London Plus has recently launched a new project which will support the Arts, Cultural, and Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sectors to identify and communicate the impact of creative health activities.
In this blog, find out more about one of the organisations involved in this project – Dulwich Picture Gallery.
What does Dulwich Picture Gallery do?
Dulwich Picture Gallery is the first gallery in the world that was built specifically to house a collection of art for people to come and see. We’ve existed for over 200 years – and are a visual arts institution based in Southeast London. Our collection of Old Master and changing exhibitions have been and continue to be an inspiration for artists and audiences alike. Collaborating with audiences in Southwark, Lambeth & Lewisham we platform diverse voices, evolving dynamically with the needs of our communities.
What are your values?
- We care for our collection, our site, our audiences, communities and each other
- We are ambitions and inventive, and unafraid to try new things; valuing creativity and considered experimentation
- We are open and communicative, creating and sharing opportunities through positive partnership
How do you make a difference to people’s wellbeing?
For over a decade we have built expertise in Health and Wellbeing programmes at the Gallery. It is a thread that runs through all our audiences, and we work across the spectrum from general wellbeing to targeted work in clinical settings. All our work is developed collaboratively with service users, health providers, and we have a number of long term partnerships with the NHS, including offering social prescribing activities. At its essence we aim to be an active agent for positive change, supporting healthier & happier communities by embedding creativity in people’s lives.
What communities do you work with to tackle health inequalities?
Our work is focused around the people living, working and studying in the boroughs of Southwark, Lambeth & Lewisham. We evolve our work in tune with the needs of our communities.
Is there a project or initiative that you are particularly proud of?
Our flagship multi-year arts programme for the Tessa Jowell Health Centre. Based only 20 minutes walk from the Gallery, we have been the health centre’s culture partner since January 2020. The project has three key aspects:
- Enhancing the healing environment through 4 co-produced artworks created with service users
- Delivering a free cross-artform creative programme to improve wellbeing for staff and service users
- Embed the value of the creative arts in local social prescribing services and the wider system
Our project was born out of a shared goal to reduce health inequality, and centre health in local need. It was developed in partnership with the NHS estates and clinical teams. Together we have explored the different ways in which creativity can support holistic health outcomes for service users, staff and the wider community as part of its social prescribing offer.
The Tessa Jowell Health Centre is a new integrated healthcare hub serving around 250,000 people in South Southwark. It was designed to integrate a range of health and wellbeing services all under one roof to help meet the needs of the local population and reduce health inequality.
Why did you decide to get involved in our Creative Health Impact project?
We were keen to get involved with the project because we’re interested in the best ways for the creative sector and the health sector to work together to support communities. The work London Plus does around impact feels important in promoting collaboration and partnerships. If it can help a whole range of organizations from across London then it can help us to advocate for our work together.
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