Far Apart UK: Looking beyond lockdown to understand how UK arts organisations can continue to support young people's wellbeing during COVID-19
Lead Research Organisation:
Queen Mary University of London
Department Name: Drama
Abstract
Extensive evidence confirms the positive impact of the arts on the mental health, wellbeing, capabilities and agency of young people, particularly those affected by multiple stress factors
(including structural exclusions caused by poverty, race, religion, gender and sexuality, cognitive and physical ability). Participatory arts programmes promote positive mental health alongside supporting young people to learn and practice their rights and responsibilities as they become critical citizens. Research shows that pandemics can trigger mental distress (including depression and anxiety) particularly in young people. The COVID-19 pandemic has created an urgent problem for young people, especially those made more vulnerable by intersecting challenges such as poor mental health, low educational achievement and social exclusion (including racism). The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting social distancing measures forced arts organisations to move their activities online, changing the ways in which they support vulnerable young people. This study investigates how arts organisations continue to re-invent their programmes to support young people during the pandemic, examining the impact of these changes on arts workers and how young people are experiencing this new way of connecting with their peers and communities.
Research questions:
1. What are the consequences of lockdown and social distancing measures on how arts organisations support the development of young people (18-25)?
2. What are the critical challenges arts organisations are facing in transitioning from physical to digital and other social distancing measures? What can they learn from this experience?
3. How are young people coping with the emergency situation and what role can the arts play in building resilience?
(including structural exclusions caused by poverty, race, religion, gender and sexuality, cognitive and physical ability). Participatory arts programmes promote positive mental health alongside supporting young people to learn and practice their rights and responsibilities as they become critical citizens. Research shows that pandemics can trigger mental distress (including depression and anxiety) particularly in young people. The COVID-19 pandemic has created an urgent problem for young people, especially those made more vulnerable by intersecting challenges such as poor mental health, low educational achievement and social exclusion (including racism). The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting social distancing measures forced arts organisations to move their activities online, changing the ways in which they support vulnerable young people. This study investigates how arts organisations continue to re-invent their programmes to support young people during the pandemic, examining the impact of these changes on arts workers and how young people are experiencing this new way of connecting with their peers and communities.
Research questions:
1. What are the consequences of lockdown and social distancing measures on how arts organisations support the development of young people (18-25)?
2. What are the critical challenges arts organisations are facing in transitioning from physical to digital and other social distancing measures? What can they learn from this experience?
3. How are young people coping with the emergency situation and what role can the arts play in building resilience?
| Title | 3 sound immersive audio stories created by young people from Royal Theatre Stratford East |
| Description | Fantastical Futures is a trio of audio pieces inspired by interviews, personal experience and reflections on the past, created by 8 Stratford East's young people. The pieces are an exploration of the effects of the past year, the reflections many of us have had and the strive to push forward. They are all moments of resilience and hope in different forms. Fantastical Futures encourages the young people to connect with their family and friends through doing interviews, to reflect on their own experience from last year, and to free their minds and think of their dreams for the future, also while working in groups to hear and learn from each other; all together as inspirations for creating these audio experiences as their artistic response |
| Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Impact | Change on perception/ ideas regarding young people's own resilience. |
| URL | https://www.stratfordeast.com/news/fantastical-futures |
| Title | 8 audio storytelling podcasts created by 8 young people working with arts partner Dirty Protest (Wales). |
| Description | This part of the project was a series of workshops with young people aged 18-29, facilitated by Kiara Sulivan and Alice Ecklund. Over 5 sessions, we found out that the young people were all keen writers and liked exploring their writing when music was involved. Each week we brought different pieces of music and different stimuli to introduce to the group and after the second session they decided they wanted to write something about themselves, their feelings and attitudes towards the last 18 months of the pandemic. |
| Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Impact | N/A |
| URL | https://soundcloud.com/dirtyprotesttheatre/sets/far-apart-uk-x-dirty-protest |
| Description | The pandemic transformed the arts sector, changing the positioning of the arts and its role in society, with many implications for future policy and strategies of arts organisations. Over coming years, forward-thinking funding models will be crucial. Respondents highlighted the importance of public funding during the pandemic, especially those whose income was lost from ticket sales and other earned income. Funding possibilities allowed organisations to keep engagement up by hiring freelancers, buying materials for activities, and tackling the lack of digital resources such as laptops and data for young people. Rather than such a strong focus on using creativity to make artistic products like theatre shows or art pieces, creativity was valued more as a tool for connection and expression that should have equal access for everyone. In this sense, creativity is used as a process rather than as a tool to design a creative product. Creative, solution-focused approaches are a helpful way to go about solving social