Mental Health Award: Using physical activity and circadian-based interventions to reduce anxiety and depression in young people

Mental Health Award: Using physical activity and circadian-based interventions to reduce anxiety and depression in young people is sponsored by Wellcome. This award supports teams of researchers from any relevant discipline to investigate physical activity and circadian-based interventions to reduce anxiety and depression in young people.

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Find a funding opportunity 5. Mental Health Award: Using physical activity and circadian-based interventions to reduce anxiety and depression in young people # Mental Health Award: Using physical activity and circadian-based interventions to reduce anxiety and depression in young people This award will fund mechanistically informed trials of interventions for anxiety and depression in young people aged 10-18 years.

Successful teams will build on existing mechanistic evidence to develop more precise and effective early interventions that have the potential to scale. * Is your organisation right for this call? * Is your research right for this call?

* How applications are assessed * Research costs we'll cover * More information about this funding call Lead applicant career stage: Administering organisation location: Anywhere in the world (apart from mainland China) We expect to make 5-10 awards in this highly competitive funding call.

## Upcoming application stage Application deadline: 14 July 2026, 15:00 BST Application process timeline You can apply to this call if you are a team of researchers: * from any relevant discipline.

We consider a broad range of disciplines to be relevant to mental health science, including but not limited to those listed in our principles of mental health funding * from eligible organisations * based anywhere in the world (apart from mainland China).

We encourage applications from teams that: * are diverseand interdisciplinary, with collaborations covering multiple areas of expertise * include researchers at any stage of their career * include those who are new to the field of mental health science.

* Include applicants (either lead or coapplicants) with expertise in mental health science, as well as in the science of circadian systems and/or physical activity which is relevant to the proposed work. * Include a clinical trials specialist, either as a coapplicant or collaborator.

* Demonstrate the necessary expertise, technical skills and organisational support to deliver the proposed research, including relevant expertise in mechanistic study design. We are particularly seeking teams with multidisciplinary expertise. * Include either a lead applicant or coapplicant(s) based in each country where the research will take place.

* Demonstrate how they will approach ethical and equitable partnerships between team members. This should include the team’s approach to partnerships and the equitable allocation of funds and resources between low- or middle-income country and high-income country researchers if the team includes both. * Have a pre-existing relationship with the target population they want to study.

* Be of an appropriate size for the proposed research. Teams must consist of at least three applicants (the lead applicant and two coapplicants) and must not exceed eight applicants (the lead applicant and seven coapplicants). Collaborators are not applicants and there is no limit on the number of collaborators.

* Actively promote and foster a **diverse, inclusive and supportive environment**. * Include lived experience expertise of anxiety and depression. This can be as lead applicants, coapplicants, collaborators or advisory group members, and you must provide a clear rationale for their inclusion or exclusion at each stage.

The overall team should include the skills needed to effectively involve and collaborate with lived experience experts. * Have the experience needed to drive and lead a collaborative, large scale research project and the necessary support structures in place to enable this. * Have experience of, or demonstrate commitment to, effectively leading a team that embeds lived experience expertise, as relevant to the research project.

* Have a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract, or the guarantee of one, for the duration of the award. The contract should not be conditional on receiving this award. Lead applicants with less than three years remaining on their contract at the point of application must have secured their next position at an eligible organisation and provide a letter of support from them.

There can only be one lead applicant on applications to this call. Wellcome cannot make awards to teams with co-lead applicants. Coapplicants can be based at the same or different organisations as other applicants, including in different countries.

They can be at any career stage and come from any relevant discipline. * Must be essential for the delivery of the project and make a significant contribution, for example in designing the proposed research and lead a specific component of the project. * Must demonstrate the team’s commitment to effectively embed lived experience expertise, as relevant to the research project.

* Do not need to have a permanent, open-ended of long-term rolling contract You can involve collaborators in your application and award. Collaborators are distinct from coapplicants. Collaborators support the delivery of the project but don't lead on a specific component of the research.

