Fostering Community-Connected Innovation Through Creative Arts
How Mosaic and Tapestry Projects Built Belonging and Ownership in the Health Innovation Hub (HiH)
The Health Innovation Hub (HiH), opened in March 2026, represents a significant addition to Glasgow’s healthcare innovation ecosystem. From its development, the Living Laboratory adopted a listening-led, community-first approach to build awareness, trust, and a sense of shared ownership among local residents.
Two creative co-creation projects - a Tapestry and Mosaic - supported this approach. Rooted in Govan’s rich healthcare heritage, the projects created accessible opportunities for local participation - embedding community voices, perspectives, and lived experience into the identity of the building from the outset.
The Approach
- Listening-led, community-first engagement: The activities were shaped by open dialogue with residents, ensuring that community priorities guided the work rather than predefined agendas.
- Relationship-building through presence and consistency: Trust was built through ongoing engagement with community groups, active participation in local activities, and two-way learning.
- Co-creation of inclusive activities: Community insights informed the design of welcoming, relevant participation opportunities, ensuring they reflected local interests, strengths, and lived experience.
- Accessible knowledge exchange: Information on the Health Innovation Hub and healthcare research was shared in ways that were relevant, understandable, and grounded in local context.
The Activities
Two creative co-creation projects translated the approach into meaningful, community-led engagement:
- The ‘Woven Together’ Tapestry project was developed in collaboration with Gilded Lily. Building on participants’ existing creative skills - including stitching, embroidery, and design - they produced a collective piece that reflects shared stories, creativity, and reflections on health, place, and community.
- The 'Artistic Mosaic Tiling' project was delivered in partnership with Impact Arts, Elderpark Housing, five local schools, and five community organisations. Designed as individual mosaic panels, each group shaped its own themes and creative approach, fostering a strong sense of ownership and pride.
Together, these artworks now stand as lasting, visible expressions of collaboration, embedding community voices and shared ownership within the fabric of the Health Innovation Hub.
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Hear insights into the projects and creative development process:
Learn more about the Tapestry and Mosaic projects:
Why This Matters
- Building community trust: Meaningful, sustained engagement ensures health innovation reflects local needs and builds long-term trust and support.
- Making innovation accessible: Creative approaches provide informal, welcoming entry points for people to explore and engage with healthcare research.
- Strengthening place-based innovation: Connecting researchers, clinicians, and the community ensures innovation is grounded in and responsive to local context.
- Amplifying community voice: Co-creation enables local people to shape innovation, embedding their perspectives and lived experience in its development.
Participation
Strong and diverse community engagement was achieved across both projects:
- 69 local women participated in the ‘Woven Together’ tapestry project through Gilded Lily
- 58 young people from five local schools contributed to the Mosaic project, including St Saviours Primary, Riverside Primary, St Constantine’s Primary, Pirie Park Primary, and Govan High School
- 41 parents and carers were actively involved throughout the project
- 95 community members engaged through five local organisations, including Govan Community Project, Tea in the Pot, The Men’s Shed Govan, Craft Café 60+, and GalGael Trust
Impact
- Strengthened relationships across community, education, and health innovation
- Increased awareness of local opportunities, innovation, and learning
- Created welcoming, inclusive spaces for participation across ages
- Embedded community voices within creative and engagement activity
- Built local trust through consistent presence and collaboration
- Rooted local health innovation in community knowledge, perspectives, and creativity
