Newcastle plays host to national conference exploring how getting creative can help us age well.

INTERNATIONALLY renowned artists and health and culture leaders from across the UK are heading to Newcastle to reignite the national plan for creative ageing.

It’s a pivotal moment in the field of creative ageing - which focuses on how creativity can benefit our wellbeing and health - and how it can be woven into everyday life to help address societal challenges.

With seating sold out, digital tickets are now available. The Main Theatre workshops are being live streamed from Newcastle’s Catalyst building, home to the National Innovation Centre for Ageing (NICA), on Tuesday, October 10.

The free, online tickets will see people able to hear reflections and conversations from poets Jackie Kay and Sean O’Brien, artist Sam Ainsley and author David Almond. New Vic Theatre and The Royal Shakespeare Company will stage a workshop highlighting older people’s experiences of theatre and creativity, while Gateshead Public Health directors explore what it means to have creativity embedded alongside care provision.

Organised by Newcastle-based charity Equal Arts, with support from Arts Council England and The Baring Foundation, the day is an opportunity to ask ‘What next?’ for the movement after the challenges of the pandemic.

Douglas Hunter is Chief Executive of Equal Arts, which for more than 35 years has provided creative activities for people 55+ and those living in care and with dementia across the region.

He said: “There’s a wealth of evidence supporting the benefits of creativity on our health and wellbeing. With the knowledge in these rooms, it’s a real moment to look ahead at how we can ensure creative ageing is accessible and available to all, not as an afterthought but as a considered weapon in the arsenal for ageing well.”

“It’s a fantastic opportunity to bring together key minds in the field of creative ageing together with artists, carers, health professionals and those with lived experiences to share ideas, hear firsthand the challenges and consider where we go next.

“It’s a real privilege to be able to showcase Newcastle on this national stage as we take a fresh look at creative ageing and collaborate to effect change in field that affects us all.”

Joining the 20-strong presenting organisations on stage will be Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair of Arts Council England, The Performance Ensemble, the Creative Ageing Development Agency and Mark Robinson, Founder of Thinking Practice.

Digital tickets to the event, being supported by Johnnie Johnson Housing, NICA and the Tyne and Wear Community Foundation, are available below.