For example, collaborators could support by: * providing access to tools or resources such as datasets or clinical records * providing access to youth organisations led by or working in collaboration with lived experience experts * providing expertise on working in different countries * sharing subject-specific knowledge and guidance, for example expertise on statistical analysis or measurement of specific variables Collaborators do not have to meet eligibility requirements.

Collaborators cannot receive a salary or compensation for the time spent on the proposed project. You can request costs to cover their expenses, for example for their grant-related travel and the costs associated with providing the agreed input into the research, including the materials and consumables involved. These should be costs directly related to the research.

Read about the different applicant roles at Wellcome. ### If you’ve spent time away from research You can apply for this award if you have spent time away from research (for example, for a career break, parental leave or long-term sick leave). We will take this into consideration during the review of your application.

If you have retired, you must contact us before applying. You must have a guarantee of space from your administering organisation for the duration of the award. Lead and coapplicants can be part-time.

Part-time work should be compatible with delivering the project successfully.

You should not apply for this call if: * You intend to carry out activities which involve the transfer of funds into mainland China * You cannot demonstrate that you can dedicate enough time and resources to the project, if funded * You are already an applicant on two applications for this funding call: * You can only be a lead applicant on one application and a coapplicant on another one * You can be a coapplicant on two applications You must demonstrate that you have sufficient capacity for both projects if funded.

The applications should be for different projects with no overlap of activities. * You already have applied for, or hold, the maximum number of Wellcome awards as a lead applicant. Find out how many Wellcome awards you can apply for, or hold, at one time.

Check what kinds of research projects aren’t right for this scheme. ## Is your organisation right for this call? The administering organisation is where the lead applicant is based.

It is responsible for submitting your final application to Wellcome and managing the finances of the grant if it is awarded. ### Where your administering organisation is based The administering organisation can be based anywhere in the world apart from mainland China.

The administering organisation must be a not-for-profit and can be a: * higher education institution * healthcare organisation * non-governmental organisation Commercial organisations are not eligible to apply as administering organisations for this call. However, coapplicants and collaborators can be based at commercial organisations. Multilateral organisations may be eligible to apply to this funding call.

Please contact us to discuss further. When contacting us, please confirm whether your organisation can accept our grant conditions. If your organisation is confirmed as eligible, proposals must meet all funding call requirements, including submission of an application form.

### Collaboration agreements If the application involves a collaboration or partnership between multiple organisations, the partners must enter into a suitable collaboration agreement, including provisions that cover: * access to background intellectual property * ownership of foreground intellectual property * arrangements for the protection, management and exploitation of foreground intellectual property.

The lead applicant’s administering organisation is required under our grant conditions to own all the foreground intellectual property arising from the project and to take the lead in any commercialisation activity. For guidance, read Wellcome’s intellectual property policy. ### Your research environment Wellcome believes that a diversity of people and expertise leads to richer understanding and more impactful discoveries.

Excellent research happens in environments where people from all backgrounds are treated with respect, are supported and enabled to thrive. Our definition of a research environment is not limited to the quality of the infrastructure but also considers the culture and behaviours that create excellent research practice.

This includes research that is inclusive in design and practice, ethical and engaged with relevant community stakeholders, as well as open and transparent. Read guidance on how to talk about research environment in your application. ## Is your research right for this call?

### What your research proposal must include Mental health challenges hold back millions of young people. One-third of individuals experience the onset of a mental health disorder before age 14 and almost half before 18. With this Mental Health Award, we will fund interventions for young people in the UK and Africa that have the potential to scale, while deepening our mechanistic understanding of how and why they work.

Specifically, we want to fund projects that integrate circadian rhythms and/or physical activity, two key active ingredients in the development and treatment of mental health problems. Your research proposal must: ### 1.

