Two Forensic Nudes Fire extinguisher, spray and oil. - A section from the opening chapter of Dr Laura McGrath’s and Dr Rachel Liebert’s evaluation essay written about my arts programme at the North London NHS Forensic hospital Chase farm “...Purposeful activity, space to reflect on emotions and past experiences, and meaningful relationships are all tools which have been posited to be important for helping people along their recovery journey (Drennan & Alred, 2013). Within forensic settings, there are however often limited opportunities for activities which might promote such experiences. Research on the experience of living in forensic psychiatric facilities has found that patients report boredom, a lack of purposeful activity, and a lack of meaningful relationships (Farnworth, Nikitin & Fossey, 2004). It has also been observed that forensic units often do not engage meaningfully with patients’ past experiences or life histories, instead aiming to stabilise patients’ emotions and distress in the present (Reavey & Brown, 2016). Many of these issues emerge as a result of risk management (Rose, 1998), which Barker (2012: 28) argues exerts: “a powerful influence on the culture, atmosphere and everyday practices in secure services”. Drennan and Alred (2013) argue that positive risk taking can however be used as a strategy to promote activities which support recovery within secure settings.” “Creative arts are particularly useful in terms of supporting recovery (Argyle & Bolton, 2005). Gussak (2017) found that engagement in creative arts reduced stress levels of patients within forensic units, increasing socialisation and problem-solving skills. Secker, Hacking, Spandler & Kent (2007) found that service users in creative workshops reported improvements in motivation, concentration and connection with others, and argue elsewhere that creative arts can support patients to experience empowerment and social integration (Hacking, Secker, Spandler, Kent & Shenton, 2008). Other authors (Clements, 2004; Koch et al., 2015) have argued that creative activities can lead to personal transformation, and decrease the negative impacts of boredom (Brewster, 2010).”