How arts and culture is key to public health - Professor Kate Ardern

How arts and culture is key to public health - Professor Kate Ardern

As director of public health, it’s my job to understand and advise on the health and wellbeing of Wigan Borough’s population.

It’s a job I enjoy and am privileged to carry out. 

Of course, the pandemic has brought roles like mine to the fore as many people probably weren’t aware of the vast responsibilities of a DPH before Covid-19, but the last 18 months have also encouraged my teams and I to think innovatively about how we deliver public health outcomes.

Promoting the benefits of physical activity, good sleep and a balanced diet are obvious but since launching our cultural manifesto, The Fire Within, a couple of years ago, we’ve been actively looking at the benefits arts and culture can have on our health and wellbeing too. 

We have deep, genuine partnerships with communities and that helps with health outcomes by connecting people and helping them to gain confidence to improve their physical and mental wellbeing.

What sets us apart from other towns is that we promote culture not just as a past time but as a way to regenerate and support people.

The positive impact culture has on social inclusion, job creation and education ultimately leads to improved quality of life.

The work delivered by teams across the organisation and the borough has led to some brilliant success stories, particularly around how the arts can support those living with addiction and social isolation, demonstrating why culture is key to public health.

In partnership with our substance misuse provider, We Are With You, Umbrella Arts holds regular craft groups with those accessing addiction support.

It’s clear after speaking with those involved that these activities help them to feel calm, provide a sense of routine and play a significant part in them making healthier life choices, which then has a positive impact on the wider family unit.

Our inspirational music service also works with schools, providing instrumental music lessons and ensembles.

More recently, the service has been broadening its scope to support other people too, such as individuals living with autism or health issues like epilepsy.

This partnership helps individuals to express themselves through being allowed to do what they love in a safe environment and it is this inclusion that ultimately enriches their lives.

It’s these stories that drive our work.

By 2024, we want to be recognised as one of the leading authorities for our cultural and creative contribution towards health and wellbeing and quality of life.

To help achieve this, I have set out set out a number of recommendations in my 2021 public health annual report, including:

• Incorporate mental health and wellbeing services with arts and cultural groups
• Incorporate arts activity into rehab and recovery programmes
• Encourage primary networks to actively link to art organisations
• Continue supporting The Fire Within and the borough’s innovative arts programmes to make further links with cultural partners
• Develop educational models for health and social care practitioners on the practical use for arts on health and wellbeing
• Develop research programmes with these academics for submission to the National Institute for Healthcare Research

It’s an exciting time for Wigan Borough and we’re looking forward to a vibrant and prosperous future, which has people at its heart.

If you’d like to watch my annual report in video format, all six episodes have been uploaded to the Wigan Council YouTube channel here.

Alternatively, we’ll be releasing each short episode on our social media channels.