CLIMB: Cumbria

About the Research

CLIMB (Community-Led Insights for Mental health research and capacity Building) is the University of Cumbria’s NIHR-funded Mental Health Leaders Award, focused on developing priorities for applied research into mental health and inequalities with communities across Cumbria.

CLIMB is a £2.5 million research programme running until Autumn 2028, which underscores our ambition and commitment to undertaking applied mental health research with and for the diverse communities of Cumbria. Funded by the NIHR as part of a wider mental health research initiative, this funding is designed to support higher education institutions to build their capacity and ability for targeted and applied mental health research, through public partnerships and research inclusive activities within their local communities.

Our award, CLIMB, focuses on inequalities in mental health across the region. Cumbria’s unique geography, spanning coastal, remote, rural and urban communities, as well as the Lake District National Park, creates a complex landscape of both need and access to local mental health services. Cumbria experiences high levels of poverty, suicide, and self-harm that cut across this geographical complexity. Despite this, the needs and challenges of these diverse communities are poorly understood. Through CLIMB we will support the development of and build capacity for mental health research at the University of Cumbria that will make a practical difference to the lives of those providing, needing or receiving services in Cumbria.

CLIMB is supported by colleagues at Newcastle University, Oxford University and Imperial College London, alongside Pennine Care Young people’s Mental Health Research Centre, as well as a wider network of experts and community partners. Through this award we will:

(1) work with communities and individuals with lived experience to better understand specific challenges and co-develop priority areas for future research; and

(2) build the University’s capacity for applied mental health research by funding a core MHLA team, providing mentorship and CPD programmes, strengthening partnerships, and creating funding and career development opportunities.

To get involved or find out more about the award, get in touch at climb@cumbria.ac.uk.