As a regular Left Bank patron myself, I have come across Doodle Chat on countless occasions. A majority of the people I spoke to whilst writing ‘Wednesday Night with a Twist @ Left Bank’ had begun their journey into Left Bank life from the comfortable setting of the Doodle Chat table, and in the welcoming company of Ed and his amazing facilitators.
For those of you who haven’t come across Doodle Chat, it is a community arts project started with the aim of helping people prioritise their wellbeing and have a space to be authentically themselves. Attendees are welcome to doodle, chat, do both, or even do neither.
With Doodle Chat coming up countless times during my conversations about people’s gateway into Left Bank and the wider community, I soon realised that it was going to need a blog post of its very own.
After reading about how Ed and his team were taking a well-earned break, I was lucky enough to catch up with Ed on the day of the final Doodle Chat session.
Sitting down with Ed, we talked all things Doodle Chat – both why and how it has become such a vital initiative for the local area, and also why the team are taking a break and what needs to be done on a larger scale to make projects like this sustainable and safe.
With this in mind, we will work chronologically to celebrate the growth and development of Doodle Chat and wave it off with gratitude and hope for what comes next.
I asked Ed:
“Where did the idea for Doodle Chat come from? How did you get started?”
“I had never spoken out loud about grief, about loss, but also social isolation, mental health, and the decline of my mental health while living with chronic pain.”
Moving back to the UK from Kyrgyzstan during lockdown, and struggling to outwardly communicate what was happening, Ed candidly opened up to a friend whilst doodling himself. The pressure of face-to-face communication had evaporated, and Ed had found something that worked – an accessible way of sharing thoughts and feelings.
Taking this idea forward, the initial aim of Doodle Chat at Left Bank was to create a group for senior citizens over a span of six weekly sessions. Many of the attendees had not picked up a colouring pencil since their school days and had not had the opportunity to make art simply for the sake of doing it and having fun.
After the six weeks were up, Ed was asked, “Same time next week?”
Those initial attendees have been at the heart of the project ever since, helping newcomers get started and offering wisdom and companionship to those wanting a bit of company.
Talking to Ed, the theme of permission came up many times. Naturally, we fear looking silly and worry about being seen trying something new. Doodle Chat, and Left Bank as a whole, tell you that you do not need permission to do something. You can do it even if it is not “productive” or something you excel at, simply because you want to give it a go.
When asked to share a particularly proud moment from his Doodle Chat days, Ed referred to one of his OG OAP attendees.
“He had never drawn before – the other day he walked into Leeds Art Gallery with his artwork in hand and asked for an exhibition!”
What a perfect example of not needing permission. What a legend!
As the class has grown through social media and word of mouth, Ed and his team now welcome up to 40 doodlers each week. However, this larger turnout has become evidence of something bigger than Doodle Chat itself. It is evidence of a considerable systemic issue, with Robin – one of the brilliant facilitators – highlighting how Doodle Chat has developed into a form of social prescribing.
But what does this mean?
Speaking further with Ed and Robin, they explained how GPs and mental health services had been recommending Doodle Chat sessions to people experiencing problems with their mental health. The team do not feel physically or ethically equipped to run the sessions with such high stakes and overwhelming pressure.
“For people that have been missed by mental health services and come in to seek some answers and seek some real support, they’re going to fall through gaps because we can’t fulfil that. Risk assessing and understanding complex support needs is difficult. I’m seeing people with complex support needs who are not being supported.”
Ed continued…
“If a GP sends you somewhere – even if it’s just a receptionist giving advice – there’s a first level of social prescribing where people cling to that recommendation. If you go to the GP, you think whatever they’re sending you to must have the answers. We have the waitlists for therapists through the NHS, some people are coming with that weight already on them. We’re working with people in recovery and some people who are still suffering with addiction.”
With this in mind, I asked Ed what would need to change to bring Doodle Chat back to Left Bank in the future.
“Access to an OT (occupational therapist), access to a therapist for myself – so I have my own supervision and space to offload – but also a focus on keeping it short-term, where sessions come to an end. So participants leave with a tool they can take away with them, and that tool is creative wellbeing – essentially, doodling in whatever form that takes.”
Ed also went on to explain the difficulties faced by social enterprises and charities battling for the small amount of government funding available.
“You met Robin – Robin facilitated the group the other day because I had to go home. I’ve been able to pay Robin to facilitate groups in the past, but he was doing it voluntarily on Wednesday because there’s no money left.”
My chat with Ed highlighted one key theme: cost.
It seems that the demand for Doodle Chat, from both a community perspective and the wider support services, is not being met with the funding required to make it ethical and sustainable.
However, in true Good News Up North style, there are still positive takeaways in the form of community and conversation.
“After making the announcement and talking to everyone who comes along, most people have just said, ‘I’m still going to come anyway.’ And for me, that’s a better legacy than anything else. Some people have made friends who are going to make it self-sufficient. That’s what’s really important.”
The online response to Doodle Chat’s break has been incredible, from offers of assistance to countless comments and messages of thanks. Ed and his team have added to the conversation around mental health, funding and community.
Thank you Doodle Chat.
All images for this article belong to the brilliant Jo Ritchie.
