Nominations are invited for an individual or team who are innovators, passionate leaders and influencers, driving meaningful, positive change – whether the individuals have played a key role in promoting resource efficiency, raising awareness, or enhancing the work environment for those around them.

Nominations are welcome from all areas of the mental healthcare sector – including but not exhaustively; public, private and voluntary sectors, and covering roles such as experts by experience, clinicians, designers, architects, landscapers and artists. Whether the individuals have played a key role in promoting resource efficiency, raising awareness, or enhancing the work environment for those around them.

1. Details of research, academic or personal development success.
2. Has someone/a team gone above and beyond what’s expected of them.
3. Have they made a positive difference in the team or environment in which they work, whether that is a practical outcome, or a way of working.

The individual or team will be nominated by their employer with a 200-word explanation of their achievements and reason for their nomination.

• The efforts by the individual should be from the last 12 months before the entry deadline (between 1st March 2025 and 1st March 2026).
• The shortlist for this award will be decided on by the Judging Panel along with the other categories, however all attendees will have the opportunity to vote for their winning entry.

This award is for design concepts for new and innovative products. The product must be:

• A new product not presently available
• An improvement on an existing product
• Should improve the environment for the service user and the clinicians
• Imaginative, creative, innovative and original
• Aesthetically appealing
• Robust, durable and safe
• Meet generally accepted reduced ligature requirements unless specifically developed for dementia
• Show reference to discussion leading to BRE ‘Informed Choices’ compliance

Eligibility:

• The product should not be available on the market as of January 2026.

• Please provide evidence of coproduction and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

• The product should not be available on the market as of January 2025.
• Please provide evidence of co-production and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

This award has no limits in terms of the size or the function of an outside space within a mental health environment – it could be recreational, for therapy, education, contemplation and calming, or as part of the building design to be used in conjunction with the therapy and care taking place within the facility itself.

Your submission should be for an outside space already in place in a mental health environment, demonstrate the healing, therapeutic and care benefits of the outside space in question, the theory and process behind its design, creation and use, and the benefits to service users / stakeholders that it provides.

• The project should have been completed and operational within 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards)
• Please provide evidence of co-production and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

• Innovative and creative project design offering a therapeutic environment which enhances recovery
• Visually interesting and offering good, flexible use of space both internally and externally
• Demonstrates good integration into the surrounding landscape
• Is energy efficient and uses sustainable materials
• A team works well together exploring different solutions and can recognise and demonstrate the contributions of service users to the design process
• Please provide evidence of coproduction and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

• For projects based outside of the UK
• The project should have been in design during the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).

• Innovative and creative project offering a therapeutic environment which enhances recovery
• Visually interesting and offering good, flexible use of space both internally and externally
• Demonstrates good integration into the surrounding landscape
• Is energy efficient and uses sustainable materials
• A team works well together exploring different solutions and can recognise and demonstrate the contributions of service users to the design process
• Please provide evidence of co-production and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had

• This award will recognise the outstanding refurbishment project of the year, a project that demonstrates innovation, creativity and excellent team working, within an existing facility
• The project should have been completed and operational within the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards)
• Projects submitted last year for this award but were unsuccessful may be resubmitted provided they became operational in the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards)

• Criteria:
  • Shows excellence in artistic vision.
    • Innovative in a therapeutic environment.
    • Visually interesting and create a sense of identity.
    • Demonstrates good integration into the project.
    • Commitment to good environmental practice and uses sustainable materials
    • Collaborative works are accepted.

   

• The project must have been completed and operational within the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).
• This award will recognise the outstanding art project of the year within a mental health environment, an installation that shows creativity and artistic vision, it can include technology and interactive elements, sculptural or any medium that has an art basis.
• Please provide evidence of coproduction and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

This award recognises the positive contribution made by Estates & Facilities Teams in enhancing the wellbeing of users of health care services.

The award will go to an Estates and Facilities Team that have gone that extra mile in providing exceptional service to users of care on and off wards. The winning team will demonstrate a focus on improving people’s lives and the service user experience.

Entries should highlight successful achievements that demonstrate working collaboratively with clinical and multi-disciplinary teams on and off the wards to ensure that the service users experience is enhanced and improved. This can include day to day operational activities as well as developments especially where it has enhanced the well being of service users.

Entries should provide evidence of how they have meaningfully engaged with their clinical colleagues, service users and also product suppliers, manufacturers, architects and contractors where appropriate. This can be at any stage from operational services, design to completion and cover new build or refurbished facilities, product development and testing and service transformations / refreshed ways of working.

