Implementing creative health approaches to support staff wellbeing 

Seeking a new approach to staff wellbeing 

Dr Stevens joined DGT with a remit to support wellbeing within the workforce. She wanted to incorporate creative health approaches into the work because they would support a holistic way of working that would equip staff to thrive within their profession. 

A retreat for health and care workers 

While investigating creative health possibilities, Dr Stevens became connected with the Caversham Group Practice, a GP practice in north London that has created the Listening Space, a community garden which aims to help foster community wellbeing[1]. It was through this practice that Dr Stevens met the director of The Quadrangle, [2] an educational space and retreat centre in the Darent Valley. The centre was in the process of setting up a one-day Out in the Field nature-connections retreat to help NHS and social care workers prioritise their wellbeing.  

Dr Stevens attended one of the first retreats in order to confirm the potential. Having experienced first-hand the benefits it could bring, she took the idea to the DGT’s executive team for approval. The team was in full support, enabling Dr Stevens to start to roll out the programme. 

Securing funding for the work 

The cost of a retreat for up to 20 people is £2,400. Dr Stevens secured initial funding for the programme through COVID and staff charities. In 2023, The Quadrangle secured 50% grant funding from Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), predicated on 50% being paid by DGT. In 2024, the trust was unable to match the funding, which meant fewer teams were able to attend the retreat. However, this meant the remaining DEFRA grant could be donated to other NHS trusts, enabling them to send their staff and expanding awareness of the benefits of creative health and nature-connections interventions. In 2025, the intention is to bid for funding from NHS Charities Together.  

Enabling staff to attend the retreat 

One of the biggest challenges Dr Stevens faced was creating space to allow staff to attend the retreat day. To free up the necessary time, shift managers rostered staff over a period of weeks to give them each a study day that allowed them to attend.