Creativity in care: evaluation report

Author(s)

CITY ARTS

Publisher(s):

City Arts

Publication year:

2014

An evaluation of Creativity in Care, a programme commissioned by Nottinghamshire County Council which explored creative approaches to promoting well-being for older people in care and ways of overcoming the barriers that face staff, carers and homes in trying to provide creative and imaginative environments for older people. This report reviews the outcomes of three aspects of the programme: the artist residency, creative mentoring and training. It also sets out recommendations based on the findings. The evaluation identifies the main learning outcomes of the programme as: learning – new approaches were developed by staff resulting in improved motivation and engagement of residents; social skills – positive interaction between residents increased, with one to one work supporting social engagement for the more isolated residents; and value – an improved sense of wellbeing was gained through participation in the arts, with improved levels of confidence and increased decision making; Legacy - the programme led to improved communication, networking and sharing between care homes. Training was also accessed by residential care staff to put into practice beyond the life of the programme. (Edited publisher abstract)