£11m research unit aims to tackle Lincolnshire’s “unique” mental health challenges

A new mental health research unit backed by almost £11 million in national funding will focus on challenges facing Lincolnshire that are often overlooked by research designed for major cities.

The University of Lincoln’s Lincolnshire Unit for Mental Health Research will study how mental health support works - and fails - in rural, coastal and small urban communities, where isolation, transport problems and digital exclusion can prevent people from accessing help.

Professor David Dawson, who is leading the project, said much of the country’s mental health research is undertaken in large cities.

“Often that research is developed in much more cosmopolitan areas than ours - London, Manchester, these kinds of places,” he said. “When we try to use that cutting-edge research in areas like ours, it doesn’t always translate.”

He said Lincolnshire’s geography creates barriers that are rarely reflected in national policy.

“We have communities that are isolated, limited public transport and uneven digital connectivity,” Professor Dawson said. “People can’t always get online to book appointments, which is the way that modern healthcare is going.”

Unlike traditional research models, the new unit will be built around listening directly to local people.

“This is not academics sat in the university thinking this is what the region needs,” he said. “We need to be out in the region asking people what they need.”

Professor Dawson added that the aim is to develop research rooted in real life in Lincolnshire - and then share that learning more widely.

“A key element of this unit is developing that research within our communities so that we can show what best practice looks like for rural and coastal communities like ours,” he said.

The Lincolnshire Unit for Mental Health Research is due to formally launch in May.