Mental health: PfG delivery plan

Foreword

This is an exciting time to be involved in mental health in Scotland. Quite simply, we are seeing a revolution in society's attitudes toward mental health and wellbeing. It is taking place at the same time as we are seeing significant advances in research and practice in the field of mental health care.

For generations, mental health was misunderstood and stigmatised – but as a society, we now have an unprecedented opportunity to change our approach to mental health services. The Government is determined to grasp that opportunity and build a world-class mental health system that works for everyone.

Our ten-year Mental Health Strategy set out our ambition for mental health. We have committed to £250 million of investment in mental health support in our Programme for Government. We aim to reform children and young people's mental health services, to take a 21^st century approach to adult mental health, to respect, protect and fulfil rights, and to make suicide prevention everybody's business.

Our aim reflects the need for a whole-system approach to mental health. We will do this in partnership with people using mental health services and their families, with the mental health workforce, with our colleagues in Local Government, and with delivery partners across the public and third sectors.

Central to this partnership approach will be the formation of a Mental Health Delivery Board, which I will chair. The membership of the Board will comprise senior decision-makers, service providers and service users, as well as experts in the field of mental health. The Board will work at pace, and will focus across the whole system to ensure the successful delivery of the Mental Health Strategy.

For too long, the amazing work of Scotland's mental health workforce has in some quarters been undervalued and poorly understood. I was part of that workforce for a number of years, and that has given me a strong understanding of the huge contribution that mental health staff make to our society. I am determined that they will be at the forefront of the reform we seek.

This Delivery Plan will set out our approach to the commitments in the 2018/19 Programme for Government. It is the blueprint for the next phase of implementing our Mental Health Strategy. Looking ahead, we are committed to seeing a clear improvement over the course of this Parliamentary term, and to building a base for further work over the lifetime of the Strategy.

Clare Haughey MSP
Minister for Mental Health