Creative Voices – Artist Call Out

Creative Voices – Artist Call Out

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) and Nottingham Hospitals Charity (NHC) are seeking a socially engaged global ethnic majority artist with lived experience or knowledge of Sickle Cell, Thalassaemia or other chronic health conditions.

The successful artist will lead a co-designed creative project with patients as part of a programme exploring lived experience, representation, and health inequalities.

About Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust

Every day, our people make a difference. We save lives, improve lives, and support new life. We serve more than one million people each year across Nottingham City Hospital, Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC), Ropewalk House, and community settings.

With over 19,000 colleagues, we are one of the largest employers in Nottinghamshire and one of the busiest NHS Trusts in the UK, with a budget of £1.6 billion.

About Nottingham Hospitals Charity

Nottingham Hospitals Charity has raised over £65 million in the past 19 years to support patients, families, carers, and staff at NUH.

The charity works closely with the Trust to fund projects that have the greatest positive impact on patient care and experience across the East Midlands and beyond.

Project brief

We are commissioning a lead artist to deliver a community-led creative project with patients living with Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia.

The project will explore lived experience, challenge stigma, and amplify underrepresented voices within healthcare through creative practice.

The artist will work alongside Arts at NUH, the Adult Haemoglobinopathy team, and patients to co-design and deliver creative workshops using multiple artforms.

Across ten sessions, participants will explore creative expression relating to chronic illness, identity, and health inequalities.

The project will culminate in a public exhibition at New Art Exchange for one month, followed by permanent installation within Nottingham City Hospital.

This work responds directly to patient feedback around stigma, disempowerment, and lack of understanding in healthcare settings.

Aims of the project

  • Bring people together: Create a safe, inclusive space for shared experience and creative expression
  • Amplify patient voice: Enable authentic and empowering storytelling
  • Challenge stigma and inequality: Increase awareness of Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia, including racism and bias in healthcare
  • Improve environments: Create artwork that reflects the communities served
  • Support wellbeing: Build confidence, reduce isolation, and encourage engagement with healthcare services

Project dates

Sessions will take place at New Art Exchange, 41 Gregory Boulevard, Nottingham NG7 6BE on Tuesdays, 1 – 2.30pm. Sessions will take place on the following dates:

  • 7th , 14th, 21st, 28th Jul
  • 11th, 25th Aug
  • 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd Sep

The final exhibition will open on Friday 9th October.

Approach

This is a fully co-designed, community-led project. Patients will help shape:

  • The selection of artists
  • The creative approach and artforms used
  • The structure and content of workshops
  • How their stories are represented

Artists must work collaboratively and sensitively, prioritising dignity, cultural understanding, and participant ownership.

Person specification

  • Experience in socially engaged or participatory arts and creative health
  • Lived experience of Sickle Cell and/or Thalassaemia, or relevant cultural background
  • Confidence in working across multiple visual artforms or interdisciplinary approaches
  • Ability to facilitate inclusive workshops with sensitivity to health and lived experience
  • Strong communication skills and ability to build trust
  • Understanding of cultural identity, racism, and health inequalities
  • Ability to support emotional wellbeing in creative settings
  • Reliable, organised, and collaborative
  • Experience in healthcare or community settings (desirable)

Location and travel

Sessions will take place at New Art Exchange (NAE), Nottingham. The role requires travel to both New Art Exchange and Nottingham University Hospitals sites.

Fee

The total fee for the project is £2,700, made up of:

  • 2 days planning and evaluation at £300 per day
  • 10 half-day delivery sessions at £180 per session
  • 1 exhibition launch day at £300

Additional contributions towards travel costs are available.

Additional requirements

  • A current DBS check registered to the update service
  • Public Liability insurance

To Apply

To apply please submit a proposal, of no more than four pages (A4) that outlines:

  • An artist statement and copy of your CV
  • Why you are interested in and your approach to this project
  • Two examples of past work/projects that you think demonstrate how your practice fits this brief
  • Two referees
  • Confirmation you hold Public Liability insurance
  • Access statement (if relevant)

Please send your application in one PDF to lucy.knight33@nhs.net with the heading ‘Creative Voices Artist’ by 10am 12th June 2026

Contact information

For further information or to discuss the opportunity:

Acknowledgements

This project has been developed in collaboration with patients and the Adult Haemoglobinopathy team at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and is supported by Nottingham Hospitals Charity.

This project has been made possible with funding from Nottingham Hospitals Charity.