About us

Maudsley Charity is a grant-making charity that advances and accelerates positive change in mental health care in south London. 


We fund and support key clinical, academic and community partners so that everyone who experiences mental illness, without exception, can access the care that’s right for them. 


While our roots are embedded firmly in our local community in south London, we aim to also seed positive change in mental health care elsewhere in the UK, by sharing and amplifying the knowledge and evidence that is generated through the work that we fund.


Why we’re here


Mental illness can have a profound impact on a person’s life – affecting their relationships, education, career, and physical health.


Our approach is led by clear and undeniable evidence that not everyone who experiences mental illness receives the care they need to live as well as possible.


In south London, there are clear differences in the risk of mental illness, and the experience and outcomes from care. The impacts of social deprivation and racism are especially stark. 

How we work 


Our approach is grounded in evidence, experience and equity: 


  • Evidence: We identify and financially back the most promising solutions that draw on and generate learning and evidence. 
  • Experience: Mental health care is more effective when it is informed by relevant expertise and lived experience. 
  • Equity: We focus our funding on those most failed by services and society, driving improvements that benefit everyone. 


The change we want to see 


  • Greater equity in care and support 
  • High-quality, evidence-based treatment available to all 
  • Care shaped by diverse expertise and lived experience 
  • Earlier intervention 
  • More people living well with mental illness 


See our strategic plan for 2026-29


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Where we’ve come from 


Our history reaches back to the founding of Bethlem Royal Hospital in 1247. We became an independent charity in 2018, with a Board comprising eight independent trustees and three trustees nominated by South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust.


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