On 29th April 2025 we hosted our Annual Symposium at the Wellcome Collection in London. We opened with lunch and an opportunity to peruse posters. And there was “merch” available in goody bags to celebrate the launch of our new name. If the buzz of conversation was any indicator, some great new connections were being made.
Research showcase
Chief Executive Susan Kay gave a short welcome. Then Professor Carmel Hughes, Chair of our Research Grants Committee, took over to host the Research Showcase. This section of the event allowed our grant holders to talk about their work. It really demonstrated the breath, depth and impact of the projects we fund. Each speaker was part of a team funded from one our major thematic funding calls from the past five years:
- Suitable living environments
- Social determinants of health
- The ageing immune system
- Age-related hearing and vision
Our speakers
Dr Alison Pooley from the University of Suffolk, talked about Almshouse Resilient Communities (ARC) for the Future. This was a collaborative research project between seven community partners, led by University College London (UCL). The project explored almshouses from three perspectives: built environment, community and organisational resilience. The team uncovered 30 themes which contribute to almshouse community resilience, which were grouped into 4 key groups. You can read more about the project on the United St Saviour’s Charity website, which is a valuable free resource.
Dr Liz Graham from the University of Leeds was up next. She talked about her team’s project to identify digitally excluded older people, and tailoring of interventions to meet their digital needs. The project explored types of internet use and key predictors of exclusion. Also, the ways in which exclusion can have a negative effect on people’s health and wellbeing.
Liz described the project work streams that have taken place since November 2023, and the work still to be done. She talked about the challenges of surveying a 65+ population in an inclusive way. The team needed 900 surveys in order to do the modelling work. As surveys usually provide a poor response rate, they sent out 6,000 invitations to patients across Western North Yorkshire. Elizabth said: “We were momentarily overwhelmed by the 3,300 surveys we received back! But grateful to have so much brilliant data to work with.” To find out more and read a report summarising the findings from the survey, visit the INCLUDE study website.
Dr Amy Roberts from King’s College London talked about ongoing research into a sex-specific biomarker of immune system ageing. This involves the UK’s largest twin registry, Twins UK. Amy thanked Vivensa Foundation not only for the funding, but for the opportunities to meet and connect with potential collaborators. She saw Loren Kell from the University of Oxford present a poster at our Early Career Researcher event. Now they are working together. It was fascinating to hear how samples have been taken from twins born with a big size or weight difference and how this can shine a light on important aspects of ageing, such as the menopause.
Finally, Dr Pete Jones from City St George’s University of London took to the stage. He talked about his upcoming project to transform eye care services. In particular, evaluating the feasibility and utility of performing glaucoma assessments directly within care homes and older people’ clinics. Glaucoma causes irreversible blindness but it’s treatable. If you get in early and manage it, you can really slow it down to preserve your eyesight. Pete explained that the study team intend to go into care homes to see what works and what doesn’t. Then they will assemble the data to present a case for wider adoption. The anticipated outcome is that treating clusters of patients with the same condition in the same place will be positive. It’s expected to be better for the patient, better for the care homes and better for health care providers. You can read more here.
The Excellence Awards
After another opportunity for networking (and the inevitable conference cake), the Chair of Trustees, Professor Deborah Dunn-Walters, introduced the Excellence Awards. These awards recognise those who have demonstrated excellence and a meaningful commitment to our research principles. They are given to one early to mid-career “rising star” and one senior leader in ageing-related research per year. Each winner is awarded £40k per year for three years (£120k in total per award). The two winners from last year, Dr Jenni Burton from the University of Glasgow and Professor Ilaria Bellantuono from the University of Sheffield, joined Professor Dunn-Walters in conversation about what the awards meant to them and about their different models of leadership.
The 2025 Rising Star Award was presented to Dr Toby Ellmers from Imperial College London. He spoke about his research into fear of falling in older people. Toby also talked about his key plans for the funds. This includes funding research internships for those from underrepresented backgrounds to inspire the next generation of diverse ageing-related researchers.
The 2025 Senior Leader Award was presented to Professor Vicki Goodwin from the University of Exeter. She talked about graduating as a Physiotherapist, her career path and the importance of role models and mentors. Vicki is passionate about creating flexible research opportunities for nurses and allied health professionals to thrive and grow their careers. She said: “It’s difficult to aspire to something when you don’t even know it’s an option. You’ve got to see it and believe it to be it.”
We will be sharing interviews with the two winners soon, so keep an eye on our website and socials.
Our next chapter
The celebratory mood didn’t end with the Excellence Awards. Chief Executive Susan Kay took to the stage to talk about the Vivensa Foundation’s next chapter. She unveiled both our name change and new strategic priorities for the next five years. We watched the new video introducing the Vivensa Foundation, which you can find on our YouTube channel.
Director of Research, Dr Sanjay Thakrar, shared a glimpse of findings from his team’s work into the landscape of ageing-related research funding in the UK. The analysis sheds light on the gaps, challenges, and opportunities within the field of ageing research. The aim is to provide insights for researchers, policymakers, and funders alike. You can learn more about the report findings and how we are addressing them within our 2025-30 Strategic Framework here.
Our flagship programme for this next plan period will be centred on housing and communities. We are partnering with the Housing Learning and Improvement Network (LIN) to deliver it. Trustee Professor Rose Gilroy from Newcastle University spoke about the health consequences of poor housing. Research has demonstrated that older people are particularly vulnerable to the consequences of living in poor quality housing. 30% of non-decent homes are headed by someone aged 65+. Talking about her hopes for the project, Rose says: “I’m very much in the Elvis Presley school of thought. What we need is a little less conversation, a little more action.”
The Symposium closed with a networking reception, where more thoughts and ideas were shared and future collaborations seeded.
Thanks to FilmFolk for capturing the day in these photographs.
