24 November

The Lord Mayor’s Appeal announces new charity partner MQ Mental Health Research

The Lord Mayor’s Appeal are pleased to announce a new partnership with MQ Mental Health Research, the UK’s leading mental health research charity. With its vision to create a world where mental illnesses are understood, effectively treated, and eventually prevented, MQ Mental Health Research is the perfect fit for The Lord Mayor’s Appeal’s ambition to work with leading experts in tackling social issues. 

MQ Mental Health Research will join The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and National Numeracy, as a charity partner. Through a series of dedicated events, and corporate and livery donations The Lord Mayor’s Appeal raises thousands of pounds for their partner charities every year to ensure these good causes can continue to enact positive change.  

The partnership will initially enable new research into the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on the nation’s mental health and produce new recommendations on how to support the most vulnerable in society. Engaging stakeholders and communities across the UK to gather their experiences and concerns as this crisis deepens, the potential impact of this work is to inform policy and practice, ensuring that the UK and the City are ready to support those who have been hit the hardest.  

The Lord Mayor of the City of London Alderman Nicholas Lyons said, “I am delighted that The Lord Mayor's Appeal is partnering with MQ Mental Health Research. They provide us with much-needed insight into how we can direct our efforts to those that most need it most across the City. This is a wonderful addition to The Lord Mayor's Appeal's charity partnerships.” 

According to MQ Mental Health Research, 1 in 4 people will be diagnosed with a mental illness this year, yet only 3.9% of funding goes towards prevention research. In the UK, mental ill-health is the leading cause of sickness absence, costing employers approximately £2.4 billion each year with 70 million workdays lost. Since 2013, MQ has invested over £23 million into more than 40 research projects across the world, with their studies having gone on to leverage a further £34.3 million of investment to take those findings to the next stage.  

Lea Milligan, CEO of MQ Mental Health Research says, “We are delighted that MQ Mental Health Research has been named as one of the Lord Mayor of London’s Charities for the next three years. As MQ turns 10 years old in 2023 this is the perfect time for us to look back at all we have achieved in increasing our understanding of different mental health conditions.  Now, as a partner of the Lord Mayor’s Appeal, we can do even more over the next 10 years. The Appeal will initially enable us to directly fund vital research into the impact of economic inequalities on the mental health of people who have been most heavily impacted by the cost-of-living crisis. Too often it is the most disadvantaged, the most marginalised and the most vulnerable people who suffer from the worst mental health outcomes, but without research we cannot know the most effective and impactful methods of supporting these people and helping them to live healthy, happy lives.”

For more information on MQ Mental Health Research click here