Tune in to the latest episode of the On the ARC podcast - Carving a New Path: Lived Experience In Research. Cat Morgan interviews McPin's Tanya Mackay, about the power of lived experience involvement in research and her career. Apple: https://ow.ly/WGYB50YlMGb Spotify https://ow.ly/GTh650YlMGa

1 in 5 young people has a common mental health condition – yet support still too often comes only at crisis point. The #FutureMinds roadmap sets out the changes needed to shift the system towards prevention and early intervention and transform children and young people’s mental health bit.ly/49HOq6S

Great to be part of day 2 of the #AMHDMshowcase. Sharing work from the Agency in practice project. Learn more about the project here mcpin.org/project/agen... @mcpinypnetwork.bsky.social #thisismyplace - As part of Children's Mental Health week

Yesterday we gathered views from young people partners and researchers at #AMHDMshowcase. Sharing what they would like to see on a new lived experiences collaborative resources platform, funded by UKRI and Wellcome. Great work team! #thisismyplace - As part of Children's Mental Health week

As part of #AMHDMshowcase today we heard from young person advisory group members in a panel discussion on involvement of young people in research – impacts and lessons learned. This session was chaired by McPin’s research director @vanessapinfold.bsky.social @mcpinypnetwork.bsky.social

It was great to see the digital youth team to kick off the #AMHDMshowcase today. Chris Hollis, Ellen Townsend and the sprouting mind group of young people explored linking responsible research innovation and youth involvement. #livedexperience

Roundup of some of our latest involvement opportunities, deadlines in Jan. National Clinical Audit of Psychosis (NCAP) https://ow.ly/vXsu50Y1Nus CIRCuiTS https://ow.ly/hxZi50Y1Nuv The Successful Treatment of Paranoia (STOP) study https://ow.ly/puPx50Y1Nut Careloop https://ow.ly/4fjw50Y1Nuw

Help support Careloop, a digital relapse prevention tool for people with psychosis. New involvement opportunity for adults with lived experience of psychosis or schizophrenia. See full applicant requirements and apply here. Deadline 30th January. https://ow.ly/bXP850XTXBw

Help improve psychosis services! We're looking for people with experience of Early Intervention in Psychosis services - or have supported a close friend/family member with them - to join our Service User & Carer Reference Group. Find out more & apply here by 29 Jan 5pm 👉 tinyurl.com/5h3hcjfx

Help support and develop a smartphone app designed to treat paranoia. Eligible applicants are UK based adult with lived experience of paranoia, psychosis or schizophrenia. You may or may not have a mental health diagnosis. https://ow.ly/kE4P50XTXyN

Help support the development of an artificial intelligence chatbot as part of the CIRCuiTS programme. For ages 16 to 35 and have lived experience of schizophrenia spectrum, bipolar or depression with a diagnosis. See full requirements and apply here. Deadline 30th January. https://ow.ly/i7t250XTVMz

Wishing you a happy holidays. Just a quick update from us, our office will be closed from Thursday 25th December, reopening on Friday 2nd January.

Our recent B.Life zine wanted to co-produce & co-deliver a project focused on music & mental health for young Black people – so of course we wanted to get some young Black people involved! The YPAG (Young People’s Advisory Group) was made up of young people living in/connected to London.

Job vacancy alert 📣 Do you have experience of research methods and facilitating involvement in research? If so, end 2025 on a high and apply for our part-time peer researcher role! Find out more & apply here - deadline Tuesday 6th January 2026 at 9am 👉 mcpin.org/about-mcpin/...

