We are currently doing a bit of a spring clean and what to find out more about who our followers, users and members are and what you want from us. Please take a few minutes to answer some questions which will help shape what we offer as a charity.
The annual survey from Voluntary Arts highlights the contribution that the voluntary and amateur creative sector makes to addressing loneliness and social isolation. Despite the challenges faced by creative individuals and groups, and the broader context of political uncertainty, optimism about the future of the voluntary arts sector remains high, scoring 4.35 out of a possible 5.
Attitude is Everything (AIE) is creating a new network to connect musicians with access requirements, and help them to secure fundraising and showcasing opportunities. The network will be informed by the Next Stage Survey, which looks at the experiences of Deaf and disabled musicians, including questions on rehearsing, making arts funding applications, recording in the studio, and performing live shows.
Give: Volunteering for Wellbeing is a Heritage Lottery funded project led by University College London on behalf of the Culture, Health and Wellbeing Alliance in collaboration with the Horniman Museum and Gardens, Natural History Museum, and Valence House Museum. Made possible by money raised by National Lottery players, the project aims to make heritage more accessible to people experiencing health inequalities.
The Health Foundation has expressed concern about the Office of National Statistics' new figures concerning loneliness amongst young people. The Foundation says that "loneliness is a key risk factor for the future health of young people". The ONS report based on data from 2016 and 2017 has revealed that younger adults (aged 16-24) reported more loneliness than older adults.
ACE has produced a new comprehensive report to support the process of developing its ten-year strategy. The Culture, Health and Wellbeing Alliance has also published guidance for responding to the strategy.
Researchers at Gray’s School of Art, Robert Gordon University are looking for individuals who are creative practitioners who are currently working in participatory arts for health and wellbeing or have done so in the last 18 months.
ACE is currently running a series of consultation events across the country for its new 10-year strategy, including in London between 6 and 14 November. The framework features health and wellbeing more prominently than in previous ACE strategies - as well as the concept of 'community-led' practice. It also seeks to shift its language from 'arts' to 'creativity' and 'culture'.
The proportion of young people reporting long-term mental health problems in England rose by six times between 1995 and 2014; those with the largest increase were aged 16 to 24. The fundings stem from a UK-wide research collaboration between University College London, Imperial College London, Exeter University and the Nuffield Trust, that gathered data from over 140,000 people aged 4-24.
The HEartS project is currently trying to find out whether and how music works in all of our lives to impact our wellbeing. HEartS is a collaboration between Imperial College London and the Royal College of Music, which explores the impact of the arts and culture on health and wellbeing.
