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‘Measuring Wellbeing Creatively’ is funded through a UCL Grand Challenges: Human Wellbeing Award. The project will work with participants who have acquired communication difficulties (as a result of a brain injury or stroke) to explore how different colours and sensations can help to express feelings and emotions.  Through a series of workshops, the project will co-develop a visual toolkit for expressing emotions. The project seeks to provide original research on creative and accessible methodologies for measuring wellbeing.Research Activities1. Three co-production workshops with adults with acquired communication difficulties (January, February and March 2017)2. Design of the creative nonverbal toolkit based on colour and co-designed by participants.3. Cross-disciplinary symposium at UCL to present research (July 2017). This will include participants, researchers across faculties and professionals with an interest in wellbeing-related research.4. Display of the co-production process at UCLH.Research Team: Dr Nuala Morse is the project’s Principal Investigator and is an Honorary Researcher at UCL Culture. She is also the Postdoctoral Research Associate for Not So Grim Up NorthJo Volley is the project’s Co-Investigator and is the Deputy Director (Project) and Part-Time Senior Lecturer in Painting at the Slade School of Fine Art.Nir Segal is the project’s artist-researcher and a PhD Candidate at the Slade School of Fine Art.Dr Michael Dean is on the project team and is a Senior Teaching Fellow in the UCL Department of Language and CognitionResearch Collaborators: Prof Helen Chatterjee, Professor in Biology UCL Biosciences, and Head of Research and Teaching for UCL Culture.Dr Linda Thomson is the project’s Senior Research Associate and Cognitive Psychologist at UCL.External Collaborators Professor Martin Marshall, Professor of Healthcare Improvement, Department ofApplied Health Research, UCL and GP, Sir Ludwig Guttmann Health and WellbeingCentreMr Guy Noble, Arts Curator, UCLH Arts and HeritageNational Alliance for Museums, Health and Wellbeing 

The aim of the MiCLUES project is to explore the potential of smart devices to provide dynamic, rich, reconfigurable contexts and paths through the Royal College of Music’s Museum (RCM) collection. The project will take a small sample from the collection to develop proof-of concept demonstrators and evaluate these through visitor surveys.The digitisation of RCMs collection creates exciting opportunities to improve the experience of visitors to the museum through bespoke apps running on smart devices (e.g.  tablets / iphones).  These apps could guide a visitor on pathways through the museum according to their interest and link to contextually appropriate resources: for example an instrument may have spoken audio content to describe it.  The app could offer additional options to hear recordings of the instrument, recordings of music from the instrument’s historical period, and see related documents and images.  The app thus becomes a dynamic, rich, portable context and window into the museum’s larger collection offering a rounded multimedia experience to visitors.  Pathways may be curated by museum staff, planned by visitors in advance and downloaded to the device, or perhaps crowd-sourced.  Essentially they offer a guided navigation through the mesh of museum resources, artefacts and information, grounded in the physical space of the museum itself, with the physical exhibits as landmarks on the journey.  On moving away from the planned path, a return “route” can be supported through dynamically generated thematic pathways (e.g. historical, geographical, stylistic) to provide a richer, user-driven experience of the collection.Read the project blog to find out more about MiCLUES Project LeadsNicolas Gold, Senior Lecturer, Department of Computer Science, UCLGabriele Rossi Rognoni, Curator, Museum of Music, Royal College of Music 

