Throughout 2025, Live Music Now’s Music in Health work continued to grow in both reach and depth. Musicians delivered live music across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, performing in hospitals, care homes, community venues and perinatal settings. These sessions offered connection, learning and meaningful impact, reaching people at some of the most challenging moments in their lives.
From older people living with dementia, to patients on acute hospital wards, to parents navigating perinatal mental health challenges, our work responded to isolation, anxiety, ill health and reduced access to creative experiences. Through high-quality live music, songwriting and participatory sessions, musicians created moments of calm, expression and shared humanity – supporting not only participants, but also the health and care staff around them.
Music in Health across 2025
Across the year, our Music in Health activity took many forms, shaped by local need and context:
In Wales, the Unlocking Futures: Lullaby Symposium in Cardiff brought together practitioners, researchers and commissioners to explore the role of lullaby songwriting in perinatal mental health and early attachment. The event highlighted growing momentum for creative health approaches within perinatal services and workforce development.
In England, our work spanned hospital, care and community settings. At both Leighton Hospital and Royal Brompton Hospital, Musicians-in-Residence and regular live music programmes embedded music into ward life, supporting patient wellbeing, reducing anxiety and helping staff manage stress in busy acute environments. In care homes, partnerships such as our work with Parkhaven Trust and the Devon Musical Memory Cafés demonstrated the impact of regular, interactive music-making for people living with dementia, enhancing communication, engagement and shared moments of joy.
Our perinatal Lullaby projects in Essex and Medway supported parents through collaborative songwriting, helping build confidence, strengthen bonding and create personalised resources families could return to beyond the sessions themselves.
In Northern Ireland, community-focused projects such as Songs & Scones created welcoming, low-pressure spaces for social connection, while expanded dementia-focused delivery ensured that people living with dementia — and those caring for them — could continue to access meaningful musical experiences.
Supporting health and care priorities
Across all three nations, Live Music Now’s Music in Health work continues to align closely with health and care priorities. Our programmes support the ambitions of the NHS Long Term Plan, Integrated Care Systems, and the Skills for Care Workforce Strategy, contributing to mental health support, social prescribing and workforce wellbeing. In adult social care, our work helps settings meet CQC Quality criteria through person-centred, meaningful activity, while in Wales and Northern Ireland it complements perinatal mental health strategies and Health and Social Care frameworks.
With thanks
None of this work would be possible without the collaboration of our partners, funders, health and care settings, and the Live Music Now musicians who bring skill, sensitivity and care to every session. Thank you to everyone who helped make 2025 a year in which music continued to support health, connection and dignity across the UK.
