Could the United Kingdom become the psychedelic research hub?

Psychedelics, including psilocybin, LSD and MDMA, are classified as Schedule I substances in the UK.

Schedule I drugs have – per definition – no accepted medical value and a high potential for abuse. But drugs like cocaine and diamorphine (heroin) find themselves in the UK’s Schedule II – yes, there is some historical medical value, but what about their abuse potential?

While doctors in the UK won’t likely prescribe you cocaine or heroin, they may soon be able to refer you for psychedelic-assisted therapy. Can the UK become the hub that makes this possible?

How did we get here?

David Nutt and Amanda Feilding need know no introduction to anyone familiar with the world of psychedelics. These UK-based researchers have been advocating for changes to drug policy in the UK for decades.

Amanda founded The Beckley Foundation to kick-start research into these substances and officially lobby for policy change in 1998. Professor Nutt, the former chief drug adviser to the government, was asked to resign after claiming that LSD and MDMA were safer than alcohol.

Even with the constraints imposed on conducting research with Schedule I drugs, Feilding and Nutt continued their efforts and inspired many other UK researchers.

Research with psychedelics began to pick up the pace in the country in the early 2010s, with the likes of Robin Carhart-Harris, Ben Sessa and David Erritzoe exploring the effects of psilocybin.

After several trials, the world’s first centre for psychedelic research opened at Imperial College London in 2019.

Psychedelics in the UK today

MP Crispin Blunt spoke at the PSYCH Symposium on how the political attitude towards psychedelics and evidence-based drug policy is changing, albeit slowly.

“Intelligent drug policy focused on the public good instead of delivering outdated prohibition is needed,” said Crispin, and this is what he and his team are working toward.

While policy change may take time, it’s not stopping companies from setting up in the country. Now that the UK is no longer bound to the rules of the EU, many believe this change will take place more quickly – who would have guessed Brexit could positively impact psychedelic research.

Small Pharma and COMPASS Pathways are headquartered in the UK and were awarded Innovation Passports to facilitate their research. BioMind Labs recently relocated to the UK in anticipation of future regulatory change.

Clerkenwell Health is set to open Europe’s first commercial facility for psychedelic drug trials in London “to establish the UK as the heart of the commercial psychedelic research ecosystem”, according to their CEO Tom MacDonald.

Awakn Lifesciences has already begun treating patients with ketamine at their clinics in Bristol and London.

With research taking place at universities across the country and these commercial efforts, it might not be long before the UK becomes a leader in the field of psychedelics.