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Mental health, social inclusion and arts: developing the evidence base

This project was run in collaboration with the University of Central Lancashire and included a national mapping of arts projects for people with mental health needs, and a development and evaluation of indicators of social inclusion as well as other benefits to participants.

Findings from the final report (2007) included that as a result of arts participation:
  • There were significant improvements in empowerment, mental health and social inclusion.
  • There was a significant decrease in the proportion of participants identified as frequent or regular service users.
  • The extent that improvements could be attributed to arts participation; the greater improvement in empowerment and mental health amongst people with poorer mental health at baseline, indicates that arts projects can benefit people with a range of mental health needs, including those with significant mental health difficulties.
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