NHS-embedded clinical trial site opens for mental health conditions

Clerkenwell Health, a specialist in mental health trials, has launched an NHS-embedded commercial research site in Doncaster dedicated to brain and mental health conditions.

The site, developed in partnership with Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust, provides NHS patients with earlier access to investigational treatments and will serve as a protype for how mental health trials are delivered.

Located within an existing NHS facility and run in partnership with NHS clinicians, the Doncaster site serves a population of more than 1.3 million across South Yorkshire – a region with historically limited access to clinical trials.

Toby Lewis, chief executive of Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Access to innovation and research excellence matters to providing great care for people in every community locally.

“The trust’s clinicians and leadership are deeply committed to this first step supporting the wider mental health research mission for the country, launched in 2024.

“We welcome the pace and enterprise the partnership with Clerkenwell Health will bring to England’s newest city – Doncaster.”

Deaths related to drugs, alcohol, or suicide have risen by 24% since the COVID-19 pandemic, while 13-15% of working-age adults live with a long-term mental health or behavioural condition, according to a report from the Institute of Fiscal Studies, published in March 2025.

UK infrastructure for mental health trials has historically lagged behind. On average, NHS clinical trials take 250 days to set up, compared to 150 days in the US.

Clerkenwell’s model is intended to reduce this figure – supporting the government’s ambition to reduce set-up times and positioning the UK as a global leader in mental health innovation.

This site is the first in a planned network of Clerkenwell Health-initiated NHS-embedded centres, with additional locations expected across the UK by 2026.

Dr Henry Fisher, chief scientific officer at Clerkenwell Health, said: “This site is a vital first step in giving the NHS the capacity and expertise to make clinical trials more accessible for mental health patients.

“By combining public and private strengths, our model removes referral barriers, raises clinician awareness, and streamlines patient access.

“Clerkenwell brings deep regulatory expertise, enabling the NHS to focus on what it does best – delivering outstanding patient care.”

The government’s NHS 10 year health plan includes an ambition to cut the set-up times for clinical trials by allowing patients to browse and sign up to trials via the NHS App.

It will also bring transparency to which trusts are performing well in clinical trials, with the most successful trusts prioritised for government investment.

The government will also introduce a national standardised contract to save time and simplify paperwork with the goal of helping to reduce commercial clinical trial set-up times to 150 days or less by March 2026.

Meanwhile, the National Institute for Health and Care Research has launched a UK-wide recruitment drive for clinical trials to get more people involved in research, with a focus on underrepresented groups.