Social prescribing links people to sources of community support to improve their health and wellbeing.  The Museums on Prescription project connected lonely older people at risk of social isolation to partner museums in Central London and Kent.   The project researched the processes, practices, value and impact of social prescription schemes in the arts and cultural sector with specific reference to museums (including galleries). Research questionsPhase 1 (July 2014 – June 2015):How do existing social prescribing schemes work in UK cultural and arts organisations (and selected countries including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, US and EU)?How were such schemes set up, who are the participants, what partners are involved and what were the critical success factors in implementation?What is the value and impact of such schemes to participants (e.g. patients) and key stakeholders (e.g. hosting organisations, local government, referrers)?Phase 2 (July 2015 – June 2017):In the development of a new social prescription scheme (Museums on Prescription), targeting older adults, what will be the critical success factors in implementation, and what are the cost-benefits?What is the value and impact of a Museums on Prescription scheme for older adult participants in relation to social isolation, loneliness, psychological and subjective wellbeing?What is the value and impact of a Museums on Prescription scheme for stakeholders (museums, health/social care providers, third sector organisations) in two distinct settings: an urban setting (Central London) compared to a regional setting (Kent)?What is the value and impact of a Museums on Prescription scheme for a small museum (e.g. Islington Museum, The Beaney Museum) compared to a larger national museum (e.g. The British Museum)?How can lessons learned from the development of novel Museums on Prescription schemes be used to inform the practice of other museums through the creation of a standardised MoP model?How transferable will a Museums on Prescription model be to other museums?What can different data collection methodologies and techniques, from across the humanities, social sciences and health, tell us about understanding the value and impact of cultural activities on health and wellbeing.The project is supported by work carried out over several years into museums, touch and wellbeing, assessing the benefits of discussing and handling heritage objects in healthcare settings. Research teamProfessor Helen Chatterjee is the Principal Investigator and Head of the project. Helen is a Professor of  Biology in UCL’s School of Life and Medical Sciences, and Head of Research and Teaching in UCL Culture.Professor Paul Camic is Co-Investigator and Professor of Psychology & Public Health and Research Director, Salomons Centre for Applied Psychology, Canterbury Christ Church University.Paul Camic's website Dr Linda Thomson is the project’s Lead Postdoctoral Research Associate and Cognitive Psychologist at UCL.Dr Bridget Lockyer is the project's Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Canterbury Christ Church University.Dr Theo Stickley is the project’s External Advisor and Associate Professor of Mental Health at the University of Nottingham. London and Kent workshopsWorkshops held during Nov 2015 provided opportunities for an exchange of ideas about museum sessions for older adults including access, recruitment and suitability of activities.Workshop presentations & resources:UCL_MoP_Overview.pdfBeaney_Discussion_Points.pdfUCL_Museums_Offer.pdfMaidstone_Museum_Offer.pdfFor a review of Social Prescribing see:Chatterjee, HJ, Camic, PM, Lockyer, B and Thomson, LJ (2017) Non-clinical community interventions. A systematised review of social prescribing schemes. Arts & Health. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17533015.2017.1334002Partner organisationsAge UK Camden, Canterbury, Islington, Maidstone and Tunbridge WellsArts Council EnglandThe British MuseumThe British Postal Museum and ArchiveCamden Council (Housing and Adult Social Care)Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust (Camden Psychological Services)Canterbury Christ Church UniversityCanterbury Museums and GalleriesCentral Saint Martins Museum and Study CollectionThe Claremont ProjectIslington Museum and ArchivesKent County Council (Children, Families and Education)Kent and Medway NHS Partnership TrustMaidstone Museum & Bentlif Art GalleryNew Economics Foundation (NEF Consulting)Royal Society for Public HealthTunbridge Wells Museums & Art GalleryUCL Museums & Collections

