About us
At the What Works Centre for Wellbeing we believe that improving people’s wellbeing is the ultimate goal of effective policy and community action.

At the What Works Centre for Wellbeing we believe that improving wellbeing is the ultimate goal of policy and community action.
We are an independent collaborating centre that develops and shares robust and accessible wellbeing evidence to improve decision making that is used by:
- Governments – national, local, and the wider public sector
- Businesses – large, small and multi national, professional bodies
- Civil society – charities, social enterprises and community groups
Our team works closely with partners to answer key questions on what works to improve wellbeing and identify the gaps in the research to be filled.
How do we do this?
Our vision is of a future where the wellbeing of people and communities improves year on year and wellbeing inequalities are reduced.
We believe that improving wellbeing is the ultimate objective of policy and community action.
Our mission is to develop and share robust, accessible and useful evidence that governments, businesses, communities and people use to improve wellbeing across the UK.
What is a What Works Centre?
The Centre is a registered Community Interest Company.
You can view all our current and former funders and partners.
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 evidence for decision-making.
Other members of the What Works Network are:
What Works Centre | Policy area |
---|---|
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) | Health and social care |
Education Endowment Foundation | Educational achievement |
College of Policing What Works Centre for Crime Reduction | Crime reduction |
Early Intervention Foundation | Early intervention |
What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth (hosted by LSE, Arup, Centre for Cities) | Local economic growth |
Centre for Ageing Better | Improved quality of life for older people |
Centre for Homelessness Impact | Homelessness |
What Works for Children’s Social Care | Children’s social care |

Our People
Meet our team of experts who continuously work to bring you the best evidence on your journey to wellbeing
Work for us
Join the team and help push forward the evidence base for wellbeing
Our Partners
We are a collaborating centre that aims to bring evidence into action. To do that, we partner with national organisations influencing wellbeing.