Professor Martin Orrell is a leading figure in old age psychiatry and dementia research, with an international reputation for advancing evidence-based mental health care for older people. He is Director of the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), a partnership between the University of Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. He also serves as Honorary Consultant Old Age Psychiatrist with the Rapid Response Liaison Team at Queen’s Medical Centre.

He is Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre on Mental Health, Disability and Human Rights at the IMH. Professor Orrell is an Emeritus NIHR Senior Investigator, a Board Member of INTERDEM, and Editor of the journal Aging & Mental Health.

Previously, Professor Orrell was Professor of Ageing and Mental Health at University College London and Director of Research and Development at North East London NHS Foundation Trust. Across these roles, he has shaped research strategy, strengthened clinical-academic partnerships, and championed the translation of research into frontline NHS practice.

Professor Orrell’s research has had substantial national and global impact. He led the development and evaluation of Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST), now recommended in NICE dementia guidance and implemented internationally to improve the lives of people living with dementia. As Principal Investigator on major dementia research grants totalling approximately £20 million, he has overseen large-scale programmes including SHIELD, PRIDE, VALID, AQUEDUCT and LEND. He also led the European DISTINCT and INDUCT Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Networks, supporting 30 early career researchers and PhD students to develop and evaluate technologies that enhance dementia care. He has authored more than 400 peer-reviewed publications spanning dementia, ageing and mental health.

His leadership has been recognised through multiple terms as an NIHR Senior Investigator and international acknowledgement for his contributions to geriatric psychiatry and dementia research. He has played a key role in national policy and strategy, including membership of the Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia Research Group, leadership within UK and international dementia research networks, and extensive contributions to NHS service development and knowledge translation.

Through his clinical, academic and policy work, Professor Orrell continues to advance compassionate, evidence-based mental health care for older people and to strengthen the impact of research on practice and lived experience.