We are proud to announce that the University of Chester has invited Woodart Workshops to deliver a series of lectures and educational sessions on the role of craft, creativity, and community in social prescribing. This is a valuable opportunity to share our experience and show how traditional skills such as woodturning and woodcarving can support health, wellbeing, and recovery alongside medical treatment.
Social prescribing is an approach used by health services, including the NHS, where healthcare professionals refer people to community-based activities, groups, and support services. It recognises that challenges such as loneliness, anxiety, low mood, and long-term conditions are often linked to social factors. By helping people connect with others, learn new skills, and build confidence, social prescribing supports the whole person—not just the condition.
Our lectures will explain how Woodart Workshops puts this approach into practice and the positive impact we see each week. We will speak to students, healthcare trainees, and practitioners about how woodart and woodturning offer more than a hobby: they provide a safe, welcoming, and inclusive space where people can learn, create, and form meaningful friendships.
Our club is well placed to support this work. We provide the tools, lathes, and equipment needed so anyone can take part, even with no previous experience. Our members are friendly, patient, and generous with their skills. We will also share stories of people who joined us feeling isolated or low and have since gained confidence, purpose, and friendship through working with wood.
As a member-led collective, we know the benefits of our work go far beyond the objects we make. The rhythm of turning wood, the focus of carving, and the satisfaction of creating something by hand can be calming and rewarding—but it is the social connection that makes the greatest difference.
This partnership with the University of Chester is an exciting step forward. It allows us to help inform future health and wellbeing professionals and demonstrate the value of community groups within the wider health system. Creativity and connection are not extras; they are essential parts of a healthy life and powerful tools for supporting wellbeing. We are proud that our member-run club is helping to shape how social prescribing is understood and delivered—bringing people together, sharing skills, and making a real difference, one piece of wood and one new friendship at a time. To learn more about our work, sessions, and wellbeing support, please visit: