CHWA 2026 Conference ‘Common Ground’

Held between the 7th-9th October 2026 at the Barnsley Civic, the Culture Health and Wellbeing Alliance (CHWA) hosted ‘Common Ground’. Guided by the Creative Health Quality Principles, the gathering aimed to be person-centred, equitable, safe, creative, collaborative, realistic, reflective and sustainable.

Alongside Claire Atherton – Creative Health & Equity Lead for Norfolk & Suffolk, Alex Casey – Director of Suffolk Artlink and CHWA Regional Champion for the East, Jayne Knight – Project Manager: Place Making – Creative Health & Wellbeing for Suffolk County Council and Sophie O’Connor – Producer for Creative Health and Communities at DanceEast, with support from Norfolk County Council and Suffolk County Council, three bursaries were provided to allow freelance creative health practitioners from our regions to attend.

(From L-R: Sophie O’Connor, Johann Don Daniel, Jayne Knight, Claire Atherton, Sorrel Muggridge, Lucy Wheeler, Alex Casey)

Lucy Wheeler is a Creative Producer and Project Manager, Ceramicist and Educator, living and working in Norfolk.

“I firstly found it incredibly validating to be offered a bursary place, and time to think and listen. I really enjoyed the opportunity to engage and network with other freelance practitioners carrying out creative health work in other regions.

I particularly enjoyed hearing from Emilie Taylor in this respect, in relation to how she has brought the relational care of ceramics practice into her work as a researcher with Darts, Doncaster. I also took a lot from the workshops – giving myself time to be a recipient of ‘creative health’ – Joachim Keke’s movement session stood out for me and was needed to regulate at the end of the conference”.  

Johann Don Daniel is a sound / 4D artist based in Suffolk, who’s work is interested in sonic sculpture/materiality, ecology, manipulating sound distorting technologies, drums/beat narrative and performance.

“It was great to be able to share ideas with people from all over the country and let them know about Suffolk Artlink as a connection.

The workshops and talks all had relevancy and shed light on the UK’s current Creative health climate and possible directions. It was also a catalyst for shared ideas/vision. For example ‘Hopefulness’ who led a workshop, had many ‘rebellious’ forward thinking ideas, much of which they share on their website. There was also a clear historic creative health output from many areas in Leeds, with good representation which also seemed like places that could be great networks for Artlink in many areas, including strategies in facilitation and or planning. The discussions around building partnerships in order to build longer term funding was interesting to learn a small amount about. It was also great to share the amazing work Artlink does and also how it works with it’s artists, which a lot of people I spoke to were really happy to learn about”.

Sorrel Muggridge is an artist based in Norfolk, who’s work examines the intrinsic links we have with our landscape and the exchange that is constantly taking place.

• Performances by Akademi South Asian Dance, poet and activist Ink Asher-Hemp and live-looping by artist Jasmine Khalia.
• Workshops led by Cast Theatre, Live Music Now, Hopeful Mess, Dance United Yorkshire, Mafwa Theatre, Ascendance, Helen Todd, Elnaz Yazdani, S. K. Marley, Jane Willis and Joachim Keke.
• A playful and restorative residency from CAIR Salon, led by Liz Clarke & Co.
• Discussions and panels led by Darren Henley, Prof Helen Chatterjee, Prof Kevin Fenton, and Cedric Whilby.
• A moment to celebrate and reflect on the work and extraordinary legacy of Clive Parkinson

Fireside Chat with Darren Henley (CEO of Arts Council England), Kheyla Anderson (CHWA) and Anna Woolf (London Arts & Health)

Thahmina Begum, Co-Chair of Trustees for CHWA  delivered a rousing keynote welcome address, featuring this standout quote: “For many, imagination is a form of survival”.

Takeaways from the conference include:

• Advocating to funders/commissioners the need for infrastructure funding NOT just delivery costs.
• Access to knowledge and skills development within the sector isn’t equal
• Longer term funding & easier commissioning processes
• Stronger partnerships across sectors
• More innovation, “yes we can do that and how about we take it a step further?”

It was a truly wonderful opportunity for the creative health sector to come together for nourishment, knowledge and support, in how we can effect deep and much-needed systemic change.

For ways to add your voice to the Norfolk and Suffolk Creative Health eco-system, join the new Creative Health Interest Meetings (CHIMe) and/or sign up to the Creative Health Mailing List to be kept informed of developments happening across the regions.