“You Could Sit and Think, I’m Not Alone with This”: A Multi-Agency Early Years Creative Arts Parent Project

Abstract

Challenges relating to children and families are often complex; however, solutions can be creative. An arts organisation consulted with a multi-professional group on introducing the arts and culture to families from birth. This action research details and evaluates an innovative multi-professional creative project designed to support families in the North of England. Multi-professional stakeholder planning meetings decided the outcome of the project should be to create parental workshops. Evaluative data were collected from six parent semi-structured interviews to discuss their experience. Stakeholders also reflected on the parents’ data and evaluated the research project. Both datasets were analysed using inductive content analysis. Categories from the parents’ data described positive perceived effects on themselves and their families, emphasising the importance of community. Findings highlight the potential of the arts and parent groups for early intervention. Facilitators of and barriers to multi-agency working were also identified from the stakeholder data. The unique experience created using the arts as well as access to professionals contributed to the parental buy-in of the families. Parental commitment and a sense of community are essential for continued engagement in any parent project. Governments should invest in the early years population using parents and multi-agency working groups as an early intervention and proactive response.

1. Introduction

Multi-agency-coordinated ways of working can support the challenges faced by children and families in creative and meaningful ways (Armstrong, 2021; Morton & Forsey, 2013). In the North of England, between 27 and 33% of children live in poverty (Pickett et al., 2021). Child poverty negatively impacts physical health and development, which can have long-term effects (Pickett et al., 2021). Todd et al. (2024) identified the need for greater multi-agency work in the early years and emphasised the importance of collaborating with families and the wider community to co-produce connected and effective services to build resilient communities.

The first 1001 days, from conception to 2 years, is a critical time for the brain, physical, and emotional development of the foetus and infant (Asmussen et al., 2017). Early years arts interventions have been shown to have positive benefits for parents and children (Fancourt & Finn, 2019; Tongue, 2025). The needs of families in the North of England, particularly post-COVID-19 (Powell et al., 2024), could, therefore, be supported through creative, multi-agency projects that focus on including the arts for families. This paper details an action research project and evaluates a creative arts multi-agency project designed to support families in the North West of England.

1.1. Multi-Agency Approaches to Support Children and Families

Multi-agency services are particularly advantageous as an early intervention for vulnerable families (Todd et al., 2024). Halsey et al. (2005) evaluated the multi-agency Behaviour and Education Support Teams (BEST) and described positive outcomes for the children, families, and practitioners involved. BEST supported children and young people “at risk of developing emotional, behavioural and/or attendance problems” (Halsey et al., 2005, p. 17). Children’s outcomes included improved self-esteem, confidence, and the ability to cope with transitions, whereas parental outcomes included improved parent–child relationships and better access to services (Halsey et al., 2005).

Vulnerable families are usually the intended audience of interventions. However, they often experience barriers to engagement (NSPCC, 2022). Including service users in co-production about service delivery is a method used to increase engagement. Egan (2023) detailed a multi-agency project which co-produced resources for childhood brain tumour survivors and their families. The stakeholders included charity workers, parents, occupational therapists, a nurse, and a clinical psychologist (Egan, 2023). Currently, there is a lack of guidance on what early intervention could look like and how multi-agency approaches can support within the early years.

The creation of parent groups has been identified as an approach used to increase social support and confidence in parenting (Hanna et al., 2002), which is important as primary caregivers are first-line educators for their infants (Public Health England, 2021). Parents promote language and communication skills as well as encouraging physical development, such as crawling and walking (Public Health England, 2021). Approximately one in five women and one in ten men will experience mental health issues during pregnancy or within a year post-natally (NHS, n.d.). Therefore, the early years could be an opportunity for early intervention to promote parental mental health and infant emotional regulation and create an optimal environment surrounding the infant to reduce the risk of lifelong difficulties (Asmussen et al., 2017). Understanding how to involve families and encourage their ongoing engagement is an essential foundation for services such as parent and baby groups.

