Student mental health action plan

Staff awareness and training

Action Three: Facilitate and enhance access to mental health resources and training for all university, college, and PBSA staff to continue to become mental health aware.

The Mental Health and Wellbeing: Workforce Action Plan 2023-2025 underscores the significance of college and university academic and support staff in promoting mental health awareness and suicide prevention. Our work on tackling gender-based violence in colleges and universities also recognises their key role. These individuals serve as crucial points of contact for students, making it imperative that they possess comprehensive mental health knowledge and skills which they can deploy in a trauma-informed way. Additionally, student wardens and accommodation staff play a vital role in providing initial support in student residences.

The Workforce Plan outlined areas of broader investment that can support colleges and universities. Public Health Scotland (PHS) and NHS Education for Scotland (NES), for instance, have partnered to develop online digital resources specifically tailored for the Scottish workforce. In addition, our National Trauma Training Programme provides a range of training, support and resources to help institutions ensure their workforce is able to support students in a trauma-informed way.

These learning resources are accessible to all members of the workforce, regardless of prior training, providing an opportunity to refresh their knowledge and skills on mental health, suicide prevention, and self-harm. NES resources such as Mental Health Improvement, and Prevention of Self-Harm and Suicide, Cruse Scotland, and the National Trauma Training Programme can guide college and university academic and support staff, as well as staff in halls of residences and purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA), in selecting the most suitable level of learning.

Additionally, further learning resources are available from Public Health Scotland, including Scottish Mental Health First Aid, safeTALK, ASIST, Healthy Working Lives and See Me.

Colleges, universities and accommodation providers should consider how best they can make this training available and accessible for all their workforce.

Action: The Scottish Government will lead a joint effort with Public Health Scotland, NHS Education Scotland, Suicide Prevention Scotland, NHS 24, See Me, trade unions, institutions, and accommodation providers to raise awareness of the availability of these resources and their relevance for different mental health issues, and to encourage their uptake and use.