A few months ago we shared the very exciting news that The Artz Centre had been named as one of the community partners of a new 2.5 million pound research project called Arts 4 Us. The research project being led by Edgehill University is the largest of its kind nationally and looks to make the link between The Arts and the mental health of children and young people. This huge project with over 50 regional and national partners seeks to create a pathway for young people to be able to use The Arts and community based arts therapies to help relieve the growing pressure on statutory health providers.
1 in 5 children now in the UK are experiencing mental health struggles and, and Professor Vicky Karkou (Principal investigator) believes that The Arts could play a vital role in combating this growing crisis. As part of the project, Edgehill have now employed four “Community Health Associates” who will not only be based in the community but will work directly alongside community arts organisations to help understand and tell the story of the profound impact they are making.
I am excited to announce that we have been selected to be one of those organisations, alongside our new community partner Liverpool Lighthouse. Therefore I am delighted to introduce Nicola Brophy. Nicola is a trainee Arts Therapist and our new Creative Health Associate; she will join the Artz Team for the next 3 years to help measure the impact of our work and work with us to help tell some of the inspiring stories of students and how The Arts and Artz Centre has played a vital role in supporting and improving their mental health.
This is such a game changer for our organisation and the entire arts industry as a whole. Access to arts activities and experiences is often viewed as a luxury and in recent years we have seen the steady decline in funding which has impacted on theatres, artists and arts based education in our schools. Running parallel to these diminishing opportunities and degradation of arts funding is an unprecedented mental health crisis in young people; and some people (including myself) believe that the two are intrinsically linked. Therefore this project is a huge step forward, bringing academics, health professionals and arts based organisations to the same table in the hope that long term solutions and answers can be found.
Nicola will work closely with students, staff and parents to gain a deeper understanding of what it is about our work that is so transformative in the context of mental health. Using a wide range of creative tools, including video, podcasts, pictures, surveys and visual arts practices Nicola, alongside myself will shine a light on what makes “The Arts” much more than a luxury but instead a vital component in the education of young people.
Learn more about the Arts 4 Us Research by clicking the link below.