Creative health discussed in the House of Lords
This month, NCCH Chair Lord Alan Howarth added his voice to a debate in the House of Lords on ‘The Contribution of the Arts to the Economy and Society’, where he highlighted the role of the arts in health and wellbeing, summarising the recommendations of the Creative Health Review.
The importance of creative health was recognised by Lord Melvyn Bragg in his introductory speech, in which he cited the work of the Social Biobehavioural Research Group at University College London (UCL), evidencing the link between creative and cultural engagement and good health. Throughout the debate, the importance of accessibility to the arts for all, particularly in the early years and education, and the importance of the arts for health and wellbeing, community building and regeneration was underlined by members across the house. Concerns about cuts to arts funding, despite the evident social value and the significant contribution of the creative industries to the UK economy, were prominent. The importance of the topic was illustrated by the number of peers wishing to take part, and so speeches were limited to a few minutes each.
Lord Howarth used his time to focus on the evidence for creative health in preventing, managing and treating some of the most prevalent health conditions, and its potential to tackle health inequalities through community and place-based approaches. He outlined the economic value of creative health, through reductions in healthcare usage, and the benefits to productivity from a healthier and happier society. He made the case for a cross-governmental Creative Health Strategy, to maximise the benefits creative health can offer across sectors and departmental remits.
“We call for a cross-governmental strategy to ensure that the power of creative health is fully harnessed to improve the health and well-being of all people across the life course, reduce inequalities, improve economic productivity, reduce pressure and demand on the NHS and support the personal resilience of staff in the NHS and social care.” – Lord Alan Howarth
Responding to the contributions, Minster for Arts and Heritage, Lord Parkinson, acknowledged the ‘positive impact on people’s lives, improving their health, education and wellbeing’. He noted the importance of arts in hospitals, access to creative health via social prescribing and the importance of the arts for community building, social cohesion and civic pride, and specifically recognised the role of NCCH Creative Health Associates.
The debate can be viewed here, with a transcript also available.
