About us

Connecting science and solutions to improve young people's mental health

The William Templeton Foundation for Young People’s Mental Health (YPMH) is an independent charity working to reduce the prevalence and impact of mental health conditions in young people – from early life through early adulthood.

YPMH helps turn mental health research into real-world impact. We work with researchers, innovators and partners across sectors to accelerate new and better interventions to prevent, detect early, manage and treat mental ill health in young people up to age 25.

Our role is to help ensure the right evidence reaches the right places, so it has real impact for real people. By strengthening collaboration and supporting innovation, we aim to improve outcomes and help more young people live mentally healthier lives.

Founded by Anne and Peter Templeton, and their son John, in memory of Will Templeton, YPMH was created to close the gap between what science shows is possible and what actually helps young people prevent and reduce mental ill health.

About Will

Our vision and mission

We are working towards a future where every young person has the opportunity to thrive mentally and emotionally, in which:

  • Fewer young people develop mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety
  • Young people are supported to build resilience and maintain good mental wellbeing
  • Fewer young people take their own lives

To achieve this, we support work that:

  • Builds deeper understanding of the factors and mechanisms of young people’s mental health conditions in young people, and how these are linked
  • Equips young people, families and professionals with practical tools and evidence-based knowledge
  • Encourages joined-up, whole-person approaches across health, education and community settings
See how we’re changing mental health outcomes

How we're different

YPMH is not a frontline service or helpline provider. Instead, we focus on transforming the systems that support young people’s mental health.

While many mental health charities provide direct services, our work focuses on changing the systems that shape young people’s mental health. By strengthening understanding, accelerating innovation and supporting implementation, we help evidence turn into earlier, more effective support for young people, while easing pressure on healthcare and education systems.

Our approach is distinct:

  • We don’t offer a helpline – we strengthen the systems behind care
  • We don’t focus on one stage – we connect research, innovation and real-world practice to improve prevention, early detection, diagnosis, management and treatment
  • We don’t wait for change – we help make it happen faster
Explore our mental health ecosystem
The problem we're solving

Our story and leadership

YPMH is led by Peter Templeton, who brings decades of experience in applying research and innovation to real-world challenges. For 15 years, Peter led a University of Cambridge knowledge-transfer company that worked globally to apply insights from the Institute for Manufacturing. Under his leadership, the company became commercially self-sustaining and gifted more than £4 million to support academic research.

YPMH is governed by a board of trustees with expertise spanning medical practice, systems innovation, governance, family law and financial management.

Let's work together

We collaborate with organisations that share our goal: to reduce the prevalence and impact of mental ill health in young people. Whether you’re a researcher, policymaker, health practitioner, educational or custodial institution, employer, charity, funder or innovator, we’re always keen to explore how we can work together.

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