Measuring The Effectiveness Of Art In Prisons
At Koestler Arts, we use research and reports to inform the work that we do encouraging participation in the arts in prisons. Evaluation is built-in to all our projects and events and is essential for making sure our work helps prisoners and individuals in secure settings.
On this page, you will find a selection of publications which we have produced alongside academic partners in recent years, as well as in-house evaluations and impact statements showing the effectiveness of art in prisons.
Each Koestler Awards entrant is asked to complete monitoring and evaluation forms so we can listen and respond to their views on how we can better support participation in the arts in prisons and beyond.
Our steering groups, trustees, staff, and volunteers include people with lived experience of the criminal justice system.
Please take a look at the documents below to read more about our projects.
We regret that, because of the high volume of enquiries we receive and our small staff team, we cannot respond to requests for help with dissertations. We invite students interested in how the arts can benefit people in prison and other secure settings to read the evaluations available to download on our research page and to visit the NCJAA Evidence Library.
Inspiring Futures, 2024
An Evaluation of the Meaning and Impact of Arts Programmes in Criminal Justice Settings, led by the National Criminal Justice Arts Alliance bringing together leading arts in criminal justice organisations and the University of Cambridge’s Institute of Criminology.
Annual Review, 2022-23
Our annual review looks at our projects and events from the last financial year, an evaluation of our core programmes, and details of our plans for the future, with an introduction from Chair of the Koestler Arts Board, Sir Richard Heaton KCB.
The Impact Inside, 2020
A report by Manchester Metropolitan University which reveals the positive effect of the Koestler Awards on people in the criminal justice system.
Arts and culture in health and wellbeing and in the criminal justice system, 2018
A summary of research conducted by Arts Council England into the positive effects engagement in the arts can have on the lives of people in custody.
The Arts Of Desistance, 2014
Read an evaluation of the Koestler Arts Mentoring Programme, carried out by Leonidas K. Cheliotis and the London School of Economics and Political Science.
