New “Hands of Healing” Art Installation at St Peter and St Paul Churchyard Promotes Mental Health, Local Heritage, and Community Wellbeing
A powerful new interactive art installation, Hands of Healing, has opened in the churchyard of St Peter and St Paul Church, Abington. Created through a unique partnership between Action for Happiness Northamptonshire and St Peter and St Paul Church, the project celebrates community outreach, highlights local mental health heritage, and offers a welcoming space for reflection and hope.
Designed by local artist Bob Keal and supported by generous donors, the approximately seven-foot-tall sculpture features broken chains and living willow. Together, these elements symbolise freedom, growth, and hope for those who feel trapped or weighed down by mental health challenges.
An Invitation to the Community
The church and Action for Happiness Northamptonshire warmly invite the public to visit the church in the park and take part in this interactive experience.
Visitors are encouraged to:
- Take a physical wooden key
- Walk a specially designed trail around the churchyard lawn
- Reflect on the Action for Happiness “10 Keys to Happier Living”, displayed on posters along the route and paired with relevant Bible readings
At the end of the trail, visitors are invited to pause at the Hands of Healing sculpture, write a personal action, their first name, or initials on their key, and tie it to the sculpture’s mesh.
Prayer cards are also available for visitors to:
- Share personal stories
- Commit to positive actions
- Request prayers
Completed prayer cards can be posted into a key-shaped postbox provided at the start of the trail.
Celebrating a Rich Mental Health Heritage
The installation’s broken chains and emphasis on nature honour the legacy of Dr Thomas Prichard, who is buried in the St Peter and St Paul churchyard. A former superintendent at St Andrew’s Hospital and a pioneer of modern mental health therapy, Prichard was among the first doctors in England to remove shackles from mental health patients.
He replaced physical restraints with a humane and compassionate approach centred on nature, movement, and exercise—methods that continue to be championed in modern mental health care.
This heritage also connects to Prichard’s most famous patient, the poet John Clare, whose practice of walking and connecting with nature for emotional regulation will be further honoured through an upcoming community walk by members of the Action for Happiness Northamptonshire hub.
Celebrating the International Day of Happiness
The launch of Hands of Healing coincides beautifully with International Day of Happiness, observed globally on 20 March each year. Established by the United Nations in 2012, the day recognises happiness and well-being as fundamental human goals — not luxuries, but essential to how individuals and communities thrive. This year’s theme, Caring and Sharing, speaks directly to the spirit of this installation. The Hands of Healing sculpture — with its invitation to pause, reflect, and leave a personal mark of hope — is itself a living expression of what the day stands for: the small, shared acts of connection that, taken together, make communities stronger and kinder. Fittingly, Action for Happiness — one of the UN’s key partner organisations for the day — is at the heart of this project. Today of all days, we celebrate happiness as something rooted in place, in people, and in the everyday courage to reach out to one another.
“Hands of healing for me brings together many different strands for Wellbeing. Promoting movement and exercise, Dr Prichard as a pioneer using nature and exercise, which I do myself for my wellbeing. Lastly as a Christian community working together to ease the burden of those people who are captive to distress alongside the simple GREAT DREAM message of action for Happiness.”Dr David Smart, Chair at Action for Happiness Northamptonshire Hub.
Church Witness and Action for Happiness
Hands of Healing builds on the strong tradition of community outreach at St Peter and St Paul Church in the park. A previous Prayer Ribbons installation attracted over 25,000 visitors to the church grounds.
Rooted in the Christian message that Jesus came to give “living life to the full” (John 10:10), the project offers a safe and welcoming space for both spiritual and emotional support.
The installation also raises awareness and funds for the Action for Happiness Northamptonshire Hub, encouraging visitors to access free, evidence-based wellbeing resources at:
www.actionforhappiness.org Action for Happiness (national charity)
https://tr.ee/CampaignCompanion Action for Happiness Northamptonshire (local hub)
By taking small positive actions together, the partnership hopes to build a happier, kinder community.
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🗝️ Unlock hope and explore local history!
Visit the new Hands of Healing art installation by Bob Keal at St Peter and St Paul Church in the park. Walk the churchyard trail, discover the 10 Keys to Happier Living, and add your own key to the sculpture as a symbol of hope and commitment to wellbeing.
Visitors are also invited to learn about Thomas Prichard, a pioneer of compassionate mental health care whose legacy continues to inspire today.
💛 Donations are welcome to support the ongoing work of the Action for Happiness Northamptonshire Hub and help extend this vital community outreach.
You can donate here or by scanning the QR code on the Hands of Healing Banner on the Churchyard fence: https://gofund.me/dfed1ae41
Together, we can build a happier, kinder world.