Reading
for Wellbeing
Polly
Wright and Mandy Ross of the Hearth Centre are
accredited Get into Reading facilitators.
www.getintoreading.org.uk.
The Reading for Well Being method draws on the Get
into Reading model promoted by the Reader
Organisation, but includes creative writing as a key
approach encouraging engagement with the text, and
developing personal reflection.
Hearth’s Reading for Well Being method:
- A
group is set up in an NHS acute or community
context, which is open access and inclusive
-
The
facilitator selects a short story or poem of
literary value which they think will be
appropriate for the group
-
The
facilitator attempts to match the subject matter
of the material with the backgrounds of group
members, in terms of diversity
-
The
facilitator reads aloud and intersperses reading
with reflection and group discussion
-
If
appropriate, the facilitator uses creative
writing methods to increase engagement in the
activity and extend personal reflection
-
The
method ensures safety for the group. The
participants can discuss difficult issues in a
distanced manner, focusing on the text
-
In
the long term, as the confidence and the trust
of the group develops, the facilitator can
introduce the reading of whole novels - which can
extend over months.
-
The
novel is locked away each week to ensure that
the group shares the experience of reading
together.
-
In
the long term, the members of the group
experience a sense of belonging and achievement
-
The
group can become a support group - with a
difference!
In 2009, Hearth was granted a contract with the
Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation
Trust to:
-
Deliver reading
groups to the acute and community sectors within
the Trust
-
Train a cohort
of 40 NHS staff.
-
Raise awareness
in the Trust of the Reading for Well Being
agenda .
-
Disseminate project outcomes within the Trust
Achievements of
the BSMHFT contract
-
5
successful reading groups in acute mental health
settings
-
51
patients have attended at least one session
-
25
patients are attending regularly
-
About
23 staff have attended at least one session
-
20
members of staff are attending the first 6
session Reading for Well Being training course,
which sets out to equip them to facilitate
reading groups in their work contexts
Innovative developments
-
New
approaches are being developed in the Mother and
Baby group in the acute sector, where the
mothers are learning techniques of reading aloud
to their babies. Working closely with the OT,
the facilitator ensures that the mothers also
benefit in terms of personal development, by
also including material which is suitable for
adults- or some stories which appeal on both
levels- such as fairy tales
-
In
one group in an acute hospital, creative writing
work is being collected for an anthology
-
Hearth is building on contacts with the local
Tindal Street Press.
www.tindalstreet.co.uk.
After
reading some extracts from Great Expectations
one group selected to read TSP’s Booker
Long-listed Girl in a Blue Dress by Gaynor
Arnold, which imagines the experience of
Dickens’ disastrous marriage, from the point of
view of his abandoned wife. Before Christmas,
the group invited Gaynor, who lives locally, to
come to speak to them, in what turned out to be
a very successful occasion.
Reading for
Well Being in the community and Local Authorities
Hearth aims to extend the work into community settings. The Reading for Well
being methods are also highly effective with groups in a variety of contexts,
including:
-
Libraries
-
Employment and occupational schemes
-
Community
and special interest groups such as carers
-
GP
surgeries
-
People
who experience chronic illness
-
Evening
classes for the general public
The
positive evaluations for the first stage of the BSMHFT contract indicate that
Reading for Well Being outcomes could achieve aspects of well being for National
Indicator sets as part of Local Area Agreements.
Reading for Well Being with
the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation
>>
|
|
