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The Mindset-XR Innovation Support Programme recently went out on the road, holding a series of sold out events around the country. Here, Sarah Ticho, Co-Founder of XR-Health Alliance, who chaired the event in Cardiff along with her colleague Ross O’Brien, reflects on the importance of bringing people together.

This June and July, the Mindset team travelled across the UK, connecting with innovators and creators in the XR (Extended Reality) mental health space in a series of road show events organised by the Health Innovation Network South London as part of their delivery of UKRI’s Mindset-XR Innovation Support Programme. From Belfast to Cardiff, London to Exeter, we experienced the incredible diversity of thought, passion and innovation driving our industry forward.

Ross O’Brien and I had the privilege of representing the XR Health Alliance, chairing the event in Cardiff and facilitating one of the sessions in London. Across these events, we were deeply moved by the range of voices and perspectives present. These gatherings were more than networking opportunities, they were evidence of a seismic shift in the industry. XR is no longer just a novel concept showcased at conferences; it’s gaining serious investment from a range of stakeholders committed to its development and implementation in improving mental health.

For years, XR was seen as a niche within the NHS, with projects often starting in academic labs but rarely finding a path to wider adoption, or creatives making impactful ideas but struggling to find the right partners or investors to help scale. Reservations by investors due to  the lack of adoption and pathways to distribution, combined with unclear regulation and compliance has been a significant barrier. The Mindset tour is evidence that our industry is changing. From islands and pockets of innovations left isolated, we are witnessing a new wave of XR for mental health, where lived-experience experts, commissioners, regulators, award-winning artists, theatre makers, students, and seasoned mental health professionals are coming together to create transformative products and pathways that reach people who can truly benefit from these innovations.

This superfusion of industries, skills and perspectives is unlocking a reimagining and reinventing the field, with incredible innovations being developed, researched and deployed. However, we still have a long journey ahead of us before XR and mental health reaches the mainstream. We are inching closer and closer as we are finally having meaningful conversations and taking action to tackle the challenges of regulation, distribution, financing, raising public and clinical awareness and supporting long term collaboration. These gatherings demonstrate the sheer passion and willingness to carve news pathways into spaces where people can best implement XR for mental health – from social prescribing in libraries or delivering at home to homebound patients, to bringing XR into schools for student wellbeing, collaborating with Mental Health charities or delivering within a hospital context.

The investment in the Mindset-XR programme demonstrates the willingness of UKRI and Innovate UK to create a foundation for us to build upon, enabling vital R&D and developing channels to obtain future investment by bringing on board investors. Increasingly, we are beginning to create confidence by stakeholders, as we develop more evidence and work to create a clearer path to compliance and regulation for safe deployment of XR. Working with a range of partners is essential in unlocking that next step, as well as working together to inform how policies and regulations will  evolve for XR in the future.

These events organised by the Health Innovation Network South London provided a chance to explore our future direction and identify what needs to be done, not just by individual companies or groups, but by us all as a community of experts. As the proverb goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” These gatherings are essential for gauging the industry’s progress and offer opportunities to share knowledge, insights, and to form new partnerships and communities of practice.

I am both curious and excited to see how our industry will evolve as we build momentum. It truly takes a collective effort to drive this progress. I invite you to continue joining us on this journey, bringing your spirit, enthusiasm, and commitment to true transdisciplinary collaborations where technology, healthcare, and storytelling come together to enhance lives across the country.

Many thanks to Sarah for sharing her reflections on the recent Mindset-XR Innovation Support road show events.

The Health Innovation Network South London is grateful to all our delivery partners on the Mindset-XR Innovation Support programme: XRHA, Health Innovation South West, Health Innovation North West Coast, Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria, Hardian Health, MQ Mental Health Research, The Health Innovation Research Alliance Northern Ireland and King’s College London.