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Meet Penny Calvert (Creative health specialist)
Penny Calvert is a force in Creative Health strategy and public engagement, known for her ability to unite design thinking with practical, people-centred solutions. Over a career spanning more than 25 years, she has redefined how communities, organisations, and healthcare environments integrate creativity into their processes and spaces.
Mark and Penny had a lovely wandering talk while creating Penny's fantasy cultural year. Penny shared her passion for applied arts and her role in enhancing wellbeing through creative activities. She explained her approach of helping people become more aware of their existing creative habits and how this can be scaled up to benefit communities.
A champion of co-design, Penny believes that the best ideas emerge when all voices are valued, ensuring that her projects leave participants with enduring skills and impactful experiences.
Penny Calvert’s professional journey began with a passion for design and community engagement, nurtured during her time at the University of Brighton, where she specialised in Three-Dimensional Design. Her early career as a Technical Instructor at Chase Farm Hospital saw her use design and carpentry to deliver tailored therapeutic learning programmes for patients. This early intersection of creativity and health set the tone for her life's work.
In 1996, Penny became an Art Project Worker at the St. John at Hackney Community Space Centre, where she honed her skills in public engagement and programme management. By 1999, she had taken on a pivotal role at Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust as the ArtCare Team Lead.
For over 25 years, she has transformed healthcare environments, blending strategic design with community co-creation to enhance patient and staff experiences. A highlight of her work includes co-designing the award-winning Salisbury Breast Unit, where her efforts demonstrated the profound impact of Creative Health on well-being.
Penny’s insatiable curiosity led her to deepen her expertise with qualifications in Arts Therapy, a PGCE in Lifelong Learning, and a Prince2 Project Management certification.
These were later crowned by an MBA in Senior Leadership, during which she discovered the term for her life’s methodology: Design Thinking. Her ability to creatively solve problems and innovate through prototyping has since become her hallmark.
As an independent creative consultant under Penny Calvert Art (2011–2020), she delivered bespoke site-specific projects across the South West of England, specialising in NHS healthcare environments and public engagement. Whether it was designing inspiring digital wall cladding or creating playful spaces for children, her work consistently elevated community voices and aesthetics.
Penny’s expertise extends beyond her creative projects. She has served as a Steering Committee Member for Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, focusing on sustainability, education, and well-being, and as a Trustee for Bishop Wordsworth’s School Foundation. Her leadership in these roles highlights her commitment to fostering collaboration and growth in diverse settings.
Since 2023, Penny has brought her vision to the National Centre for Creative Health (NCCH) as a South West Creative Health Associate. Here, she continues to blend innovative solutions with creativity and health systems, championing the transformative power of art to drive meaningful, person-centred change.
View Penny's CV here:
Penny's fantasy cultural year + conversational detour
In our interviews, we create our full members' fantasy cultural years from the answers to 10 easy questions. We have a time machine and magic wand to help.
Home Base
Penny Calvert’s imaginative cultural journey begins in Venice, her favourite city, where she soaks in its artistic allure.
Sitting at a café in Saint Mark's Square with water gently lapping at her ankles, she sips an apple spritz and browses a crime novel.
Creative Research in Venice
In her fantasy cultural year, Penny receives a proposal from a wealthy Venetian family foundation to conduct a global study on creative health. The project starts with a unique twist, her first destination is chosen through a poll on LinkedIn. While Miami tops the results, Penny opts for San Francisco, a city known for its innovation and creativity.
The journey begins with Penny flying to San Francisco, where she’s welcomed aboard with an Aperol Spritz and a vision for unlocking the potential of creative health systems worldwide.
Unlocking Creativity and Wellbeing
Penny’s passion for applied arts and wellbeing takes centre stage as she works with communities to help them recognise and develop their creative habits. She believes that creativity is a tool for self-discovery, helping individuals find hidden talents. From encouraging fidgety children to explore percussion to showcasing the transformative power of art in prisons, Penny’s approach inspires growth and builds confidence.
During her journey, Penny reflects on her own creative growth, including her return to piano playing after a long break. These personal experiences deepen her understanding of how effort and practice can unlock new possibilities, a philosophy she carries into her projects.
Music and Entertainment
While in San Francisco, Penny dives into her love of music. She revisits the soundtracks of Interstellar and Gladiator and attends a vibrant, Rio-inspired dance performance. Her passion for storytelling through music extends to opera, where she appreciates the ENO’s innovative productions, and theatre, where she’s especially excited about her upcoming tickets to Kinky Boots and a play called Love and Murder.
Art and Digital Experiences
Penny explores cutting-edge digital art exhibits, immersing herself in the vibrant work of Frida Kahlo. She dreams of stepping into Kahlo’s world, marvelling at the possibilities of blending art and technology. Inspired by Mark’s recommendation, she adds a BBC documentary about Kahlo to her watchlist.
Culinary Adventures
Food plays a big role in Penny’s journey. From indulging in Greek and Lebanese mezze to enjoying casual dinners with fellow creatives, her love of shared meals fosters connection and inspiration.
Leisure and Aspirations
On her downtime, Penny cheers on the English Lionesses in women’s football and debates the merits of ice dancing and break dancing at the Olympics. Her love for Coldplay fuels her playlist, while her admiration for Emma Thompson inspires her aspirations. Penny jokes that Emma might even choose her for lunch one day!
You can find Penny via her profile on ArtCare here and click the icons below to visit her socials.
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Mark Walmsley FRSA FCIM AGSM
Chief Culture Vulture
Arts & Culture Network
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