ABC-I

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Arts for the Blues for Children: Intervention Development

  • IRAS ID

    334672

  • Contact name

    Vicky Karkou

  • Contact email

    karkouv@edgehill.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    1 years, 0 months, 1 days

  • Research summary

    This study aims to develop an intervention suited to working in CAMHS with CYP aged 9-13 and establish if any revisions are needed on the intervention for the specific age group referred to CAMHS because of mental health concerns.

    Arts for the Blues is a manualised group treatment which utilises best practices from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), counselling for depression, psychodynamic psychotherapy and arts psychotherapies. The model is offered over twelve 90-minute sessions and is comprised of eight key ingredients which are delivered through diverse forms of creative engagement such as visual arts, music, dance and movement, drama and creative writing. The eight key ingredients are as follows:

    • Encouraging active engagement

    • Learning skills

    • Developing relationships

    • Expressing emotions

    • Processing at a deeper level

    • Gaining understanding

    • Experimenting with different ways of being

    • Integrating useful material

    The Intervention will be facilitated by psychotherapists trained in the Arts for the Blues model. It is expected that creative methods will support engagement, enable non-verbal opportunities for recovery and contribute towards the attractiveness, acceptability and value of the Intervention for CYP.

    This study aims to further develop the Arts for the Blues intervention with CYP aged 9-13 as a first step before a larger outcome study is conducted. It will build on previous study completed in schools with children at risk of developing MH problems and will aim to revising the intervention for children referred to CAMHS. A pre-post testing design will be adopted recruiting around 12 participants from Children and Adolescent MH Services (CAMHS) at Alder Hey. Research methods will include: (i) interviews using creative means with CYP, (ii) attendance records; (iii) adherence form and (iv) adverse events.

  • REC name

    London - Central Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    24/LO/0096

  • Date of REC Opinion

    14 Mar 2024

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion