ORGANISATION & ART PRACTICE DEVELOPMENT : To support and inform arts organisations who work with or wish to work with older people and to raise the standard of arts practice more generally in the area of the arts and older people.
AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT: This strand is intended to encourage and facilitate more older people to participate in the arts, and to enhance the experience of audiences.
We believe that, whether you are 8 or 80 years old, we all should have access and opportunities to attend and participate in the arts and to realise our creative potential. Fresh thinking, bold experimentation and creativity are all fundamental to delivering a high quality of life for older people.
Research shows that arts programmes involving music, visual arts and drama, among other activities, have a profound influence on the quality of life of older people, with positive impacts on health, psychological well-being, confidence and autonomy as well as other benefits such as:
- happiness
- mental wellbeing
- reduced stress
- improved cognition
- sense of identity and personhood
- increased self-esteem and confidence
- reduced boredom.
