At the beginning of September 2025 we hosted an event exploring the impact of ACT NOW – a partnership with SIFA Fireside delivering creative projects with people who have experienced homelessness.
During the event Professor Laura Caulfield and colleagues from the Institute for Community Research and Development (ICRD) at Wolverhampton University shared initial findings from their three-year research study they have been running alongside the project.
Reassuringly the research confirmed what we’ve witnessed first-hand:
– participants built confidence, honed communication skills and developed emotional literacy, empathy and understanding.
– they demonstrated agency, leadership and responsibility
– individuals reported improved health and well-being
– people valued the opportunity to safely explore complex emotions such as anxiety, anger and depression
– the project fostered a sense of community – of togetherness and belonging.
Over the course of the three years, the ACT NOW group have created some amazing theatre performances and films and had the opportunity to showcase them in professional spaces, including the Mockingbird Cinema and the Blue Orange Theatre.
We are proud to have a growing library of published research exploring different aspects of our work – all available here.
The final ACT NOW report will also be published on this website soon.