problems, using art as just one tool in a larger toolbox of a joined-up approach to addressing the needs of young people. In the future, governmental policy can help to offer incentives to bridge these connections that are more fruitful, strategic, and long-term. The most successful organisations focused less on the art form used or the precedents (what had been done before) and more on the social outcomes they wanted to achieve, letting the desired change inspire the creative process. The pandemic strengthened other roles for arts organisations in the communities where they are based, beyond their core purposes of making art work and supporting creativity. Government and public bodies should consider the human factor that is also part of these arts organisations. SUMMARY OF QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS: 141 young people were surveyed between July and August 2021. When asked to self report on their mental health, 46% of participants indicated they experience low mood and anxiety during the pandemic. At the time of the survey, numbers were slightly lower: 21.3% of them were still experiencing low mood and 26.2% were still experiencing anxiety. 82% accessed the internet daily and considered themselves almost always connected. The respondents used internet on their phones (97%) and computers (72%). 31% were involved in online arts activities. 21% were involved in socially distanced in-person arts activities. For 52% of the young people interviewed, their contact with the arts organisations improved during the pandemic. Out of 44 young people who took part in online activities, 39% participated in weekly classes, 16% in community engagement actions, 14% in workshops and 11% in shows and performances. 21% thought all activities worked great online while 9% said that they were not the same as in person. Young people cited a variety of reasons for joining online activities, including to feel better emotionally, to enjoy themselves and to pursue life goals. Although 20% viewed online activities as an opportunity to socialise, they also reported that it was not the same as meeting people face-to-face. 30% found it more difficult to self-express through a screen. SUMMARY OF QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS: For young people, the impact of COVID-19 was particularly profound, with a formative part of their lives completely disrupted by the pandemic. Most young people who took part in this study already had a powerful relationship with the arts. That relationship was disrupted during this difficult time, shifting an important aspect of their lives, forcing them to adapt. The arts organisations that supported these young people also had to radically change their practices and methods to cater for the increased needs of those around them. Findings are grouped according to four themes or topic areas: impact of lockdown and social distancing; key learning and challenges; strategies for coping and engagement; and general recommendations. SOME KEY RECOMMENDATIONS To continue to improve and increase mental health support, it is recommended that improved connections are forged between arts organisations and more experienced mental health professionals, or that staff in arts organisations are, at the very least, given the appropriate training to deal with difficult situations. There is still a digital divide in many communities. This study recommends further government investment into both supporting young people's literacy and expanding the digital infrastructure. Arts organisations should continue to experiment with hybrid models of engagement. This might include a mix of in-person and online sessions, or having some programmes that are solely online to achieve a more sustained engagement with more vulnerable groups. There should be continued investment in digital innovation, finding ways to maximise the potential of these technologies, perhaps even tapping into Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) possibilities. Impact of Lockdown and Social Distancing Especially in the arts and especially with young people, you know, if I wanted to do stuff online, I would have become a banker. Something I could do online. Or an accountant, no shame to any of those professions, but you know it's just different when you're in the cultural industry, and harder I guess, to replicate the whole The magic in the room, whatever it is. Young Person Interviews identified a range of mental health issues. Not only feelings of anxiety and depression but also frustration, anger, lower levels of motivation, and even feeling misunderstood. The informal conversation that builds creativity and connection diminished or was lost. For projects such as theatre groups, that require a great deal of interaction amongst young people, informal conversations were eliminated. However, although the lockdowns impacted heavily on mental health and creative practice, some young people found solace in slowing down. Some discovered/rediscovered painting or poetry, which they may not have had the time or energy to do beforehand. Prior engagement with an artistic practice or creativity helped young people to build a sense of resilience. It gave them tools to express what they were feeling or helped them to find a release. However, following the lockdowns when everything went online, many young people lost a key outlet. Particularly young people who had difficult home lives, now forced to engage with art activities online at home. Levels of connection with other people and their art form decreased over time. The power of all being in one room together was not the same in an online space. But online spaces also had positive benefits. Some shy or reserved young people found safety in digital engagement. Digital poverty was a big issue. Even though the digital world is a familiar and comfortable one for the younger generations, many of those interviewed still did not have access to the technology or devices to engage properly with online arts provision (as seen above, 28% of survey respondents did not have internet access on a computer). Staff redundancies and the furlough scheme diminished morale. Many organisations were forced to make staff cuts to jobs usually carried out by the more locally based, culturally diverse, and lower-income workers. There were also difficulties in creating performances. While many arts organisations adapted quickly to creating with young people online, there was a sense that what was lost due to the inability to be in a room together could not be replaced