Men’s Mental Health and Wellbeing in North East England

Join Insights North East and the UCL project team for a special launch of the newly published report, .

Men in the North East of England face some of the highest rates of suicide and despair in the UK driven by deindustrialisation, isolation, and the erosion of community life. This research explores the value of community-led, non-clinical interventions for men’s mental health in post-industrial areas. Working in partnership with three grassroots organisations in Sunderland, Sacriston and Chopwell we highlight how these organisations offer safe, consistent spaces that foster trust, belonging, and purpose. The evidence points to the need to recognise and fund these initiatives as core social infrastructure, complementing rather than replacing clinical services.

Following a presentation on the report, the UCL team will join a response panel to reflect on the findings. Panel to be announced shortly.

About the UCL project team:

Dr Dimitrios Panayotopoulos-Tsiros

Dimitrios Panayotopoulos-Tsiros is Research Associate at the Bartlett School of Planning, UCL, and Affiliated Researcher at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. His work centres on social and cultural infrastructure, place-based policy, and regional development. He is currently leading projects on the role of non-clinical interventions in mental health and on building capacity for inclusive crisis recovery through participatory planning.

James Fildes

James Fildes is the Founder and Managing Director of Space North East, an award-winning organisation redefining men’s mental health support. Under his leadership, Space North East delivers free, community-led support five days a week, giving men across the North East a vital lifeline. Beyond frontline impact, James is the host of the Space To Think podcast and a driving force in reshaping how mental health is understood, discussed, and treated. He works at both grassroots and strategic levels, forging transformative partnerships with leading institutions such as University College London and the University of Sunderland to influence systemic change and challenge outdated approaches to mental health.

Professor John Tomaney

John Tomaney is Pro-Provost (Regional Communities and Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at University College London. Additionally, he is Chair of the Trustees at Redhills – the Durham Miners’ Hall – a charity in North East England that supports former coal mining communities, and Trustee of Sacriston Youth Project.

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Host or Publisher Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies (CURDS)