For almost a decade, the What Works Centre for Wellbeing has built a reputation as the leading UK authority on wellbeing.

Our vision is to significantly contribute to a future where the wellbeing of people and communities in the UK improves year-on-year and wellbeing inequalities are reduced.

Our purpose is to find out what works to improve wellbeing and partner to put that evidence into action and create conditions for us all to thrive.

Our mission is to:

• Find global wellbeing evidence, synthesising insights and accelerating access to robust research.
• Share the knowledge as a public good, democratising access through translation, ensuring robust and relevant evidence reaches the right audiences in the most accessible way.
• Grow the evidence base by identifying gaps and working together to fill them through more trials and studies, creating a learning system for wellbeing.
• Convene people from across research, policy and practice in combinations and ways that promote knowledge sharing, nurturing new collaborations and partnerships.
• Guide people to generate meaningful evidence of their wellbeing impact through a range of means that include advice, workshops, frameworks, guidance documents and platforms.
• Mobilise people to take evidence-informed action and practice, seeding change.

Our approach is:

• trusted
• independent
• evidence-based
• collaborative
• practical
• iterative
• open
  

We  take a life course approach to wellbeing research and practice, and focus on where we can make the biggest difference, based on current knowledge, expertise and networks. 

1. National wellbeing methods and measures
2. Working age
3. Place and community
4. Loneliness and connection

> Find out more about our work and how we achieve our aims

> Read our strategy

We collaborate with:

• Government – national and local leaders, departments, and wider public sector bodies, commissioners and funders. 
• Research – individuals and research organisations across the UK and globally.
• Business –  large, small and multinational, and professional bodies.
• Civil society – charities, social enterprises and community groups, as well as funders and commissioners.

We’d love to partner with you, so please get in touch.

> Learn more about how you can collaborate with us

We are part of the What Works Network and The Evidence Quarter. This network improves the way government and other organisations create, share and use high-quality, robust evidence for decision-making.

As a registered Community Interest Company, we are a non-profit organisation that relies on funding grants and donations to continue our work. 

> View our current and former funders and partners.