In the news...
for DECEMBER 2025
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from the Institute of Mental Health, Nottingham
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Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the very difficult, stressful and changing times across both the University of Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. We hope 2026 gives us light at the end of the tunnel.
As we come to the end of a busy year, I am struck once again by the breadth and impact of the work taking place across the Institute. From hosting this year’s Trent Study Day on trauma in secure care, to advancing international collaborations, informing national conversations on digital innovation, and deepening our commitment to patient and public involvement, our teams continue to shape research that truly makes a difference. This month’s highlights reflect not only the expertise of our colleagues and partners, but also the shared ambition that drives our work: to improve mental health care, policy and practice through rigorous research and meaningful collaboration. I hope you enjoy exploring these stories.
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Professor Martin Orrell
Director, Institute of Mental Health
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We would like to take this opportunity to wish you a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. We hope you're able to spend time with loved ones, and look forward to welcoming you back in 2026.
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Professor Tom Dening retires
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We begin with the news that our friend and colleague Tom Dening, Professor of Dementia Research and Director of our Centre for Dementia, has retired. Reflecting on his time at the Institute, Tom says:
"Back in 2012, I wasn’t looking for a new job, but the opportunity to move to Nottingham and help establish a new Centre for Dementia in the sparkly new IMH was just too tempting to pass up. At the time, I thought I might work for another 3-5 years and then retire. That I have stayed for over 13 reflects just what an interesting and exciting time it has been, and what fantastic people I have been lucky to work with. It is difficult to single out individual highlights but I have really enjoyed several interdisciplinary collaborations, especially dementia and hearing loss, and work with the School of English. I have been able to research some questions that have arisen from my clinical practice, for example the importance of apathy in dementia and why it is such a difficult but easily overlooked problem. I’ve also enjoyed undertaking clinical work amongst an inner-city population with a varied social and ethnic composition. Among non-academic pleasures, I would pick out becoming a member at Trent Bridge and attending concerts at the Southwell Music Festival. It is a bit of a shock not having a regular paid job anymore but I have plenty of things, like book editing, Trent Dementia and Our Dementia Choir to keep me busy."
Thank you Tom for your dedication to dementia research at the IMH. We wish you a very happy retirement.
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In November we hosted the Trent Study Day (TSD), a well-established annual conference delivered by the Forensic Care Group of Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and the Institute of Mental Health. Aimed at a multi-professional audience, it brings together experts, researchers and practitioners to share knowledge and understanding around a topic related to forensic mental health.
This year's theme, "Trauma in secure care", offered a forum to explore the challenges and opportunities of trauma-informed practice in secure settings, share innovative approaches, and build stronger networks of support across disciplines.
Read more on our website
Thank you to Dr Simon Gibbon and the IMH events team for organising this year's event.
Read the Trent Study Day 2025 programme
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UK-Japan research collaboration
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Patient and public involvement and engagement in secure mental health settings
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MindTech colleagues produce new report into XR technologies
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A new report published this week maps organisations across the UK that are developing and deploying extended reality (XR) technologies for healthcare. Commissioned by the University of Liverpool and created by the XR Health Alliance in collaboration with NIHR MindTech, it was researched by our colleagues Aislinn Gomez Bergin (pictured) and Laura Aitcham. It's great to see our partner Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust feature on the interactive map of organisations using XR.
Find out more and explore the full report, complete with an AI assistant that helps you dive deeper into the data.
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November saw the launch of the Digital Youth programme report at an event, co-hosted by MindTech, at London’s County Hall.
The conference, attended by over 200 delegates, was a culmination of a four-year UKRI funded project; an international collaboration involving 12 universities from the UK and New Zealand, spanning digital risk, resilience, interventions and responsible research innovation. Young people have been central to shaping Digital Youth with the involvement of a young person’s advisory group, Sprouting Minds.
Speakers at the event included researchers, young people, industry innovators, academics, and policy makers. View speaker profiles
“We are delighted to present the Digital Youth programme report. It has been a privilege to co-lead this programme; one of seven in the £24 million UKRI-funded Adolescence, Mental Health and the Developing Mind programme”
Professor Ellen Townsend, Professor Chris Hollis
Read the Digital Youth report in full
Eve Park, research placement student at MindTech, also wrote a blog about her experience of the event. Read Eve's blog
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New perspective on commissioning in the NHS
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STADIA trial reveals challenges facing young people in accessing mental health services.
