It will feature a series of free events at several venues exploring issues around sexuality and mental health, homelessness, suicide and addiction. Tony McDonough reports.
A ‘Psychology Fringe Festival’ being held in Liverpool later this week will use the arts to raise awareness of issues around sexuality and mental health, homelessness, suicide and addiction.
The series of free events, taking place between January 18 and 21, is happening at venues including Leaf, The Everyman Theatre, Open Eye Gallery, FACT, The Shipping Forecast and The Brink.
Each venue will host events encompassing poetry, dance, theatre, photography, music and more.
The final day of the festival will feature the Beyond the Therapy Room conference at the Gateway Centre, where a number of guest speakers will consider ways in which health professionals and services can improve physical and emotional wellbeing.
The aim is to help to build a more psychologically-caring society in broader ways than traditional one-to-one psychological therapy.
The week will culminate with a closing party curated by Soul Inspired Events – Soul Food will be a night of musical performances and African food.
There will also be psychological therapy, health and wellbeing conversations taking place on Saturday, January 21.
The Clinical Psychology Fringe Festival will take place alongside the annual conference of the British Psychological Society’s Division of Clinical Psychology.
This will take place under the title ‘The Future is Now’ at the Hilton Liverpool, January 18-20.
Dr Stephen Weatherhead, one of the organisers of the fringe festival, said: “It’s time for psychology to get out of the therapy room, and get mental health into community conversations.
“The festival brings us together in a city where we tell it how it is, care about each other, and really know how to put on a show.”
For more information about the Clinical Psychology Fringe Festival click here.