Mental Health and Wellbeing Leadership Board: delivery plan progress report 4 - September 2025

Actions Delivered Since Last Reporting Period and Known Achievements/ Impacts/ Learning

Action 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.

• Funding provided to Young Scot, LGBT Youth Scotland and Scottish Youth Parliament to update and maintain mental health and wellbeing self-help and support content.
• Promotion of Parent Club resources included.

Action 2.4.1

Throughout the life 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.

• Advice pack updated and made available on Change Mental Health website.
• Shared widely through networks including LEPs, national employer network, National Rural MH Forum, and COSLA networks.
• Feedback from stakeholders has been extremely positive.

Action 2.4.2

During the life of this Delivery Plan, publish a ‘Roadmap to Trauma-Informed and Responsive Change: Guidance for Organisations, Systems and Workforces in Scotland’ 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.

• Published in October 2023.
• Widely regarded and used by a range of organisations.
• A National Learning Event was held in January 2025 to share good practice and highlight how the Roadmap can be used.

Action 2.4.3

During the life 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.

• Website refreshed and updated.
• Content reviewed for accessibility standards.
• Ongoing collaboration with the Resilience Learning Partnership to embed lived experience in design and delivery.

Action 2.5.1

Throughout the life 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.

• Content updated throughout the year.
• Platform promoted via national learning network, See Me in Work Programme, and partner communications.
• Employers can now access thematic newsletters and summaries of network events.

Action 3.2.1

Provide a fourth year of the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults in 2024–25, to be delivered by Third Sector Interface led local partnerships. This will increase access to community-based mental health and wellbeing support with a focus on addressing inequalities and supporting those facing socio-economic disadvantage.

• £15 million provided for a fourth year of the Communities Fund.
• Monitoring and reporting information for Year 4 due to be published late summer.
• £30 million agreed for Years 5 and 6 as part of the SG's Fairer Funding pilot.

Action 3.2.3

Actively promote the value of community-based interventions for children, young people and adults, sharing good practice and delivering a range of joint communications activities and national learning events by March 2024.

• National event took place in March 2024.
• COSLA launched a report during Mental Health Week 2025 highlighting the role of local government in supporting mental health and wellbeing and the Social Care Board will meet again in August.
• The campaign emphasized the importance of community in mental health support.

Action 4.3.1

Support local areas and national pathways to implement the Distress Brief Intervention programme (DBI) for people aged 16 and over, achieving full national coverage by March 2024.

• All 31 Health and Social Care Partnerships had DBI live locally by end of November 2024.
• Since 2017, DBI has supported over 90,000 people across Scotland.
• Evaluation showed 9 out of 10 individuals experienced reduced distress and felt better equipped to manage it.

Action 6.1.1

Commission Boards to produce trajectories for when they expect to meet the CAMHS and PT waiting times standard. These will be analysed by the end of 2023 and will inform targeted improvement work.

• Trajectories for both CAMHS and PT Waiting Times commissioned and analysed each financial year.
• Routine engagement with NHS Boards has helped identify challenges and inform support.

Action 6.1.2

Over the life of this Delivery Plan, proactively engage with Boards to monitor progress and identify challenges, including finance, governance and leadership. This will inform the support required to enable Boards to contribute to the implementation of the Mental Health & Wellbeing Strategy and make best use of funding to deliver better outcomes.

• Routine engagement calls undertaken every 6 weeks with NHS Boards.
• Helped identify challenges and inform support.
• Engagement between SG Directors and NHS Boards on specific challenges.

Action 6.2.2

Develop and pilot a self-assessment tool to support initial implementation of the core mental health standards (published September 2023) in a proportionate way, recognising ongoing pressure facing services and enabling continuous improvement.

• Tool piloted and rolled out across all Scottish NHS Boards.
• Developed in collaboration with Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS).

Action 6.2.3

Using a similar approach to the core standards, work with partners to measure and implement the Service Specification for Psychological Interventions and Therapies (published September 2023), recognising that some of the outcomes are already being delivered.

• Self-assessment tool developed and distributed to all Directors/Leads of Psychology in Boards.
• Tool refined with Heads of Psychology Scotland group (HOPS).

Action 6.2.4

The Scottish Government and NES launched a new digital version of the Psychological Therapies Matrix in autumn 2023 to provide accessible and up-to-date evidence and best practice for psychological services. NES will continue to update the Matrix iteratively, reflecting any changes in the available evidence base.

• NES continues to update the Matrix when required.
• Reflects changes in the available evidence base.

Action 6.2.5

Consult on and publish a National Specification for Eating Disorder Care and Treatment in Scotland by early 2024.

• National Specification published on 20 November 2024.
• Consultation report also published.
• Specification provides national guidance for consistent care and treatment.

Action 6.4.2

Hold an event in 2024 to share the findings of the three core benchmarking projects of 2023 with all Health Boards.

• Event held in April 2024.
• Shared findings from benchmarking projects with all Health Boards.
• A 2025 event is also planned.

Action 9.2.4

Launch a Changing Places Toilets Fund by the beginning of 2025 to increase the number of these facilities across the country and to support mobile Changing Places Toilets to allow people easier access to events and outdoor venues.

• £10 million Changing Places Toilets Fund launched on 7 August 2025.
• Application deadline of 20 October with funding decisions announced in November 2025.
• Not for profit, incorporated organisations and micro or small business with up to 49 employees are eligible to apply for development costs and/or full build costs.
• Projects prioritised in areas which currently have limited provision and in a type of location that has been identified as a priority.
• Fund launch communicated to a wide range of stakeholders.