Wellcome
Mental Health Award: Looking Backwards, Moving Forwards – Understanding How
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Wellcome's Mental Health Award funds research into the causal mechanisms underlying early interventions for anxiety, depression, and psychosis, with up to £5 million available over eight years. The call is open to researchers at universities, not-for-profits, and small companies globally, and requires substantive co-design with people with lived experience. Lead applicants must commit at least 20% research time, and projects must go beyond description to explain why and how interventions work.
Details
| Funder | Wellcome |
| Budget | Up to £5 million |
| Duration | Up to 8 years |
| Consortium | Optional — co-applicants are permitted and their expertise must be essential; team collaboration is required to be justified but a single lead applicant may apply |
Eligibility & scope
Funds research into causal mechanisms underpinning active ingredients of early interventions for anxiety, depression and/or psychosis. Lead applicant must contribute ≥20% research time; co-applicants ≥10%. Host institution must be supportive. Lived experience involvement required. Overheads capped at 20% of direct costs; UK universities cannot claim overheads.
Who Should Apply
- •Researchers at universities, not-for-profits, and small companies globally
- •Multidisciplinary teams combining psychiatry, neuroscience, psychology, or implementation science
- •Projects with genuine lived experience co-design embedded from proposal stage
- •Teams able to commit lead applicant (≥20%) and co-applicants (≥10%) to dedicated research time
Key Dates
- •Funding first listed 17 June 2026; verify deadline on Wellcome's website
- •Up to eight-year project duration
Tips for Applicants
- ✓Lived experience involvement is mandatory and assessed as a core criterion, position it as equal partner, not advisory consultancy.
- ✓Focus on causal mechanisms and active ingredients, not efficacy trials; Wellcome funds the 'why' and 'how' over replication of known outcomes.
- ✓UK institutions cannot claim overheads; budget accordingly if your host is in the UK.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the Wellcome Mental Health Award fund?
Research into the causal mechanisms and active ingredients of early interventions for anxiety, depression, and psychosis, with budgets up to £5 million over eight years.
Who can apply for the Wellcome Mental Health Award?
Researchers at universities, not-for-profits, and small companies globally; UK universities cannot claim overheads. Lead applicants must commit ≥20% research time.
Is lived experience involvement required?
Yes, the call mandates substantive involvement of people with lived experience in the research, assessed as a core criterion.
Are there restrictions on overhead costs?
Overheads are capped at 20% of direct costs globally; UK universities cannot claim overheads at all.
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Summary generated by AI based on published grant information. Always verify details on the funder's website.
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