Look Ahead awarded £20,000 National Lottery grant for Hackney arts project

The project is designed to address the challenges faced by the people the service supports who have complex mental health needs and can experience long-term isolation and limited access to social opportunities outside of their usual support.

Arts for All will offer our customers two art-focused group activities a week for the next year. Every two weeks customers will be able to enjoy joint sessions with visitors from other care and community services, giving them a chance to build new friendships, relationships and connections beyond their immediate social circle.

Public events organised with partners such as Arbeit Studios – Trowbridge Gardens, Royal Academy of Arts, and Café Art are a highlight of the project. These will include co-created exhibitions, where participants can showcase their artwork and invite the wider community and loved ones to celebrate their achievements.

Opportunities like these help to reduce stigma and boost individuals’ sense of self-worth, confidence and quality of life.

Arts for All is an expansion of a long-standing, customer-led art and wellbeing project that has grown over the past decade. The project has already hosted a community exhibition and is now set to grow, offering more opportunities for people to engage in social and artistic activities.

Co-designed through months of house meetings, informal chats, and group consultations with over 35 individuals, Arts for All reflects the voices and aspirations of our Hackney care home residents and partner services. Many participants have expressed a desire for safe, creative, and meaningful ways to connect with others, and we are optimistic that Arts for All will do just that.