Include a circadian-based and/or physical activity intervention for anxiety and/or depression in young people in the UK and/or Africa Show * propose a**circadian-based and/or physical activity intervention** * focus on early intervention for **anxiety and/or depression** * target young people aged **10-18 years at risk of or experiencing anxiety and/or depression** * focus on a**population in the UK and/or Africa** * provide **existing evidence** for the proposed intervention #### Circadian-based and physical activity interventions Interventions must target circadian rhythms (such as, but not limited to, sleep timing, sleep quality and daily light exposure) and/or physical activity (such as, but not limited to, aerobic exercise, dance classes, walking programmes and app-based exercise programmes).

Interventions may primarily address either areas or combine both, but **must measure both circadian rhythms and physical activity across the full 24-hour cycle. ** In scope are any approaches that aim to enhance mental health by strengthening healthy sleeping patterns, improving biological rhythms, increasing movement or exercise or supporting daily routines that regulate energy, alertness and physiological health.

Examples of in-scope approaches include (but are not limited to): * supporting healthy sleep timing, duration, regularity or hygiene * modifying light exposure, daily routines or environmental cues that influence circadian regulation * increasing physical activity, movement or exercise in developmentally appropriate and accessible ways * combined approaches that integrate sleep and activity Interventions may be delivered: * **through any mode**, including face-to-face, telehealth, mobile apps, wearables and online platforms * **using any method**, such as individual coaching, group programmes, school-based activities, community initiatives, peer-led approaches or policy level changes that influence daily routines or access to movement * **in any setting**, for example, schools, community organisations, homes, healthcare services, digital environments or outdoor spaces * **in combination with elements of other types of interventions**, such as psychological, social, pharmacological or digital interventions.

Applicants must provide a clear rationale and evidence for their approach, describe the mechanisms through which the intervention is expected to improve mental health outcomes and justify suitability for the target population and age range. #### Mental health conditions in scope Proposals must focus on a population at risk of or experiencing anxiety and/or depression in the UK or Africa.

* any anxiety disorder (including obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder) * any mood disorders (including depressive disorders and bipolar disorders) Proposals may focus on specific symptoms, including transdiagnostic symptoms that cut across traditional diagnostic boundaries and are shared by multiple disorders, (e.g. internalising symptoms).

This approach allows for innovative pathways to understanding and treating mental health conditions. While we do not prescribe any specific diagnostic or classification system, applicants are expected to employ a framework and measurement approach aligned with their research aims. A clear rationale for the chosen approach must be provided.

We will consider interventions focused on young people aged between 10 and 18 years (inclusive). Applicants must clearly justify the selected age range and explain why their proposed intervention is developmentally appropriate and well‑suited to the needs, abilities and context of that age group. Interventions must take place in the UK and/or Africa, and applicants must justify their proposed geographic focus.

Other aspects of the project, such as the design and data analysis, can take place elsewhere. **You will not be at an advantage by including multiple countries; you may do so, but you must provide a clear rationale for each site included. ** Where interventions are being tested for the first time in specific populations or cultural contexts, appropriate cultural adaptation is required.

Applicants should specify the settings or countries in which adaptation will occur and describe how these adaptations will be undertaken while preserving the proposed mechanisms of the intervention. Proposals must be hypothesis-driven and demonstrate existing evidence for the proposed intervention.

Applicants may reference existing literature or provide preliminary data demonstrating that the proposed intervention has the potential to either meaningfully reduce clinical symptoms or prevent the emergence of clinical symptoms in the target population. There must be at least some evidence in clinical or at-risk populations.

This may include evidence of preliminary efficacy, acceptability and feasibility supported by a theoretical rationale for how the intervention could impact on symptoms. Evidence can come from different geographical settings, cultural contexts or age groups outside of 10-18 years. **Applicants must provide a clear rationale explaining why this evidence is expected to translate effectively to their chosen population.

