This research indicates that raising the visibility and voice of practitioners in strategic partnership spaces, and communicating the experiences of working together, across sectors in the music-sessions, may support this. Developing ways to support ongoing joint reflection across the partner-practitioners involved in the project also remains important for supporting a shared communication of value. Bringing the many possible ideas from this research together, through the questions we designed with More Music in 2020, we think that, to work towards a shared communication and common understandings of value within this project, Music for Health in Morecambe partner-practitioners may wish to consider the possible next steps that the research illuminates. The following section returns to the research questions and reflects on these, towards organisational learning pathways for developing Music for Health in Morecambe as a sustainable and complexly valued partnership project, committed to people and place health equality in Morecambe. Reflecting on the research questions What are the challenges associated with arts and health partnerships in Morecambe? •
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How the experience is communicated and why, and how this combines with the need to influence policymakers for sustainability. This produces distinctions between valuable evidence and valuable experience. Ways that the project works within a partnership mythology of roles, resourcing and responsibility. This may overload the burden of coordination on some partners more than others which may restrict it as a new way of working.
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The scalability of the project, alongside situated practices that are people and place-based. This brings to question why scaling up is valued and how it will be resourced.
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Evaluation practices, specifically, what is evidenced and what impact is understood to be. Current evaluation practices, or those which focus on music as health may contribute to ‘over-medicalising’ of value. Over-medicalising the sessions as a way to evidence their value was expressed as a risk within the project.
How does More Music work as a cultural leader towards developing partnerships within health settings? •
As a delivery partner that ‘plugs a gap by plugging into existing services’ that contributes to supporting services to deliver their aims and works with their communities, towards challenging health inequalities. This has enabled the project to get off the ground but is likely to be an unsustainable model, both for fundraising and for organisational capacity.
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Supports communication of the project through experience, by modelling musical practices in partnership contexts. This has strategic influence alongside knowledgeexchange between partner-practitioners.
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Commissions research to better understand their practice, which brings people together in new ways within the project. In this way, they are protecting ‘the space to challenge dominant forms of practice’ (Higgins, 2012, p. 6).
How do More Music and their health partners communicate the potential value music might have within a health setting?
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