Congratulations to Dr Melissa Brown, who has won the prestigious Una Holden Award at the annual Faculty of Psychologists Working with Older People Conference. The award recognises outstanding achievement by an early career psychologist working with older adults.

Melissa was recognised for her exceptional contribution to patient care, research, staff wellbeing and professional development. Alongside her clinical work supporting older adults with mental health, cognitive and age-related difficulties, she has published award-winning research exploring Black communities’ experiences of seeking help for loved ones with memory problems. This work has contributed to a greater understanding of barriers to accessing support and has helped inform efforts to address inequalities in dementia care. Building on this success, she is leading further research aimed at improving access to care and reducing health inequalities.

Her award nomination highlighted her commitment to delivering compassionate, psychologically informed care and her ability to create supportive environments for patients, families and staff. It also recognised her work promoting staff wellbeing and reflective practice, as well as her dedication to supporting the next generation of psychology professionals through mentoring and supervision.

Melissa’s compassion, leadership and commitment to improving care continue to make a meaningful and lasting difference to patients, families, colleagues and communities. Her work exemplifies the values of excellence, inclusion and innovation, demonstrating how clinical practice, research and service development can come together to improve outcomes for older adults and their families.