New Anglia Ruskin study looks at benefits of singing for women in military communities
Anglia Ruskin and the Military Wives Choirs have teamed up
Last updated 12th Jan 2022
A new research project between Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), which has a campus in Chelmsford, and the Military Wives Choirs is trying to discover the benefits of singing for women in the military community.
The year-long project aims to tackle loneliness and isolation by working out how to make the choirs as accessible as possible for women wanting to join.
It's a joint project between ARU's Veterans and Families Institute for Military Social Research (VFI), the Military Wives Choirs and ARU’s Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research (CIMTR).
Matt Fossey is the Director of the Veterans and Families Institute for Military Social Research at Anglia Ruskin, based in Chelmsford.
He says it's great to be working on the joint project: "We're bringing together these interesting views and combining them into a report that will hopefully help the choirs to begin to understand, in more detail, what the motivations and barriers are to joining. Once you begin to understand that, then you can start to help people."
He hopes the research will help military families living apart from one another: "Ultimately it's about tackling loneliness and isolation within military families. As more families now are living in accommodation away from their partners, who are serving on bases, how can we help people come together through music and choral societies?"
The Military Wives Choirs have around 2,000 members in 72 choirs in military bases in the UK and overseas. They say members have consistently reported the benefits of joining the choir to their wellbeing.
Choir member, Leanne, said: “Joining the choir was the first time I did something as ‘me’ since having my first child four years earlier. I began to make friends, making my posting feel more like home... within the first few weeks, it became the place where I knew I’d find a smile, a hug, a brew and a chat too. It has always been so much more than the singing!”