1.2. Arts and Culture

Arts-based approaches are being increasingly used for parent education programs; research suggests they are an effective way of communicating information and engaging families (Rathunde & Isabella, 2020). Within the field of health and well-being, there has been a spotlight on arts and cultural participation over the past few decades due to links with positive mental health and possible prevention of ill health (Fancourt & Finn, 2019). A scoping review presented research indicating that participation in arts improved the mental health of mothers and increased perceived infant–parent bonding and infant language development (Fancourt & Finn, 2019). The review highlighted the need for larger-scale studies using more rigorous research designs (Fancourt & Finn, 2019). The review also only included a few qualitative meta-synthesis papers (Fancourt & Finn, 2019). A meta-analysis review also identified the potential social and emotional development benefits of arts activities for preschool-aged children (Tongue, 2025). This only included 11 quantitative studies, but it showed promising effect size results associated with engaging in a range of arts-based activities (Tongue, 2025).

Morton and Forsey (2013) described a small-scale evaluation of a multi-agency arts-based project that aimed to reduce social isolation and increase the self-esteem of mothers with post-natal depression. Sessions were facilitated by an artist, a healthcare visitor, and a family support worker to support mothers with post-natal depression in the South West of England. The family support worker and health visitor joined in the arts activities alongside the mothers whilst also being available to offer parenting guidance (Morton & Forsey, 2013). Promising outcomes were reported for mothers, including reduced social isolation and a reduction in post-natal depression (Morton & Forsey, 2013).

Armstrong (2021) described another small-scale arts-integrated intervention aiming to promote positive mental health and positive attachment relationships for ten mothers and infants aged 0 to 3. It targeted referrals for families vulnerable to deprivation and who may be underrepresented within arts and cultural settings in Dundee. The intervention comprised three strands of support for parents, including a parent–infant art therapy group at an art gallery, messy play sessions open to the public, and art boxes to complete at home. Parents were able to access art materials and ideas for new experiences and ways to feel connected to each other as a family (Armstrong, 2021). Quantitative measures showed an overall improvement in the mental health and well-being of the mothers, and video observation analysis showed an overall increase in positive attachment behaviours (Armstrong et al., 2019).

These studies were focused within specific regions of the UK, using small pilot samples and only targeted mothers, therefore highlighting a need for studies within the North of England and those adopting whole-family approaches. There is also a need for a better understanding of how multi-agency groups can work together to target the needs of families, engage parents, and support child development.

1.3. Aims of This Study

This research aimed to (1) demonstrate how a multi-professional group in the NorthWest of England could work together within an action research project and (2) develop interactive workshops that build parental confidence, support child development, and support family well-being. The project was evaluated with six parents involved in the project and the early years steering group.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Research Context

An arts venue opened in June 2023 and commissioned a new artwork called ‘First Breath’ which was designed to celebrate babies born in the metropolitan local authority in January 2023. There were 177 families who volunteered to be part of the project from August 2022 and were provided with a lifetime membership to the venue. Anonymous demographic data were collected for 149 participants (78% White British, 11% from ethnic minority backgrounds, and 16% from low socio-economic backgrounds). From within the 177 families, a smaller cohort of 40 families, who were representative of the metropolitan local authority, were self-selected to be part of the 18-month programme. The programme was called First Breath Families and focused on making arts and culture more accessible to families.

The current research was commissioned by the metropolitan local authority working with the arts and culture-based organisation. One part of the 18-month programme was a series of interactive workshops, which the arts organisation wanted to ensure were developmentally appropriate, integrated relevant research, and provided access to professionals. Therefore, as part of the research commission, a multi-agency early years steering group (EYSG) supported the development and delivery of these workshops.

