Resources · Health & wellbeing

Arts as a core part of wellbeing

We commissioned Fulcrum Learning to map how schools could be better supported in promoting health, wellbeing and emotional development through arts and cultural projects: positioning arts and culture as a core component of health and wellbeing improvement.

The work, undertaken with the Hastings & Rother Cultural Education Partnership, talked directly to local schools, teachers, parents and pupils: and what comes through clearly is that teachers and senior leaders are committed to the arts and understand the wellbeing benefits creativity in school brings, despite curriculum pressures.

The “ticking over” group

A clearly emerging group of students are just missing out on additional support: pupil premium or health interventions: because they sit just above the trigger levels. These “just about managing” families often face financial struggles as well as multiple health challenges, and their school-age children increasingly miss out on opportunities.

Aspiration and deprivation

Low aspiration can be linked to deprivation areas, which also see higher than average incidents of risky behaviours by young people, lower levels of life satisfaction and reports of bullying.

Parental engagement

Parental engagement is hardest at the bottom end of the socio-economic spectrum. These hard to reach families’ chief concerns are that their children are happy in school and that they behave; less significance is given to academic progress.

Transition points

Anxiety and stress peak at transition periods in a young person’s education. The pressure at these times: not only in school but from peers: can cause significant mental health issues.

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Arts as a core part of wellbeing

The research