Our research explores how taking part in museum and gallery activities can have positive health and wellbeing benefits. We are working with four audience groups: people living with dementia in hospital settings, stroke survivors in community and hospital settings, mental health service-users and addiction recovery service-users. The research seeks to understand the impact and value of museum activities for a diverse range of audience groups.Research questionsThe project is guided by a number of research questions:- How do museum activities support health and wellbeing outcomes?- How can they help contribute to recovery for mental health and addiction service-users?- How can they contribute to stroke rehabilitation?- How can they support dementia care?- What are the short-term impacts (over a 6 to 10 week programme) and what are the longer-term impacts (after 3 and 6 months) for participants- What different methodologies (qualitative and quantitative) from multiple disciplinary perspectives can help us to understand the value and impact of cultural activities?- How can lessons learned across the project be used to inform the practice of other museums through the creation of a framework for evaluating museums in health programmes with diverse audiences?The research is supported by wider work of the team into museums and wellbeing, which examines the benefits of handling heritage objects in healthcare settings, and the value of museum programmes for older adults within a social prescribing model.Research Team: Prof. Helen Chatterjee is the Principal Investigator and head of the project, a Professor in Biology UCL Biosciences, and Head of Research and Teaching for UCL Culture. Dr Nuala Morse is the project’s Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Whitworth Art Gallery, University of Manchester and Honorary Researcher at UCL Culture.Dr Linda Thomson is the project’s Senior Research Associate and Cognitive Psychologist at UCL.Wendy Gallagher is on the project research team and is the Arts and Health Partnership Manager for the Whitworth Art Gallery and Manchester Museum, University of Manchester.Zoë Brown is on the project research team and is the Outreach Officer for Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums.Project Website: Follow news and updates about the project www.healthandculture.org.uk/not-so-grim-up-north

They will study and draw from original prints to learn about technique, symbolism and composition. They will be introduced to our world-class university, meet students and find out about studying Art at the Slade School of Fine Art. Day 1: A morning visit to UCL Art Museum to study and draw from original prints. Visit to the Slade Print Studio in the afternoon where your students will meet art students to find out how they use printmaking in their practice. They will see printmaking techniques in action, and create and print co-produced etching. Day 2:  An artist led hands-on workshop in your school/ college. All materials provided and a mini- etching studio will come to your institution. Your students will make and print a drypoint etching.DatesAutumn term dates to be confirmed shortly. Please email to register your interest.Key InformationFree project for state schools from the boroughs of Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, and Waltham Forest.Booking open for 2019-2020 academic yearSpaces are limited and we can accomodate three schools per termKey Stage 4-5Maximum of 18 studentsAll workshops are free but there is a charge if a workshop is cancelled without 14 days’ notice Enquire here

• Explore the basic principles of successfully writing and reading creative non-fiction. This workshop is for key stages 4 and 5 and for up to 24 students• Examine objects at the Petrie Museum during your visit to inspire your writing, and to encourage you to think about what the lives of others in ancient times might have been like in the everyday too!• Meet students and academics to find out what it’s like to go to UCL and to study on the Arts and Sciences BASc degreeAre you interested in reading and writing? We’re looking for students who’d like to participate in a creative writing workshop provided by University College London’s Arts and Sciences (BASc) department in collaboration with the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology. We’ll explore some of the basic principles of successfully writing and reading creative non-fiction, using some contemporary texts as our starting point, and we'll also get to grips with some writing exercises and techniques. Creative Non Fiction or “life writing” has many forms, such as diaries, letters and memoirs. Exploring the Petrie Museum will provide inspiration for our writing, and encourage us to think about what the lives of others throughout history might have been like in the everyday too!The Petrie Museum houses an estimated 80,000 objects, making it one of the greatest collections of Egyptian and Sudanese archaeology in the world. It illustrates life in the Nile Valley from prehistory through the time of the pharaohs, the Ptolemaic, Roman and Coptic periods to the Islamic period. Amulets, faience, objects of daily use, tools and weapons, weights and measures, stone vessels, jewellery provide a unique insight into how people have lived and died in the Nile Valley.Important: Each student needs to bring along an object of some personal value to the workshop. It might be a photograph, an ornament, a toy etc. That is, any small item that you can easily carry which has personal meaning. Please bring it with you to the workshop day and ensure that you don't tell other workshop participants what this item is and bring the item in a bag, or keep it concealed, so that you can keep it secret. All will be revealed on the day!To BookStudents can book individually, or teachers can book a group of students, by emailing Emma Bryant: e.bryant@ucl.ac.ukUp to 24 participantsBookings are currently closed To book email Emma: e.bryant@ucl.ac.uk