2.2. Research Design

This research adopted a critical realist approach (Fryer, 2020) to explore the process of and mechanisms influencing the development and delivery of the workshops and the parents’ subjective experiences of these. This action research (AR) project was informed and structured by the Research and Development in Organisations (RADIO) model (Timmins et al., 2003) and Piggot-Irvine’s (2015) three phases (

Table 1. AR using the RADIO model (Timmins et al., 2003) and the phases suggested by Piggot-Irvine (2015).

Research Phase Described by Piggot-Irvine (2015)	RADIO Phases	RADIO Steps	RADIO Activities
Foundational phase	Clarifying concerns	Awareness of need	Cultural engagement programme set up at arts venue
		Invitation to act	Research project commissioned; volunteers were invited to EYSG
		Clarifying organisational and cultural issues	Needs of new parents in this inner-city area identified; reflection on the local context, services available and gaps in provision for parents of new babies
		Identifying stakeholders in area of need	Professionals invited to EYSG planning meetings to support new parents in this inner-city area
Implementation phase	Research methods	Agreeing focus of concern	During EYSG planning, meeting local needs were highlighted in order to effectively support parents to facilitate their babies’ development
		Negotiating framework for information	Methodology selected: records of EYSG planning meeting and focus group summative meeting
		Gathering information	Data were gathered through a research diary and transcripts of the EYSG meetings
		Processing information with research stakeholders	Steering group meetings decided a series of workshops would benefit parents more than a gifted baby box
	Information processing with stakeholders and implementation	Agreeing areas for future development	Series of workshops developed, and small cohort of parents (40) was self-selected for workshop participation
		Action planning and implementation	The small cohort of parents (40) were invited to workshops and other artistic events; workshops were delivered
Evaluation phase		Evaluation action	Upon completion of the workshops and arts events, parent interviews (n = 6) were conducted to evaluate their experiences and perceived impact on parenting or child development Feedback session to the arts organisation lead about the parental interview data and a feedback session to the stakeholder group; evaluation of the research project with the stakeholder group (focus group); feedback was also provided via email

). The AR focused on collaboratively exploring the process of developing interactive workshops with problem holders and the perceptions of parents who attended. The AR project received ethical approval from the host institution in March 2023, with further approval for the parent evaluation interviews in November 2023.

2.3. Participants

The EYSG was made up of a specialist midwife (mental health), a speech and language therapist, a clinical psychologist, a member of the school readiness team, an assistant clinical psychologist (for the initial three planning meetings), and the lead of the arts organisation. For the EYSG, participants consented to participate in three online meetings and an evaluation meeting.

The parent participants were already involved in the First Breath Families programme and were, therefore, recruited using convenience–purposive sampling. Parents were invited to attend an online information evening, where the researcher described her project and provided further information. An inclusion requirement was that the parents had attended at least two of the workshops. Informed consent was collected before the parents scheduled a date for the online interviews. All six participants were mothers.

2.4. Data Gathering and Analysis Methods

This research project started with three online stakeholder planning meetings and ended with a summative, focus group meeting to gather evaluative feedback. A focus group-style meeting (Appendix A) was selected for data collection to encourage discussion and collaboration between the different specific early years fields. All meetings were audio recorded; the planning meeting recordings were used to create summary documents; and the final summative focus group was transcribed for analysis (Bryman, 2012). The evaluation feedback was analysed using inductive content analysis (

Table 2. Inductive content analysis steps, as described in Vears and Gillam’s (2022) study.

Content Analysis Steps
Step 1: Read and familiarise.
Step 2: First-round coding: identifying big-picture meaning units.
Step 3: Second-round coding: developing subcategories and fine-grained codes.
Step 4: Refining the fine-grained subcategories.
Step 5: Synthesis and interpretation.

; Vears & Gillam, 2022), where the codes and categories were derived from the data. A reflective research diary was kept throughout the process and was written in chronological order as this research progressed (Altrichter & Holly, 2005).

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six mothers who had attended at least two of the workshops. The interview schedule (Appendix B) was provided before the interview date to give time to reflect on their experience, allowing for greater depth of answers and relieving any interview anxiety. The parent interviews were transcribed and analysed using inductive content analysis (Table 2, Vears & Gillam, 2022).

