…all we have is now

VOTE   VOTE  VOTE
...for Nigel Barton

Oh well, since he’s fictional just cast your vote this week. Here’s a film from the most compelling documentary maker out there. This is a five minute short from 2014 from Adam Curtis. That he manages to conjoin avant-garde art and politics, is superb. If you enjoy his thinking, why not try something meatier and his recent film, 
BITTER LAKE?



A Review of the Social Impacts of Culture and Sport
The DCMS has produced two reviews of the evidence for arts impacting on health and wellbeing. The first, ‘A Review of the Social Impacts of Culture and Sport’, is a systematic literature review led by Professor Peter Taylor of Sheffield Hallam University’s Sports Industry Research Centre. The review found that: “evidence of beneficial effects of the arts extends to clinical and non-clinical populations, and physical and mental health… not only in helping to improve clinical outcomes, but also as a powerful force in re-integration into society, thereby improving the social impacts via the arts.” It goes on to assert that “The evidence base that exists is considerable.” The second report, ‘Further Analysis to Value the Health and Educational Benefits of Sport and Culture’, uses cost-benefit analysis to assess culture and sport related interventions. The report concludes that “culture and sports participation can help to generate wide-ranging social benefits and cost savings to the exchequer.”      Oh, that’s ok then!

Spring has returned. 
The Earth is like a child that knows poems. 

- Rilke

VIDEO GAMES & HEALTH
Castle is a print magazine about video games and the worlds they inhabit and affect. We want to celebrate the diversity of games while delving into the extraordinarily broad impact they have had—and will have—on our lives.

Castle’s forthcoming first issue will explore health in games. How can health function as a game mechanic? How can our health be affected by digital experiences? We will investigate the increasingly bizarre relationship between health technology and games. We plan to pore over addiction in games as well as addiction to games. While we don’t expect to find all the answers, we hope to, at the very least, unlock more questions. And in doing so, underscore the importance of games in our cultural landscape.

Castle are currently taking pitches and would love to hear from health writers and professionals. Pitch us, tell us about your studies, or just say hello. They’d really love to hear from you. Click on the banner above to email them. Tweet @Castle_Magazine

...and with an oh-so-neat segue, Dr Sarah McNicol at MMU has recently completed a research project exploring - 
The Impact of Educational Comics 
This new work involved interviews with people who either have a health condition themselves, or who have a relative with a condition to investigate their reactions to educational comics about health issues. The two questions she was interested in were:
  In what ways can educational comics provide support in dealing with feelings and attitudes towards health conditions, as well as improving understanding of factual information?
  How should educational comics be evaluated to ensure that their impact on patients’/relatives’ feelings and attitudes is considered, in addition to factual recall?       
Want to know more? Click on The Third Sex above.

Creativity, Wellbeing and the Community 
Tuesday, 19 May 2015 from 09:30 to 16:30, Huddersfield
Support to Recovery (S2R) is a Kirklees based mental health charity that works to improve mental health and wellbeing and reduce the stigma surrounding mental ill health. In recent years it has been engaged with a number of innovative and creative projects, including the Packhorse Gallery, Create Space and The Great Outdoors.https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/creativity-wellbeing-and-the-community-tickets-15977039756



GET CREATIVE
Two Research Posts with Posts King’s College London
We are seeking to appoint two outstanding researchers to work on the Get Creative research project. The Get Creative (GC) campaign aims to boost creativity in the UK, as well as celebrating the millions of people already doing something artistic and creative everyday. The project will collect data and analyse key research questions investigating i) the breadth and depth of everyday arts participation and creative activity across the UK, and what ‘the arts’ mean to the British public (application); and ii) mechanisms for ‘giving permission’ to engage in arts and creative practice, exploring the reciprocal relationship between professional ‘national’ arts and arts at an amateur and local level (inspiration). The project will also evaluate how successful the GC campaign is in promoting a national conversation about the value of creativity and the arts. https://www.hirewire.co.uk/HE/1061247/MS_JobDetails.aspx?JobID=61041
   
£650,000 
Funding for Social Businesses from Big Issue Invest (England)
Early stage social businesses in England can now apply to the Big Issue Invest Corporate Social Venturing (CSV) 2015 programme. The programme is specifically tailored for early stage social businesses who often face challenges when it comes to securing finance. Applicants don't need to be trading to apply however providing proof of concept is essential. To be considered, applicants must operate in the following sectors:
  Arts and culture
  Education, employment and training
  Tackling homelessness
  Sustainable and community transport
  Health and social care
  Environment
  And/or financial inclusion.
Applicants have the opportunity to pitch for up to £50,000 investment, receive mentoring from the programmes' investment and support partners, attend professionally designed workshops and learn to how measure their social impact. The deadline for applications is 25th May 2015. Read more at: http://bigissueinvest-csv.com/challenge/ 

                   THAT'S THAT