through digital presence, especially in the cases of performance events. CHALLENGES, KEY LEARNINGS AND OUTCOMES During the pandemic, there was a shift of focus from artistic excellence or high-quality work to the power of creativity in any form. Arts organisations experimented with new forms that were outside of their comfort zones to find new ways to engage with young people. For those in remote places, watching performances online was a way they could engage with high-quality art forms difficult to access in normal times. Even though a digital space could never replace the power of a face-to-face connection, it can still be a successful platform for sparking or strengthening relationships between young people and arts organisations in different countries, as it is a means of establishing common ground. Building new audiences takes more time and resources. While many organisations were able to forge new relationships both locally and internationally to engage new audiences online, they soon discovered that nurturing these relationships takes more time and resources to build and maintain. Organisations able to retain staff consistency, avoid redundancies or furlough the smallest number of staff managed to better meet the needs of young people. There were difficulties in sustaining engagement online. Over time, young people felt less excited about engaging in a digital environment, leading to burnout and a desire to spend less time staring at a screen, which, in turn, led to less engagement. Subsequently, many young people felt disengaged. Some stopped participating altogether. Doing less better: some programmes had to be cut and projects cancelled. While this was a challenge at first, organisations took this as an opportunity to scale back and do less, but in a more considered, thoughtful way. As many arts organisations are very delivery-focused and do not have enough time to focus on future planning and strategy, some took the pandemic as an opportunity for strategic thinking and what they would like to achieve in the years to come. The pandemic-related postponement of performances inadvertently increased opportunities for experimentation, granting young people more time to explore their art activities, without the pressure of committing to challenging deadlines. There were more barriers to innovation for larger, venue-based organisations. Generally speaking, smaller organisations, particularly those without a venue, were able to transition to an online space more quickly than larger organisations. In general, larger organisations were busy with maintaining themselves while smaller organisations were able to concentrate on innovating. STRATEGIES FOR COPING AND ENGAGEMENT A lot of support was given to grass-roots projects, and I feel like we worked more in the community. So, obviously, we had our projects that we'd run and had been running, but a lot of things were born. It was like spur of the moment: this is what's happening. Staff Member Utilising technology to increase numbers: an online space eradicates the geographical limitations of an inperson venue. Young people were able to engage more readily with others based in different parts of the city and even the country - something arts organisations reported taking advantage of. Online sessions could also cater for more participants than some in-person sessions. Many arts organisations leapt at the chance to work with larger numbers of young people. Lockdown challenges inspired some arts to dream up new ways of being creative with new projects. Staff felt that engaging young people online often required a different skillset, prompting creation of new techniques and methodologies. There was a reduction in geographical and access barriers within the UK. Many arts organisations took the move to a digital platform as an opportunity to engage with new groups of young people, particularly those with disabilities or who lived in areas too remote for an active arts organisation community. Organisations found new ways to increase pastoral support. Many arts organisations utilised methods of connecting with young people such as phone calls, weekly check-ins, and meetings to ask about their wellbeing. This development shifted the focus from simply creating, to that of a structure to champion young people's mental health during the pandemic. However, as a result of the growing need for more pastoral support, many staff members surpassed the responsibilities of their roles, sometimes feeling that the boundaries between work and home or social life were disrupted. There was increased awareness of the importance of resilience, flexibility, and response to needs, including giving space. Staff working with young people also had to know when to step back and offer them the space to engage with other aspects of their lives. Social media emerged as an art form. Some arts organisations utilised this platform as a means of encouraging creative expression amongst young people. Examples of this included social media takeovers and creative prompts that were used solely on social media. New partnerships were fostered. Arts organisations formed partnerships with other bodies such as, for example, a counselling service to offer therapy sessions for young people alongside creative programmes. To provide holistic support for young people - so going beyond solely offering support with creative expression - organisations tapped into pre-existing networks of key leaders, both within and, perhaps most importantly, outside the arts. Pandemic mitigation measures also encouraged empathy amongst young people, as many understood they were all experiencing similar difficulties, and all had to learn and adapt to the situation at hand. This feeling of 'all being in the same boat' was fostered by arts organisations. SOME KEY RECOMMENDATIONS To continue to improve and increase mental health support, it is recommended that improved connections are forged between arts organisations and more experienced mental health professionals, or that staff in arts organisations are, at the very least, given the appropriate training to deal with difficult situations. There is still a digital divide in many communities. This study recommends further government investment into both supporting young people's literacy and expanding the digital infrastructure. Arts organisations should continue to experiment with hybrid models of engagement. This might include a mix of in-person and online sessions, or having some programmes that are solely online to achieve a more sustained engagement