3. Findings

3.1. Foundational Phase

The 18-month programme, First Breath Families, grew out of the light installation artwork, First Breath, created by a British artist alongside the “Welcome to the world” slideshow, which celebrated all the babies who were part of the project. The arts organisation wanted to commission a creative project encouraging arts and culture to parents and infants of the smaller cohort. As part of the creative project, the initial intention was to provide parents with an art box similar to baby boxes in Finland (McCabe et al., 2023). Since 1938, Finland has provided disadvantaged parents with ‘baby boxes’, and in 1949, the box became universal to all expectant mothers to reduce infant mortality (McCabe et al., 2023). The arts organisation lead and school readiness lead identified early years professionals who then volunteered to be involved in the creative project.

3.2. Implementation Phase

The researcher organised three online stakeholder planning meetings for the EYSG, where collaborative conversation was facilitated. Audio recordings were used to create brief summary records, which were circulated to the EYSG between meetings to encourage reflection and allow new ideas to emerge. The records included the aims of the session, summaries of discussions, and keywords. The keywords were selected by the researcher as a summary for the steering group to quickly ensure their voices and the direction of the meetings had been accurately recorded. The EYSG were given the opportunity to add to the summary records before the next meeting. Each meeting began with a review of the summary to facilitate discussions of the aims. The findings of the meetings suggested that a series of parental workshops would suit the needs of the local parents more than arts-filled baby boxes. The ideal outcome of the workshops was to build parental confidence through modelling and scaffolding activities, rather than just supplying resources.

The arts organisation lead arranged with external professionals for the four workshops to be delivered at the art venue event space (

Table 3. Workshop descriptions.

Workshops in 2023	Delivered by
Sleep (September)	Sleep specialist
Weaning and nutrition (October)	Food psychologist who also focused on language used around food
Baby first aid (October)	Practical baby first aid session, including models to practise CPR
Early communication (December)	Split into two sessions delivered by speech and language therapists

). The workshops were designed to be developmentally relevant for the babies and parents. The babies were between 8 and 11 months when the workshops ran. All workshops ran twice to ensure small groups and more date options for parents. Resources were given to parents, including a local authority-adapted nursery rhyme book, and sensory resources were also used within the session. The researcher attended most of the interactive workshops and recorded the events in the diary, as well as any highlights from the day.

Aspects of mental health were interwoven with each workshop, such as having a well-being room (low-arousal sensory room), massages for parents, food and drink provided, and creating a psychologically safe environment. Throughout the First Breath Families programme, the families involved were invited to a range of artistic events as well as the workshops (please see Appendix E for the full list of events). The events ranged from a private viewing of an art exhibition, a dance and movement class, and free tickets to theatre events at the arts venue. One of the events also included a related sensory session due to the sensory focus of the exhibition, which involved nursery rhymes, sensory toys, and a massage for parents in a mindfulness room. The theatre productions were child-friendly performances, which included a Christmas story (Lost and Found) and a retelling of a classic children’s book (The Jungle Book). Parent feedback was sought after every event and informed subsequent activities. After the workshops, some of the parents became involved with the planning of future projects, including the first birthday celebration held at the arts venue.

3.3. Evaluation Phase

3.3.1. Evaluation with the Parents

Six mothers were interviewed between February and March 2024 after the workshops had ceased before the big birthday event planned for the babies at the venue. The interview data were analysed and coded using NVivo 12 (QSR, 2018). The following categories and subcategories were created using the aims of this project as well as being derived from the parent interview data (Figure 1). Two of the researchers coded the same portion of interview data to ensure inter-coder rating. Inter-coder rating increases the reliability of codes and is deemed good practice for qualitative studies (O’Connor & Joffe, 2020).

