Sleeping Well – exploring how history and creativity can improve our wellbeing

At Ordsall Hall we’ve been working on a 2-year project exploring how the Tudors slept – to see what history can tell us about sleeping well today.

Led by Dr Anna Fielding, from the University of Manchester, the emphasis has been on learning about history through making and doing. We’ve also been exploring what’s special about undertaking these activities within the wonderful setting of Ordsall Hall and its gardens.

Participants have tried out a variety of creative activities as the context for learning about how the Tudors slept. These activities have included making sleepy drinks and bread, stitching bedchamber textiles, and crafting corn dollies and dreamcatchers from the natural materials found in the Hall’s gardens.

The aim is to explore how Tudor practices on health and sleep can support local people’s wellbeing today. Participants have ranged from school children to adults. Details were shared via our website and everyone was welcome to book on. Some interesting themes have come out of our evaluation with the people who’ve joined in with Sleeping Well activities over the last 2 years.

Firstly, many participants commented on how interesting it is to discover what we can learn from history, and how we can apply it today:

• ‘They [the Tudors] were a lot more in tune than I imagined. They had lots of good ideas about sleep health.’
• ‘Balance was important in the past (as it is now).’‘Great insight into how early modern methods for wellness (especially for sleep) translates into the 21st century.’

Some of the feedback illustrated how calming and connecting creative activities can be for us:

• ‘Making flowers seemed like meditation.’
• ‘More like this – crafts for wellbeing with an educational spin.’
• ‘[I liked] the practical involvement. Learning from … each other.’
• ‘Enjoyed learning about this practically. Enjoyed mind body connection.’• ‘I loved the practical aspect. Experimental learning also calmed me down.’
  • ‘Whole experience was useful and I made friends.’
  • ‘Great session. Informative, calming and fun.’

People also commented the Ordsall’s grounds as a really special space to do these activities – particularly in a built-up, urban area around Salford Quays:

• ‘Would love to hear about further wellbeing as the building and grounds and locality in the heart of the city so positive.’
• ‘A wonderful space, to share history, health and wellbeing in a fantastic environment. Warm and friendly, very educated.’

To date, the Sleeping Well project as has been funded by the Wellcome Trust. We are delighted that the project is now entering the next phase of its development, with new funding from the UK Research and Innovation Fund.

Dr Fielding and the team at SCL are now working more directly to connect the Sleeping Well offer to local adults dealing with poor emotional health and wellbeing – often compounded by poor sleep.

Partners will include Living Well (talking therapies for mild to moderate conditions), Wellbeing Matters (Salford’s social prescribing service), the Health Improvement Team and the charity Mind in Salford.

The aim is to see how we can further develop Ordsall Hall and its gardens as a place where local people can explore how to sleep well – using history and creativity as our tools to do so.