We joined with Woven Ink to set a poem, Ode to Peer Research in motion. The visuals are entirely handmade and lend a human, tactile quality. https://ow.ly/Bx2r50XJLPy You can also read our Peer Research at McPin resource https://mcpin.org/peer-research-at-mcpin-reflections-learnings-over-10-years/

Today’s resource spotlight is 10 for 10: Using lived experience in the workplace. With tips about disclosure, such as deciding to share information about your lived experience or what to consider when sharing in the workplace. Check out all our 10 for 10 resources https://ow.ly/VAqF50XIscy

“The visuals are entirely handmade, they really look handmade, which gives a more human feel and matches the aesthetic of the poem, I think.” Isolde Godfrey from Woven Ink on her process behind the Ode to Peer Research poem, that accompanies our new resource. Blog : https://ow.ly/6xr050XHnBt

Through poetry and hand-crafted animation, we tell the story of lived experience in research at McPin. When researchers work on topics that personally resonate, we call it peer research. Watch full the animation on YouTube youtu.be/nAfThPdeL0c Animation credit: Woven Ink #PeerResearch

What does peer research look like at McPin? Our news piece explains and links to our new peer research resource. Read reflections and insights of embedding lived experience in peer research. https://ow.ly/RU3e50XGcmo Check out our full collection https://ow.ly/1qoy50XGcmp #PeerResearch

We have something exciting to share with you soon, bringing together Peer research, poetry and stop motion animation. Watch this space #Mcpin10for10

The new Community Mental Health report covers neighbourhood mental health centres & a call to guarantee mental health service funding will continue to increase. It's a good summary & shows expert by experience voices were heard - but will anything change? Read our take here 👉 tinyurl.com/2r2kd26z

Are you interested in how lived experience involvement can be integral to shaping multi-year studies? Be sure to check out this NEON (Narrative Experiences Online) blog. 👉 tinyurl.com/synbystz

Consider this: after 3 years' hard work, you’ve finished uni. Excitement overflows then uncertainty hits. What next? Well, recent graduate & LEAP member Adriana sees you. In her blog she shares her advice for moving from psych grad to mental health advocate. Read it here! 👉 tinyurl.com/28pt69hs

New involvement opportunity. We are looking for a Sussex based adult with lived experience of psychosis and some previous experience supporting patient and public involvement to join an ongoing study. For more info and how to apply 👇: mcpin.org/research-opp... Please apply before 12th Dec noon.

Co-researcher opportunity Help bridge divides and improve our understanding of gender gap in mental health among teenagers. If you are 16-18 years old and live in London can apply to work with us. Apply: qualtrics.kcl.ac.uk/jfe/form/SV_... More info on study: www.bridging-divides.org #research

The @mcpinypnetwork.bsky.social team recently took part in a youth mental health first aid (MHFA) course with @mhfaengland.bsky.social. Here’s why we think everyone working in youth involvement should complete it! Read the blog here 👉 tinyurl.com/bdze2jfy

We are looking for a Research and Involvement Manager to join our team and help transform mental health research. Find out more about the role and apply here. mcpin.org/about-mcpin/... Please apply before Monday 1st December 9am #hiring

Check out this new involvement opportunity. Two workshops open to all ages. Our Young People's Network share more details below. Be sure to follow them to ensure you hear about all our latest opportunities. #involvement

We recently went to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Mental Health’s event on NHS workforce wellbeing. It’s an incredibly important topic, as you can’t support patients with their mental health if the workforce is under-resourced & poorly managed. Here's what we heard 🧵

This involved understanding how mental health professionals can support or prevent young people from feeling understood when they seek help. Epistemic injustice in clinical encounters is where one party has more authority and risks the other party’s contribution being sought or valued.

The B.Life zine is now live, exploring young Black Londoners' relationships to music and mental health! Check it out below 👇 If you're a researcher interested in collaborating with us on more projects like this, get in touch at www.mcpin.org

Two members of the @circadianmhnetw.bsky.social LEAP delve into the process of choosing the top 10 body clock, sleep & mental health research priorities 😴 and why it was a good example of lived experience involvement in a priority setting partnership. Read their blog here 👉 tinyurl.com/yc6vh82y

Today is World Mental Health Day and our team have been busy championing emerging practices within lived experience collaborations at the Mental Health Platform Research Summit in Edinburgh. Learn more about our 4 case studies/projects showcased in our poster 👇 #WMHD25

It was great meeting in person and being part of the Mental Health Platform PPI&E steering group yesterday in Edinburgh. @nessbennett.bsky.social helped us with ripple mapping to think about the impact of our work. Thank you Susannah Strong for coordinating. Looking forward to today's Summit #WMHD25

