Culture can have a significant impact on people’s physical and mental health and well-being. At GLA, we are testing what happens when we embed creative health champions in the NHS. We have partnered with the South East London Integrated Care System to create a role dedicated to mapping creative health possibilities and opportunities.
flora faith kelly I started as the first South East London Creative Health Lead in November 2023. As part of this, she works closely with local social prescribers to connect Londoners with activities that can improve their health and wellbeing. Now, a few months into her role, she shares what she has discovered and the huge potential of creative wellness to improve the lives of Londoners.
What is your role as Creative Health Lead for South East London?
flora: I am completing an audit of the existing creative health sector across six South East boroughs. Following this, I will work with a local creative health network to design a pilot project aimed at reducing health inequalities.
I speak to both those delivering creative health programs in the arts and volunteer sectors, as well as those within medical settings and support networks. During these conversations, I sought to understand existing connections across sectors, explore barriers to further collaboration, share best practices, and understand expectations for the development of creative health policy. do my best.
The key is to build trust and collaboration across sectors to highlight the positive potential of creative health both in integrated care boards and in communities across South East London.
What do you think is the biggest opportunity?
flora:
- Features that facilitate a personalized approach to healthcare. Healthcare is a tool to prevent disease, encourage self-care, and even improve the well-being of people, including those living with long-term health conditions. There is plenty of evidence of this in South East London, including Breathe’s Melodies for Mum program, Raw Materials’ Creative Health & Wellbeing program and Entelechy’s Ambient Jam. Creative health activities allow individuals to choose highly personal creative expression as a means of managing their health, while also building community and providing connection. Integrating creative health into universal care plans and social prescribing, as well as considering the use of personal health budgets for creative activities, will improve access to creativity and, in turn, improve communities. Improves your ability to stay healthy.
- Creative health is a means to amplify patient experiences and voices. Creative activities can make visible and enhance lived experience. This will improve personalized care routes and lead to more comprehensive conversations in healthcare. For example, Creating Ground’s Theater in Action project sees theater groups perform for key stakeholders in integrated care committees and explores issues around health care access in ways that have a tangible impact on immigrant women. can do. By leveraging creative methods of co-production and evaluation, health services can gain a deeper understanding of the experiences of people who may not have previously been heard. This could be key to reducing health inequalities in south-east London.
What are the potential roles cultural and social regulations In supporting Londoners’ journey to happiness?
flora: Participating in co-creative activities or taking part in individual creative activities enables creative expression and has a positive impact on health, thanks to the recent Creative Health Review by the All-Party Parliamentary Group. I know to give. Social Prescribers help people who are feeling isolated and stressed, or who are struggling with low mood and lack of purpose, find opportunities and tools to improve their well-being based on their interests and needs. . Many Londoners working with social prescribers may have never previously thought of themselves as ‘creative’, ‘artistic’ or even interested in ‘culture’. Maybe you haven’t been involved in any creative activity for a long time. Being encouraged to take on new creative pursuits builds confidence in a supportive environment, combats social isolation, gives purpose and encourages upskilling.
A successful cultural and social formulation is currently taking place at Sydenham Gardens, where those introduced can take part in gardening sessions, arts and crafts, dance and become part of a community of creative gardeners. and often belong to groups specific to their needs. Sow & Grow group for people with dementia or MUD group for 18-25 year olds. Similarly, social prescribers point to the successful Dulwich Picture Gallery creative wellbeing program at Tessa Jowell Health Centre, which allows patients to explore familiar areas. They are able to express their creativity in the medical environment. These social prescribing pathways could ideally exist between social prescribers and voluntary or arts-based organizations that provide creative health activities, thus encouraging creativity across South East London. There is a huge opportunity to promote.
What is your main focus and approach over the coming year in terms of cultural and social provision in South East London?
flora: We feel it is important to support SEL social prescribers to feel confident in suggesting cultural or creative options as part of conversations with clients. To achieve this, she has two important needs:
1. Helping social prescribers themselves understand the value of cultural social prescribing. We are considering:
- We support students to experience cultural activities for themselves so that they can gain a deeper understanding of what cultural activities bring to the individual.
- Encourage participation in cultural social prescription training sessions (currently implemented across SEL by Performing Medicine)
- Incorporating cultural social prescribing into the initial training of social prescribers
2. To let social prescribers know what creative programs and activities are being delivered by our arts and voluntary sector partners across South East London. This also means that the support organizations that deliver these programs are connected to local health networks, creating accessible pathways for referrals.
Flora’s role is alongside similar positions managed by the National Center for Creative Health and funded by Arts Council England, including the Creative Health Associate in London. There is an ambition to create a Creative Health Lead role in each integrated care system in London.
Find out more about our Creative Health program supporting development across London and our work to build London Creative Health City.
Photo credit: Collaborative mandala creation at Rewire: a young person’s mental health Summit, an event held at Stanley Arts in February 2024.