with more vulnerable groups. There should be continued investment in digital innovation, finding ways to maximise the potential of these technologies, perhaps even tapping into Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) possibilities. More structured training in human resources, managing finances efficiently, and project management, for example, could help arts organisations to cope with stressful situations and will improve the survival rate of arts centres. Whether it is a youth board or finding ways for young people to take more ownership over decisions the arts organisation makes, there needs to be more integration of young people's ideas into how arts organisations move forward postpandemic. Take a cross-sector, collaborative approach to supporting young people. Arts organisations and their staff have widely played the role of care workers during the pandemic, providing pastoral support to young people and other members during the lockdowns. The government should acknowledge the importance of this caring activity in helping young people to cope. |
| Exploitation Route | Online engagement will likely continue when the pandemic subsides, potentially facilitating an evolution in the way arts organisations connect with and support young participants in the future. The outcomes from this investigation are intended to help such organisations identify methods of engaging and supporting young people during a difficult moment in history, while also offering ways forward as the world emerges from the pandemic. The recommendations above for policy makers and arts organisations can be utilised as guidance towards best practice for arts organisations wishing to support young people's resilience. PPP and the QMUL Unit for Socal & Community Psychiatry aim to set up an international network of arts organisations and clinicians to share practice in arts and mental health. |
| Sectors | Healthcare,Leisure Activities, including Sports, Recreation and Tourism,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| URL | https://peoplespalaceprojects.org.uk/en/publications/far-apart-but-close-at-heart-report/ |
| Description | Our research findings have drawn attention to the importance of supporting young people's mental health in creative spaces. One of the arts-based organisations, Battersea Arts Centre, has created a research group with young people to keep on discussing the research findings and collectively think of actions the organisation could take to support them best. Another participating arts organisation, Theatre Royal Stratford East, has also taken further action in relation to the research findings. Its young company alumni produced a play called RUN, which talks about resilience in young people. Finally, the findings called to rethink how important arts organisations can be in providing care and support for young people with mental health difficulties, which started a conversation between participating arts organisations and researchers around creating a research network around young people, arts and mental health. We have already begun talks with the WHO to support this initiative and have applied for further funding. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal |
| Description | Presentation of Policy Brief with Earl Findings/Recommendations to The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
| Description | Impact Accelerator Account: HSS Impact Awards 2022-23 |
| Amount | £50,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Queen Mary University of London |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2023 |
| End | 07/2023 |
| Description | National Portfolio 2023-26 |
| Amount | £403,728 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts Council England |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 04/2023 |
| End | 03/2026 |
| Description | The Agency project: commission to conduct a Community-Based Research (CBR) project: Building Capacity and Leadership among Young People in South London and North Manchester |
| Amount | £10,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | National Lottery |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2021 |
| End | 09/2022 |
| Title | Qualitative in depth interview questionnaire applied on arts workers, young people and stakeholders |
| Description | Qualitative guide for in-depth interviews conducted with 100 people from 5 partnering arts organisations ( arts workers, stakeholders and young people engaged in creative activities) about the impact of a shift to the digital on arts workers and young people during the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| Type Of Material | Physiological assessment or outcome measure |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Findings from Interviews conducted between March and May 2021: • Many young people turned to creativity as a coping strategy during Lockdown • Cultural institutions shifted into survival mode and focused on caring for young people, providing support to tackle digital poverty and modifying programmes to include wellbeing check-ins. • Young people needed more support because of lockdowns: creative self-development programs helped establish structures and stability keeping them driven and motivated. • Connecting online presented significant difficulties but wasn't all negative for young people. |
| Title | Quantitative questionnaire: the impact of a shift to the digital on arts workers and young people |
| Description | Quantitative questionnaire responded by young people engaged in creative activities led by our 5 arts partnering organisations (167 responses in total) |
| Type Of Material | Physiological assessment or outcome measure |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Findings from survey conducted with 141 young participants from arts organisations, July and August 2021: • For 52% of respondents contact with arts organisation increased during the pandemic. • 43% of young people found out about online activities through organisations' social media and 25% through email marketing. • For the young people that participated in online activities during the pandemic (44 out of 141), activities supported improvement of skills (75%) and pursuing a dream/career (58%). Reported benefits related to doing something beyond their routine (30%), feeling encouraged (23%) and less bored (23%). |
| Title | Dataset for 100 in-depth interviews: Far Apart UK |