Lived experience involvement was key to NEON, which looked at how much of an impact recovery narratives can have on people’s mental health journeys. In today's blog, Programme Coordinator Stefan shares how the panel was involved & the difference it made 👉 tinyurl.com/synbystz @institutemh.org.uk

What would be your priorities for mental health sleep research? 💤 @circadianmhnetw.bsky.social LEAP member Dylan shares their thoughts on the project's final body clock, sleep & mental health research priorities. Find out what they are here 👉 tinyurl.com/45dwzjfr @jameslindalliance.bsky.social

For this year, the theme for Black History Month is Standing Firm in Power and Pride – so what better time to introduce the B.Life project, or simply put: ‘Black Life, period.’

Are you a researcher who's interested in developing their PPI skills? Our upcoming 3-session training course starts next month, find out more below! 👇

Two days to go 🚨 Our free webinar 'New Treatments in Bipolar' is THIS Thursday 5.15-6.30pm. If you have lived experience of Bipolar, or work/have an interest in the topic, come join us! Get your tickets here 👉 tinyurl.com/5h6bd855 @bipolaruk.bsky.social @nihr.bsky.social @drtgergel.bsky.social

It’s Youth Mental Health Day 2025 & the theme is #ShareSupport. In the case of researchers working with young people, this could mean looking at different ways to support young people getting involved in mental health research. Here are some quotes from the archives 🧵

If you involve young people in your research, our ‘Emerging practice in PPI’ paper has some interesting insights around Patient & Public Involvement work – including with young people.  Find out more 👇 Link to paper👉 rdcu.be/ezDE1 #YMHD2025

Are you a researcher who works with young people? Our #McPin10for10 resources showcase our learning & reflections from working across a wide range of projects with young people for over a decade - find out more below 👇 #YMHD2025

How much of an impact does hearing stories of mental health recovery have on those who are struggling? The programme coordinator for NEON - which looked at this - shares what they found & what needs to happen next. Read it here 👉 mcpin.org/storytelling-mental-health-recovery/ @institutemh.org.uk

Have you read our paper on emerging practices in mental health patient & public involvement (PPI) research advisory groups yet? This narrative review looked at common themes within the groups, as well as recommendations for the future. Read on for some highlights 🧵

More funders & institutions want researchers to have patient & public involvement built into their studies/PhD programmes. If you're a researcher in any field & want to incorporate PPI in your work in a more inclusive way, take a look at our course! More info 👉 www.mcpin.org/work-with-us/training/

Hear from the chair of the upcoming webinar - McPin Senior Service User Researcher John Gibson - on why investigating new treatments for Bipolar is so important 👉 mcpin.org/webinar-new-treatments-bipolar/ And get your tickets for the webinar on Thurs 25th Sept here 👉 tinyurl.com/5h6bd855

Interested in new treatments for Bipolar? Hear from these expert speakers at our webinar - @drtgergel.bsky.social Director of Research @bipolaruk.bsky.social - Dr Stuart Watson, Clinical Senior Lecturer in Psychiatry - Carolyn Chew-Graham, GP & Professor of General Practice Research Tickets here 👇

Have you got your ticket for the New Treatments for Bipolar webinar later this month? You'll hear talks from leading experts in clinical, research and lived experience-led approaches working in the field, and have the opportunity to ask questions in the Q&A. Find out more & register below 👇

Come to this event: Supporting Young People Away from Violence 📢 Hear directly from the young people involved in the PAC programme. Weds 24 Sept 4:15-5:30pm Register now 👉 bit.ly/47SGO0y #iwillfund @coopukreal.bsky.social @dcmsgovuk.bsky.social @tnlcommunityfund.org.uk @youthendowmentfund.org.uk

Training announcement! 📢 Want to learn how you can use patient & public involvement (PPI) in your research in a more inclusive way? We’re running a course of 3 online PPI training sessions in Nov & Dec 2025. Don't miss out - find out more & register here 👉 www.mcpin.org/work-with-us/training/