UK Arts and Health: The Time is Now

In April, policymakers, clinicians, researchers, artists, and people with lived experience were gathered by the World Health Organisation in the House of Commons for a roundtable on the future of arts and health in the UK.

With 2.8 million people out of work due to long-term sickness and ill-health costing the UK economy £212 billion annually, the case for creative health is as economic as it is clinical. Arts interventions return up to £8.56 in social value for every £1 spent. The question is no longer whether the arts improve health, it is how and when the government decides to act.

Their new post-event policy brief captures the evidence, and actionable recommendations that emerged, a concrete blueprint for integrating the arts into mainstream healthcare systems.

Read the full policy briefing here