More than 390 people have helped set priorities for across the Tees Valley, including over 45 contributors with lived experience of mental health challenges.
The year-long work was led through Teesside University’s Mental Health Leader Award programme, backed by the National Institute for Health and Care Research. Its aim was to identify the questions that matter locally before decide which to pursue.
What local people said
The university says the process involved members of the public, community groups, voluntary organisations, researchers and health and professionals. Earlier stages included workshops, surveys, policy reviews and informal conversations, with people later invited to rank six proposed priority areas.
A Healthwatch Darlington notice from February 2026 described the ranking survey as one part of a wider involving Teesside University, Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Manchester. It asked participants to weigh up priorities developed through earlier , rather than presenting a closed research plan.
The resulting themes cover access to services, support for children and young people, , social isolation and stronger links between physical and mental healthcare. Contributors also said underserved communities must have a meaningful voice in the research that follows.
These are broad themes rather than finished research projects. The university’s 15 October update does not publish a ranked order or a timetable for turning each priority into a . That distinction matters: agreeing where is needed is the foundation for research, not that services have already changed.
Building research capacity in the Tees Valley
The work forms part of a five-year programme led by Professor Emma Giles at Teesside University. The National Institute for Health and Care Research awarded nearly £2.5 million in 2024 to strengthen applied mental health research in the region. The programme runs from January 2025 to December 2029.
Alongside the , the team has been developing local research capacity through training, networking events, workshops, conference presentations and support for funding applications. Seven seedcorn projects have received funding, giving early and mid-career researchers a route to test and develop new ideas.
The update was written by Professor Giles, Dr Natalie Connor, Jordan Duffy and the Mental Health Leader Award team. They also report work on a risk-management for applied mental health researchers and a pilot restorative-supervision . Those measures are intended to support responsible research and the people carrying it out.
What happens next
The next task is to turn the agreed themes into research that can be tested and, where evidence supports it, used to improve services and reduce . The team says it will continue working with practitioners, community organisations and people with lived experience as projects develop.
For residents who contributed, the important measure will be whether that involvement continues beyond the priority-setting stage. Teesside University has not yet set out which of the seven seedcorn projects address which priorities, or when findings will be available. The university’s research pages will carry further information as the programme progresses.