3.3.2. Categories: Platform to Practise

This category reflected the skill development of both parents and babies from having a range of opportunities to observe, copy, and socialise with babies of similar ages. The physical safe space allowed babies and parents to become familiar and, therefore, confident within the space.

Parent A: “I can say that it’s given her a platform to practise those skills. And given her opportunities to develop constantly”.

3.3.3. Community

This category included codes that discussed feeling connected by the First Breath project to other parents who were experiencing similar and shared experiences due to having babies of similar ages, which then created friendships. This community created small support systems, which allowed meaningful conversations, reassurance, and the confidence to ask the professionals questions. The parents discussed the diversity and inclusivity of the group, which allowed members of the cohort to feel represented and their babies to experience interacting with a range of people.

Parent B: “but you could sit there and think, OK, I’m not alone with this. You know, you’d listen to some people’s stories, and you think, oh my gosh, that sounds really, really tough. So, it made you aware of what was actually going well for you at the same time as then being able to offer other people support”.

Parent C: “And I think that is great too, because you see in different people in different environments and people who look different, people who aren’t the same people she sees every day. So yeah, it has been a good influence on her”.

3.3.4. Accessible Family Experiences

All events and workshops implemented by the arts organisation were free for families, which meant that they could experience a range of events, toys, and workshops without a financial burden. The mothers seemed to feel lucky to be a part of the project, which encouraged the whole family to engage in artistic hobbies, such as theatre productions and art installations.

Parent D: “So I feel the wider benefits of the project are very important in addition to the building of cultural capital and progress towards developmental milestones”.

3.3.5. Improvements

The mothers were asked for suggestions if the project were to continue in the future. As it was a pilot project in a new event space, the suggestions focused on logistics, including wanting more regular sessions, more weekend events, and more invitations to the wider family. Other topics that the mothers suggested included family mental health, physical health, and having sessions repeated to allow implementation and reflection time.

Parent E: “The mental health side of it, and I think that would have been really that would have been really beneficial because I feel like it’s something that’s never spoken about. And then when we all got speaking a bit more and I mean, I openly admitted I was a little bit like oh, I got upset about this. And then one of the mums was like, oh, I got upset and it was this and that”.

3.3.6. Valuable Access to Quality Information

This category reflected that the workshops built the confidence of parents and the wider family as they were able to develop their knowledge from the age-appropriate workshops. Having access to professionals meant the parents felt reassured, and it reinforced what they knew. As a group, the parents were also able to share tips and information.

Parent F: “I realised he’s really behind in like speech. But I didn’t know because we were just kind of at home in our little bubble (during COVID). So yeah. So, I think I learnt a lot from the speech and language one and I think I learned a bit from everything, like the nutrition one again it was just kind of reinforced what I kind of already have done with my first”.

3.4. Evaluation with Stakeholders

The mothers’ interview data (Figure 1) were reflected to the art project lead in an online presentation by the researcher. The art project lead and the researcher facilitated the final EYSG meeting as an online focus group. Due to busy professional schedules, only two of the stakeholders could attend the feedback meeting, three including the art project lead. The parental experience journey of the project was explained, including all events and workshops. The researcher then relayed the interview data back to the EYSG in order for them to evaluate the multi-professional approach and the research project overall. Due to extensive discussion and time limitations, the evaluation was completed individually via email. An additional feedback meeting was held with the school readiness lead, who was unable to attend.

The following categories and subcategories were created using the knowledge of the field as well as being derived from the EYSG evaluative data (Figure 2). The EYSG evaluative data were divided into discussing the multi-agency working and the creative project.

3.4.1. Barriers to Multi-Agency Working

A lack of clarity regarding professionals’ roles and time availability within the project led to a missed opportunity, where stakeholders felt they could have been involved more and delivered more of the workshops. The negatives of working online included some technical difficulties and missing out on informal updates of the project meaning, where there seemed to be large gaps without communication to the EYSG.

