Boosting Confidence and Self-Expression: How Creativity at The Wilson Transforms Wellbeing for Neurodivergent People

#ArtsAndHealthWeek2025 | Sense of Belonging through Creativity

For many neurodivergent (ND) people in Gloucestershire walking into The Wilson Art Gallery and Museum isn’t just entering a gallery—it’s stepping into a space of understanding, creativity, and connection.

ND Hub Gloucestershire’s arts based peer support sessions, Creative ND Strategies, held at The Wilson blend art, craft, music and conversation. These creative outlets provide ways to express emotions and experiences that can be difficult to articulate in words alone. The impact is tangible: one participant exhibited their first gallery piece; another began selling handmade crafts; another built a creative portfolio to support a job application.

“Making art alongside others who understand what it’s like to be neurodivergent has given me confidence to share my work publicly for the first time.”

The gallery setting amplifies that creative spark. Being surrounded by art gives participants permission to be visible and to share their voices with confidence.

“The space itself is inspiring. Being in a real gallery makes me feel like part of the wider community, not hidden away.”

After attending creative peer support sessions hosted at the Gallery, participants have described feeling less isolated and more rooted in the local community. “I don’t feel on the margins anymore,” one attendee shared. “Being in a beautiful, welcoming space surrounded by art and people who understand my neurodivergence makes me feel seen, not judged.”

For another participant, newly arrived in Gloucestershire, The Wilson offered more than art, it offered purpose. The sessions gave them a reason to leave home, to connect and share. They noticed a lift in mood, less anxiety, and fewer moments of “masking” (pretending to be neurotypical) because, here, their experiences are recognised and respected.

“Before these sessions I rarely left the house. Now I have friends I meet most months and I feel less isolated.”

What began as monthly creative meet-ups has evolved into something deeper: a genuine peer community. Participants now meet outside sessions, share advice, and support each other in navigating services, diagnoses, and workplace accommodations.

The Wilson Gallery and Museum is an inclusive cultural space, one that actively welcomes and represents neurodivergent people. On a wider community level, when ND people are visible at The Wilson, visiting, exhibiting, leading workshops or running events, we’re building public awareness and reducing stigma. The gallery becomes a living example of how inclusion enriches both culture and community.

ND Hub Gloucestershire’s next Creative ND Strategies session is 15 Oct 2025, 18:00 – 20:00 at The Wilson Museum and Gallery, 51 Clarence St, Cheltenham GL50 3JT,

To book your place click here

About our Creative ND Strategies: These FREE creative sessions are welcoming, accessible and open to ND adults across Gloucestershire. Led by the Hub’s artist-in-residence Dominyka, together you’ll explore strategies to support neurodivergent experience and belonging through themed creative peer support. You don’t need to be artistic, and all materials are supplied.