Case studies

Throughout the pandemic Sheffield Museums focused on bringing collections, exhibitions and events to people online and in community settings. Museums by Mail was conceived to lift the spirits of those at risk of loneliness.

The Professors are an independent performing arts company, named for professing our knowledge and demonstrating our particular expertise in arts and collaboration. They are a group of learning disabled and non-disabled artists, create their own performances, films, installations, music, events, and exhibitions.

CreateSpace was a two-year partnership project of five cultural organisations across the West Midlands, working with art practitioners, to improve participant wellbeing.

Volunteering for Veterans is a wellbeing and conservation project for Veterans of the Armed Forces working on Birmingham Museum Trust’s (BMT) motorbike collection.

Sheffield Museums have a successful volunteering programme with over 200 volunteers who engage in research, events, creative workshops, heritage walks and gardening, and support volunteering for people with barriers to entering the workplace.

A partnership was formed between Blackpool’s Children's Services and Blackpool’s Grand Theatre. After consultation with young people experiencing life in care; the ‘Illuminate’ project was co-produced.

Showtown worked with youth organisation HeadStart and professional comedians to deliver Open Up the Mic, a 12-week course supporting young people aged 10-15 to develop their resilience, performance skills and confidence.

During the pandemic, Sheffield Museums wanted to ensure the city’s museums and the collections continued to provide inspiration for the young people. While physical access to the sites continued to be limited, they worked in partnership with Ignite Yorkshire to run Young Makers - project-based online work experience for young people aged 14-25 years old.

South Kesteven District Council’s mental health and wellbeing cross party working group worked in collaboration with health partners, a mental health charity and a community arts provider to investigate whether a local information resource would be useful to help reduce isolation and loneliness post Covid.

In lockdown, when Arts Centres in Stamford, Grantham and Bourne had to suddenly close their doors, it meant that many self-employed artists and performers lost their bookings/work and so were no longer able to generate an income.