Professional 1: “I think because not only am I a midwife, but a specialist midwife for mental health, and also working at the time for the school readiness board—I wasn’t sure which part of my background the project was most interested in capturing my professional lens on—generic universal care or targeted specialist care for vulnerable families, so I gave a bit of insight on both”.

3.4.2. Facilitators of Multi-Agency Working

The stakeholders were able to create meaningful working relationships and included a range of professionals within a similar field (early years). Working online meant that location and busy schedules could be accommodated. The stakeholders reported that the facilitators (the art project lead and researcher) were curious about everyone’s point of view and managed the time well to steer the group to achieve the aims of the meetings. The stakeholders had been invited to the opening party of the art venue, and a stakeholder was able to deliver a two-part workshop within their area of expertise.

3.4.3. Benefits of Innovative and Creative Collaboration

The stakeholders also seemed to enjoy being able to work innovatively and creatively and share learning with new colleagues.

Professional 2: “I have really enjoyed it, it has been a welcome circuit break in amongst my other work, which can often feel very heavy. It has been great to be involved in something so innovative and creative and to be at it from a point of creation. It lit up a spark and encouraged creative thinking which we need more of in the NHS”.

3.4.4. Ways Parental Buy-In Was Achieved

This category reflected the unique experience of the project as well as the sense of community created among the parents. There was an instant connection between the families and the project as parents described feeling lucky to be a part of the art light installation, artistic events, and workshops, which provided them access to professionals (see Appendix E for the full list of events). It was also commented that it felt “extra special” after the COVID-19 pandemic, where the parents felt like they wanted to take every opportunity. The group were self-selected as they chose to sign up for the project. The project communicated with the families through a range of social media platforms, including Facebook, and having a parent WhatsApp group, which also supported the community to grow beyond the project and meet up independently.

Professional 3: “I know of many arts organisations delivering great early years work but the access to experts as part of the practical sessions felt a unique combination”.

3.4.5. Project Learning Takeaways and Future Thinking

The project was described as an amazing experience for families; however, it potentially was a unique, unscalable model. There were discussions about what the stakeholders would do differently if the workshops were repeated and ways to continue and sustain the project using networks that already exist, such as family hubs. Another subcategory related to targeting and engaging families who would benefit most, as vulnerable families might be less likely to be involved. It was also discussed who would fund any future projects.

Professional 4: “We have lots of opportunities for people with young families and babies to meet other families, but actually. Often, the cohorts of people who come to those are probably the people who actually need it the least”.

Professional 5: “Keen for learning to inform projects focused on how we engage parents, the potential of cultural and creative sector to support EY priorities and hopefully support with strengthening partnership work”.

4. Discussion

This research explored how a multi-professional steering group could work collaboratively across the arts and public sector using the RADIO model to develop workshops to support parents of new babies. The evaluation from the EYSG described the barriers and facilitators of multi-agency working and highlighted key learning from the project to take forward into future work. The evaluation from the parents showed positive perceived effects on themselves, their families, and their babies, as well as emphasising the importance of the community created at the arts organisation.

First, this research aimed to demonstrate how a multi-professional group can work collaboratively to support early years development and the parenting experience. The multi-agency group found the facilitators of the project included being a flexible, online project driven by the needs of the parents, with a good mix of professionals. Halsey et al. (2005) also found that within the Behaviour and Education Support Teams, the mix of professionals within the multi-agency composition allowed them to work creatively and flexibly to effectively work towards the outcomes. Another benefit of multi-agency working was the professional learning shared across the stakeholders. One of the stakeholders adapted their early communication workshop for early years setting staff to parents through parents involved in the project identifying this need. The value of professional learning across teams reinforces previous research (Egan, 2023; Halsey et al., 2005).

