Children’s mental health week | ‘Creative arts meets public health’

Loren Henry, Community Engagement Office at USW, is a qualified Youth Worker and co-founder of G-Expressions and Urban Circle, both not-for-profit arts organisations based in Newport.

G-Expressions is a performing arts organisation with a youth-led focus, taking weekly dance workshops and other creative platforms out to communities as outreach work.

Loren said: “A specific project that we are proud of, is our ‘Creative arts meets public health’ project, in partnership with Aneurin Bevan. The project sparked from discussions with young people during 2019. It was designed to support young people aged 13-18 in identifying their emotions and support them in exploring the feelings that they find difficult to cope with, using drama to express themselves.

“With some academic support, we created session plans, aligning them with a mental health model, adding in the creative element, making it unique to G-Expressions.”

The project involved eight sessions where young people were introduced to emotions, encouraged to empathise and problem solve, and identified support networks. Using role play and music, the group explored some of the difficulties the young people were experiencing in their lives.

“We found this project was even more relevant post-Covid and seeing the numbers of depression and anxiety rise in young people. We understand that young people have more factors to face today, more than ever, with technology and social media having a bigger impact on who they are, how they portray themselves and their image. We felt that creating a project to help them to talk about their feelings using a holistic approach was vital and worked well with our creative input”, she said.

“During lockdown, we were awarded funding to start a podcast so we could be active online and continue to engage with young people, giving them another platform to discuss important topics and how they factor into their lives. We had polls each week where young people were able to vote for what they wanted to talk about, as well as showcasing different talents and having an artist of the week highlighted. We invited different young people and professionals on the podcast so that they could have a say and the professional could analyse and give their points or offer support and advice on the topic at hand.

“This project, as a pilot, was remarkable. We weren’t sure how the young people would feel about the topic of managing feelings and emotions but with the creative element it worked really well and allowed them to become comfortable over the weeks, being open in conversation without even realizing they were breaking down walls and allowing themselves to become vulnerable.  The outcomes of this project have been fantastic. Those who were involved learnt new skills, gained confidence, and developed in drama and music.

“We are currently running the project again with a new group of young people and we find that each group is different, but we are able to adapt and cater the sessions to fit their needs. Our current group is from Slovakia and have different feelings and emotions to the previous groups because we are now discussing language barriers, immigration, racism, and real trauma points around guns and violence.

“Our work demonstrates that drama and creativity can break down barriers of communication between young people, assist them in developing relationships, and engaging with current issues. Drama is already valued for its ability to help young people to, not only see, but also to experience things from another’s perspective - something our society desperately needs to get better at.”

In evaluating this project, Loren and her colleagues identified some effective outcomes and have been able to implement:

• 1-1 consultations with a Clinical Psychologist
• Giving young people a safe space to talk
• Follow-on projects have got young people to engage with their wider community projects and activities
• G-Expressions team members have learnt Tai Chi & Qi Gong. This involves certain postures and gentle movements with mental focus, breathing, and relaxation. As a result, they have designed a programme on Chinese “internal” practices, with the aim of further developing young people’s health and well-being by improving mental clarity and gain greater mental resilience.

The project has provided many young people with tools to better understand and manage their own emotional well-being. Loren said: “It has helped develop their reflective capacity to anticipate the emotional needs of their peers and what contextual factors may be influencing their emotions.

“Core to this experience, is the opportunity for young people to have positive experiences of interactions with adults that have left them feeling safe and supported. The project staff modelled, through their interactions and teachings, what good supportive relationships should look like. We want more young people and communities to have the tools and confidence to voice their needs and actively participate in the identification and development of local solutions that build resilience and foster greater well-being.”