Money and Mental Health Policy Institute

What Money and Mental Health Policy Institute does

The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute is a UK registered charity founded in 2016 by consumer finance commentator Martin Lewis CBE, headquartered in Cambridge Heath, London. The organisation works to break the bidirectional link between financial difficulty and mental health problems in the United Kingdom through three interconnected activities: original policy research, advocacy with regulators and government, and engagement with the financial services industry on vulnerable-customer practices. Its primary beneficiaries are people in the UK with mental health problems who also face financial difficulty, including unpaid carers and people experiencing debt, bailiff action, gambling harm, or insurance discrimination. The charity runs a Research Community of more than 5,000 people with lived experience who feed into surveys, focus groups, media engagement, and co-designed research outputs.

The charity's product surface consists of policy publications and best-practice guidance, a Professional Network for practitioners, a paid consultancy programme (Mental Health Accessible) advising financial services firms, and a multi-year research programme called the Gambling Harms Action Lab that collaborates with seven major UK banks. It holds super-complainant status with both the Financial Conduct Authority and the Payment Systems Regulator, granting it statutory powers to escalate consumer harms. Underlying technology is minimal: the charity operates as a research and advocacy body using evidence-based research methodologies rather than software products, with its website serving as the primary distribution channel for free publications and resources.

Revenue is generated through a diversified but institutionally concentrated mix: voluntary donations via the Charities Aid Foundation, corporate sponsorships of specific research reports (notably by Nationwide Building Society and the Aviva Foundation), a multi-year regulatory settlement from the UK Gambling Commission funding the Gambling Harms Action Lab, and fee-paying consultancy engagements with financial services firms under the Mental Health Accessible brand. The go-to-market combines community mobilisation through the Research Community, earned media amplified by Martin Lewis's public profile, structured events (including a 10th anniversary Parliament event in June 2026), and direct engagement with Parliament, regulators, NHS bodies, and financial services firms.

Name

Money and Mental Health Policy Institute

Legal name

Money and Mental Health Policy Institute

Website

https://moneyandmentalhealth.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute is a UK charity founded in 2016 by Martin Lewis CBE that conducts policy research, advocacy, and industry engagement to break the link between financial difficulty and mental health problems, serving people with lived experience and advising financial services firms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mental Health Policy Research

akta.pro primary industry

Behavioral Health & Substance Use Program Funding (Public Health) (HLAJALAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Impact Investing & Social Finance (Funds, CDFIs, Microfinance) (BPAGALAA)

Keywords

• Mental health research
• Policy advocacy
• Financial vulnerability
• Consumer protection
• Vulnerable customers

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and charitable funding: The charity relies on donations to fund its operations and research. A donate button is present on its website linking to CAF Donate.
2. Sponsorships for research reports: Research reports are funded by corporate sponsors. Examples include Nationwide Building Society sponsoring the 'If I needed someone' report and the Aviva Foundation sponsoring the data-sharing report.
3. Mental Health Accessible consultancy: The charity offers a paid consultancy programme called 'Mental Health Accessible' through which it advises financial services firms on best practice for supporting vulnerable customers.
4. Regulatory settlement funding: The Gambling Harms Action Lab is funded through a regulatory settlement by the UK Gambling Commission. When the Gambling Commission takes regulatory action against a gambling operator, one outcome is a payment in lieu of a financial penalty, which funds the Gambling Harms Action Lab project (awarded in July 2023).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute is a UK research charity that investigates the bidirectional link between financial difficulty and mental health problems. It produces evidence-based research and policy briefings, runs advocacy campaigns, and operates the Mental Health Accessible consultancy programme advising financial services firms on supporting customers with mental health problems. It also runs the Gambling Harms Action Lab, a multi-bank collaboration developing tools to identify and respond to gambling-related financial harm.

