National Institute for Health and Care Research

Highlights from our Whole Project Meeting: June 2024

July 31, 2024

In June 2024, we all met up in the Pitt Rivers Museum for our Whole Project Meeting. We use these days, three times a year, as a regular opportunity to catch up with colleagues across Mental Health in Development, and forge connections in our work moving forward.

We kicked off with David Taylor-Robinson’s fascinating and deeply thought-provoking presentation on tackling inequalities in child mental health. This featured work from the Child Poverty and the Cost of Living Crisis, a report prepared for the APPG Child of the North.

We also heard some updates from the leads across the work packages, particularly on how they are starting to reach out and build their networks. We also discussed our medium and long-term objectives for the whole MHID project and how we can collaborate across teams to meet our goals and milestones.

A quote from our MHID lead, Professor Cathy Creswell:

“We need to make sure our work touches all projects across MHID – tell a good story: these work packages have been developed purposefully, and we are using them to their fullest extent.”

Some of the goals which came out of our discussions:

  • Inclusion friendly by design – needs to be factored in at the starting point
  • Lived experience is key!
  • Think about the Early Years – a key reflection from David Taylor-Robinson’s presentation is that prevention starts at the beginning of the lifespan
  • We want to see a diverse range of participants which will require diverse methods of recruitment
  • Think not only about what we are measuring but what we are not measuring.

We talked also about how we can plan our interventions to build trust and relationships. As well as discussions over alternative forms of recruitment, we also considered incentives and how to ease participation. We came away after lots of productive conversations but with much to consider. David Taylor-Robinson’s presentation reminded us of the challenges that lie ahead but also the critical importance of youth mental health research in the face of rising challenges.

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