Creating Connection: Launching the Affective Disorders Community of Practice

by Jigyasha Sharma | Apr 30, 2025 | Blog Post, Events, News

Creating Connection: Launching the Affective Disorders Community of Practice

“It’s not often we get the space to stop, reflect, and build something new—together.”

That sentiment, shared during our inaugural meeting, perfectly captured the energy in the room. Last month, the King’s Maudsley Partnership launched a brand-new Affective Disorders Community of Practice—a space for clinicians, researchers, and service partners to come together and improve care for children and young people experiencing mood and affective disorders.

Why this Community matters

Across CAMHS and academic settings, there’s a wealth of expertise in treating and understanding conditions like depression and anxiety in young people. But these insights can sometimes remain siloed with research not always filtering into day-to-day care, and frontline experiences not always shaping academic studies.

That’s where this Community of Practice (CoP) comes in. It’s designed to break down those barriers, helping us build stronger bridges between research and reality. It’s a space to explore shared challenges, generate ideas, and collaborate on new ways to support young people and families.

“Even after one meeting, we’ve already identified exciting opportunities to collaborate in new ways,”

Dr Josefien Breedvelt

Co-Chair of the Affective Community of Practice and Prudence Trust Research Fellow

What we heard in the room

The launch event was about more than structure and plans—it was a space for reflection and connection. Here’s what stood out:

A hunger for collaboration

Attendees spoke about the value of meeting others across services and disciplines. Whether it was someone new to the field or a seasoned clinician, there was a shared enthusiasm for building relationships that last beyond a single meeting.

Turning ideas into impact

There was strong interest in co-developing research that feels real and relevant, projects that respond to clinical questions and make a difference on the ground.

Building with purpose

People didn’t just want to benefit from the CoP—they wanted to shape it. There was real curiosity around how to build something sustainable, inclusive, and useful to everyone involved.

What’s next?

We’re just getting started, but already, the group has started to shape what’s to come:

Collaborative research development
Interactive sessions like mind-mapping and co-planning workshops to turn ideas into action.

Resource and information sharing
A mailing list will help keep everyone connected with updates on funding opportunities and events.

Inclusive, flexible formats
We’ll explore hybrid and online sessions so more people can join.

Support for everyone
Whether you’re new to research or deeply embedded in it, the CoP will offer guidance and opportunities to get involved, no matter your role or level.

Get Involved

The Affective Disorders Community of Practice is about building something together with curiosity, care, and collaboration at its heart.

Interested in joining us? Contact us at pmcyp@slam.nhs.uk

Let’s shape the future of children and young people’s mental health together.

Launch of Neurodevelopmental Conditions Community of Practice

by Jigyasha Sharma | Apr 22, 2025 | Events, News

Launch of Neurodevelopmental Conditions Community of Practice

The King’s Maudsley Partnership has launched a new Neurodevelopmental Conditions Community of Practice. It brings together clinicians, academics, and community partners to collaborate to improve care and support for neurodiverse children and young people.

“Recognition of neurodiversity is expanding exponentially, and this has generated significant challenges. These include how to deliver assessment of needs, support healthy identity development and adapt treatments and interventions to be optimally effective; addressing such challenges requires high-quality collaboration from all of those involved.”

Dr Jesse Campbell

Co-chair, Neurodevelopmental Condititions Community of Practice

What is a Community of Practice?

A Community of Practice (CoP) is a collaborative space where professionals with shared interests come together to exchange knowledge, explore challenges, and develop innovative solutions. The King’s Maudsley Partnership Neurodevelopmental Conditions CoP is designed to bridge the gap between clinical practice and academic research, ensuring that research is informed by clinical needs and that clinicians have access to the latest advancements in the field.

The CoP serves three key functions:

Clinical Research: It provides a space for clinicians to present challenges they face in practice and work with researchers to explore how innovative academic research can lead to new solutions. It also allows researchers to refine their project ideas in collaboration with clinicians to ensure relevance and impact.
Network Building: It creates a resource of connected professionals who can rapidly respond to funding opportunities and research collaborations.
Learning & Development: The CoP facilitates knowledge sharing, helping clinicians stay updated on cutting-edge research while also offering academics insights into the evolving needs of clinical practice. It also serves as a valuable resource for early-career researchers seeking mentorship and opportunities to engage in clinical research.

