The concept ‘place’ is crucial for what we do with cultural heritage, as the nature, identity and sense of a place determines how heritage is perceived and engaged with. Especially when it comes to creative health there is a strong focus between place and health inequities. This international training week explores place-based approaches to creative health and cultural heritage.
During this 5 day training week the participants can explore a case study, they are introduced in several place-based methods and concepts and they will develop a place-based creative health resource using cultural heritage.
Who is this training for?
Professionals working in cultural heritage organisations (museums, archives, galleries, libraries with special collections, etc.);
Practitioners (with an interest in) working with heritage in community engagement and creative health;
Students and researchers in the fields of creative health, museum studies, etc.
What you'll gain
Insights into working on creative health through cultural heritage;
Being able to develop a plan for your own professional development in this area;
Acquire knowledge on how to develop resources and design cultural heritage-based wellbeing activities;
Present the rationale for a resource to the group.
This international training week builds on the experience and lessons learned (on different levels) gained from a series of summer and winter school organised, between 2014 and 2025, by Bart De Nil and Dr Guislain Museum. Editions have taken place among other in Ghent, Antwerp, Newcastle (with Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums), Swansea (with National Waterfront Museum), Leeds (with Leeds Museum and Galleries) and Tilburg (with City Museum and Textile Museum). These editions brought together participants from 22 countries with a background ranging from museum, archive and library professionals, heritage professionals, academics, students, health and care professionals, artists, civil servants and community workers.
Further reading: Bart De Nil, "Winter and Spring Schools Cultural Heritage & Wellbeing. The added value of an international training programme on Creative Health for professionals," in Cultures of Creative Health, p. 170-173 (University of Huddersfield Press, 2025). Read article online.