National Centre for Creative Health

Jayne Howard

Creative Health Associate Programme Manager

Jayne joins us from her role as the Founding Director of Arts Well CIC, a social enterprise that places arts and creativity at the centre of health and wellbeing. Her belief in the power of creativity to transform wellbeing in communities and individuals is grounded in a career in education and public health; over 15 years of initiating, advising and collaborating on arts-based health projects in Cornwall; a strong sense of social justice and a passion for the arts and the power of partnerships. She is a qualified teacher, workplace coach and mentor, an Action Learning Facilitator, and has a B.Ed, an MA and two PgDips in art and design theory, English literature and professional writing.

Contact: jayne@ncch.org.uk

Olivia Dean

East of England Creative Health Associate

Olivia ‘Liv’ is passionate about delivering excellent cultural projects that connect people, solve problems and that are useful in furthering compassion for each other. A Humanities graduate, Liv has more than 20 years’ experience working across the cultural and education sectors in the UK. Liv brings a wealth of specialist knowledge about the cultural provision and the demographic of the East of England, gained through her time as regional lead for Arts Award and Artmark. Most recently, Liv spent five years at Family Action working on the National School Breakfast Programme. In addition to her work for NCCH, Liv is a Moderator for Trinity College London, an Annual Reviewer for Stagecoach and is a trustee for The Hal Company. Liv enjoys making a difference though connecting people, listening, responding and co-creating useful projects that deliver what is needed. Improving the lives of vulnerable people and strengthening communities is her driving force.

Conni Rosewarne

London Creative Health Associate

Conni brings a wealth of knowledge in creative health and patient experience. She is a passionate advocate for the role creativity can play in reducing health inequalities and shining a light on lived experience. She spent 6 years producing arts and music activities for and with cardiorespiratory patients at Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals, including Singing for Breathing and award-nominated beatboxing programme Vocal Beats. This included the scale up of Vocal Beats to reach young people with cancer at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. Her previous work includes Fun Palaces, UP Projects and Romford Contemporary Arts Programme.

Jane Hearst

Midlands Creative Health Associate

Jane is a Doctor of Creative Health (PhD) specialising in entrepreneurship and promotional communication within the creative health industry. She is a strong advocate for the inclusion of people with lived experience within the design and innovation of creative health services. In addition to Jane’s research background, she carries practical experience in Narrative Arts, including filmmaking and therapeutic storytelling facilitation. She has first-hand experience of using filmmaking as a tool for healing, thanks to a commission by Channel 4 in 2017. Her recent creative health hobbies include mindfulness life-drawing and writing novels featuring queer and neurodivergent characters.

Alice Thwaite

North East and Yorkshire Creative Health Associate

Alice is an experienced charity and arts leader with a strong commitment to supporting communities in the North East. She has a wealth of experience advocating for and developing arts and health projects in the region and in arts and health policy development. Alice was Adviser to the Baring Foundation and Winston Churchill Memorial Trust partnership on creative ageing for 5 years and has presented at conferences at MoMA in New York and Tate Modern, and was part of a British Council/Baring Foundation delegation to Japan and S. Korea to share good practice.

Elaine Ryan- McNeill

North West Creative Health Associate

Elaine is a creative practitioner, project manager and agent of change, all of which are guided by the principles of participatory arts-based research. Elaine’s PhD specialises in arts-based health research methods, co-design, and the use of art to initiate change. Elaine's creative health projects include exhibitions, theatre and arts for older people, a co-produced arts social group, and a novel public engagement method that combines labyrinth path installations with arts and storytelling - The Labyrinth Exchange. Committed to collaboration and co-design approaches, Elaine is keen to explore and implement creative health models across the Northwest to improve patient outcomes and tackle health inequalities.

Penny Calvert

South West Creative Health Associate

Penny joins the team from more than three decades in public engagement, project development, design and commissioning public art, training artists workshops and community links. Penny’s roles have included setting up/ developing creative health projects and services in acute and mental health NHS Trusts, community, justice and charitable sector organisations. Penny’s key skills and passions are design thinking, nurturing creative skills in others and developing collaborative practice and solutions to enhance people’s experience of health and well-being. Penny’s training includes: MBA Senior Leadership, Arts Therapy Foundation; BA Hons Three-dimensional design; Arts, disability and employment; Prince2 project management and a PGCE in the lifelong learning sector. When Penny’s not at work she’s using design, art and DIY, singing, paddleboarding or walking the dog at the beach whenever she can.

Esther Watts

South East Creative Health Associate

Esther has worked in Creative Health for ten years after a career in education and in public affairs. Esther is passionate about Creative Health's role in supporting people with long-term health conditions and experiencing health inequalities. Her Arts and Dementia work for Alzheimer's Society was a key plank of Dementia Friendly London and paved the way for the Mayor of London's Dementia Friendly Arts Venue charter. Her recent work at the National Academy for Social Prescribing has given her a grasp of the health landscape and an understanding of the challenge faced by organisations wanting to get involved in supporting Creative Health.

Creative Health Associates Team