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A white woman wearing glasses with short black hair and a red top sitting next to a white woman with shoulder length blonde hair who is sitting next to a black woman with locs wearing a pink cardigan smiling
CHWA conference 2023; Image: Michael Aiden Photography

Practitioner Support and Wellbeing

Initiatives supporting creative health practitioners' health and wellbeing

Image
A white woman wearing glasses with short black hair and a red top sitting next to a white woman with shoulder length blonde hair who is sitting next to a black woman with locs wearing a pink cardigan smiling
CHWA conference 2023; Image: Michael Aiden Photography
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To use the resources you can search by keyword (e.g. name, or area of interest), or filter by type, cost and location (including online). Both search options are below, on the right-hand side of the page.

This new collection of resources was gathered alongside the Keeping Safe report: a review of psychosocial and wellbeing support options for creative practitioners working with challenging conditions and circumstances (Dr Julia Puebla Fortier and Dr Kate Massey-Chase, with support from Dr James Woodhams).  We are now adding new resources to the page. If you want to send us new resources, please submit them using the ‘Submit a resource’ button on the right, and we will endeavour to upload relevant resources within a month.

This project was supported with funding from Arts Council England.

Affective Listening Training and Wellbeing Support

Training based on reports on affective listening and support in the arts. Covers topics of uuality practice, effective support, supporting different styles of reflectivity and peer support structures.

AMPHORA toolkits

Guidelines and toolkits for providers, social prescribers and participants in heritage and archeology projects that aim to support individuals who live with complex mental health challenges.

Artist Peer Groups, Arts & Health Hub

Artists exploring health and wellbeing in their practice to gain feedback and support.

Artist Wellbeing Company

Individual therapy, process supervision, mental health & wellbeing support; team and organisation support; wellbeing training and workshops: a dedicated time in which artists / professionals / companies can deeply check in with eachother. 

Artists on the frontline what support is available for artists wellbeing?

A Baring Foundation blog based on interviews with arts and mental health organisations about what support they offer or would like to offer.

Artists Practising Well Report by Nicola Naismith

Groundbreaking research from 2019, recognising that the practitioner, commissioner, organisational leader, funder and policy-maker all have roles to play in the health and wellbeing of creative practitioners, supporting them in their making of quality work.

Artists’ Represent Recovery Network

The Artists’ Represent Recovery Network is a professional development programme open to 10 London-based, freelance, ethnically diverse artists who identify as people of colour. Join the London Arts in Health newsletter for future opportunities. 

Arts & Health Hub

Artist peer to peer mental health groups, peer to peer professional development groups, reflective supervision support for participatory artists,one-to-one mentoring for early career artists.

Arts & Health Support Hub

From 2023-2026 Arts & Health Hub will be running a project called the Support Hub which is a range of support programmes for artists exploring health and wellbeing in their practice. This includes: Peer-to-peer support for artists with lived experience of mental health difficulties; Professional development groups; Clinical supervision for artists working in challenging environments; One-to-one mentoring opportunities for early-career artists.

AUE Good Practice Charter for Artists

Artists Union England Good Practice Charter for Artists (2020) based on 5 core principles.

BAAT Practitioners Supervision Support, Gudience, Session Template and Survey findings

A collection of support documents to help 1-to-1 practitioner supervision from the British Association of Arts Therapists

Becoming trauma-informed as an arts and mental health organisation: our journey so far - Alex Evans, Kazzum Arts

Consultancy - Arts & Health Hub

Consultancy for organisations is mentioned as an option on the training page.contacting Arts and Health Hub for further information.

Contract of Self Care: Avoiding Burnout for Social Practice Artists and All Artists!

Lumi­nara Flo­res­cu’s Con­tract of Self Care, to avoid burnout and explore sus­tain­able work­ing for artists with phys­i­cal and men­tal health disabilities.

Creative Ecosystem Model

The Creative Ecosystem model on sustaining a creative practice and wellbeing. The website offers a research-based report, guidance document, events and a newsletter. 

Creative Facilitation for Health and Wellbeing

This blog by Julia Fortier focuses on arts, health and wellbeing practice, especially from the perspective of those who facilitate the activities – exploring the experiences of facilitators working with people in challenging conditions or situations, including during the COVID-19 pandemic.