From understanding to impact: improving 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 to adulthood.
YPMH turns mental health research into real-world impact. We work with researchers, innovators and partners across sectors to accelerate understanding, prevention and intervention for mental ill health in young people up to age 25.
Our work focuses on translating research into impactful innovations that can be scaled to prevent, detect, diagnose, reduce and treat mental ill health – particularly depression and anxiety. 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 connect excellent research with practical solutions. Our goal is to close the gap between what science knows and what helps young people – and those who support them – to prevent and reduce mental ill health.
We are working towards a future where every young person has the opportunity to thrive mentally and emotionally, in which:
To achieve this, we support work that:
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 centres on reducing the number of young people who reach crisis point in the first place. By improving understanding, accelerating innovation and supporting implementation, we aim to ease pressure on health and education systems and help young people to access effective support earlier.
Our approach is distinct:
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.
We partner 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.