Reflections from the first meeting

The CoP is co-chaired by Dr Jesse Campbell a Clinical Psychologist in the South London and Maudsley Trust Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, and Dr Matthew Hollocks Academic and Clinical Psychologist at Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience with expertise in co-occurring mental health conditions in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Reflecting on the first meeting Dr Jesse Campbell said: “As a clinician I was struck both by how the dilemmas of daily clinical practice were sometimes unfamiliar to researchers but also how discussing these dilemmas with researchers and academics quickly opened up new avenues for developing and testing solutions to them. King’s Maudsley Partnership has a remarkable wealth of clinical wisdom and research expertise and I left feeling very optimistic that together these groups can generate real value for the neurodivergent community”

Themes That Emerged

During the first meeting of the CoP participants broke into groups to explore key challenges and opportunities. Several themes emerged:

Inclusive research
Many children including those with the highest needs are not being included in research. Research needs to be accessible to all, and the facilities within the Pears Maudsley Centre will enable children who previously had not been able to participate in research to take part.
Opportunities for better use of clinical data:
Clinicians are collecting valuable data but often don’t have time to use it effectively. Stronger links with academic teams could help transform that data into meaningful change. Supporting greater collaboration between academics and clinicians is at the heart of the King’s Maudsley Partnership’s Communities of Practice.

Understanding ADHD

by Jigyasha Sharma | Feb 12, 2025 | Blog Post

Understanding ADHD

To mark Children’s Mental Health Week, Brody Barclay, 18, shares his experience of living with ADHD and autism and taking part in research.

– By Brody Barclay · Part of the RE-STAR Junior Youth Researcher Advisory Panel

Brody Barclay is part of the RE-STAR Junior Youth Researcher Advisory Panel. RE-STAR is a research programme run by King’s College London, working with young people with diagnoses of ADHD and autism to help cut the risk of depression. The team at KCL are part of the King’s Maudsley Partnership for Children and Young People, which brings together clinical and academic collaboration in mental health between South London and Maudsley NHS Trust and King’s College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, with Maudsley Charity as its charity partner.

Living with ADHD: Brody’s Story

My name is Brody Barclay and I am 18 years old. I am currently studying Game Design Art at the University of Central Lancashire. I was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 9 and Autism at 13. It has been quite a struggle living with ADHD. I spent a long time thinking I was the only person who had a brain like mine. I thought I was broken and have often felt misunderstood. My teachers didn’t understand – in my early years in education, I was getting told off for not sitting still, lack of focus, not completing work in class. I have struggled with friendships over the years, having lost most of them due to misunderstandings and a lack of ability to properly communicate with them.

I have felt quite lonely at times. I am easily distracted. I could have a deadline due for the next day and despite my inner feelings begging me to do work, I find some little things on my desk to just play with. I can often be impulsive and say the wrong thing, but I never mean to hurt people. Some people can be unforgiving, think I’m rude or blunt. I end up overthinking every conversation I’ve had and replaying my responses, worrying in case I have said the wrong thing. I have struggled with anxiety for as long as I can remember. It’s exhausting. I also struggle with many food textures and tastes. Although I know I need to eat more, to put weight on, it’s a real struggle, adding a lot more stress. I have been on medication for ADHD. It had its place, especially during my GCSE’s. Although I have a love-hate relationship with it. I feel more artificial on it and not free to be me.

I can become very overwhelmed when given a lot of tasks in one go. Sometimes, this can stop me from starting anything. After I’ve been social with people, I need a bit of alone time to recharge my batteries. I’m not ignoring people as I love to socialise, but without that time, I just struggle to function around others. I can be very forgetful and I’m always looking for my keys.

My mum has been a real encouragement to me. She saw online a chance for me to help others from my experience living with ADHD.

RE-STAR – taking part in research

I joined the (Regulating Emotions – Strengthening Adolescent Resilience) RE-STAR Junior Youth Researcher Advisory Panel (or Junior Y-RAP for short) as a founding member in October 2022. RE-STAR is a research programme at King’s College London looking at methods that could be used in schools to help support neurodivergent young people with their mental health, particularly with depression. Part of this is giving them the strategies to help themselves. This is why it’s so important to hear from the real-life experience of young people to understand fully what their needs are to help them succeed.

Prior to joining the Junior Youth Researcher Advisory Panel, I was a study participant for RE-STAR taking part in an interview study the previous year. The majority of my interaction with RE-STAR has since been through the bi-monthly Zoom meetings the research team held with a group of 8-10 junior Y-RAP. Through these meetings, the group is shaping both the ‘what’ and the ‘how’ of the RE-STAR research programme . I also had some hands-on experience with some of the research methods at RE-STAR’s ‘Be a Researcher Day’ last summer.

To feel that people really care about young people’s mental health and everything that comes with living with ADHD is encouraging to me. Being able to be part of this project and having my voice heard shows me that whatever you go through can be used for good. That’s why I love being a part of RE-STAR research. It’s about having your voice heard so we are able to help others to make a better future for them.