Where creativity and recovery come together...

Creative Start Arts in Health CIC is a multi-award-winning recovery and arts organisation led by lived experience and driven by creativity, compassion, and community.

Logo of CLERO: a spiral of purple, blue, and teal triangles with the name and a description of the organization.
Logo for

Comeback - A recovery film. Directed by Archie Fox on behalf of Creative Start Arts in Health CIC

Award-winning recovery community in North East Lincolnshire.

Creative Start Arts in Health CIC is a multi-award-winning recovery and arts community organisation led by lived experience and driven by creativity, compassion, and community.


We believe recovery is about more than overcoming addiction, it’s about rebuilding lives, restoring confidence, and rediscovering purpose through creative practice.


Our team brings together people with lived experience alongside skilled professionals and creative practitioners who share a passion for recovery and wellbeing. Together, we create safe, inspiring spaces where people can grow, make, and connect.


Through community art projects and the restoration of creative spaces, we provide opportunities for expression, collaboration, and change.


We have an abstinence-based focus within our recovery support, but we also work with artists and makers of all backgrounds, blending art, recovery, and community to show what’s possible when creativity leads the way.


At Creative Start, we believe in restoring people, places, and purpose and in using every tool available to support recovery and inspire hope.


Creative Start is where creativity and recovery come together.


Featured News

Latest news and updates from our recovery community team...

Three people celebrating an award; woman holding it up, two men on either side. Stage backdrop.
November 26, 2025
We’re proud to share some amazing news! Creative Start has won the inaugural 2025 Investors in People Award for Excellence in Building Purpose Driven Impact. This award recognises organisations that put purpose before profit, something that’s always been at the heart of what we do. A huge thank you to Sarah Lumley, Public Health Programme Manager at @nelcouncil , for nominating us and joining us in London for the event. Your belief in our work and continued support means a lot. We’re proud to represent North East Lincolnshire, showing that recovery, creativity and community can lead the way in changing lives and challenging stigma. Here’s to everyone who believes in chances, hope, and purpose.
Four people at an event, holding an award. Purple backdrop with
September 18, 2025
What an incredible night! We are genuinely delighted and immensely proud to announce that we have won the Community Group award at the @bbchumberside Make a Difference Awards. While we don't do this work for accolades, receiving this recognition is deeply meaningful. For many in the recovery community, the journey is a matter of life and death, and our focus will always remain on providing vital support. To be celebrated amongst a room full of inspiring people doing such fantastic work across our region is a true honour. This award is a testament to the amazing support we receive from so many people. It reinforces our commitment to making it easier for everyone to talk about addiction and recovery without fear of stigma or shame, ensuring that when support is needed, guidance and a space for meaningful change are readily available. Recognition like this shows that the landscape is changing. Important conversations are happening, and minds are opening. Led by our incredible and committed community, we will continue to drive this vital work forward.
People at an outdoor event, brick buildings, purple and black decorations, cloudy sky.
August 26, 2025
Actions always speak louder than words and on Saturday your action of showing up spoke volumes. The Recovery Town launch event at The Great Escape was a huge success with a brilliant turnout and a real mix of people from across different recovery programmes, services and communities. It wasn’t just people in recovery but families, friends and allies too. That blend is exactly what Recovery Town is about: breaking stigma, building unity and showing what is possible when we stand together. It was a day for everyone with great music by Sam Simmons, Rob Bywater and Luna's Moon, organised by Sounds From The Dockside and a real family atmosphere that captured the spirit of what we are building. At the heart of Recovery Town is a simple goal: to make recovery more accessible for all people. No matter someone’s background, journey or pathway, recovery can be visible, supported and celebrated across our community. We want to take a moment to say thank you to Needhams Butchers for providing only the best for the BBQ, Paul Atkinson and LEW Electrical for rigging us up with electricity, Ken Asquith from the Armed Forces Veterans Community who helped finish the yard, Kath and Sid for delivering art activities for the children and of course our amazing recovery community for hosting this event. This launch was just the beginning. Our mission is to keep taking real and tangible action against stigma and for community support. Saturday proved that Grimsby is already a town that cares and we are looking forward to building on that momentum together. Recovery Town: recovery for everyone, everywhere www.recoverytown.co.uk

Featured Community Activities

Some of the activities that anyone can get involved in. We also run structured weekday recovery activities for members only...