Art is ‘the elixir’ to teach humane lessons, MPs hear
The DCMS committee heard there had been no press coverage challenging the expenditure of £50m on arts activities to commemor…
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Government plans social prescribing academy
The institution will champion non-drug treatments and create a body of knowledge to support healthcare workers.
Embedding the arts in healthcare
Clinical psychologist Katherine Taylor explains how Greater Manchester is putting the arts at the heart of its mental health strat…
Wasted youth
Laura Bailey explains how Kent County Council is aiming to integrate arts and culture into its commissioned services across the bo…
Tackling isolation in tower blocks
A project run by the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester and a housing provider started with cultural visits and ended with a ful…
Measuring the difference you make
Arts organisations are under growing pressure to demonstrate social impact. Emma Taylor-Collins explains how they can gain robust,…
The circus comes to hospital
A circus artist helped older people and children develop their confidence and communicaton skills in workshops at Guy’s and…
Government to boost charities’ role in public services
A new Civil Society Strategy accepts that “Government alone cannot solve the complex challenges facing society”.
Doctors supported to prescribe arts through new £4.5m scheme
Health Secretary Matt Hancock’s initiative aims to reach tens of thousands of people across England.
Doctors move closer to unified plan for arts on prescription
27 healthcare providers in the North West have committed to developing a cultural prescription plan for new and expectant mothers…
Making the most of time
A music-making project within HMP Inverness is helping offenders develop skills for life, learning and work. Stacey Toner describe…
Achieving a qualification on the inside
Young offenders in Wales gained the Arts Award during a Summer Arts College – for some it was their first ever qualification…
Collaboration is key to cultural commissioning, report finds
Leaders in local authorities and health services have started to recognise the value of arts organisations to their agendas follow…
A challenging but manageable journey
Male prisoners at risk of suicide or self-harm may be apprehensive about signing up for a theatre project, but some finish Geese T…
Making meaningful work – and measuring it
Helping prisoners devise and perform a piece of children’s theatre for their families may help reduce re-offending rates, bu…
Participatory arts projects empower care home residents
A two-year project across 20% of Welsh care homes found statistically significant improvements to wellbeing and staff perceptions…
How can we best measure social value?
As the arts work their magic in so many mysterious ways, how can their impact be fully understood and measured? Matthew Brown wres…
Healthcare provider to prescribe reading, dancing and singing
Halton CCG’s manifesto for wellbeing commits the organisation to commissioning cultural activity, which it says can support…
Lords propose charity reforms
Measures for improving governance, social investment and services commissioning by public bodies have been put forward in a report…
Evaluation framework to guide arts for health and wellbeing
Public Health England has issued a new publication to help commissioners gather robust evidence of the effectiveness of arts proje…
Sourcing the solid evidence
Looking to measure the impact of their work in hospitals, Air Arts found that pre-existing evaluation methods didn’t work. L…
Making its mark
At Sussex Recovery College, arts-based courses are boosting students’ creativity and self-esteem. Kate Davey reports on this…
Collaborative resilience
Kerry Wilson discusses the complexities and rewards of cross-sector collaborative working and networked cultural leadership in an…
Models of practice in arts and commissioning
From arts on prescription to recovery colleges, there are a range of ways for arts organisations to engage with public service com…
