The UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (UK MHRA) has approved a new digital intervention which has been funded by NHS England via the NHS Improvement’s SBRI Healthcare programme and developed in partnership with the Anxiety and Depression in Young People (AnDY) Research Clinic at the University of Reading, and MindTech UK.

Lumi Nova is the first game-based digital therapeutic to treat anxiety disorders in children.

Anxiety levels have more than doubled in young people following COVID-19 lockdown. With children back in schools, children’s mental health will likely be further challenged. The negative psychological consequences of the COVID-19 crisis continue to unravel with children back at school. Lumi Nova provides an accessible and scalable intervention for anxiety for NHS Integrated Care Systems and Clinical Commissioning Groups, schools, and local authorities. 

Lumi Nova aims to revolutionise mental health interventions for children helping them to overcome anxiety using an evidence-based therapeutic approach. The intervention combines methodologically rigorous user-centred design and proven immersive therapy the gold standard for treating anxiety, delivered through an engaging mobile game.

MindTech evaluated Lumi Nova in schools, helping the digital intervention gain UK MHRA approval. 

Further information about the the first mobile game for paediatric anxiety in children aged 7-12 years.