News from across King's

InSPIre the Mind

InSPIre the Mind is an online mental health publication created by academics, researchers and students at King’s College London under the direction of Professor Carmine Pariante from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience. The publication uses writing and creativity to open a conversation about wellbeing and to teach and disseminate the science behind mental health. New blogs are published every day, sharing scientific insights and inspirational personal stories from a range of writers. The team is accepting pitches from contributors who want to share research in a digestible way, personal experiences or socially relevant topics.

Trusting Machines? Cross-sector Lessons from Healthcare and Security

Presented by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and the UKRI TAS – Trustworthy Autonomous Systems Hub, the event is jointly held by King's College London, University of Nottingham, University of Southampton, with significant input from National Gallery X. Taking place from 30 June to 2 July, it will offer three days of debate with academic experts, policy leaders and industry professionals, discussing a future where autonomous machines integrate into healthcare and security. The conference will feature a gallery of AI artworks and creative provocations designed to engage and challenge both speakers and audience. The event is hosted by Dr Ali Hossaini, Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Engineering at King’s and Co-Director of National Gallery X.

ARTHEWE project

King’s and a range of international partners have secured a new three-year grant to explore ways of transforming teaching and learning. From King’s, the project is led by Jayne Peake and Dr Michael Flavin from the Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy, Dr Flora Smyth Zahra and Professor Kim Piper from the Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences with additional expertise from Arts Cabinet and the King's Arts, Health & Wellbeing network. The partners will co-develop innovative study modules in arts, health and wellbeing education with the aim to evidence the value of transformational learning strategies on student wellbeing and professional identity formation.

Adopt-a-Plant

The Arts & Humanities Research Institute (AHRI) has adapted the Adopt-a-Plant scheme to a digital version as part of REACH-XR. In 2019-20, the scheme recruited postgraduate researchers from across the Faculty of Arts & Humanities to look after plants, offering them the opportunity to socialise around shared experiences of researching at King's. Following feedback from participants, highlighting significant positive benefits on students’ wellbeing, and in response to COVID-19, the AHRI adapted the scheme with participants receiving an activity box including planting and craft materials, alongside a programme of online activities.

News from beyond King's

Freedom to Be

Freedom to Be was a creative project delivered by Free Space Project during the first COVID-19 lockdown in summer 2020, with funding from the National Lottery Community Fund. The project supported shielding patients in Camden by hand delivering weekly art boxes in which patients were given activity sheets and art materials to creatively respond to their experiences of the pandemic.

Art and dementia during COVID-19

With funding from UKRI, Unforgettable Experiences is using digital technology to help older people living with dementia access art during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a pilot programme with 70 participants, the company provided personalised care and technical support to help older people take part in live, interactive artistic sessions online. Moving forward, the aim is to launch a paid-for service, using a weekly subscription model.

Art by Post exhibition

Southbank Centre will showcase more than 600 pieces created as part of the Art by Post initiative, with the aim to highlight the importance of creativity. Created originally for those most isolated by social distancing measures, Art by Post has been delivering free poetry and visual art activities directly to people shielding across the UK. The resulting works will form the basis of an exhibition that will launch at the Southbank Centre in September 2021, before touring nationally. The artworks will also be available to browse in a digital library.

Entelechy Arts

Entelechy Arts, a charity based in Lewisham, South East London, produces projects which powerfully test the boundaries between art, creativity, care, wellbeing and community. The vibrant and poignant cultural programmes are created by and for the communities Entelechy Arts works with, enabling them to play an active and visible role in the creative life of their community.

Research, Articles & Publications

Theatres save NHS £102 million a year

Theatres across the UK save the NHS £102 million a year thanks to the physical and mental health benefits to attendees, according to UK Theatre and the Society of London Theatre. The figure was calculated using a 2015 report by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and Simetrica, which demonstrated GP visits and use of psychotherapy services were reduced because of involvement in cultural and sporting activities.

Arts-based engagement: a guide for community groups, artists and researchers

THIS Institute has produced a guide that explores how arts-based approaches can be effectively used to help engage people with research. The guide is for community groups, artists, researchers and anyone interested in using the arts for public engagement and uses practical case studies to highlight evidence from arts-based projects.

Opportunities & Challenges of social prescribing of arts and culture

How do we better support exchanges between arts and health sectors through the social prescribing of arts and culture? The Mayor of London’s Culture team delved into the current opportunities and challenges of this work.

Resources, Funding & Events

Older people & cultural participation: where next?

This online event, taking place on 7 July, is co-developed by Age of Creativity, CADA & the University of Bristol’s 'Connecting through Culture as we age' project team. The event is designed for those working with older people, including practitioners, arts and cultural organisations and researchers focusing on arts and cultural participation and/or interested in digital inclusion and social connectivity. Register here.

Hospital Rooms Digital Art School

Hospital Rooms is an arts and mental health charity that commissions artworks for NHS mental health inpatient units across the UK. Its vision is for all people in mental health wards to have the freedom to experience extraordinary artworks. Registration is now open for the new term of the Digital Art School, which offers the opportunity to explore Hospital Rooms’ library of creative workshops led by the UK’s leading artists.

Nature recovery retreats for NHS workers

Out in the Field is a new initiative started at The Quadrangle in Kent that offers retreats to frontline NHS workers who are experiencing exhaustion and burnout. The one-day and two-day retreat programmes include nature connection, mindfulness and creative practices, and will be a chance for NHS workers to take themselves out of their normal routines, take time to focus on themselves, to connect with nature and learn tools that help regulate stress and anxiety.