News Story

New KMi project to expand bibliotherapy for mental wellbeing across Northern Ireland

KMi Reporter, Monday 10 Feb 2025

KMi is delighted to announce a new project, “Immersive Online Reading for Mental Wellbeing,” funded in partnership with the OU in Northern Ireland, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, the Verbal Arts Centre, and Belfast Metropolitan College. Led by researchers Alessio Antonini and Imelda Haran, the project will run until October 2025.

Building on a previous collaboration, this initiative aims to expand the reach of Verbal’s successful in-person reading programmes, which have shown positive impacts on mental health. Due to resource limitations, these programmes can only be delivered in small, local groups. This project will address this by developing a scalable online version of the bibliotherapy intervention, allowing people to access mental health support remotely.

Through an interactive digital platform, the project will offer online reading sessions and structured discussions, designed to reach individuals who may face barriers to in-person participation. This innovative approach could transform bibliotherapy by making it widely accessible, helping tackle the mental health crisis across the UK and beyond.