| Description | Data |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Final analysis still on the process of being finalised by research team, but Initial findings suggests that: • Many young people turned to creativity as a coping strategy during Lockdown • Cultural institutions shifted into survival mode and focused on caring for young people, providing support to tackle digital poverty and modifying programmes to include wellbeing check-ins. • Young people needed more support because of lockdowns: creative self-development programs helped establish structures and stability keeping them driven and motivated. • Connecting online presented significant difficulties but wasn't all negative for young people. |
| Title | Dataset for online survey: Far Apart UK |
| Description | 141 responses collected from young people aged (16-29) on their perception about the shift of in-person to online activities delivered by 5 arts partnering organisations and the role of the arts in supporting young people wellbeing and mental health during the pandemic. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | Findings from survey conducted with 141 young participants from arts organisations, July and August 2021: • For 52% of respondents contact with arts organisation increased during the pandemic. • 43% of young people found out about online activities through organisations' social media and 25% through email marketing. • For the young people that participated in online activities during the pandemic (44 out of 141), activities supported improvement of skills (75%) and pursuing a dream/career (58%). Reported benefits related to doing something beyond their routine (30%), feeling encouraged (23%) and less bored (23%). |
| Description | Partnership with 5 arts organisations based in the UK, studying the impact of a shift to the digital on arts workers and young people. |
| Organisation | Battersea Arts Centre |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Multiple |
| PI Contribution | The arts lead and research team have established good working relationships with each of the arts partners. Academic team brought academic/scientific expertise regarding research methods (qualitative and quantitative), mental distress (depression and anxiety) in adolescents and young adults, as well as expertise and knowledge of the processes required for conducting high quality research. The research team will provide training and support in research methodologies and processes where needed. The research team also provides regular face-to-face and teleconference contact with the arts partners |
| Collaborator Contribution | The arts partners bring expertise, experience and knowledge in working with young people and their particular art form. They are skilled in working with young people through the arts to explore and express difficulties that young people might experience.The arts partners will combine their expertise with that of the local academic research team to use arts-based methods to conduct research activities with adolescents and young people. They will be instrumental in organising and recruiting young people to these research activities, and some of the research activities will take place in venues that are already known to them. |
| Impact | - 5 creative sessions workshops held with 8 young people engaged with arts partner, discussing experiences around the arts and mental health during the pandemic - development of 3 audio pieces created collaboratively with young people on their experience with mental health and the arts during the pandemic. - Dataset from quantitative survey applied on young people engaged with the arts partner - Dataset from qualitative interviews with key stakeholders, young people and staff members from partnering organisation - Policy recommendations about the experience of adapting arts organisations work with young people during the pandemic |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Partnership with 5 arts organisations based in the UK, studying the impact of a shift to the digital on arts workers and young people. |
| Organisation | Contact Theatre |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | The arts lead and research team have established good working relationships with each of the arts partners. Academic team brought academic/scientific expertise regarding research methods (qualitative and quantitative), mental distress (depression and anxiety) in adolescents and young adults, as well as expertise and knowledge of the processes required for conducting high quality research. The research team will provide training and support in research methodologies and processes where needed. The research team also provides regular face-to-face and teleconference contact with the arts partners |
| Collaborator Contribution | The arts partners bring expertise, experience and knowledge in working with young people and their particular art form. They are skilled in working with young people through the arts to explore and express difficulties that young people might experience.The arts partners will combine their expertise with that of the local academic research team to use arts-based methods to conduct research activities with adolescents and young people. They will be instrumental in organising and recruiting young people to these research activities, and some of the research activities will take place in venues that are already known to them. |
| Impact | - 5 creative sessions workshops held with 8 young people engaged with arts partner, discussing experiences around the arts and mental health during the pandemic - development of 3 audio pieces created collaboratively with young people on their experience with mental health and the arts during the pandemic. - Dataset from quantitative survey applied on young people engaged with the arts partner - Dataset from qualitative interviews with key stakeholders, young people and staff members from partnering organisation - Policy recommendations about the experience of adapting arts organisations work with young people during the pandemic |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Partnership with 5 arts organisations based in the UK, studying the impact of a shift to the digital on arts workers and young people. |
| Organisation | National Theatre Wales |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | The arts lead and research team have established good working relationships with each of the arts partners. Academic team brought academic/scientific expertise regarding research methods (qualitative and quantitative), mental distress (depression and anxiety) in adolescents and young adults, as well as expertise and knowledge of the processes required for conducting high quality research. The research team will provide training and support in research methodologies and processes where needed. The research team also provides regular face-to-face and teleconference contact with the arts partners |
