South Yorkshire has launched a three-year Creative Health Enabling Plan that sets out how creative and cultural approaches will contribute to tackling health inequalities, reducing pressure on statutory services and supporting the shift toward prevention and community-based care.
The plan was developed by the South Yorkshire Creative Health Board with backing from local authorities, health partners and Arts Council England. It outlines strategic ambitions aligned with national policy priorities including the 10 Year Health Plan for England, devolution, neighbourhood health models and inclusive growth.
South Yorkshire is already recognised as a leader in creative health, with a range of successful initiatives and cross-sector partnerships in place. The Creative Health Board’s work has already laid a foundation for this next stage of development, including four locality-based and one regional Creative Health Board, a dedicated coordination role, and partnership working.
The newly launched Enabling Plan sets out five strategic priorities:
- System alignment and strategy integration - Embedding Creative Health into the Integrated Care System (ICS) delivery, devolution frameworks and neighbourhood health models
- Prevention and early intervention - Scaling evidenced programmes that improve health and wellbeing, aim to reduce pressure on acute health services, support long-term conditions and improve mental health
- Workforce and co-production - Training health, care and creative practitioners jointly and implementing a Creative Health Quality Framework
- Sustainable funding and commissioning models - Exploring mixed funding and integrating Creative Health into contracts and core budgets
- Evidence, data and research - Using South Yorkshire’s research programmes to inform commissioning, policy and impact measurement
In launching this strategy, the Board is seeking active collaboration with ICS and NHS programme leads, SYMCA and local authority policy teams, VCSE and cultural sector commissioners, research and evaluation partners, and regional and national funders. These partnerships will be central to embedding creativity across all aspects of health and care in South Yorkshire.
Rachael Leslie, chair of the South Yorkshire Creative Health Board, said:
“In South Yorkshire, Creative Health is becoming central to how we improve health, wellbeing and connection in communities and narrow health inequalities. This plan sets out a clear framework to expand initiatives that are rooted in evidence and shaped and refined by local people, creative and health professionals and research. “
Rebecca Ball, Area Director North, Arts Council England said:
“We know the difference that taking part in and experiencing creativity and culture can make to people’s lives and so it’s great to see that creative health will be an important part of South Yorkshire’s plans to improve the region’s health. We’re proud to support the Culture, Health & Wellbeing Alliance as one of our Investment Principles Support Organisations as it supports health and wellbeing for all through creative and cultural practice.”
Organisations, funders, and sector leaders interested in partnership opportunities, investment, or briefings are encouraged to contact the Board and play a pivotal role in shaping the region’s future health and wellbeing.
The Enabling Plan can be read at: https://www.culturehealthandwellbeing.org.uk/south-yorkshire-creative-health
- For further information, media enquiries, interviews, or partnership discussions, please contact:
- Rachel Massey, South Yorkshire Creative Health Board Coordinator, Culture, Health & Wellbeing Alliance
- Email: [email protected]
Logos available on request: Barnsley Council, Doncaster Council, Rotherham Council, Sheffield Council, SYMCA, Arts Council England.
About Culture, Health and Wellbeing Alliance
The Culture, Health & Wellbeing Alliance is a free-to-join membership organisation for creative health across England. We provide networked, collaborative advocacy, support and resources, supporting health and wellbeing for all through creative and cultural practice. Our vision is for a healthy world powered by our creativity and imagination. Our mission is to work with others to build a common understanding that creativity and culture are integral to health and wellbeing. This approach values equity, prevention and health-creation; is asset-based and holistic; and is communal, collective and co-produced. Visit our website to learn more.
About Arts Council England
Arts Council England is the national development agency for creativity and culture. Our vision, set out in our strategy Let’s Create, is that by 2030, we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish, and where every one of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences. Between 2023 and 2026 we will have invested over £467 million of public money from Government, alongside an estimated £250 million each year from The National Lottery, to help ensure that people in every part of the country have access to culture and creativity in the places where they live. Until Autumn 2025, the National Lottery is celebrating its 30th anniversary of supporting good causes in the United Kingdom: since the first draw was held in 1994, it has raised £49 billion and awarded more than 690,000 individual grants.