IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Conor D’Arcy named Chief Executive of Money and Mental Health Policy Institute
2 November 2026
The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, the charity founded and chaired by Martin Lewis (MoneySavingExpert), has today announced Conor D’Arcy as its new Chief Executive.
Conor has been Deputy Chief Executive of Money and Mental Health since 2024, having also acted as Interim Chief Executive from May 2023 to April 2024. He previously served as the charity’s Head of Research and Policy.
Prior to joining Money and Mental Health, Conor held roles at the Resolution Foundation, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. He has also been a trustee of two South East London charities.
Conor will transition into the Chief Executive role at Money and Mental Health in December 2026 as outgoing CEO Helen Undy departs.
Martin Lewis, Founder and Chair of the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, said:
“We have been incredibly lucky to have two brilliant Chief Executives since I set up the charity over a decade ago, and I am in no doubt, in Conor we’ll have a third. And it is very easy to say that with conviction, as he has already led the charity with great aplomb on an interim basis.
“Our succession planning has always focused on developing talent – Conor has all the qualities we need to take the organisation forward – and it’s the perfect time for him to take control of the whole train set. The tracks are already laid, our 2030 strategy is in place, and now the trustees and I are very excited to see where he drives us.
“I also want to thank our outgoing Chief Executive Helen Undy, who has been recruited to take up an exciting new role at the Mental Health Foundation. Under her tenure, with Conor alongside her, the organisation has punched massively above its weight in terms of impact. So I can think of no better person than Conor to build on that legacy over the coming years.”
Conor D’Arcy, the new Chief Executive of the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, said:
“It’s a real honour to be appointed as Chief Executive. When I first joined nearly seven years ago, I was immediately struck by how everyone at Money and Mental Health was laser-focused on breaking the link between money and mental health problems. That remains the case, as proved by the changes we’ve helped secure. Continuing that impact will be my priority, building on the impressive foundation Helen leaves behind.
“The coming years are crucial ones for our mission, with more and more people at risk of getting stuck in the vicious cycle of money and mental health problems. But with our amazing staff team and our Research Community of thousands of experts by experience, I’m really excited about what we can achieve.”
The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute was established by Martin Lewis in 2016, with a mission to break the link between financial difficulty and mental health problems. Over the past ten years the charity has had considerable impact in driving policy and systems change, including:
- Successfully campaigning for the government to introduce the Mental Health Crisis Breathing Space scheme, which offers people experiencing a mental health crisis a break from escalating fees, charges and collections activity on their debts while they focus on recovery.
- Bringing an end to GP charges for paperwork people with mental health problems need to get extra help from creditors.
- Working as part of a cross-sector coalition to secure new consumer protections against online scams in the Online Safety Act.
- Persuading government to crack down on aggressive debt collection practices by councils, creditors and bailiffs.
- Launching its innovative Mental Health Accessible and Action Lab programmes, through which it works directly with essential services such as banks to make their services more accessible and to improve support for customers at risk of gambling harms and suicidality.
- Securing ‘Super-complainant’ status with the Financial Conduct Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority – the government’s consumer watchdog – giving Money and Mental Health special powers to highlight examples of consumer harm and to spur regulatory action.
Money and Mental Health’s 2025-2030 strategy can be found here.
ENDS
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Notes to Editors
- For photos of Conor D’Arcy and Martin Lewis please reach out to our media contact.
- About the Money and Mental Health Policy InstituteThe Money and Mental Health Policy Institute is an independent charity set up by Martin Lewis, and committed to breaking the link between financial difficulty and mental health problems. We conduct research, develop practical policy solutions and work in partnership with both those providing services and those using them to find what really works. www.moneyandmentalhealth.org