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Neurobiology of schizophrenia and psychosis symposium
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INTERDEM Academy session at Alzheimer Europe
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Hat-trick of publications for PhD student
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PhD student Jesper Bøgmose, co-supervised by Professor Tom Dening, has published the third in a series of articles exploring personhood and humanness in advanced dementia. This latest paper presents the case for genuine human relationships between those giving and receiving care in advanced dementia. Read the article in full
Explore other articles in the series
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PATIENT AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT AT THE INSTITUTE
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We're delighted to open applications for our spring 2026 Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) training programme. This CPD accredited course is led by Kate Horton (pictured), our PPI Lead, and takes place on weekly two-hour sessions, via MS Teams.
This programme is designed for Early Career Researchers, future PPI facilitators and those people expected to deliver on the asks of PPI. The learning is designed to help you consider and embed meaningful PPI within your systems so you can incorporate living experiences, peer researchers and patient and public contributors to improve the relevance, acceptability and accessibility of your research.
Find out more on our website
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OPTIMISE - optimising pathways of psychological care after transient ischaemic attack and minor stroke
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Are you a clinician or professional working with people who have experienced a transient ischaemic attack (TIA) or minor sttroke in the past year?
Could you take part in a short online survey to help researchers understand the support available for changes in mood and cognition after a TIA or minor stroke?
Participants must be over 18 and working in the UK. To find out more and complete the survey, view the online information sheet
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BRIDGE – Building research capability to improve digital mental health for young people
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Institute colleagues are conducting a research project to explore the challenges and enablers of designing, delivering and evaluating digital mental health interventions (DMHI) for children and young people. By gathering the perspectives of those involved in these trials, such as researchers, clinicians, and trial teams, we aim to identify practical solutions to improve future studies and ensure that DMHIs can be implemented effectively in clinical settings.
We are seeking professional experts for the following activities:
Survey: (10-15 minutes) to gather detailed insights into your research experiences and perspectives on conducting trials.
Focus Group: (90 minutes) to identify facilitators, barriers, and solutions for conducting high-quality digital mental health trials.
Participation in either or both activities is welcomed.
Activities will be conducted online at times convenient for you. Participation is voluntary, and you can withdraw. You will be compensated for your time.
View the BRIDGE survey and take part
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Trial using AI to detect early-stage post-natal depression is seeking participants
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If you, or anyone you know is between 12 weeks pregnant and 12 weeks post-partum, why not take a look at the TrueBlue study, led by Dr Neil Nixon of our Centre for Mood Disorders? Participants will use the TrueBlue app on their mobile devices to assess whether the app is safe, usable, acceptable and reliable. To find out more view the TrueBlue clinical study
Alternatively, email the TrueBlue team or call 0115 748 6749.
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📅 11 to 17 January 2026
📍 The Squire Performing Arts Centre, NG1 4JB
🎟️ Adults £8 , under 12s £4
ℹ️ Buy tickets
Tickets are now on sale for this season's NUH pantomime! They're promising "a traditional panto tale with some unexpected twists to entertain all ages".
And if that's not enough to reel you in, our very own Professor Martin Orrell will be making an appearance as Baron Hardup, Cinderella's father! Oh yes he is!
View details and buy tickets
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📅 15 April 2026 to 13 May 2026, weekly 1pm to 3pm
📍 Online via MS Teams🎟️ £250
📥 More information on the IMH website
This programme is designed for Early Career Researchers, future PPI facilitators and those people expected to deliver on the asks of PPI. The learning is designed to help you consider and embed meaningful PPI within your systems so you can incorporate living experiences, peer researchers and patient and public contributors to improve the relevance, acceptability and accessibility of your research.
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We would love to hear from you.
Please visit our website or follow us on our social media pages to
keep up to date with our news and updates. |
The Institute of Mental Health brings together healthcare staff and academics to lead mental health research designed to improve diagnosis, treatment, and care. We are a partnership between two highly respected organisations, Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Nottingham. |
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@institutemh institutemh.org.uk
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