| Collaborator Contribution | The arts partners bring expertise, experience and knowledge in working with young people and their particular art form. They are skilled in working with young people through the arts to explore and express difficulties that young people might experience.The arts partners will combine their expertise with that of the local academic research team to use arts-based methods to conduct research activities with adolescents and young people. They will be instrumental in organising and recruiting young people to these research activities, and some of the research activities will take place in venues that are already known to them. |
| Impact | - 5 creative sessions workshops held with 8 young people engaged with arts partner, discussing experiences around the arts and mental health during the pandemic - development of 3 audio pieces created collaboratively with young people on their experience with mental health and the arts during the pandemic. - Dataset from quantitative survey applied on young people engaged with the arts partner - Dataset from qualitative interviews with key stakeholders, young people and staff members from partnering organisation - Policy recommendations about the experience of adapting arts organisations work with young people during the pandemic |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Partnership with 5 arts organisations based in the UK, studying the impact of a shift to the digital on arts workers and young people. |
| Organisation | Theatre Royal Stratford East |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | The arts lead and research team have established good working relationships with each of the arts partners. Academic team brought academic/scientific expertise regarding research methods (qualitative and quantitative), mental distress (depression and anxiety) in adolescents and young adults, as well as expertise and knowledge of the processes required for conducting high quality research. The research team will provide training and support in research methodologies and processes where needed. The research team also provides regular face-to-face and teleconference contact with the arts partners |
| Collaborator Contribution | The arts partners bring expertise, experience and knowledge in working with young people and their particular art form. They are skilled in working with young people through the arts to explore and express difficulties that young people might experience.The arts partners will combine their expertise with that of the local academic research team to use arts-based methods to conduct research activities with adolescents and young people. They will be instrumental in organising and recruiting young people to these research activities, and some of the research activities will take place in venues that are already known to them. |
| Impact | - 5 creative sessions workshops held with 8 young people engaged with arts partner, discussing experiences around the arts and mental health during the pandemic - development of 3 audio pieces created collaboratively with young people on their experience with mental health and the arts during the pandemic. - Dataset from quantitative survey applied on young people engaged with the arts partner - Dataset from qualitative interviews with key stakeholders, young people and staff members from partnering organisation - Policy recommendations about the experience of adapting arts organisations work with young people during the pandemic |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | 5 creative workshop sessions with young people (16 to 29) in each 5 partnering organisations (Battersea Arts Centre, Contact Theatre, National Theatre Wales, Dirty Protest, Royal Theatre Stratford East) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Heritage supported the delivery of 5 creative sessions led with young people in each one of the 5 partnering arts organisation on this projects. Creative workshops used multimedia mediums to work and engage young people into creating arts pieces expressing their experiences with mental health and the role of the arts during the pandemic. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020,2021 |
| URL | https://peoplespalaceprojects.org.uk/en/projects/far-apart-uk/ |
| Description | Private briefing about Far Apart UK initial findings and policy recommendations to The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Heritage was invited to deliver a private briefing session to the The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) on the initial findings and policy recommendations arising from the research Looking Beyond Lockdown: How UK Arts Organisations Can Continue to Support Young People's Wellbeing During COVID-19 |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Showcases of findings |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A final event was held by each of the five arts partners in the project to showcase the creative research findings. A total of 192 people attended, including arts practitioners and policy makers (Manchester City Council). The events sparked discussion about the ways in which participation in arts and creative activities support young people's mental health and best practice by arts organisations in providing work to support adolescent resilience. · Dirty Protest Wales (10th May 2022: 31 people in attendance) · Contact Theatre Manchester (11th May 2022: 28 people in attendance) · Royal Theatre Stratford East London (12th May 2022: 35 people in attendance) · at National Theatre Wales (14th May 2022: 42 people in attendance) · Battersea Arts Centre (15th May 2022: 56 people in attendance) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://peoplespalaceprojects.org.uk/en/projects/far-apart-uk/ |
| Description | Training sessions on research based methods to research assistants from 5 arts partnering organisations |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | Research team led by Heritage delivered a serie of workshops to train 12 staff members from 5 partnering organisations engaged in the research on 8 sessions covering the topics: qualitative research - in depth interviews, quantitative research methods and qualitative analysis |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |