StoryTellThem grew from a broad understanding of what health and wellbeing can mean, shaped by experience across health and social care, the NHS and the voluntary and community sector.
We know that health is influenced by far more than services or clinical care. It is connected to how people live, the communities and cultures they belong to, their relationships, opportunities to participate, and whether they feel heard, valued and able to express themselves.
This shaped the way StoryTellThem developed: bringing together health, community, creative and cultural perspectives to explore different ways of engaging people, supporting wellbeing and creating opportunities for connection and participation.
Today, our work extends across creative health, community engagement, culture, heritage, research, education and social impact. While the settings and projects may differ, the underlying approach remains the same; bringing together different forms of knowledge, creativity and experience to create work that is meaningful to the people involved and ultimately improve outcomes.
How we work
We believe the way work is developed matters as much as what is delivered.
We work collaboratively with communities, practitioners, creatives, researchers and organisations, creating opportunities for people to contribute their experiences, ideas and expertise throughout a project.
Our approach is informed by:
Co-production: developing work with people rather than simply for them.
Lived experience: recognising personal experience as a valuable source of knowledge and insight.
Cultural humility: remaining open to different perspectives, experiences and ways of understanding the world.
Trauma-responsive practice: creating environments that consider safety, choice, trust and individual circumstances.
Participation: finding meaningful ways for people to contribute, whether through conversation, creativity, research, making or shared activity.
These principles are adapted to the context of each project rather than applied as a fixed formula.
Our network
StoryTellThem works through a diverse and growing network of collaborators and specialists.
Depending on the project, this may include creative practitioners, clinicians, researchers, educators, community practitioners, cultural practitioners, consultants and other subject specialists.
We bring together the expertise needed for each piece of work, while also creating opportunities for people with lived experience and community knowledge to influence its direction.
The Belonging Model
The Belonging Model has grown from this way of working.
It brings together learning from practice around connection, participation, cultural humility, flexibility, co-ownership and trauma-responsive approaches.
Rather than being a fixed methodology, the model continues to evolve through research, experience, reflection and collaboration.
Working with us
We work with organisations, communities, professionals and creative practitioners in different ways; from commissioned projects and partnerships to consultancy, research, creative production, programmes and events.