
Sarah B, Social Prescribing Link Worker
Something for everyone
The Virtual Village Hall offers live activity sessions every weekday via YouTube, Facebook and the VVH website. In addition to live sessions, there is an extensive library of more than 3,000 activity sessions to view on demand.
Sessions are led by expert tutors and presenters, including some well-known faces. Activities cover a broad range of interests and abilities, from gentle exercise, dance and movement classes, to yoga and meditation, cooking, crafts, creative writing and more. Many physical activity sessions are adapted or seated, making them suitable for people with limited mobility or long-term health conditions.
It’s free to join with no registration or subscription required. Where activities involve equipment, ingredients or materials, these are intentionally low-cost and readily available, helping to ensure equitable access.
Who is it for?
The Virtual Village Hall is open to anyone. People that might find it particularly helpful are:
- Older people that are comfortable online and using social media.
- People that spend much of their time at home, perhaps because of a long-term health condition or disability, poor mental health, caring responsibilities, a lack of confidence to get out and about, or that face cost-of-living challenges.
- People that are temporarily at home, for example, following a hospital operation, having a baby, or between jobs.
Health & Social Care professionals are using it to support patients, clients and residents. For instance, GPs, nurses and social prescribers, hospital and community health teams, activity coordinators in care homes, and those supporting people in social housing and supported living.
“One of our activity coordinators regularly links into various activities whether it’s exercise, craft or cooking. The important thing as mental health wards is that we offer more than just medication and this gives us something really practical that people can do on the ward and take home with them, both to give them structure to their days and something to engage with when they feel they cannot get out. It’s a resource we are really grateful for.”
Hannah P, Consultant Nurse/Trainee Multi-Professional Approved Clinician.
A socially connected, moderated environment
Although participants do not appear on screen, the Virtual Village Hall offers a genuinely interactive and socially connected experience. During live sessions, users can communicate in the comments, chatting with tutors, VVH moderators and other participants.
This welcoming environment encourages positive interaction and helps users feel part of a wider community, which is particularly valuable for people experiencing loneliness or isolation, reduced confidence or limited opportunities for social engagement.
“I have an illness (M.E.) which renders me housebound so it’s a way to connect with others and feel like I’m joining in a community.”
Female, 55-64
How is it helping?
In our latest annual user survey:
- 90% say the VVH has had a positive impact on their mood and emotional wellbeing
- 84% said it has had a positive impact on their physical health
- 62% said it has helped them feel less lonely/isolated.
Get moving!
2026 got off to an active start at the Virtual Village Hall with Get Moving Week in partnership with Yakult. Exercise experts shared top tips to motivate us to move more, build healthy habits and feel great. GP and TV doctor Dr. Hussain Al-Zubaidi introduced us to ‘exercise snacking’ and there were all sorts of activities to try, like a fun Paso Doble class with former Strictly professional dancer, Flavia Cacace. You can find all Get Moving Week sessions here.
“Love it. It gets my husband who has Parkinson’s and dementia to get active as well as me his carer. It’s priceless especially on wet days when we don’t go out.”
Female, 55-64
Want to find out more?
To find out more about the Virtual Village Hall, search @VirtualVillageHall. We also invite you to:
- Subscribe to our newsletter. You’ll find upcoming highlights, feature weeks, tutor spotlights and Virtual Villagers’ stories. We will never sell or rent your personal information to third parties, and you can unsubscribe any time.
- Ordercopies of our information leaflet for your surgery or setting to share with patients and colleagues. Contact: virtualvillagehall@royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk, subject: Leaflet order.
- View the Virtual Village Hall weekly activity timetable on our social media and website, or request a printable timetable by email. Contact: virtualvillagehall@royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk, subject: Timetable request.
- Invite us to share the Virtual Village Hall online at your next team/practice meeting.
Or get in touch with us at virtualvillagehall@royalvoluntaryservice.org.uk.