UK Timeline 2019

Music and Health: A Short Review of Research and Practice

Report produced for BBC Music Day 2019 summarising research findings as to the physiological, psychological and social impacts of music on the health and wellbeing of individuals, groups and wider society, with some exemplar projects that have featured in the media.

Forget Me Not Visitors Project

An evaluation of the impact of multi-arts programme on hospital patients living with dementia and their family members – the Forget-Me-Not Project helps to address issues that come with dementia, helping patients to engage with visitors through sensory resources.

The Lullaby Project five years on: evaluating the well-being impact and legacy of singing a child’s story

This evaluation sought to examine any benefits to children’s mental, social and educational health five years after involvement in the Lullaby Project – a musical intervention for preschool children 2-4 years old living in areas of sociology-economic disadvantage.

Age Friendly Museums’ Toolkit

This Age-Friendly Standards self-assessment checklist is designed to help organisations assess and monitor their progress against the Age-Friendly Standards.

In Harmony Liverpool: 2009-2019 Reflections on 10 Years of Learning

Report on finding from a ten-year longitudinal evaluation of the In Harmony Liverpool project, which aimed to increase life chances of children from deprived communities through engagement with orchestral music.

Ageing Well: Creative Ageing and the City

This report captures key learnings from the Creative Ageing and the City Symposium in 2019 –  a key event in “Age Against the Machine”, the London Borough of Lewisham’s Festival of Creative Ageing.

The Cathedrals Group Choir Festival Report

This research examines the impact of the Cathedrals Group choir membership and Festival participation on singers and their wellbeing – physical, mental, social and spiritual wellbeing.

Social Prescribing and Community Based Support Summary Guide

This NHS summary guide is aimed at people and organisations leading local implementation of social prescribing. With the framework of the comprehensive personalised care model, it provides a useful overview of: how good social prescribing works and its benefits; the commissioning of social prescribing; collaborative...

Social prescribing link workers: Reference guide for primary care networks

This official NHS guide has been created for practice managers and clinical leads within PCNs, for social prescribing link workers, commissioners and local system partners, including voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) leaders, public health leaders, people with lived experience and patient groups. It ...

Fresh Arts on Referral Evaluation: Summary Document

Fresh Arts on Referral was a pilot to find out whether participation in arts activities in a safe, supportive group setting might provide hospital patients with chronic conditions with increased knowledge, skills and confidence, facilitate patient activation and enable patients to better manage their own health and ...

The Art of Good Health: Annual Report Director of Public Health Brighton and Hove 2018

Annual Report of the Director of Public Health for Brighton & Hove, which focuses on the contribution arts and culture make to health locally.

Museums: Changing lives through art: evaluation of a partnership project May 2016-April 2019

This report is an independent evaluation of Pathways to Wellbeing Phase 1 (2016-19), a museum-based community engagement programme, led by the Holburne Museum,Bath, with art at its heart.

An evaluation of The Irene Taylor Trust’s Sounding Out programme 2016-2018

This report evaluates The Irene Taylor Trust’s Sounding Out progamme which runs a music tranieeship for ex-prisoners. The Irene Taylor Trust runs a music traineeship (Sounding Out) providing ex-prisoners with longer term rehabilitative opportunities upon their release to bridge the gap between life inside and outs...

Calm and Collected Museums and galleries: the UK’s untapped wellbeing resource?

This study by Art Fund aims to better understand the potential of regular museum and gallery visits on people’s lives

Linking Education in the Arts and Humanities to Life-Long Well-Being and Health

This report focuses on the place of arts and humanities in liberal higher education programmes in the United States. it argues that education in the arts and humanities may have an important role in supporting individual well-being across the adult life course.

The Cultural Learning Evidence Champion’s Handbook

This RSA handbook is a guide to getting to grips with what is called the ‘evidence agenda’ in arts and cultural learning – it is designed to make it easier to ‘do’ evidence and evaluation.

A Brief Guide to Measuring Loneliness

In October 2018 the UK government announced a strategy to tackle loneliness in England.This guidance aims to assist in using appropriate measurements in evaluations as recommended by the Office for National Statistics.

Heritage and Wellbeing: the impact of historic places and assets on community wellbeing – a scoping review

This scoping review looks at the impacts of heritage on key aspects of individual and community wellbeing such as increased life satisfaction and social connectivity.

Dance to Health ‘Phase 1 roll-out [test and learn]’ evaluation First report

Two-year evaluation of the Dance to Health programme devised by Aesop (Arts Enterprise with a Social Purpose) showing a significant reduction in falls among older participants and improved physical and mental wellbeing.

People change lives: consolidating five years of evaluation learning from Sistema Scotland’s Big Noise centres in Stirling, Glasgow and Aberdeen

This report consolidates and summarises the learning from the first five years of a ‘life-course evaluation’ of Sistema Scotland’s Big Noise programme, whose mission is to transform the lives of children and young people and their communities through music and the development of a community orchestra. Its aim ...

Changing Lives: the social impact of participation in culture and sport

This inquiry by the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee showcases some of the evidence  received during 2017-19, demonstrating the impact of culture and sport on positive outcomes in health, education, criminal justice and urban regeneration.

The Dark Self Evaluation Report

How the use of decor and visual arts in a Sleep Disorders Centre positively impacts both staff and patient wellbeing.

Identifying the potential value of sustained participation in community activities arising from referral through social prescribing

A rapid mapping review by the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) to collate an evidence base to support commissioners in making the case for social prescribing and its importance in increasing participation in activities that are known to have benefits for individuals and society.

Local History Cafes: An Evaluation of the Initial Programme

An initial evaluation into a Local History Cafe programme – heritage and wellbeing get-togethers for over 50s at risk of, experiencing or looking to keep at bay, isolation and loneliness – managed by a social enterprise in partnership with museums and libraries.

Healthcare and the Arts: GP Survey – Wave 2 Headlines

In 2018, Aesop commissioned ComRes to conduct research among UK GPs in order to better understand their perceptions of arts-based interventions and how these perceptions might change over time. [Cross reference Aesop (2018) Healthcare and the Arts: GP Survey Headlines] The same question was asked again in 2019 to me...

Catch Your Breath: Writer-in-Residence Evaluation

This report evaluates a creative writing programme in response to the exhibition Catch Your Breath, a medical humanities research project, jointly led by Durham University and the University of Bristol, and funded by the Wellcome Foundation.

Let’s Dance! How dance improves physical and mental health: A briefing for the Cross-Party Group on Arts and Health

This briefing by the Welsh NHS Federation provides an overview of how arts and health practitioners across Wales are supporting people of all ages and abilities to realise the benefits of dance.

Older and Wiser? Creative ageing in the UK 2010-19

A report commissioned by the Baring Foundation after ten years of funding Arts & Older People, reviews the development of the creative ageing sector over the past decade, examining how far has it come and considering where it should go next.

Art and dementia in the UK South Asian Diaspora

A research report by Spare Tyre, a participatory theatre company into why the UK South Asian diaspora has not engaged as significantly as some other communities with arts and dementia, despite growing evidence for and awareness of the benefits.

Around the World in 80 Creative Ageing Projects

Report by the Baring Foundation bringing together some of the projects discovered outside the UK during its UK-based Arts and Older People programme (2010-2019) – it contains an overview of 80 Creative Ageing projects, across Europe, Asia and the anglophone world outside of the UK.