Improving mental health remains a priority for the Scottish Government in 2024.
Our vision is of a Scotland, free from stigma and inequality, where everyone fulfils their right to achieve the best mental health and wellbeing possible.
We are aiming to improve mental health and wellbeing support in a wide range of settings with reduced waiting times for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and distress and ongoing implementation of our suicide prevention strategy.
Actions
We are working to improve mental health by:
- publishing standards for mental health services and psychological therapies
- improving the lives of those living with autism and/or a learning disability
- reforming mental health services for children and young people
- improving services for people living with dementia, their families and carers
- supporting those who have self-harmed, or are thinking of self-harm
- working to reduce suicide
- reviewing mental health legislation and related guidance
- developing policy and practice on forensic mental health
- improving the mental health of mothers, fathers, carers and infants throughout pregnancy and during the postnatal period
- continue to support early intervention and prevention
We are also:
- rolling out the Distress Brief Intervention Programme to support people in distress
- publishing standards for mental health services and psychological therapies
- understanding and addressing adverse childhood experiences ( ACEs)
- providing 24/7 support through the NHS 24 Mental Health Hub
- supporting student mental health through the work of our Student Mental Health and Wellbeing Working Group
- working to improve social care support
Background
We launched our Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy in June 2023 and associated Delivery Plan in November 2023.
We will set up a new Mental Health and Wellbeing Leadership Board in 2024. The Board will included key stakeholders and will oversee the strategy. We will produce a progress report after the initial 18 months of the delivery plan.
More information about mental health and wellbeing, as well as sources of support, is available on the NHS Health Scotland website.
Autism and/or a learning disability are not mental health conditions, co-occurring mental health problems are typical and the strategies sit within the Minister for Mental Health’s portfolio.
Bills and legislation
The main mental health legislation in Scotland is the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, as amended by the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 2015.
The 2003 Act applies to people who have a mental illness, personality disorder or learning disability. This is referred to in the Act as "mental disorder".
The Act sets out:
- when and how people can be treated if they have a mental disorder
- when people can be treated or taken into hospital against their will
- what a person's rights are, and the safeguards which ensure that these rights are protected
It also contains measures around named persons, advance statements and advocacy to enhance service users' rights and to promote service users’ involvement in their treatment.
The 2015 Act extended victims’ rights under the Victim Notification Scheme to receive information and make representations about a prisoner where they have been made subject to a hospital direction or transfer for treatment direction. It also introduced a victim notification scheme for victims of mentally disordered offenders who are subject to a compulsion order and restriction order.
You can find more background information about the implementation of the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 2015 in our website archive.
Contact
Email: ceu@gov.scot
Telephone: 0131 244 4006
Post:
Mental Health Directorate
Scottish Government
St Andrew’s House
Regent Road
Edinburgh
EH1 3DG