Children's mental health research gets £27m gift

The centre will be established following a £27m gift from The Paul Foundation

Plans to establish a "pioneering" research centre aimed at achieving better mental health outcomes for children and young people have been revealed by the University of Oxford.

The Oxford Centre for Emerging Minds Research will investigate how to promote good mental health and prevent and treat emerging conditions, the university said.

A 2023 NHS survey found that one in five children and young people had a likely mental health condition, an increase from one in nine in 2017.

Prof Irene Tracey, the university's vice-chancellor, said she was "confident" that the centre would "make a significant difference to future generations".

The new centre will be established following a £27m gift from children's mental health charity The Paul Foundation.

Prof Tracey said the "landmark gift" would "bring some of the brightest minds together to find solutions to debilitating mental health conditions among children and young people".

"I look forward to witnessing the centre's achievements," she added.

The university said the new research hub would "identify and harness children and young people's aptitudes and interests, targeting the key mechanisms that underpin mental health in children and young people".

It said the centre "aims to contribute to a reversal" of the upward trend in children's mental health issues.

The centre will build on pre-existing Oxford based research projects, including those led by Prof Cathy Creswell.

"The new Oxford Centre for Emerging Minds Research will accelerate and strengthen research-driven change in child and adolescent mental health, including the development and delivery of effective new therapies and approaches for children and their families, schools and communities," Prof Creswell explained.