
Professor Sarah Byford
Professor of Health Economics
- Director of King’s Health Economics
- Deputy Head of the Health Service & Population Research Department
- Associate Dean for Doctoral Studies at the IoPPN
Research interests
- Economics
Biography
Sarah Byford is a health economist who joined King’s College London in 2000, having worked previously at the Centre for Health Economics, University of York, and the Health Economics Research Group, Brunel University.
Sarah is based in the King’s Health Economics research group, which is part of the Health Service & Population Research Department at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience.
Sarah is an expert in mental health economics and has a particular interest in the economic evaluation of services for children and adolescents, including young people with depression, eating disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, autism and those at risk of or with first episode psychosis. In addition, Sarah has expertise in the economic evaluation of adult services, including depression, addiction, domestic abuse and perinatal mental health services.
Research Interests
- Mental health economics
- Economic evaluation of mental health services
- Economic evaluation of child and adolescent mental health services
Teaching
- Health economics
- Economic evaluation
- Critical appraisal of health economic evidence
Expertise and Public Engagement
- NHS England Perinatal Mental Health Economics Group member, part of the Perinatal Research Priorities Group
- Advisory group member for the Violence and Abuse: Opportunities for Change ESRC Mental Health Network, King’s College London
- Advisory group member for the Emerging Minds: Action for Child Mental Health ESRC Mental Health Network, University of Reading
- NHS England Adult Eating Disorders Expert Reference Group member
- NICE Centre for Guidelines Expert Adviser
- British Journal of Psychiatry International Editorial Board member
- Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology Editorial Board member
Research

King's Health Economics
King's Health Economics, led by Professor Sarah Byford (Director), and Dr Barbara Barrett (Deputy Director), consists of a team of health economists with expertise in designing and conducting high quality economic evaluations of healthcare programmes and policies that contribute to healthcare policy and practice in the UK and abroad.
Status not set
Alcohol Dependence and Adherence to Medications (ADAM)
Alcohol dependence causes considerable physical and mental health problems;
Project status: Ongoing


Brief Educational workshops in Secondary Schools Trial (BESST)
Poor mental health in young people is increasing, with clear evidence of mounting psychiatric problems.
Project status: Ongoing

Supporting Parents And Kids Through Lockdown Experiences (SPARKLE) Trial
A randomised control trial evaluating whether a digital public health parenting intervention can help parents to manage their children’s behaviour problems.
Project status: Ongoing

Multi-Agency Child Safeguarding (MACS) Evaluation
This project will provide evidence about what makes Local Safeguarding Children Partnerships (LSCPs) effective.
Project status: Starting
News
New NIHR Research Support Service established at King's College London
The National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) has awarded £6.8 million to King’s College London to establish a new Research Support Service that...

Schools-based mindfulness programme improves school culture and reduces teacher burnout
New research investigates the effectiveness of a standardised schools-based mindfulness training programme.

New research investigates the effectiveness of perinatal mental health services
Researchers at King’s College London investigated the clinical effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and service satisfaction of a range of specialist perinatal...

Research

King's Health Economics
King's Health Economics, led by Professor Sarah Byford (Director), and Dr Barbara Barrett (Deputy Director), consists of a team of health economists with expertise in designing and conducting high quality economic evaluations of healthcare programmes and policies that contribute to healthcare policy and practice in the UK and abroad.
Status not set
Alcohol Dependence and Adherence to Medications (ADAM)
Alcohol dependence causes considerable physical and mental health problems;
Project status: Ongoing


Brief Educational workshops in Secondary Schools Trial (BESST)
Poor mental health in young people is increasing, with clear evidence of mounting psychiatric problems.
Project status: Ongoing

Supporting Parents And Kids Through Lockdown Experiences (SPARKLE) Trial
A randomised control trial evaluating whether a digital public health parenting intervention can help parents to manage their children’s behaviour problems.
Project status: Ongoing

Multi-Agency Child Safeguarding (MACS) Evaluation
This project will provide evidence about what makes Local Safeguarding Children Partnerships (LSCPs) effective.
Project status: Starting
News
New NIHR Research Support Service established at King's College London
The National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) has awarded £6.8 million to King’s College London to establish a new Research Support Service that...

Schools-based mindfulness programme improves school culture and reduces teacher burnout
New research investigates the effectiveness of a standardised schools-based mindfulness training programme.

New research investigates the effectiveness of perinatal mental health services
Researchers at King’s College London investigated the clinical effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and service satisfaction of a range of specialist perinatal...
