Professor Johnson called the appointment “a very welcome opportunity to extend my contribution to nurturing and supporting the next generation of leading mental health researchers across a range of disciplines”
Professor Sonia Johnson is Professor of Social and Community Psychiatry with University College London, Epidemiology & Applied Clinical Research. Since 2003, she has worked in the Camden and Islington Early Intervention Service with North London NHS Foundation Trust.
The NIHR Senior Investigator scheme has long been recognised as a mark of distinction for leading researchers in health and care. Senior Investigators are outstanding research leaders in health and care, recognised for their significant contributions to the NIHR and the wider research landscape. They influence policy, inspire and mentor early-career researchers, and drive innovative research that improves lives. They promote NIHR’s vision of research that improves health, care, and outcomes for all.
Professor Johnson said:
“I'm delighted to be appointed as a NIHR Senior Investigator - it's a testimony to the tremendous work of the teams I have worked with over many years at UCL and beyond, including in the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Mental Health and UCLH BRC Loneliness and Social Isolation and Mental Health Research Network. We aim to make an impact on mental health policy and practice in areas including early intervention, crisis care and loneliness and mental health. Being a Senior Investigator is also a very welcome opportunity to extend my contribution to nurturing and supporting the next generation of leading mental health researchers across a range of disciplines.”
The NIHR announced 39 new appointments from across the country, featuring outstanding leaders from across social care, public health, methodology, pharmacy, dentistry, and clinical research.
Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR and Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department of Health and Social Care, said:
"I am pleased to welcome this group of outstanding researchers to the College of NIHR Senior Investigators. I look forward to working with them as ambassadors for the NIHR and champions of research excellence. Their diverse range of expertise and experience from across the health, social care and public health system will support the NIHR in promoting a strong research ecosystem, driving innovation to improve outcomes and achieve economic growth."
The full list of new and renewed appointments is available on the NIHR website: Senior Investigators Cohort 18 | NIHR
Further information on the announcement is also available on the NIHR news site: NIHR appoints new Senior Investigators from diverse health and care professions and in an article from the NIHR UCLH Biomedical Research Centre BRC researchers named as NIHR Senior Investigators in 2025