King's College London

King’s Art Club is a vibrant, inclusive space where students and staff can come together to socialise and relax while creating art. The club takes place every two weeks and everyone is welcome, regardless of skill level.

Art and creativity have the power to enhance creativity and foster community. Research shows that engaging with the arts can have significant benefits for mental health, helping to prevent and manage a range of conditions. Participatory arts activities have been proven to alleviate anxiety, depression and stress levels within and outside of work.

Aims of King's Art Club

Through the art club, we hope to achieve:

• Successful engagement of 10-20 staff and students at each session.
• An increase in sense of belonging and community in those who participate.
• Greater knowledge of the positive impact that arts can have on the mental health and wellbeing of staff and students at King’s.

How will we evaluate the impact of King's Art Club?

To evaluate the impact of the art club on people’s sense of belonging and engagement, we ask staff and students who attend at least one session to complete a survey.

The survey measures five key indicators:

• General experience at King’s: Assessed using the ‘Settling at King’s’ scale and additional BE At King’s questions.
• Engagement: A three-item scale developed to assess participants' general engagement levels.
• Wellbeing: Measured using a shortened version of the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWB).
• Stress: Monitored with the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4).
• Loneliness: Assessed using the ONS Direct Measure of Loneliness.

The survey also collects additional comments which may give us a deeper insight into staff and student experiences.

The data will be analysed to determine:

• The overall impact of attending an art club.
• Whether the impact relates to the number of sessions a participant attends.
• If the impact relates to individual’s own level of engagement.
• Whether the impact of an art club differs for different groups of individuals, e.g. academic staff compared to professional services staff, home students compared to international students, etc.

Want to attend King's Art Club?

If you're interested in coming along to King’s Art Club, please register your interest with us today.

Find out more and get in touch

King's Art Club is led by Erin Agostino.

Want to find out more about this initiative or find out how we can help you with your own? Get in touch with BE At King's at beatkings@kcl.ac.uk.