This section showcases how locally funded cultural activity can support greater social connection, address rising levels of ill mental health and help children and young people with their mental wellbeing, support those who have suffered from isolation, and more.
Want to receive updates on our Culture Commission report?
The role of arts and culture in supporting the health and wellbeing of our citizens is well recognised by Birmingham City Council. Throughout the last year, we have worked to champion our local grassroots community organisations to conduct arts, culture, and health projects specific to communities.
The impact of community-centered arts, culture and health commissioning in Birmingham
CreateSpace was a two-year partnership project of five cultural organisations across the West Midlands, working with art practitioners, to improve participant wellbeing.
Showtown worked with youth organisation HeadStart and professional comedians to deliver Open Up the Mic, a 12-week course supporting young people aged 10-15 to develop their resilience, performance skills and confidence.
A partnership was formed between Blackpool’s Social Services and Blackpool’s Grand Theatre. After consultation with young people experiencing life in care; the ‘Illuminate’ project was co-produced.
A Necklace of Stars celebrates childhood and the night sky in words, song and stitches.
This case study provides an overview of positive interventions and applied learning by Heritage Doncaster during Covid-19 lockdown.
Culture Liverpool has utilised and supported its creative and cultural sector to regenerate Liverpool’s community, neighbourhoods and creative industry in light of the global pandemic.
A new model of working with partners in the 10 Greater Manchester boroughs, that addresses social inequalities and increases access to arts, culture and music.
Mansfield Museum successfully obtained funding from the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation to undertake the Creative Women Together project. This holistic and therapeutic project gives women at risk a special creative experience they can be proud of.
The case study describes Museums Northumberland bait’s use of the Warwick and Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) to build quantitative evidence of the positive impact on wellbeing of taking part in arts and culture.
Throughout the pandemic Sheffield Museums focused on bringing collections, exhibitions and events to people online and in community settings. Museums by Mail was conceived to lift the spirits of those at risk of loneliness.
The Professors are an independent performing arts company, named for professing our knowledge and demonstrating our particular expertise in arts and collaboration. They are a group of learning disabled and non-disabled artists, create their own performances, films, installations, music, events, and exhibitions.
Sheffield Museums have a successful volunteering programme with over 200 volunteers who engage in research, events, creative workshops, heritage walks and gardening, and support volunteering for people with barriers to entering the workplace.
During the pandemic, Sheffield Museums wanted to ensure the city’s museums and the collections continued to provide inspiration for the young people. While physical access to the sites continued to be limited, they worked in partnership with Ignite Yorkshire to run Young Makers - project-based online work experience for young people aged 14-25 years old.
Surrey County Council have been exploring the role of commissioned, publicly funded culture in challenging health inequalities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic with NHS.
‘Picturing Sounds’ was part the British Library’s UK wide project ‘Unlocking our Sound Heritage’ that aimed to help save the nation’s sounds and open them up to everyone.
Radio Chopwell was an innovative partnership project to empower the community of Chopwell, Gateshead to collect and share digital sound that interpreted theirs lives and community and create a regular online radio broadcast and in-person social events to showcases the lives and work of Chopwell residents.
Sounds Around is a game designed in partnership with Northumberland Care NHS Foundation Trust for care professionals to use with people with dementia or brain injury.
Age Concern Tyneside South (ACTS) and Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums (TWAM) started up a weekly history social group for people over 55 living in South Tyneside at South Shields Museum and Art Gallery in January 2022.
The Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums (TWAM) wellbeing programme was written to include heritage sessions using a variety of our collections and a creative art output, led by the patients.
This case study provides an overview of the West of England and its cultural and creative economy, and the role of the West of England Cultural Compact in this context. It also summarises the new West of England Cultural Plan, including reference to some early initiatives.
The North Yorkshire authorities have submitted a live case study, capturing their work so far to bring together the culture, leisure and sport provisions and strategies of their eight authorities as part of local government reorganisation.