The multi-agency group evaluation discussed barriers that mirror the current literature. The roles and responsibilities could have been further clarified within the initial meeting; this step has been highlighted as essential for successful multi-agency working (Sloper, 2004). Egan (2023) reflected that time used within the foundational phase was important for coproduction, with time spent to establish and clarify roles and responsibilities across the newly established group (Egan, 2023). Solomon (2019) also discusses unconscious factors of resistance to multi-agency working, including the identity of those involved, and Selfe et al. (2019) discussed the importance of the perceptions and expectations of the role. For example, where stakeholders had dual job roles, they commented that they were unsure which expertise they needed to bring to the project.

Parental buy-in and commitment was an important category taken from the stakeholders’ evaluation. Alternative parental groups run by the stakeholders for vulnerable families did not seem to have the level of engagement and sense of community that the current project had. It was thought that the uniqueness of the project contributed to the parental buy-in. The free programme involved artistic events (Appendix E) and parental workshops delivered by professionals as well as small moments of exclusivity or feeling special integrated throughout the project. In the interviews, the parents commented on the benefits of participating in the wider arts project, which enabled them to feel valued and special. This concurred with Armstrong (2021), who also acknowledged that parents felt appreciative to be involved in an arts project.

Similar to previous research, programme factors that were found to promote the participation of those who experience barriers to engagement included relationship building, using non-profit organisations, ensuring transport support, and childcare (Cortis et al., 2009). Relationships were built between the parent group and the arts organisation staff, where the organisers communicated with the parents through different social media platforms as well as meeting at the events. This encouraged the parent group to evolve “beyond the project”, including social meetups and friendships being made. Transport costs were reimbursed, and babies and siblings were able to attend all events. The parental group was self-selected and seemed to already see the value in the arts. The group had a range of socio-economic demographics, and some may not be considered to experience barriers to engagement; however, it is still relevant to understand what may have contributed to their ongoing commitment to the project.

Secondly, this research aimed to explore any effect of the project and workshops on the parents’ experience and their children’s development. Overall, the perceived effects were positive where the parents felt emotional safety and connected and diversity was represented within the community created. These findings are consistent with similar arts-based community projects (Armstrong, 2021; Morton & Forsey, 2013). Armstrong (2021) described the art therapist hosting the art groups as providing both physical and emotional containment for the parents, similar to the physical and emotional safe space described by the mothers involved with this project. The qualitative parent feedback highlighted the benefits of meeting other parents and increased parental confidence with play (Armstrong, 2021).

Another category from the parental interviews was community and the subcategory of feeling connected. The parents commented on having social opportunities to make friends with those who are experiencing similar journeys to themselves. The mothers in the current research found access to professionals useful to reaffirm and build their confidence, as well as sharing tips and experiences amongst the parents. These findings are similar to the positive effect on social support and access to a healthcare visitor, as described by mothers in Morton and Forsey’s (2013) study. This support system meant that the mothers felt more relaxed whilst parenting. The importance of support systems was also highlighted by Armstrong and Ross (2021) during the COVID-19 pandemic, when some parents had a lack of a support system, and it was reported that it impacted their well-being and feelings of isolation, which contributed to disconnection within their parent–infant dyads.

4.1. Implications

The current project held the workshops in the arts venue, which aimed to create a supportive, non-judgemental environment where the parents could build their confidence in attending. It aimed to also encourage the families to engage with the other artistic events held at the venue, including theatre productions, which were also new experiences for the families. This is similar to the parent feedback found by Armstrong (2021). Their participants had not previously engaged with other parent groups due to anxiety and fearing judgement, and they also would not have attended an art gallery alone. Hosting the art therapy group within a public space may have removed the stigma of attending a parenting group within a social or health setting (Armstrong, 2021).

Even though the families involved in this research may not be considered to experience barriers to services, understanding why this project had parental commitment should be kept in mind when setting up future parental groups. The stakeholders discussed how vulnerable families who would benefit from creative, supportive parenting groups are usually those who experience barriers to engagement. Family hubs are set up in communities and aim to integrate services making support more accessible for families (Todd et al., 2024). Family hubs already provide families with support around infant feeding, mental health, and some parenting classes (Todd et al., 2024). Therefore, they could be a useful starting point to target families, inform them of the importance of arts activities, and create parental arts groups.