**The strength, relevance and coherence of the existing evidence base will form part of the evaluation criteria. ### 2. Outline plans for the mechanistic study Show Proposals must outline a design capable of demonstrating intervention efficacy while also testing the mechanisms that drive the therapeutic effects.

* outline a **well-powered randomised controlled trial or an equivalently rigorous causal design** (for example: experimental medicine studies, structural causal models, longitudinal causal mediation models) * investigate hypothesised mechanisms of efficacy (can be biological, psychological, environmental and/or social) and explain how the main components of the intervention are expected to produce therapeutic effects * specify how these mechanisms will be measured and analysed (for example: robust control conditions, mediators, moderators, temporal sequencing) Where feasible, proposals should include: * the use of wearables or any other passive sensing technology for 24-hour sleep and activity monitoring * other objective measures such as salivary cortisol or melatonin, or temporal biomarkers ### 3.

Demonstrate pathways to implementation Show Proposals must demonstrate early thinking about how the intervention could be implemented, scaled and adapted for real-world use, recognising that long-term impact depends on feasibility beyond controlled research settings. By the end of the award, where appropriate, interventions should be ready for a definitive effectiveness trial.

Applicants must outline their initial plans for implementation, including potential delivery routes, settings and partnerships. A dedicated implementation work package is required, with the final year focused on refining and consolidating these plans. Pathways to implementation should be outlined in the ‘Define the impact you expect to deliver from this project’ section of the application form.

### 4. Include plans for lived experience involvement Show Proposals must involve lived experience expertise of anxiety and/or depression, relevant to your research topic.

Involvement may include, but is not limited to: * collaboration with established youth organisations Lived experience experts should be engaged as colleagues who use their knowledge and expertise to inform the strategic direction, governance, design and delivery of the research.

They must be involved in appropriate and ethical ways to inform multiple aspects and stages of the research project including the conception, planning, design, delivery and dissemination of the project unless there is a clear justification for their exclusion. Their contribution should not be limited to recruitment and retention strategies.

As projects funded under this call will focus on children and young people, applicants are expected to include clear plans for the meaningful involvement of 10–18‑year‑olds. Plans should demonstrate steps taken to ensure involvement activities are suitably accessible for children and young people.

Additionally, applicants may wish to consider whether the knowledge, insights and expertise of parents/carers can add value **in addition to** children and young people alone. The involvement of parents and carers should complement, not replace, the perspectives of young people themselves. ### 5.

Include one or more of our recommended common measures Show Proposals must use, as a minimum, one or more of our recommended common measures in the collection of new data. Researchers may also use as many additional measures as they wish, and we do not require that these common measures be the primary outcome measures.

In addition to including one or more recommended common measures, proposals should consider including measures of functioning if appropriate.

This includes, but is not limited to: * engagement in education or work * peer and family relationships * independence in daily life ### What your research proposal must not include Your research proposal must not: * Primarily target neurodevelopmental conditions, neurodegenerative diseases, or mental health disorders and symptoms outside of the broad categories of anxiety and depression.

* Include an intervention delivered outside of the UK or Africa. * Focus solely on general wellbeing and non-clinical anxiety and depression rather than validated mental health outcomes or symptoms of anxiety and depression. * Focus on exploratory or curiosity-driven mechanistic research that is not directly relevant to the scope of the call.

* Include an intervention that: * Does not involve physical activity or circadian rhythms as the primary intervention component. * Lacks existing evidence. * Is intended for universal/primary prevention.

* Solely focuses on diagnosis, prognosis or monitoring of symptoms. These may be an additional focus where the primary focus of the intervention is symptom reduction. Read about what research we fund in mental health.

## How applications are assessed All applications will be evaluated using the same weighted assessment criteria. ### Essential criteria and weightings There are four weighted assessment criteria: 1. #### Intervention and proposed methodology (40%) 2.

#### Suitability and expertise of the team (20%) 3. #### Suitability of the research location and approach to research environment (20%) 4. #### Lived experience involvement (20%) #### 1.

