Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Joint Delivery Board: communications plan

Board deliverable

Through a selection of appropriate media platforms, we will ensure: Information on the work of programme board reaches stakeholders, young people, parents and families. Information on the interconnecting work of other boards reaches relevant stakeholders. Information on how to access mental health support is available to staff supporting children and young people.

Purpose

Communications will:

• raise stakeholder awareness of the work of the board ensuring they are kept up to date with milestones as work on deliverables progresses
• promote publications resulting from the work of the board
• help ‘close the loop’, ensuring that those who have contributed to the work of the board and its predecessors see where their input has been taken into account
• support connectivity across the development of Mental Health and wider policy; and between policy and practice
• publicise promotional/ engagement events
• highlight good practice emerging as a result of the board’s work
• facilitate engagement. As a result of communications stakeholders understand how to get in touch with the board on relevant issues

Key messages and common standards

Whilst communications will relay news from the board and respective Task and Finish groups, they will also be consistent in  core messages and standards. All communications will:

• be accessible to relevant stakeholders
• reflect overarching mental health strategy including The Mental Health Strategy 2017-2027 and the Mental Health Transition and Recovery Plan
• reflect the purpose of the Joint Delivery Board as detailed in the terms of reference
• encourage participation/stakeholder engagement
• promote positive cultural change
• meet COSLA and Scottish Government communications standards

Stakeholders

Communications will target a range of stakeholders including:

• children and young people
• parents and carers/families
• Joint Delivery Board members and their relevant forums
• previous members of the Youth Commission, Taskforce, and Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Joint Delivery Board members
• other mental health boards and wider Scottish Government, Health and Local Government policy colleagues
• local government staff inclusive of but not restricted to social workers, school staff, CLD and employability
• elected members including COSLA Leaders and Scottish ministers
• the youth sector and 
• mental Health Services (Health, Local Government and Third Sector across primary and secondary care). 

Communications will be issued in a variety of formats and on different platforms to help ensure accessibility.

Format and dissemination 

‘Easy access comms’: social media, newsletter, vlogs

Graphics/ video- based updates will be shared on social media. This will include COSLA and Scottish Government Facebook and twitter feeds.  Agreement to share these on their own social media feed will be sought from Young Scot, YouthLink Scotland, Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP), National Parent Forum of Scotland to support reach into these stakeholder groups. Similar agreements will be made across broader stakeholder groups.  ‘Easy access’ comms will also provide information on how to get in touch and where to find more detail if required. Initial communications will be sent to all stakeholders notifying them on the work of the board and where to keep up to date.  

‘Formal comms’: Scottish Government webpage 

Terms of Reference, membership, minutes etc and links to the previous work of CYPMHW programme board will be available on the Scottish Government website. Both formal and informal communications will seek to address / link to where the Joint Board’s work sits within the wider policy landscape. A regular update on connected pieces of work will be published on the Scottish Government website.

Press

Where appropriate press releases will be issued, these will also endeavour to capture the voices of children and young people.
Joint delivery board and task and finish group members will disseminate communications appropriately.

Task and Finish group communications

Where task and finish groups wish to issue communication, they will follow the standards above and issue communications through the same channels as the board.

Oversight

A small task and finish group will oversee comms including:

• children and young people
• COSLA
• ADES

Phase 1: May – August 2021    

press release

• aligning JDB objectives and milestones with communications activities
• develop key messages and lines to take with partners 
• update Board members and members of T and F groups with approach
• link to wider work – eg Children’s Rights/Learning Directorate training resource for all those working with children and young people/links with wider Mental Health team 
• include work of JDB in other Health Minister’s speaking notes/briefings
• include reference to work in any wider press quotes around Mental Health

Phase 2: September – December 2021

• developing JDB communication channels 

Phase 3: January – May 2022     

• possible events (ministerial visits etc)
• Children’s Mental Health week – February date TBC
• highlighting any good local practices 
• comms support for events
• developing ministerial video message
• Twitter/Instagram?

Phase 4: June – December 2022    

• events/launches/visits