Product overview

Money and Mental Health Policy Institute is a research charity founded by Martin Lewis in 2016 that works to break the link between financial difficulty and mental health problems. The organization operates as a unified research and advocacy body rather than a platform with modular products. Its core offerings include a Research Community of over 5,000 people with lived experience who inform policy research; the Mental Health Accessible consultancy programme helping firms improve accessibility; publications and policy reports on debt, benefits, gambling harms, and integrated money-mental health support; best practice guidelines for financial services; and campaign initiatives on council tax debt collection, debt threats, and Universal Credit. The Gambling Harms Action Lab represents a dedicated research programme collaborating with banks on harm prevention tools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mental Health Accessible Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• Won debt respite 'breathing space' for people receiving mental health crisis care
• +9 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Nationwide Building SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Nationwide Building Society sponsored the 'If I needed someone' report (October 2025) on improving access to third-party financial tools for people with mental health problems. The report represents the research and views solely of the authors and does not represent the views or experiences of Nationwide. The partnership enables research into third-party financial access tools such as carers' cards and account notifications.
• BarclayscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Barclays is one of seven banks participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab, collaborating to test and improve practical tools and approaches including the use of transaction data to identify and respond to gambling harms.
• MonzocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Monzo is one of seven banks participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab. Monzo was an early adopter of the Bank Gambling Block tool and continues to collaborate on improving tools and approaches for identifying and responding to gambling harms.
• Starling BankcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Starling Bank is one of seven banks participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab. Starling was an early adopter of the Bank Gambling Block tool and continues to collaborate on improving tools and approaches for identifying and responding to gambling harms.
• Nationwide Building SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Nationwide Building Society is one of seven banks participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab, collaborating on practical tools and approaches including the use of transaction data to identify and respond to gambling harms.
• HSBC UKcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024HSBC UK is one of seven banks participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab, collaborating to test and improve practical tools and approaches for identifying and responding to gambling harms.
• first directcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024first direct is one of seven banks participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab, collaborating to test and improve practical tools and approaches for identifying and responding to gambling harms.
• Virgin MoneycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Virgin Money is one of seven banks participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab, collaborating to test and improve practical tools and approaches for identifying and responding to gambling harms.
• Citizens Advice LiverpoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCitizens Advice Liverpool runs the 'Citizens Advice on Prescription' service, which provides free expert social welfare advice at all GP practices and mental health settings around Liverpool. This service is cited as a successful example of integrated money and mental health support in the charity's 'It takes a neighbourhood' report. Almost all clients reported improved mental health, and the intervention generated significant NHS savings by reducing prescriptions, GP appointments and A&E attendance.
• ESRC Centre for Society and Mental HealthminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMoney and Mental Health and the ESRC Centre for Society and Mental Health submitted a joint response to the Department for Health and Social Care's major conditions strategy call for evidence (June 2023), providing joint views on how government can better support people with mental ill health by addressing financial circumstances.
• GamCare / National Gambling HelplineminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFinancial services firms participating in the Gambling Harms Action Lab signpost customers to GamCare and the National Gambling Helpline as part of their gambling harm support tools, including when customers activate bank gambling blocks. The charity's research recommends that all firms signpost to these services as part of the customer journey.
• Bipolar UKminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBipolar UK contributed a blog post (September 2025) on Advance Choice Documents and the difference they can make for mental health and finances, published on the Money and Mental Health website. This represents a content collaboration with a related charity.
• deafPLUSminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerdeafPLUS contributed a blog post (September 2025) on the moneyPLUS service making financial services work for the Deaf community, published on the Money and Mental Health website. This represents a content collaboration with a related charity.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Mental Health Foundation: The Mental Health Foundation is a UK charity focused on prevention and research into mental health. Comparable because it operates in the same UK mental health research and policy space and addresses social determinants of mental health, including financial factors.
• Rethink Mental Illness: Rethink Mental Illness is a UK charity supporting people affected by mental illness through services, research and policy work. It is comparable as a similarly sized UK mental health charity with a strong policy advocacy function and overlapping beneficiary population.
• Citizens Advice: Citizens Advice is a major UK advice charity that includes debt and money advice as a core service. It is comparable because it operates in the same financial-advice-for-vulnerable-people space and partners with Money and Mental Health (e.g., Citizens Advice Liverpool on the 'Citizens Advice on Prescription' service).
• GamCare: GamCare is the UK's leading provider of information, advice and support for gambling harms and operates the National Gambling Helpline. Comparable because the Gambling Harms Action Lab works directly with financial services firms that signpost customers to GamCare, addressing the same gambling-harm population.
• StepChange Debt Charity: StepChange is the UK's leading debt advice charity, providing free counselling and policy advocacy on debt issues. It is comparable because both organisations work at the intersection of financial difficulty and mental health, run policy campaigns and engage directly with financial services firms.
• Money Advice Trust: The Money Advice Trust is a UK charity that runs National Debtline and Business Debtline and advocates for indebted consumers. Comparable because it operates in the same UK money-advice and debt-policy space, engaging regulators and financial services firms on consumer harm.
• Mind: Mind is the UK's largest mental health charity. It is comparable because it operates in the same UK mental health charity space, runs research and policy advocacy, and serves overlapping beneficiary groups (people with mental health problems), though its focus on financial inclusion is less central than Money and Mental Health's.
• Bipolar UK: Bipolar UK is a UK charity supporting people affected by bipolar disorder. Comparable because it is a smaller UK mental health charity that already collaborates with Money and Mental Health on content (e.g., Advance Choice Documents blog), serves a similar policy-driven mission and addresses financial vulnerability among its community.

Emerging players

• Centre for Mental Health: The Centre for Mental Health is a UK mental health research and policy think tank. Comparable because it produces research and policy analysis on the social determinants of mental health, including work commissioned with partners that overlaps Money and Mental Health's evidence-based approach.

Broad incumbents

• Samaritans: Samaritans is one of the UK's largest and longest-established mental health charities. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the same UK mental health charity sector, with significant brand recognition and policy influence, though its mission is centred on emotional support rather than financial inclusion.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/money-and-mental-health-policy-institute
• Xx.com/mmhpi
• Facebookfacebook.com/moneyandmentalhealth

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Money and Mental Health Policy Institute