At Art at the Heart, we believe that creativity has the power to transform a hospital experience. Through our pARTicipate Programme, we bring inspiring arts activities to patients of all ages, as well as families, carers, staff, volunteers and visitors across the Royal United Hospitals Bath.
Being in hospital can be challenging, isolating and sometimes overwhelming. Our participatory arts and health workshops offer moments of connection, creativity and joy, helping people to focus on something positive during their time in care. Whether it’s painting, collage, textiles, drawing or another creative activity, each session encourages participants to express themselves, explore their imagination and experience the simple pleasure of making something unique.
Every workshop is designed around the needs and interests of the individual. Delivered at the bedside, in outpatient clinics and in group settings, sessions create welcoming spaces where people can relax, gain confidence, learn new skills and connect with others. For many participants, creativity provides a welcome distraction from treatment, helping to reduce anxiety, lift spirits and bring a sense of normality to the hospital environment.
The impact extends beyond patients. Families, carers and staff also benefit from opportunities to pause, connect and take part in creative activities that support wellbeing and foster human connection. By nurturing emotional wellbeing alongside physical health, the programme helps create a more compassionate and positive healthcare experience for everyone.
Supporting Learning and Future Careers
The pARTicipate Programme also provides valuable opportunities for volunteers and students interested in careers in arts, health and wellbeing. Through regular placements and volunteering roles, participants gain first-hand experience of how creativity can support recovery, rehabilitation and emotional wellbeing within healthcare settings.
These opportunities help individuals develop practical skills, confidence and a deeper understanding of person-centred care, while also bringing additional support, enthusiasm and fresh perspectives to our workshops. Many volunteers and placement students go on to pursue careers in healthcare, arts and therapeutic professions, taking with them a lasting appreciation of the role creativity can play in improving lives.
A Volunteer’s Perspective
“The workshops give people a chance to step away from the realities of hospital for a while and focus on something enjoyable and creative. I’ve seen how quickly confidence can grow, particularly in young patients, and how much a simple creative activity can brighten someone’s day. Volunteering has shown me the incredible difference that creativity can make to wellbeing and has been invaluable in shaping my future career goals.”
Making a Difference Every Day
Every artwork created, every conversation shared and every moment of creativity helps make the hospital environment a little brighter. Through the pARTicipate Programme, we are helping to create spaces where imagination, connection and wellbeing can flourish, demonstrating the powerful role that the arts can play in supporting health, recovery and resilience.
Reviews
AWARDS FOR pARTicipate!
RUH Patient Experience Award 2026: Diabetes Mural Project (Artist – Natasha Clutterbuck)
Creative Bath Awards 2024: Creativity for Good Award Winners for ‘Art & Design for the Dyson Cancer Centre’
Creative Bath Awards 2022: Creativity for Good Award Winners and ACE Award Winners for ‘pARTicipate’
Stitch in Time
Weekly arts workshops on Combe Ward (OPUS) offer patients the opportunity to try new creative activities, express themselves and connect with others. The sessions help create a cheerful and uplifting ward environment, encouraging conversation, reducing isolation and supporting emotional wellbeing. Patients often gain confidence, build relationships and enjoy a shared sense of achievement through making art together.
‘I’m not anxious today because I’ve been occupied. It’s been marvelous’. Patient on Combe Ward
Having interesting activities taking place, such as art or music, gives a patient more incentive and motivation to get up and participate, which can help maintain mobility and independence.
Previously funded weekly art workshops on Combe Ward brought moments of creativity, connection and joy to patients during difficult hospital stays. Led by Charlotte Stowell and Catherine White, with support from Cameron Long and Bath Spa University student Lizzie Royle, the sessions helped reduce isolation, boost confidence and improve wellbeing. Families valued the opportunity to create and connect with loved ones, while staff witnessed the positive impact on patients’ mood, motivation and engagement. Continued funding will enable more patients to experience the comfort, dignity and hope that creativity can bring.
Student placements play a vital role in our arts programme, giving future creative practitioners valuable hands-on experience while enriching the lives of patients. During a workshop on Combe Ward, Bath Spa University student Lizzie Royle supported patients as they created paper daffodils alongside staff and volunteers. One patient was delighted to take part, sharing fond memories of making paper flowers throughout her life and proudly describing how she once crafted roses and hyacinths by hand. The session became more than a creative activity, offering an opportunity for reminiscence, conversation and connection. Experiences like these demonstrate how student placements help create meaningful moments for patients while nurturing the next generation of artists working in health and wellbeing settings.
The art group helps with socialisation for patients who may otherwise be worried and withdrawn. Working together helps to make them feel connected to a group and they often interact with each other in a humorous or supportive way.
I never fail to be impressed at the skills and ideas that are drawn out of patients during the session and at how individual contributions come together in one of the themed projects.
There is often a very informal and joyful atmosphere in the room and patients who stay longer remember and look forward to the next session.” RUH Occupational Therapist
Stitch in Time was set up as part of Art at the Heart’s participatory project strand in 2012, providing weekly creative art and reminiscence workshops on the RUH older patients units led by a professional artist, co-produced by textile students and volunteers.
Staff from across the Older Persons Unit regularly engaged with the workshops, including healthcare assistants, nurses, doctors, therapists, psychologists, dietitians, the Dementia Support Team, Spiritual Care, volunteers and medical students. Their involvement helped foster a positive and connected ward environment, while the colourful artwork created through the sessions brought enjoyment to patients, visitors and staff alike.
Each year, Art at the Heart’s artists engage with around 800 patients across the Children’s Ward, Combe Ward and Older Persons Units, using creativity to reduce isolation, improve wellbeing and bring moments of connection, comfort and joy during a hospital stay.
With funding support, we can continue to reach hundreds of patients and families each year, transforming hospital experiences through the power of creativity. Funding will help us provide more workshops, reach more vulnerable patients and ensure that those facing illness, anxiety and isolation can access moments of hope, self-expression and human connection when they need them most.