Intervention and proposed methodology (40%) * The proposed research will advance early intervention for depression and/or anxiety in young people. * The intervention has strong potential to be implemented, scaled and adapted for real world use. Rationale and strength of evidence * There is a strong rationale for the proposed intervention and the focus on the proposed population, age range and mental health condition(s) or symptom(s).

* The supporting evidence demonstrates that the intervention has the potential to produce meaningful clinical or preventative effects in the intended population and credible proposed mechanism(s) of action. * The proposed study design is rigorous, well-controlled, appropriately powered and well‑matched to the research aims. The chosen approach is clearly justified and capable of demonstrating intervention efficacy.

* The proposal outlines a clear plan to investigate hypothesised mechanisms of efficacy, including how intervention components are expected to produce therapeutic effects across biological, psychological, environmental and/or social pathways. * The measurement strategy for mechanisms is robust and capable of demonstrating causality. Objective measures are incorporated where feasible and justified.

* The project is well‑designed and feasible using the resources and timelines proposed. * The key risks to delivering the proposal and plans to adopt risk‑reducing steps to overcome them have been identified. * If the project includes research on underrepresented populations, the study design or analysis plan includes approaches to mitigate biases that might disproportionately impact these populations.

#### 2. Suitability and expertise of the team (20%) The project features an integrated, collaborative plan of work, developed by a team that includes those with the appropriate research expertise. * Has the necessary expertise and technical skills, as well as the appropriate variety of disciplines and perspectives, to deliver the proposed project.

At a minimum we expect the team to include relevant expertise in clinical trials, mental health science as well as the science of circadian systems and/or physical activity which is relevant to the proposed work. * Includes lived experience experts and/or possesses the skills to effectively involve and collaborate with people with lived experience of anxiety and/or depression.

* Has appropriate management plans in place, describing the equitable organisation and day-to-day management of the collaboration. * Has a pre-existing relationship with the target population they are studying. * Has contributed towards and is committed to fostering a positive and inclusive research environment, which demonstrates a commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.

The lead applicant has (appropriate to their career stage): * Research experience relevant to the project, as shown through research outputs and/or preliminary data. * The experience needed to drive and lead a collaborative, large-scale research project and/or the necessary support structures in place to enable this. * Experience of people and research management.

* Have the expertise, time and resources needed to deliver the project, with their contribution to the project being significant and justified. #### 3. Suitability of the research location and approach to research environment (20%) * There is a clear rationale for each geographic site included; multiple sites should only be included where relevant and justified.

* The applicants have access to the necessary research infrastructure. * The application provides a detailed description of how the team will foster a positive and inclusive research culture.

This could include, but is not limited to, information about: * team composition and partnership * appropriate safeguarding measures for team members and collaborators, including people with lived experience * There is a clear plan on how to manage an integrated collaborative project.

Ethical, open, equitable and engaged research conduct * There is an implementation plan with details about appropriate oversight, governance, monitoring, standard operating procedures and methods for course correction (as needed). * The team has outlined a detailed description of a suitable outputs management plan.

* There is sufficient information about how the research outputs will be made available to those who need them (for example, policymakers, communities and industry) and in which formats. * The proposal has details about the relevant ethical, social and cultural implications of the proposed work, and how the study team plans to manage these issues, both in the conduct and oversight of the study and in the communication of its findings.

#### 4. Lived experience involvement (20%) * People with lived experience are meaningfully involved at multiple stages, including the conception, planning, design, delivery and dissemination of the project unless there is a clear justification for their exclusion. You can access guidance on embedding lived experience expertise in your research.

* Lived experience perspectives are represented across the project, including in leadership and governance roles. * Lived experience experts have relevant experience and expertise applicable to the research, including being representative of the research location. * Plans demonstrate clear steps taken to ensure involvement activities are suitably accessible and inclusive for children and young people with lived experience.

