DREAMS: Derby's Rehabilitation and Empowerment through Art in NHS Mental Health Spaces

DREAMS: Derby's Rehabilitation and Empowerment through Art in NHS Mental Health Spaces

DREAMS is a collaborative project between the University of Derby's School of Arts with Derby's NHS mental health rehabilitation and recovery inpatient service throughout Derby and the county of Derbyshire. 

Project managed by School of Art faculty, Gemma Marmalade, students and alumni have been working with the team on the in-progress renovations of Audrey House, a specialised enhanced care unit for women at Derby's Kingsway Hospital. This project is designed to create and install artwork sensitive to the wellbeing and recovery of service users, informed and directed by service users.

DREAMS hopes to demonstrate this pilot project with Audrey House, working with graduate talent, Christie-Anne Freeman, as an example of productive and valuable co-creation as both arts-based research and applied practice directly into NHS inpatient spaces. DREAMS hopes to roll out this working method with a wider pool of student talent for future care units planned across the country. 

The above images demonstrate the site visit to Audrey House featuring: Nigel Allen, Managing Director, Care Display; Nick Richards, NHS Programme Support and Lived Patient Experience; Dr Gemma Marmalade, University of Derby and Christie-Anne Freeman, University of Derby MA Arts Graduate. Discussions took place between Dr Gemma Marmalade, Nick Richards and Christie-Anne Freeman at the site in October 2023. 

All images are credited to Elisha-Mai Gascoigne, University of Derby Galleries Network Co-ordinator.