Arts for the Blues

Aims & Objectives

The primary aim is to improve mental health and wellbeing among children and young people by providing accessible, engaging digital arts-based interventions. 

Objectives include:

• Reducing emotional and behavioural difficulties.
• Enhancing wellbeing, life functioning, and quality of life.
• Supporting self-expression, emotional regulation, and coping skills.
• Making arts therapies accessible through both in-person and digital delivery.

Outcomes & Measured Impact

Thus far quantitative results (Moula et al 2020) suggested that the Arts for the Blues intervention was promising in improving emotional and behavioural difficulties assessed through the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ); wellbeing and life functioning assessed through the Child Outcome Rating Scale (CORS) and health-related quality of life assessed through EQ-5D-Y. These improvements were sustained for up to six months after the end of the intervention period, making this the first study to capture this long-standing impact of arts therapies on children’s mental health.

It was also interesting that children attending the Arts for the Blues interventions experienced improved quality of sleep (Moula et al 2020). This was captured through activity bracelets with data showing that children who attended the arts therapies intervention slept for longer with fewer interruptions. No significant differences were found between different arts modalities, supporting the multi-modal approach.

Quantitative results from a second study in schools (Karkou et al under review) followed an RCT design and involved 175 children, showed significant improvements for mental wellbeing measured via the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS), which were sustained for three months after the end of the intervention.

The digital development will be evaluated using the System Useability Scale (SUS), while for children we will use an adapted version of SUS. Focus groups with verbal and artistic data (e.g., creative writing, drawings, gestures and postures) will also be collected to enable the research team to understand some of the numerical data collected through SUS. 

References:

Moula Z, Karkou V and Powell J (2020). An investigation of the effectiveness of arts therapies interventions on measures of quality of life and wellbeing: A pilot randomised controlled study in mainstream primary schools, Frontiers in Psychology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.586134 

Karkou V, Omylinska-Thurston J, Thurston S, Moula Z, Pringle L, Powell J, Liverpool S, Clark R, Fletcher K, Bull M, Batsios K, Kumar A, Ramkisson R (under review) Arts for the Blues for children and young people: the development and testing of a manual of an evidence-based creative psychological group intervention, in S Hackett and J Bourne (eds) Advancing Arts Therapies through Manualized interventions for Treatment and Training, Cambridge Scholars Publishing

Key Enablers

• Co-design and co-production with children and therapists.
• Multi-modal, flexible approach tailored to participant needs.
• Strong partnerships with NHS, local authorities, and research institutions.
• Use of creative devices and digital innovation to enhance engagement and accessibility.

Key Challenges/Barriers

• Addressing long waits and travel burdens for in-person mental health support, especially in underserved regions.
• Addressing digital poverty by ensuring digital access and engagement for remote group therapy.
• Sustaining impact and engagement beyond the intervention period.

Figure 1: CYP will be able to enter the platform using avatars of their choice

Figure 2: Examples of the digital and digitally-enabled drama (drama corners), musical interactions (music corner) on the platform.

Demographics, Settings & Referral Routes

Demographics: The programme serves early years, children, adolescents, young adults, sexual and gender minorities, ethnic minorities, neurodivergent individuals, people with disabilities, those living in deprived areas, care leavers, and intersectional groups. 

Settings: Delivery settings include schools, health centres, community hubs, allied health clinics, libraries, museums, theatres, community centres, faith settings, festivals, youth clubs, and online platforms.

Referral Routes: Participants are recruited via secondary care professionals (Allied Health Professionals (AHPs), Occupational Therapists (OTs), community mental health teams, psychiatrists), digital referral platforms, and through partnerships with schools and community organisations.

Evaluation Methods

Evaluation combines formal internal evaluation, independent research, validated outcome measures (SDQ, WEMWBS, EQ-5D-Y, RCADS, CORS), participatory and co-produced evaluation, and case study/narrative methods. The programme is committed to ethical practice, safeguarding, inclusivity and participant consent, with ongoing research to refine and evidence impact.

Participant & Stakeholder Feedback

Qualitative results from the first research in schools (Moula et al 2022) highlighted that children valued the opportunity for self-expression, stress relief, and creative discovery. They reported feeling happier at school, improved relationships, and better emotional regulation. Qualitative feedback emphasises the importance of creative devices for storytelling and the empowerment gained through group participation, examples:

Some children were surprised to discover their creativity, as one of them said 

“I didn’t know I have the capacity to be creative”. 

Some children also said that they were able to articulate their feelings better: 

“I was sharing things that I was not used to sharing with anyone else.” This was enabled by the use of creative devices and props: “I could tell my own story through my own puppet, but nobody knows if it’s a true story or if I made it all up.” 

Other children talked about being able to regulate their feelings better. One child for example, noted that as she became more patient, she experienced less conflicts with her siblings and they were able to develop a warmer relationship: “I’m fighting less with my brothers, and I control my anger. I try not to respond immediately when something happens and take my own time when I need it.”

Reference: Moula, Z, Powell J, and Karkou V (2022). Qualitative and Arts-Based Evidence from Children Participating in a Pilot Randomised Controlled Study of School-Based Arts Therapies. Children, 9(6), 890. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9060890 

Alignment with National Strategy & System Learning

Arts for the Blues aligns with national strategies for digital technology, health inequalities, evidence and impact, and expanding healthcare into community settings. The digital platform (e-Arts-for-the-Blues) is designed to address barriers to access, reduce waiting times, and support remote delivery, contributing to system learning and innovation in mental health care.

Further information:  https://www.edgehill.ac.uk/research/healthresearchinstitute/research-centre-for-arts-and-wellbeing/research/children-and-families/ 

Figure 2.