Creative Health in Essex

Creative Lives is working with Essex County Council to learn more about creative health activity across the county

From April 2024, Creative Lives will be exploring the creative health sector in Essex. Working with the Culture team and Wellbeing & Public Health Team at Essex County Council, plus a range of culture and health strategic partners, we will conduct focus groups, interviews, and an online survey. This work will help us to map current activity, and learn about barriers and solutions to delivering creative interventions to support health outcomes in Essex.

Throughout the project, we will be working to:

Map the current activity
Identify workforce needs
Highlight good practice
Build strategic alliances

We are using the National Centre for Creative Health definition of 'creative health': creative approaches and activities which have benefits for our health and wellbeing. Activities can include visual and performing arts, crafts, film, literature, cooking, and creative activities in nature (such as gardening). Approaches may involve creative and innovative ways to deliver health and care services, co-production, education, and workforce development. Creative health can be applied in homes, communities, cultural institutions and heritage sites, and healthcare settings; and can contribute to the prevention of ill health, promotion of healthy behaviours, management of long term conditions, and treatment and recovery.

Events to learn about Creative health in Essex

We are facilitating a range of ‘open conversation’ sessions to learn more about local activity and the key challenges and opportunities for creative health activity in Essex. We will be holding the events listed below. Please note we are providing alternative times and themes to ensure maximum opportunity for attendance, you need not attend more than one event.

Exploring creative health practice in Essex
10.00-11.30, 12 June 2024
Essex Record Office, Chelmsford

Book here

Exploring creative health research and evaluation in Essex (x2)
9.00-10.00 and 13.00-14.00, 13 June 2024
Online sessions

Exploring creative commissioning opportunities to improve health outcomes in Essex (x2)
9.00-10.00 and 12.00-13.00, 14 June 2024
Online sessions

If you cannot attend any of these planned sessions, there are other opportunities to contribute to the work. We will also be conducting a range of 1-2-1 interviews, an online survey, and a further networking session if there is high demand

For more information about this activity please contact [email protected].