North Yorkshire – Culture and Local Government Reorganisation
Suffolk Libraries: short film
The libraries is of vital importance to Suffolk's mental health system because it builds community capacity at grassroot level. It allows people to come in and get support in the local community for their mental health needs to stop them going into secondary services. The more organisations like libraries and culture and art organisations can do to engage people, the more capacity we have to support people.
[Bruce] We have a very, very strong and very collaborative relationship with Suffolk County Council. And as an independent body, we're able to do some of the things that they can't do as a statutory body.
In a wider context, we've saved them 30% over the first 10 years of our life in terms of what they pay for libraries but we've actually expanded our services. We run dozens more services. We have longer opening hours and we still have the same wonderful professional staff running all of our sites.
[Jason] People can go into a place they're familiar with, talk to people that they know, be supported by their family members in their local community. This kind of softer face of support really helps people to open up about their mental health needs and to share those stories with our people.
[Bruce] Most of what we do supports wellbeing in the community. And we work with them in all sorts of different ways across the teams they have within the County Council to meet specific needs in the community.
The library is so much more than a place with books. It is a community hub with books in it. Is so much, it is a heartbeat. It's actually looking at the person for who they are and what needs they have.
[Bruce] Some of the research we've done around the needs in the community really clearly signpost the fact that we are saving money across the health system. We've generated £2 million in social value. So there's an absolute wealth of return on investment going on here. And recently we commissioned some research to look at the wellbeing
and clinical value of some of the many regular activities that we provide.
And the outcome of that research was that we were really helping support people's wellbeing in the community. And also, that we were particularly enhancing that sense of community but also providing a certain connectedness that isn't available anywhere else.
We run groups to try and encourage young parents or carers to mix with each other and have a social experience as well as the children interacting with sensory play that that we set up.
Older folks, we run groups for such as Top Time, 55 Alive. We named ourselves 55 Alive. It's just nice to see people, have a chat, catch up with things. And it's nice to know that the libraries are here for that sort of thing.
And it's good also for people's mental health, isn't it?
[Fran] And a lot of those people who perhaps weren't doing anything they've sort of come along to the library through 55 Alive and they now they'll come in.
They might be in three or four times a week.
[Sally] But that's what we are. We are a community hub for inclusivity. It helps people because then they don't necessarily have to seek medical help. So yes, 'cause we help one another.
[Ted] I live on my own, and it's nice to come here 'cause you can talk to somebody about anything, you know, it's just for company.
[Fran] I think just the fact that it is so popular It just shows how much of a need there is. It's nice to talk about it amongst us. And it's helped a lot.
[Sally] I think we do provide a preventative service here in terms of averting people's health becoming to the point where they do need statutory services.
And I think if we can be a part of maintaining somebody's good wellbeing, because we've been able to have a conversation with them, and we've listened to them and they've felt valued, then that is such a vital part of this library service.
Suffolk Libraries: audio descripted version
Narrator (00:04):
Welcome to the introduction to this film about Suffolk Library's health and Wellbeing program On behalf of Commission on Culture and Local Government, this short film lasts about four minutes and explores the vital importance of the library service to the community, and in particular, the benefits it provides for the mental health of its users. You'll hear from several of the service providers. Jas on Joseph, Change Leader Mental Health, West Suffolk ccg, then Bruce Leak, CEO of Suffolk Libraries, Vicky Mann, Chantry, Library Manager, and lastly, Sally Billon, Library Advisor, Suffolk Libraries. You will also hear from several library users, Fran, Peter, Irene, and Ted, who are all over 60. During the interviews, the camera shows different areas of Chantry library and inviting and colorful community space. The bright pink, green and white walls are lined with clearly labeled shelves and large portable bookshelves. Divide the space into different zones In one zone, several tables are joined together around which sit a group of animated library users, 55 alive, who are all engaged in lively conversation and activities.
