Mental health and wellbeing strategy: delivery plan 2023-2025

Priority 2

Improve population mental health and wellbeing, building resilience and enabling people to access the right information and advice in the right place for them and in a range of formats.

Outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7

Challenges and opportunities:

• Global challenges
• Stigma and discrimination
• Delivering supports and services
• Primary and community care
• Workforce

Key area of focus

This priority focuses on ensuring that people can access the information they need, wherever they need it.

This means going beyond the information available through clinical mental health services. We will build on the principle that not everyone will want to or be able to access information in the same way, and that there are a range of different settings in which people need support, both digitally and in-person.

We will make sure that support, care and treatment are provided that are easy for people to access in a flexible way to suit their needs. This includes online, in-person and within communities. We will also ensure that universal services, the third sector and peer support workers continue to play a vital role in enabling access.

To make a positive difference to mental health and wellbeing across the whole population, we will make sure that those providing frontline services, within the health and social care sector or beyond, have a good understanding of mental health and trauma, and of the practical barriers people can face when accessing services. This also means ensuring that digital resources are directly relevant and widely promoted, and that there are always alternatives available for those who either cannot, or do not wish to access information digitally.

Through the National Trauma Transformation Programme (NTTP), we will continue to work with partners to help communities, workforces and leaders to tilizez the impact of trauma and adversity and create trauma-informed and responsive environments that support and sustain workforce wellbeing. This will help to identify where the impact of trauma and adversity creates barriers to accessing the health and wellbeing support to aid recovery.

Outcomes

• The overall mental health and wellbeing of the population is increased and mental health inequalities are reduced.
• People with mental health conditions, including those with co-existing health conditions experience improved quality and length of life, free from stigma and discrimination.
• People have an increased knowledge and understanding of mental health and wellbeing and how to access appropriate support.
• Communities are better equipped to act as a source of support for people’s mental health and wellbeing, championing the eradication of stigma and discrimination and providing a range of opportunities to connect with others.
• Comprehensive support and services that promote and support people’s mental health and wellbeing are available in a timely way that meets and respects individual needs.
• Mental health policies, support, care, and treatment are better informed and shaped by people with lived experience of mental health issues and staff practitioners, with a focus on high quality provision that is recovery orientated.

Strategic Action 2.1: Recognising that people need to access mental health and wellbeing advice, resources and support in a range of formats, we will continue to expand the range of information and advice available online, in addition to digital therapies for those requiring further help. This will complement the range of holistic support provided across sectors, in person and by phone, to promote mental health and wellbeing.

2.1.1 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work with NHS 24 to develop new content on Mind to Mind mental wellbeing website. This will include developing further lived experience content to better reflect the needs of people from lower socio-economic groups and minority ethnics communities for example, expanding the range of practical advice and improving signposting.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government NHS 24, Change Mental Health, third sector organisations

2.1.2 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work in partnership with stakeholders to raise awareness of resources on Mind to Mind and promote messaging in a number of ways, including digital, radio and face-to-face settings, such as sports clubs and other venues.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government NHS 24, third sector organisations, local authorities

2.1.3 By spring 2024, redevelop online mental health and wellbeing self-help and support content, to respond to the needs of children and young people, and their parents and carers. This includes a refresh of Young Scot’s ‘Aye Feel’ mental health and wellbeing hub, and expansion and development of the resources and content on Parent Club, including the ‘Wellbeing for Wee Ones’ Hub.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Parent Club, Young Scot

2.1.4 Over the next 18 months, work with children, young people, parents, carers and other partners to reduce the potentially harmful impacts of social media, especially in relation to body image as identified by the Body Image Advisory Group. Work here includes enhancing the available support and resources on body image, screen time and social media, including developing a resource for schools to support conversations with young people and developing additional content as part of the online resource ‘Mind Yer Time’.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP), Children’s Parliament, local authorities, Association of Directors of Education in Scotland, Education Scotland (ADES), third sector organisations working with women and girls

2.1.5 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, continue to work in partnership with key stakeholders to ensure compassionate advice, resources, and support is available for people experiencing bereavement.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Third sector organisations, local authorities, NHS Boards, NHS 24

Strategic Action 2.2: We will expand the range of digital therapies and resources available, providing free access to trustworthy mental health support at any time.

2.2.1 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work with the Connecting Scotland Initiative to improve individual access to the internet and healthcare services.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO)

2.2.2 By December 2024, undertake a rigorous evaluation of all Scottish Government-sponsored digital mental health products and establish data sharing agreements with all Boards to enable in-house analysis of completion rates and patient satisfaction with digital products.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government NHS Boards

2.2.3 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work with partners to support increased and timely access to brief, evidence-based psychological therapies, removing barriers to care, alongside screening to ensure appropriate referrals to digital psychological interventions.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government NHS 24, NHS Boards

Strategic Action 2.3: Recognising the important role that people with lived experience can play as part of the mental health workforce, to improve mental health, we will champion the value of peer support across a range of settings.

2.3.1 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work with people with lived experience and other partners to identify and share evidence of the benefits and impacts of peer support and the settings where this will have the most impact.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Scottish Recovery Network, Third Sector Interfaces (TSIs), third sector organisations, NHS Boards

2.3.2 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work with partners to further understand the enablers and barriers to developing peer support in mental health and identify how it can be appropriately integrated into supports and services. As part of this, we will explore how peer support can be further developed as an approach to supporting people with their mental health from prevention to recovery.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Scottish Recovery Network, TSIs, third sector organisations, NHS Boards, local authorities

Strategic Action 2.4: Beyond clinical mental health services, a range of services have a role in promoting good mental health and in supporting those with poor mental health. We will work collectively across government and with delivery partners across a range of sectors to ensure the right support is in place at all levels, linking to actions in the Workforce Plan to ensure that frontline workers have a good understanding of mental health and trauma to help reduce mental health inequalities and barriers to accessing support.

