ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health

Susie France's research at @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social explored how five London-based organisations are creating spaces of belonging for refugees and asylum seekers.

Calm in the eye of a storm: exploring how third places nurture a sense… Our sense of belonging, or rootedness, is strengthened by the individual and collective changes we make to our surroundings, often through the everyday practices that create connections,…

"Our sense of belonging, or rootedness, is strengthened by the individual and collective changes we make to our surroundings."

To read more about placemaking in the context of forced migration, see the Refugee Mental Health and Place Network's latest blog below.

bit.ly/3LdjwJv

Peer-friendship Networks and Self-harm among Adolescents from Inner-city Schools: A Social Network Study - Journal of Youth and Adolescence Journal of Youth and Adolescence - Peer-relationships are critically important for adolescent behavior, but how peer-friendship network composition and structure influence adolescent self-harm is...

New publication! ✨

"Peer-friendship Networks and Self-harm among Adolescents from Inner-city Schools: A Social Network Study"

Published as part of my PhD research at the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health (@kingscsmh.bsky.social).

📄 Full paper here 👇
link.springer.com/article/10.1...

@kingscollegelondon.bsky.social @kingsioppn.bsky.social

Introduction to Latent Class Analysis | King's College London Latent Class Analysis is a powerful statistical method for uncovering hidden subgroups in populations, widely used across social and health sciences.

Interested in learning more about Latent Class Analysis (LCA)?

LCA is a powerful statistical method for uncovering hidden subgroups in populations.

Join our introductory seminar with Dr Rebecca Rhead to learn what LCA is and how it's used.

📆 22 October 14.30-15.30

Register here: bit.ly/3IYtlua

@kings-sga.bsky.social

Proximity and Incongruence: The social sciences in the era of lived experience | King's College London An online seminar on how sociology can enrich participatory research agendas.

How can mental health research can contribute meaningfully in the era of lived experience?

Join our seminar with Dr Cristian Montenegro to hear how sociology can enrich patient and public involvement agendas.

Sign up here: bit.ly/3VIinMg

📆 Wednesday 29 October 4-5pm

#PPIE #mentalhealth

Unequal pressures: how disadvantage shaped young people's education… School closures during the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t just disrupt learning, they revealed and intensified deep inequalities that continue to shape young people’s lives today. While some children…

New research shows how disadvantage shaped young people’s education & wellbeing during the #COVID19 pandemic — and why the effects persist.

Read more:
🔗 www.kcl.ac.uk/how-disadvantage-shaped-young-peoples-education-and-wellbeing-during-the-pandemic

@kingscsmh.bsky.social @quahrc.bsky.social

This might be of interest - @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social @kings-sga.bsky.social @kingsioppn.bsky.social @policyatkings.bsky.social @catherinehale.bsky.social @annieirvine.bsky.social @moneyandmentalhealth.org @rickburgess.bsky.social

More or Less - Is it true that out-of-work benefits have almost doubled? - BBC Sounds Out-of-work benefits, French pensioners, surprising salmon and the truth about senses.

Are out of work benefits at a record high? Prof. Ben Geiger (@benbgeiger.bsky.social) from the ESRC Centre for Society & Mental Health explains that the official statistics are wildly misleading on BBC radio 4’s More or Less this morning. Have a listen! www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Dr White is Professor of Clinical Psychology at QUB, with expertise in Global Mental Health. Register for the seminar here: bit.ly/3VPTGxh

@hannakienzler.bsky.social

Supporting the mental health and wellbeing of forcibly displaced populations | King's College London A free online event focusing on the mental health and wellbeing of forcibly displaced people.

📆 Upcoming event: Supporting the mental health and wellbeing of forcibly displaced populations

The Refugee Mental Health in Place Network at @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social are hosting a seminar with Dr Ross White to discuss his research on 22 October at 4pm.

Find out more here: bit.ly/3K4fm6m

BELONGINGS workshop: Challenging anti-immigration narratives and… How can public services and community action challenge anti-immigration narratives, create pathways for belonging, and improve quality of life and mental health with refugees and people seeking…

🧵 New blog: Belongings Workshop organised by the Refugee Mental Health & Place Network at @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social. The project explored how creative methods can challenge anti-immigration narratives & foster pathways of belonging and improved mental health.
🔗 kcl.ac.uk/belongings-w...

