Aggrey Burke Fellowship
As part of our Equality Action Plan, in 2023 we launched a new fellowship scheme to encourage and support Black medical students to pursue a career in psychiatry.
The fellowship is named after the first Black psychiatrist to work in the NHS, Dr Aggrey Burke. Dr Burke first came to national prominence when he and a colleague, Professor Joe Collier, courageously blew the whistle on the racist admissions policies run by some medical schools.
He also was a prominent supporter of the Black families affected by the 1981 New Cross house fire – and has done much work relating to mental illness in Black families. He was awarded the President’s Medal in 2020 by former RCPsych President Professor Wendy Burn.
The fellowship scheme was developed by the then Presidential Leads for Race and Equality, Dr Lade Smith MBE, and Dr Rajesh Mohan.
Podcast: Reflections from the first Aggrey Burke Fellows
In this podcast recorded for Black History Month 2025, we hear from the first cohort of Aggrey Burke Fellowship participants. They discuss their motivations for joining, memorable experiences, the importance of representation in psychiatry, and the challenges they faced. They also reflect on how the fellowship has shaped their perspectives on mental health, career development, the significance of networking and mentorship in their journey as future psychiatrists, and what it means to stand in power and pride.
