Health Service & Population Research Department

The Department, established in 1999, promotes and conducts mental health services and epidemiological research in the local community, the UK, and internationally. It comprises three Research Centres and aims to conduct high-quality health service and population research in mental health relevant to policy and practice, nationally and internationally; to enable and encourage service user and carer involvement in mental health research; to provide teaching and training in health service and population research skills; and to communicate research findings to those able to benefit from this knowledge. The Health Service and Population Research Group has been honoured with the Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education 2009.

The Department seeks to find evidence-based ways to put innovatory treatments and services to the test – not only to improve people's mental health but also to enhance their quality of life. Researchers are developing ways of tailoring effective services to the age, gender or culture of people in need of help, discovering what sort of services offer best value for money and establishing how to reduce stigma and discrimination against people with mental illness.

The IoP shares the same site as the world famous Maudsley Hospital, which is part of the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) - one of the largest mental health providers in Europe. King’s is committed to translational research and is proud to be the only university in the country to host three National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centres (BRCs) and six MRC centres. At the IoP we partner with SLaM to host the only specialist BRC for Mental Health in the UK working towards better treatment, earlier diagnosis and individualised healthcare. Students also have access to the largest library in Europe dedicated to psychiatry and related disciplines.