Project title
Description of initiative
Beating Time run three prison programmes aimed at helping people put prison behind them and build lives they want to live, improving mental health, building social inclusion, finding and creating employment for people serving sentences. Through Choirs Beating Time, they create prison choirs that serve their communities whilst preserving mental health. People who feel excluded and have poor mental health cannot find, or make, work. they run an in-prison recruitment consultancy, Inside Job. The third programme Upstart, helps entrepreneurial prisoners play to their strengths.
Further information on the initiative
Themes: Culture and...
Keywords
Target group
Cultural field
Timeframe
Results, benefits, impact and lessons learnt
In prisons more than 50% of the population suffer depression and anxiety, self harm is common place and the prevalence of suicide is 4 times that in the general population. Singing significantly reduces the symptoms of depression and anxiety, partly because it increases our levels of “feel good” hormones, serotonin, endorphins and oxytocin. Simultaneously it suppresses our stress hormones, cortisol and cortisone, so we feel less stressed. Singing also reduces aggressive behaviour and improves self-esteem.