2.4.1 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, engage with frontline and support services to ensure they can access a range of mental health awareness resources and training opportunities that meet their needs. This includes promoting the mental health and money worries advice pack for frontline workers, ensuring it is available digitally across a range of platforms, and seeking feedback on its content to support continuous improvement.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA Public Health Scotland (PHS), Change Mental Health, local authorities

2.4.2 During the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, publish of a ‘Roadmap to Trauma-Informed and Responsive Change: Guidance for Organisations, Systems and Workforces in Scotland’. This resource aims to help services and organisations identify and reflect on progress, strengths and opportunities to embed a trauma-informed and responsive approach across policy and practice.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA NHS Education for Scotland (NES), Improvement Service, Resilience Learning Partnership, Trauma Champions, Transforming Psychological Trauma Implementation Co-ordinators, Local Trauma Lead Officers

2.4.3 During the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, refresh the NTTP website, providing easy access to evidence-based tools, guidance and learning resources to support the workforce with the implementation of trauma-informed and responsive practice.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA NES, Improvement Service, Resilience Learning Partnership, Trauma Champions, Transforming Psychological Trauma Implementation Co-ordinators, Local Trauma Lead Officers

2.4.4 By spring 2024, set out future priorities for the NTTP in a long-term delivery plan future.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA NES, Improvement Service, Resilience Learning Partnership, Trauma Champions, Transforming Psychological Trauma Implementation Co-ordinators, Local Trauma Lead Officers

Strategic Action 2.5: We will work across Government and with a range of national delivery partners to ensure employers and employability support services understand their role in reducing mental health stigma and to help them to actively promote and support the mental health and wellbeing of workers and those seeking employment.

2.5.1 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work collaboratively with partners, to further develop and promote the ‘Supporting a mentally healthy workplace employer’ platform, building on feedback from employers to ensure content remains up-to-date and continues to meet their needs.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA PHS, See Me

2.5.2 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work collectively to develop and grow the ‘Supporting a mentally healthy workplace’ employer learning network, hosting quarterly network events, focusing on priorities highlighted by employers and ensuring it continues to complement the digital platform and support available to employers through the ‘See Me in Work’ programme.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government PHS, See Me

2.5.3 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work collaboratively to promote the ‘See Me in Work’ programme to ensure there is more awareness and engagement amongst employers. This will help to address mental health stigma in workplaces and create working environments that are open, inclusive and responsive to mental health needs.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA PHS, See Me

2.5.4 By the end of 2023, complete the review of suicide prevention and mental health and wellbeing training programmes and identify actions to ensure that those who would benefit from training, such as employers, frontline services, etc. can easily access a range of high quality mental health and suicide prevention training programmes.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government PHS, Suicide Prevention Scotland

2.5.5 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, take a cross-government approach to ensuring mental health and wellbeing support is embedded within employability services ensuring holistic and person-centred support is available to those facing barriers to employment or who are at risk of becoming economically inactive.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Employability Partnerships

Strategic Action 2.6: We will work with partners to enhance mental health and wellbeing support in educational settings.

2.6.1 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work with the Mental Health in Schools Working Group to monitor the use and impact of the mental health and wellbeing support we are providing through education settings.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA ADES, Education Scotland, third sector organisations, Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists (ASPEP)

2.6.2 Consider the findings from the Health and Wellbeing Census, and the forthcoming Behaviour in Schools Research (publishing November 2023), working with partners to develop a response to any emerging issues relating to mental health.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA ADES, ASPEP

2.6.3 In line with the Experiences and Outcomes of Curriculum for Excellence, develop new health and wellbeing resources for staff to support the emotional and wellbeing resilience of school age children. This will include the update and tilizezation of the ‘Cool in School’ resource by 2024, which aims to empower children to cope with the situations they encounter in their daily lives in school, and beyond.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Local authorities, ADES, Education Scotland, ASPEP

2.6.4 Ensure every secondary school and primary and special school pupils over the age of 10 continue to have access to school counselling services and by early 2024, will consider learning from the recommendations of the Children and Young People’s Commissioner’s report on counselling in schools.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government/COSLA Local authorities

2.6.5 Throughout the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, work with colleges and universities to ensure the mental health and wellbeing needs of students are met, and tilize investment in supports and services with a focus on early intervention. We will explore opportunities to improve acute services pathways and promote the value of embedding student mental health agreements within institutions through NUS Think Positive.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Scottish Funding Council, National Union of Students (NUS), colleges, universities

Strategic Action 2.7: Through our lived experience led Learning Disability and Autism Leadership work, we will continue to develop and disseminate materials and best practice supporting communication around mental health and wellbeing for these communities.

2.7.1 During the lifespan of this Delivery Plan, deliver the next phase of Scottish Government’s leadership work with autistic people and people with a learning disability. We will develop and pilot co-produced professional learning resources for all NHS professionals working in adult services or with adults to help ensure our communities’ mental health and wellbeing needs are better understood and met.

Lead and Key Partners: Scottish Government Inspiring Scotland, primary care practices