Examples can include but are not limited to:

• Regular and close liaison with the clinical teams to assist in the operation of the ward, safety of users etc.
• Regular attendance in service (MDT) meetings, which may include service users, and taking positive actions to resolve any issues
• Clear communication across all levels and across all teams
• All team members accepting responsibility for seeing issues through to completion and providing feedback at all stages
• Supporting service users to manage their own environment on the recovery pathway.
• Encouraging interaction with service users to identify early any problems they may have with their environment, dealing with those in a prompt manner and keeping the Service User fully informed
• Attending community meetings to understand issues and taking positive steps including feedback
• Listening, understanding, empathising and reacting to the service users concerns in a positive way
• Working with clinical teams, service users, manufactures and designers to improve the environment and services e.g. Patient safety.
• Demonstrating honesty, truth and positive action
• Treating the service users as part of the solution
• Please provide evidence of co-production and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

Open to UK Estates & Facilities Teams linked to mental health, learning disabilities, and neurodiversity services.

The panel want to see new and innovative products which have been launched and used in a mental health setting within 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).

The product should be:

• Imaginative, creative, innovative and original
• Aesthetically appealing
• Robust, durable and safe
• Meet generally accepted reduced ligature requirements unless specifically developed for dementia
• Progressing on steps to achieve BRE ‘Informed Choices’ compliance
• Improve on previous design

• The product should have been launched on the market within the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).
• It should have been in use in a mental health setting for a minimum of 12 months during that time.
• Supporting evidence from at least one user of the product will be required.
• Please provide evidence of co-production and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

Please note entries in this category are subject to a £195 +VAT entry fee per entry.

This award will recognise the outstanding project of the year, a project that demonstrates innovation, creativity and excellent team working.

• Innovative and creative project in the UK offering a therapeutic environment which enhances recovery
• Visually interesting and offering good, flexible use of space both internally and externally
• Demonstrates good integration into the surrounding landscape
• Is energy efficient and uses sustainable materials
• A team works well together exploring different solutions and can recognise and demonstrate the contributions of service users to the design process

• For projects in the UK
• The project should have been completed and operational within the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).
• Projects submitted last year for this award but were unsuccessful may be resubmitted provided they became operational in the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).

The Service User Engagement Award highlights innovative and thoughtful engagement of service users’ in the design process. It shows how services users’ perspectives on the environment have been captured and their inclusion in the design process from consultation to completion.

The panel want to see the importance of providing a connection between service users and the people with the skill and knowledge to help them develop their own thinking and explore further options.

• Innovative and thoughtful engagement of service users.
• Support for and engagement with ‘Experts by experience’
• To see evidence of the importance of involving service users in the design process and the need for the service user group to be centric to the project structure
• Uniqueness of the work that has taken place within a mental health setting and what significant effect it has had on the design when involving service users
• How you have “designed in” problem solving approaches when involving service users in the design process
• The methodology of sharing and gathering of information
• How it allows the service user group to identify what they think are important components of an effective healthcare setting and design vision of new builds and environments
• Please provide evidence of coproduction and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

Must be able to demonstrate co-production, with service users is meaningfully shaping decisions, problem-solving, and outcomes in the project, service or design process.

• Team has taken design or environment to a new level in achieving higher quality care for patients.
• The clinical team must be represented by a clinician who can talk to the value of the design project.
• Team has evidence of improvement in patient experience, and/or quality improvement and/or innovation.
• The design change or innovation must currently exist in a clinical setting (either in the proof of concept phase, testing phase or as part of standard clinical care process).
• The design change can be from any art, design or environmental modality; and can be at the individual patient level or a systems level.
• Please provide evidence of co-production and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

Any clinical team in a clinical service or across an organisation. Must be linked directly to mental healthcare.

This award is for products or schemes, internal or external, which have been financially prudent but have had significant impact on improving patient care, wellbeing, safety and/or enhanced the healing environment.

• The entry must be a product or scheme in mental health or learning disability services.
• have had an overall budget less than £500k (ex VAT).
• have had an established benefit criterion for patients and services.
• showed ingenuity and innovation.
• improved the healing environment to a significant degree.
• have showed patient involvement in either design, development or running.
• Addressed the principals put forward by the DIMHN (eg ‘Design with People in Mind’)
• Please provide evidence of coproduction and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

·  Be a product or scheme used within mental health, learning disability, neurodiversity services.

·  Have an overall budget of less than £500k (ex VAT).

•Innovative and creative project design offering a therapeutic environment which enhances recovery
• Visually interesting and offering good, flexible use of space both internally and externally
• Demonstrates good integration into the surrounding landscape
• Is energy efficient and uses sustainable materials
• A team works well together exploring different solutions and can recognise and demonstrate the contributions of service users to the design process

• The project must have been in design during the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).
• This award will recognise the future outstanding project of the year, a project that demonstrates innovation, creativity and excellent team working.
• Please provide evidence of coproduction and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

• Innovative and creative International project offering a therapeutic environment which enhances recovery
• Visually interesting and offering good, flexible use of space both internally and externally
• Demonstrates good integration into the surrounding landscape
• Is energy efficient and uses sustainable materials
• A team works well together exploring different solutions and can recognise and demonstrate the contributions of service users to the design process
• Please provide evidence of coproduction and user involvement in your project and the impact that it had.

• • The project should have been completed and operational within the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).
• Projects submitted last year for this award but were unsuccessful may be resubmitted provided they became operational in the 18 months ahead of the conference (January 2025 onwards).