This brief report looks at the complex question of skills development across creative health – an area which intersects importantly with both the wellbeing of the workforce and its diversity and representativeness.
It is based on ongoing conversations with the Culture, Health & Wellbeing Alliance (CHWA) membership, as well as a few specific sources of information listed below:
- A roundtable attended by around 40 creative health practitioners, sector support organisations and funders in spring 2025, who between them deliver or support a wide variety of training across the sector – from one-off sessions to long courses
- 35 courses submitted to the CHWA training hub
- Responses from the 2023 State of the Sector Survey (a partnership between CHWA; the Wales Arts, Health & Wellbeing Network; Arts, Cuture, Health & Wellbeing Scotland; and Arts Care NI)
- Responses to a 2021 survey of arts and mental health practitioners (CHWA/Baring Foundation)
Other crucial reference documents include the Keeping Safe report by Dr Julia Puebla Fortier and Dr Kate Massey-Chase, with support from Dr James Woodhams; and Nicola Naismith’s Artists Practising Well report. This is not intended to be a comprehensive review of skills development in creative health – but we believe this information is key to supporting further discussion.
At CHWA we hope to collaboratively pursue some of the emerging recommendations – in particular the development of core competencies and leadership support.
Acknowledgements
Sincere thanks to to all the attendees and survey respondents whose expertise has informed this report. We are as ever immensely grateful for your time. Thanks, too, to Arts Council England and in particular the Creative Health & Change team for supporting the Derby roundtable and this subsequent report; and to the Baring Foundation for funding CHWA’s training hub.