* The intervention is acceptable to and aligned with the priorities of the young people it will affect. * People with lived experience are compensated appropriately for their time. ## Research costs we'll cover You must contribute at least 10% of your research time to the award in order to claim a contribution to your salary.

##### Lead applicants based outside of the UK or Republic of Ireland You can ask for a contribution to your salary if you work for a: * higher education institute * healthcare organisation * non-governmental organisation If you work for a higher education institute, research institute, or healthcare organisation, we will only pay your salary if you hold a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract that states that you must get your salary from external grant funding.

Your administering organisation must confirm: * that you must get salary recovery from external grant funding * they will guarantee to provide salary support, including any salary not covered by Wellcome, if you cannot get it from other sources for the period of time that you will be working on the grant In all cases, the amount we pay will be proportionate to the time you contribute to the award.

For example, if you contribute 30% of your time to the award we will fund 30% of your salary. Coapplicants must contribute at least 10% of their research time to the award in order to claim a contribution to their salary. ##### Coapplicants employed by higher education institutes, research institutes or healthcare organisations 1.

###### Coapplicants with permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contracts Coapplicants with these contract types can ask for a contribution to their salary if their employment contract states that they must get their salary from external grant funding. The amount we pay will be proportionate to the time they contribute to the award, for example if they contribute 30% of their time to the award we will fund 30% of their salary.

The coapplicant’s employing organisation must confirm: * that they must get salary recovery from external grant funding * they will guarantee to provide salary support, including any salary costs not covered by Wellcome, for the period of time that the person will be working on the grant 2.

###### Coapplicants who don’t have permanent, open ended or long-term rolling contracts Coapplicants without a permanent, open ended or long-term rolling contract can request salary depending on the amount of their time they will spend on the grant: * Less than 80% of coapplicant’s time on the grant: they can request salary proportionate to the time they will spend on the grant (minimum 10% research time).

Their organisation must guarantee space and salary support if they cannot get it from other sources for the period of time they are working on the grant. Their post cannot be dependent on the application being successful. * 80% or more of coapplicant’s time on the grant: they can ask for their full salary.

Their organisation does not have to guarantee salary support if salary cannot be obtained from other sources for the period of time they are working on the grant. The post can be dependent on the application being successful.

* If the coapplicants are employed on the award as research assistants and they are to spend 100% of their time on the award, their post does not need to be underwritten by the administering organisation and can be dependent on the application being successful. Alternatively, coapplicants may get their salary through employment on another grant.

##### Coapplicants employed by charities, social enterprises, non-governmental organisations or commercial organisations Coapplicants can ask for salary if they are employed by these organisations. Coapplicants must contribute at least 10% of their research time to the award. The amount we pay will be proportionate to the time they will contribute to the award.

Their employment contract does not need to state that they must get their salary from external grant funding. #### Staff working on your programme We will cover the salary costs of all staff, full or part-time, who will work on your grant.

Staff members may include: * research assistants or technicians employed on your grant * experts with lived experience * specialist service staff and technical experts, for example in environmental sustainability, data analysis, fieldwork and clinical studies * project manager, if you have multiple applicants on your programme * support if you or a member of staff employed on your grant is disabled or has a long-term health condition Humanities and social science researchers can ask for funds for research or teaching replacement to cover the cost of a temporary replacement lecturer.

They must retain at least a 10% commitment to teaching.

* can cover up to 33% FTE of your contracted time * are usually for a person at a more junior level than the postholder * can be spread across the full period of the grant Researchers who already get buyout costs from another grant (funded by Wellcome or elsewhere) can ask us for this cost, but only for the period of time on the award when they won't receive buyout costs from another grant.

Researchers must provide a letter from their employing organisation, confirming that their contract includes a teaching commitment. They should include this in the grant application. **PhD/Research Masters fees** We do not provide studentships on this award.

But if applicants employ research staff, including technicians, on the