Project Arts4Us

Aims & Objectives

The primary aim is to improve access to arts activities that support the mental health of young people, particularly those aged 9 to 13. Objectives include:

• Enabling collaboration within integrated care systems.
• Making evidence-based arts activities accessible to children, young people, and families.
• Supporting clinicians with research evidence and evaluation frameworks for appropriate use of the arts.
• Reducing health inequalities and supporting early intervention and prevention in mental health.

Outcomes & Measured Impact

The platform is based on extensive research that consists of evidence syntheses (e.g., an umbrella review and meta-analysis on the effects of arts-based interventions for non-communicable diseases; a systematic review and meta-analysis on arts-based interventions on mental health outcomes for children and young people; economic evaluation of the use of the arts on mental health outcomes; a scoping review on barriers and facilitators), interviews and focus groups with children, young people and their families and questionnaires and focus groups with practitioners. This research has fed into the development of the platform alongside an evaluation of existing digital platforms (Chen et al 2026).

Key findings from the evidence reviews showed that arts-based interventions have small-to-medium effects for neurological conditions and medium effects for cancer, cardiovascular disease, mental health conditions, and chronic respiratory disease. For children and young people, arts-based interventions reduced depression and anxiety, and improved wellbeing and quality of life. The platform’s design is informed by young people, parents and key stakeholders as well as economic evaluations and a scoping review on barriers and facilitators to access, ensuring it addresses structural, socio-cultural, economic, and digital inequalities. The project is expected to launch a minimally viable product in early 2026, with a full version ready for national testing by the end of 2026.

Reference:

Chen, A., Smirnova, A., Chen, F., Madu, R., Liverpool, S., Khadjesari, Z., Pereira, E., Trovati, M. and Karkou, V. (2026) ‘The Digital Platform Assessment Matrix: Developing a Framework for Evaluating Digital Platforms and Systems for Children and Young People’s Mental Health Support’, Mental Health and Digital Technologies, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1108/MHDT-07-2025-0045. 

Key Enablers

Key enablers include strong cross-sector collaboration, co-design with children and young people, culturally responsive programming, inclusive practices, flexible delivery models, sustained funding, and the use of digital platforms for accessibility. The platform’s interoperability with NHS and social prescribing systems is a major facilitator for integration into routine clinical practice.

Key Challenges/Barriers

Barriers identified include structural, socio-cultural, economic, physical, psychological, and digital inequalities. Addressing these requires ongoing adaptation, inclusive design, and attention to the diverse needs of users. The project also faces challenges in consolidating evaluation frameworks and collecting case studies from diverse local assets.

Demographics, Settings & Referral Routes

Demographics: Currently the Arts4Us targets children aged 9 to 13 years with the goal to scale for younger children (6–12), adolescents (13–17), young adults (18–25), and intersectional groups. 

Settings: The platform is designed for use in mental health hospitals, primary care, community health hubs, allied health settings, community centres, schools, libraries, museums, theatres, faith settings, youth clubs, sports centres, outdoor spaces, homes, and online.

Referral Routes: Participants can access the platform via self-referral, primary and secondary care, local authority pathways, neighbourhood health centres, community connectors, digital referral platforms, word of mouth, community noticeboards, social media, event outreach, research trial advertisements, education and specialist pathways, cultural venues, faith-based groups, charities, and public health campaigns.

Evaluation Methods

Evaluation methods include routine monitoring data, validated outcome measures (e.g., WEMWBS, EQ-5D, PHQ-9, GAD-7), participatory and co-produced evaluation, case study and narrative evaluation, market research, formal internal evaluation, and independent research. Extensive qualitative research is planned for 2026 to consolidate the evaluation framework used in the study and to collect case studies from diverse local assets providing different forms of arts and arts therapies to children and young people in different settings.

Participant & Stakeholder Feedback

Feedback from children, young people, and families highlights the importance of arts activities for self-expression, emotional regulation, and social support. A vignette from an 11-year-old CAMHS service user illustrates the transformative impact of arts engagement, with both the child and his mother emphasising the value of creative activities and supportive peer groups for mental health and wellbeing.

"M is an 11-year-old boy who is a CAMHS service user in the North West. M has a love of musical theatre, especially Hamilton, and is the proud owner of a bearded dragon. His mum told us he often ‘freezes’ or becomes ‘mute’ in new or overwhelming situations, or tics more strongly than usual. The traffic on the way to the workshop was bad which meant M chose not to speak during the workshop. After the workshop M stated “I have found my voice” and decided to share his experiences of the workshop in a one-to-one interview. We talked for 30 minutes. 

His mother stated:  "At home, he'll do a lot of colouring in and writing. He likes writing his own stories and only using himself in…He’ll sit and colour…he’ll have his bearded dragon on him at that time, and he’ll sit and colour with the bearded dragon just to calm down. [...] [The Musical Theatre Group] a place he can be him, and the group of children he's with haven't judged him at all. They're just sort of taking it in their stride that sometimes he'll shout out different things in the places where he probably shouldn't, but they just all support him. So, I think it's somewhere he can be him and be supported." 

Alignment with National Strategy & System Learning

Arts4Us aligns with national strategies for digital technology, evidence and impact, health inequalities, health and care settings, and planning and commissioning. The platform is interoperable with NHS and social prescribing systems, supporting integration into clinical and community practice. It contributes to system learning by providing research evidence, evaluation frameworks, and case studies to guide clinicians and policymakers.

Further information: 

https://tekchok25.github.io/arts4usdemo/

https://www.edgehill.ac.uk/research/healthresearchinstitute/research-centre-for-arts-and-wellbeing/arts4us/ 

Image: The Arts4Us platform