(01:23):
They enjoy cups of coffee and cake from the cafe area and fruit from the plentiful baskets arranged on the tables. Another zone creates an open play area for a parent and carer toddler group. Other areas of the library have a community photo board, Rainbow Flag bunting and Welcoming Signs, which read where I belong and where I create, connect, learn, play, discover in a quiet zone. Users work on the laptops and range of technical equipment available and throughout the film, Friendly library staff help a wide range of service users. Outside Chantry Library is a luscious garden area, a bright contemporary style pink mural is painted on the walls with a painted tree that reads, Men can talk two. Elderly men are seated either side of the tree. A speech bubble is painted by each man's mouth. One reads Talk the truth. The other reads Feel the real. The Screen reads, Commission on Culture and Local Government. How can publicly funded culture challenge health inequalities Exacerbated by the Covid 19 pandemic,
Jason Joseph (02:38):
Jason the Lars is a vital important to Suffolk mental health system because it builds community capacity. At grassroot level, It allows people to come in and get support in the local community to their mental health needs to stop them going into secondary services. The more organizations like our libraries and culture and art organizations can do to engage people, the more capacity we have to support people.
Bruce Leeke (02:59):
We have a very, very strong and very collaborative relationship with Suffolk County Council and as an independent body, we're able to do some of the things that they can't do as a statutory body in a wider context. We've saved them 30% over the first 10 years of our life in terms of what they pay for libraries. But we've actually expanded our services. We run dozens more services. We have longer opening hours, and we still have the same wonderful professional staff running all of our sites.
Jason Joseph (03:25):
People can go into a place they're familiar with, talk to people that they know be supported by their family members in their local community. This kind of softer face of support really helps people to open up about the mental health needs and to share those stories with our people.
Bruce Leeke (03:42):
Most of what we do supports wellbeing in the community and we work with them in all sorts of different ways across the teams they have within the county council to meet specific needs in the community.
Vicki Mann (03:52):
The library is so much more than a place with books. It is a community hub with books in. It is not, it's so much, it is a heartbeat.
Jason Joseph (04:02):
It's actually looking at the person for who they are and what needs they have.
Bruce Leeke (04:06):
Some of the research we've done around the needs in the community really clearly signpost the fact that we are saving money across the health system. We've generated 2 million pounds in social value, so there's an absolute wealth of return on investment going on here. And recently we commissioned some research to look at the wellbeing and clinical value of some of the many regular activities that we provide. And the outcome of that research was that we were really helping support people's wellbeing in the community and also that we were particularly enhancing that sense of community, but also providing a certain connectedness that isn't available anywhere else.
(04:06):
Sally Billison (04:44):
We run groups to try and encourage young parents or carers to mix with each other and have a social experience as well as the children interacting with sensory play that we set up. Older folks, we run groups for such as Top Time 55 Alive.
Fran (05:07):
We named ourselves 55 alive. It's just nice to see people have a chat and catch up with things.
Peter (05:17):
And it's nice to know that the libraries are here for that sort of thing. And it's good also for people's mental health, isn't
Fran (05:25):
It? And a lot of those people who perhaps weren't doing anything, they'd sort of come along to the library, 3 55 alive and they now, they'll come in, they might be in three or four times a week.
Sally Billison (05:36):
That's what we are. We are a community hub for inclusivity.
Irene (05:40):
It helps people because then they don't necessarily have to seek medical help. So yes, cuz we help one another
Ted (05:49):
I live on my own and it is nice to come here and talk to somebody, but anything that might company,
Fran (06:00):
I think just the fact it is so popular, it just shows how much of a need need there is.
Peter (06:06):
It's nice to talk about it amongst us and it's helped a lot.
Sally Billison (06:12):
I think we do provide a preventative service here in terms of averting people's health, becoming to the point where they do need statutory services. Then I think if we can be a part of maintaining somebody's good wellbeing because we've been able to have a conversation with them and we've listened to them and they felt valued, then that is such a vital part of this library service.
Narrator (06:38):
To find out more, search LGA Culture Commission hashtag Culture Commission. This audio description was written by Emily Pollett for vocal eyes.