The Belongings Workshop demonstrates how research, creative practice & lived experience can intersect to produce knowledge that is both academically rigorous & socially transformative.

@hannakienzler.bsky.social @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social

Participants used storytelling, dialogue, and drawing to:

✔️ Surface dominant anti-immigration narratives
✔️ Explore their impact on everyday life and mental health
✔️ Co-create alternative narratives of belonging grounded in lived experience to improve mental health

The workshop led by Prof Hanna Kienzler brought together:

🔹 People with lived experience of seeking asylum
🔹 Community partners
🔹 Artists and cultural practitioners
🔹 Researchers at KCL

Through collaboration, they developed practices that questioned exclusionary discourses & reimagined belonging.

BELONGINGS workshop: Challenging anti-immigration narratives and… How can public services and community action challenge anti-immigration narratives, create pathways for belonging, and improve quality of life and mental health with refugees and people seeking…

🧵New blog: BELONGINGS Workshop organised by the Refugee Mental Health & Place Network

The CSMH-supported project explored how creative methods can challenge anti-immigration narratives & foster pathways of belonging & improved mental health with people seeking asylum & refugees.

🔗 bit.ly/3Ijbo9k

Image of Centre for Mental Health's new 2025-30 strategy - access it at https://www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/about-us/our-strategy/

📢 Everyone should have a fair chance of good mental health.

And yet rates of mental illness are rising, and our chances of having good mental health are shockingly unequal.

It doesn't have to be this way. We've launched a bold new strategy for a mentally healthier future: tinyurl.com/37j7u3zx

Reminder that applications close on 3rd September! Learn more about the Senior Research Operations Officer role and apply below! 👇

🚨 New in published in Psychological Medicine!

Read this systematic review that synthesises evidence on targeted interventions to improve the social & economic circumstances of people with mental ill-health from marginalised communities.

See here: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Senior Research Operations Officer

We are looking for a Senior Research Operations Officer!

Learn more about the role and requirements here:
www.kcl.ac.uk/jobs/122007-...

Many people experiencing mental ill health are trapped in cycles of worsening social exclusion. This article, 'Moving beyond Individual Placement and Support (IPS): person-centred approach to social inclusion and mental health', discusses this further.

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

@hannakienzler.bsky.social

A few years later: The lasting impact of Better Connect & ESRC Centre… In 2021-2023 the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health and Better Connect collaborated on research looking into experiences of keyworkers working on the Action Towards Inclusion employability…

New blog out!

'A few years later: The lasting impact of Better Connect & ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health's partnership'

#impact #betterconnect #ActionTowardsInclusion

www.kcl.ac.uk/a-few-years-...

We're delighted to announce that both our Lived Experience Advisory Board and Dr. Gemma Knowles were nominated for the Research Impact Award and Postgraduate Education Award respectively.

The Lived Experience Advisory Board went on to win!

Huge congratulations!

@kingsioppn.bsky.social

@centreformh.bsky.social in light of your recent posts, we thought this might be interesting ⬆️
@catherinehale.bsky.social @annieirvine.bsky.social @benbgeiger.bsky.social

Gathering the evidence to reform the welfare system The recent DWP Green Paper, entitled ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working’ has provoked a great deal of discussion from policymakers, from researchers, and from dis...

While almost all observers agree that social security in the UK isn't working as it should be, it's essential that any reforms are grounded in high-quality research evidence and listen to the voices of those most impacted: www.kcl.ac.uk/news/spotlig...

How can schools better support #LGBTQ+ students, especially those belonging to other minority groups? The STEPS programme, from IoPPN and @kingscsmh.bsky.social worked with teachers and young people to co-produce research to contribute to a culture of change.
#SchoolsDiversityWeek #PrideMonth

Find out more about how the CONNECT study is reframing mental health research among racially and ethnically minoritised groups in South East London:

www.connectstudy.co.uk

@kingscsmh.bsky.social

2025 King's Distinguished Alumni Award winners announced Each year, members of our alumni community are nominated to receive a King’s Distinguished Alumni Award. This recognises their outstanding achievements since leaving our institution. Meet the amazing ...

Delighted to see Dr Souci Frissa, CEO of our partners at Black Thrive, winning a Distinguished Alumni award!

www.kcl.ac.uk/news/2025-ki...