Today (Friday, October 10, 2025) is World Mental Health Day (WMHD), a powerful reminder of the ongoing need to prioritise mental health and ensure access to care for all. This year’s global theme, “Access to services – mental health in catastrophes and emergencies,” shines a light on how vital it is to safeguard mental wellbeing in times of uncertainty and upheaval.

The Northern Health Science Alliance (NHSA) is amplifying its commitment to mental health across the North of England by sharing and spotlighting the work and potential of its Northern Mental Health Network. The NHSA’s recent alliance member, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, recently joined us in our journey to add value in mental health research and innovation across the North, co-chairing the Network and bringing valuable expertise and knowledge to the 80-strong group. I co-Chair the Network with the Trust’s Director of Research and Innovation Professor Dan Joyce.

Mersey Care is one of the most innovative and progressive NHS Trusts in the country, with 11,000 people working together to provide community and mental health services to a population of more than 1.4 million across Merseyside and parts of Lancashire and Cheshire. The Trust is the largest provider of 0 to 19 services across Liverpool and Sefton, working in partnership to improve the health and wellbeing of 160,000 local children and their families, and one of only three trusts in the country delivering high secure mental health care. We therefore saw the potential early on of the Trust being able to join us in our journey to foster mental health research excellence.

The Northern Mental Health Network brings together over 80 academic, clinical and other professionals working in mental health, representing all the mental health trusts in the North and many of the region’s leading universities. Our NHSA members – compromising 11 northern universities and nine NHS Trusts – play a significant role in developing the Network and ensuring that participation is meaningful and impactful. But NHSA membership is not a requirement – this is one of our only networks open to  non-members.

The Network’s presence is especially crucial on a day like WMHD as it contributes to bringing together partners, including academia, clinical services, policy makers, to share expertise and align regional actions. We co-ordinate activities at a northern level, facilitate knowledge sharing, seek funding for pan-northern initiatives and raise visibility of the North’s excellence in the field of mental health to Government, health policy makers, industry and international collaborators.

The Network’s recent meetings have included insights from experts about access to services and experiences of managing mental health programmes across the board:

• Professor Nav Kapur of the University of Manchester and Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, delivered a presentation on suicide in the North of England, examining the inequalities, research and action surrounding the suicide crisis.
• Professor Derek Tracey, Chief Medical officer and Executive Director for Psychological Therapies, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. Professor Tracey spoke about his experience with the COVID Nightingale Hospitals and the mental health implications of the pandemic for NHS staff.
• Ben Harrison, Director of The Work Foundation at Lancaster University, who works with employers, workers, policymakers and academics to deliver rigorous applied research to improve the lives of workers. Ben spoke about mental health in the workplace and what can be done to create a healthier workforce.

👉 You can watch videos from these speakers on our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYGfMws2RWqNbQd4cVseglmKSkwpBZe-A

While mental health challenges are a national concern, the North of England faces specific structural inequalities – economic, social, geographic – that may exacerbate mental health risks and reduce access to high-quality care. A regional, networked approach promotes opportunities to discuss, and collaborate on, place-sensitive research and policy initiatives.

In essence, by acting as a convening force, the Northern Mental Health Network promotes regional collaboration and helps strengthen the North’s voice in national mental health policy and funding discussions.

This World Mental Health Day, the NHSA invites northern stakeholders working in mental health – including clinicians, researchers, commissioners and academics – to embrace the power of connection, collaboration, and regional coherence. By joining our network, you can contribute to shared goals, gain access to knowledge, and collaborate on initiatives across the North.

To learn more or get involved, visit the NHSA’s mental health page or contact the network via mandy.dixon@theNHSA.co.uk