Directors Blog - October 2026
27/10/2026 | Author: Angela Rogers
Our October blog is here – it’s been a big month for our sector so we’re full of reflections!
Dear Members,
October has been a significant month for arts, health and wellbeing in Wales. Across our Cynefin programme, policy discussions and network meetings, it’s clear that the evidence exists, the practice is there and the appetite for change exists. The challenge now is how we position arts and health as a core contributor to prevention, wellbeing and healthy communities.
Our October Network Meeting invited us to think differently about sustainability. Mark Robinson of Thinking Practice, author of the Baring Foundation report Creatively Minded and Resourceful, alongside Ruth Haugen, Choirs for Good encouraged us to look beyond funding alone and consider the wider resources that enable arts and health work to thrive - partnerships, skills, knowledge, networks, lived experience and community connections. Whilst diversifying income and securing investment are vital, Mark reminded us that staying true to our purpose and mission must always come first.
Cynefin: Listening to the Evidence
The focus of much of this month's work has been our Cynefin programme. If you’ve missed out on any of the events, recordings from sessions 1 – 4 are now available.
With over 600 attendees across four events, we have brought together artists, health professionals, policymakers, researchers, cultural organisations and people with lived experience to explore what a stronger arts and health system could look like in Wales. Our final Cynefin event: How can the arts help widen the health benefits of nature connection? highlighted the health benefits of nature connectedness with keynote addresses from Professor David Sheffield and Megan Cumming, Swansea University. We learnt how ‘flow experience’ can act as a sustainable pathway to wellbeing, alongside practice on the ground tackling health inequalities from Clwb Creft; One World Choir Singing Walks; Synwyriwm; Space to Grow and Create with artist Ami Marsden and Creative Grow Well interventions. Connections between health, arts, climate and nature are not yet sufficiently visible within current consultation discussions. We need to make more explicit the connection with the natural environment can play a vital role in supporting wellbeing and resilience.
Across all four events we have listened to evidence, learned from exemplary practice and, perhaps most importantly, created space for honest conversations about the barriers that continue to prevent arts and health approaches becoming embedded within mainstream systems. The next steps are to work with our Cynefin Champions to shape recommendations for implementation, moving the conversation beyond why arts and health matters towards how we embed creative interventions into the health prevention policy. The recommendations will help structure our WAHWN response to the upcoming Culture Vision consultation call for evidence.
The themes emerging through Cynefin have been echoed in national conversations across Wales and beyond.
CHWA Common Ground Conference
Also this month Wales was well represented at the Culture, Health and Wellbeing Alliance's Common Ground Conference, with Rosie Dow, ACW and WAHWN's Becca May Collins and Justine Wheatley contributing to discussions. A recurring theme was that many of the challenges facing Wales are shared across the UK: health inequalities, workforce pressures, community resilience and access to culture. Reflecting on the conference Rosie’s summary of recommendations included that for funders and policymakers: "we must move beyond simply supporting projects and invest instead in the relationships, infrastructure and leadership that create lasting change. Longer-term investment, multi-year funding and greater collaboration across sectors were identified as essential if creative health is to achieve its full potential."
Becca’s workshop focused on how arts and health networks can connect people and create opportunities to influence wider systems and policy. Through mapping activities and collective reflection, participants explored how networks can help connect the dots between local practice and national ambitions. It was a powerful reminder of the role WAHWN and other networks play in creating opportunities for collective action and shared learning.
Public Health Wales Conference
At the Welsh Public Health Conference this month, Putting People at the Heart of Prevention - over 400 professionals from across sectors explored how Wales can create the conditions for healthier lives and reduce health inequalities through partnership and early intervention. Nerys Evans, Deputy Minister for Public and Preventative Health reiterated her call for a "prevention revolution". It signals a growing recognition that prevention requires us to act earlier, work differently and invest in the things that help people stay well, rather than waiting for crisis to emerge.
This month also saw the publication of the latest Arts Council Wales and Baring Foundation Arts & Minds evaluation report, demonstrating the positive impact creativity is having on young people's wellbeing – a programme enabling artist-led creative activities within NHS CAMHS to support young people and their families, and improve service provision.
Alongside the growing research evidence base, we continue to see practical examples of impact across Wales. Earlier this month, WAHWN and Welsh National Opera joined NHS Wales Performance and Improvement Persistent Pain Clinic meeting to share learning on how creative approaches, including Wellness with WNO, can support people living with long-term health conditions.
One issue that surfaced repeatedly across the Cynefin programme was the sustainability of the creative workforce itself. Recent developments in Scotland around exploring a minimum income for artists have generated considerable discussion. Fair pay, workforce sustainability and recognising the contribution artists make to public health and community wellbeing were recurring themes throughout our Cynefin conversations. If we value the contribution artists make to prevention, wellbeing and community resilience, then we must also consider the conditions that enable them to thrive.
Our November Network Meeting on 12th November, facilitated by Laura Drane, will focus on ensuring arts and health has a strong voice within Wales' new Culture and Sport Strategy. Together we will explore where we are now, where we want to be in ten years' time and the practical actions needed to realise that ambition.
Onwards and upwards,
Angela Rogers
