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Social Business Wales Awards Nomination 2024

Posted on Sep 18, 2024
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PSU connects people to help them find their voice, and create healthier and resilient communities through storytelling, spoken word, creative writing, conversation-based activities, participatory arts, volunteering and training.

PSU were shortlisted in the Innovation Award Category in the Social Business Wales Awards for its Creative Home Delivery Service, a programme which is delivered across Carmarthenshire. The programme, created in partnership with Carmarthenshire County Council, Hywel Dda University Health Board and Connecting Carmarthenshire, is designed to help older people, especially those who are lonely and living in isolation, to be engaged and help improve their mental health and wellbeing using arts and creativity. The Creative Home Delivery Service sees GP’s, facilitators and Connecting Carmarthenshire refer cases and match them with a professional facilitator and freelance artist from PSU. Over the course of 6 months the artist and facilitators go into that older person’s home and delivers a one to one session.

The Creative Home Delivery programme was born out of a need to stay connected with PSU’s community of older people during COVID, but the need to continue delivery this essential service was highlighted when they ran a pilot project, Kreative Kinship on Prescription in 2023, and seeing how important this bespoke one to one service is needed in rural areas and limited access.

“We have been working on improving this bespoke home delivery service since the start of the Covid Pandemic, when we were locked down as a community, when we realised that our older people needed to have those community services taken to where they live, in their homes. Zoom was not accessible for all!”
PSU’s Founder and CEO, Eleanor Shaw.

“So for the past 3 years we have been taking storytellers, poets, writers singers, dancers, rappers and visual artists on the road! If the older people couldn’t get to our arts and health hub in Llanelli, then we would take it to them! It really has been a magical journey, not for just the participant but also for the creative team. Relationships have developed, new jobs have been created, we have seen an improvement in mental health, wellbeing, mobility has increased and the older people that were not leaving their home for months, started to visit us at our hub. A ripple effect of community resilience and personal empowerment has come from just a very simple idea.”

In 2023 alone Creative Home Delivery Service helped over 100 people in the community.

"We are so happy to hear that the Creative Home Delivery service has been short-listed for an award. We are proud that Connecting Carmarthenshire Preventative Service has supported this inspirational project, and a testament to the fantastic work that People Speak Up do." Heidi Wilton-Baker, Community Hub Lead, Nacro Cymru & Connecting Carmarthenshire.

“To practice any art, no matter how well with People Speak Up, is a way to make your soul grow.” Jackie Runacres, Lead Officer Commissioning (Carers), Carmarthenshire County Borough Council.

“Seeing mum excited and happy about a creative endeavour has been wonderful. It is a positive thing that we can talk about when she has lost so much to her illness. Witnessing the positive effects on her makes me feel happier and less stressed.” Carer

“I was in a lot and now I’m out every day…learning how to socialize because I didn’t do that much.” Participant

“Partnership working has been key to developing this service: Carmarthenshire County Council & Hywell Dda University Health Board have trusted us with referring the most vulnerable older people into the service and commissioning us as part of The Connecting Carmarthenshire Project. A Big Thank you to Arts Council Wales for funding us and continuing to support our arts and health services.” Eleanor Shaw, Founder and CEO of PSU.

The Social Business Awards ceremony will be held at Venue Cymru, North Wales on Tuesday 1 October.