The RADIO model (Timmins et al., 2003) was a useful tool to flexibly structure the action research specifically using the Piggot-Irvine (2015) restructure also used by Egan (2023). Future multi-agency working groups should spend dedicated time to explore time availability, role responsibility, and level of involvement within the initial meeting. Establishing clearer roles may have meant other stakeholders could have been identified to fill any gaps, for example, including parents or a healthcare visitor. A health care visitor was contacted but was unable to join the project. Identifying parents or community members to be involved with the planning of groups, similar to Egan (2023), may also further parental engagement and reduce any social stigma within the community.

Knowing how much time each stakeholder had available for the project may have meant the researcher could have collaboratively created the parent interview questions with the stakeholders as well as additional involvement for the workshops. The stakeholders originally volunteered to be a part of a working group to design a baby box filled with arts activities; however, the outcome of the project changed to become a series of workshops. Sinek (2009) discussed the importance of why before how and what. Even though the outcome changed, the “why” of working together remained the same, which was to build local parents’ confidence through new arts experiences. This flexibility illustrates the value of using an AR approach to fit with the changing landscape of real-world projects (Timmins et al., 2003).

4.2. Limitations and Future Research

This AR documented a unique arts and cultural project within a specific local authority. Future research should include a range of case studies of arts-integrated parental groups located within a range of different community contexts across the UK. The case studies should also evaluate any effects observed for parents and infants, as well as describing the parental buy-in and art projects. The scale of this unique creative project may be difficult to replicate; however, there are important factors that could be used on a smaller, more sustainable scale. A more sustainable model could include the original idea of an arts activities-filled baby box where activities are modelled and scaffolded within family hubs, which also create social support groups.

Qualitative interviews allowed the researchers to explore the perceptions and experiences of both the parents and the stakeholders. A limitation of qualitative data is the lack of generalisability of the results due to smaller sample sizes (six parents and five stakeholders) (Hancock et al., 2001). Due to the busy roles of the professionals involved, one stakeholder changed roles so was unable to participate in the evaluation element. The interviews were also open to any parent or caregiver who had attended at least two of the workshops. However, the attendance of the workshops seemed to target mostly mothers, as they occurred on a weekday, therefore, it was six mothers who were interviewed. In the future, it would be useful to interview the wider family to explore the effects from a holistic viewpoint and to increase the diversity of views reflected. Future research could also employ quantitative measures, such as social and emotional scales, as well as school readiness compared with a control group of infants who have not been part of the project. This would quantify any effect to enrich the qualitative perceptions of the impact observed in this research and possibly secure future funding.

The mothers did not have a diagnosis of post-natal depression, although some recognised their “trauma” of giving birth, and, therefore, suggested a family mental health workshop for future projects. Morton and Forsey (2013) also acknowledged their project did not offer counselling, but created a “safe space” where the mothers could support each other through discussions. This echoes the mental health offer of this research, where mothers found support in each other to feel less isolated and reassuring their difficult experiences. Mental health as a distinct workshop topic was discussed as part of the EYSG; however, relevant professionals were not available to deliver it this time round. From the parental feedback, this was a gap identified and should be explored if it were to run again.

5. Conclusions

This project, including the workshops and artistic events, may be difficult to sustain or replicate in the future; however, the learning can be used in future projects. Parental commitment, buy-in, and a sense of community are essential for continued engagement in any parent project. Due to funding cuts, policymakers are being called to think creatively to provide coordinated, joined-up services that support the needs of children and families (Todd et al., 2024). Governments should invest in the early years population and support parents as an early intervention and proactive response to support health problems and academic and developmental issues (Powell et al., 2024; Todd et al., 2024). Therefore, this example of an arts-integrated parent group could be used as a case study of how a multi-agency group supported social and developmental benefits for both families and infants.