Scottish Government Allocates £30 Million for Community Mental Health Projects Following Youth-Led Report

Date: 8th April 2024
Category: Mental health, Disability, Basic Health and Welfare, General measures of implementation

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The Scottish Government has allocated £30 million for community-based mental health projects, in response to efforts by #TeamScotlandUN and an independent report by the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP).

The funds, divided equally between the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults and the Children and Young People’s Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Supports, will support various groups and services across Scotland in 2024-25.

In 2022, the Mental Health Investigation Team, comprising Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament (MSYPs), collaborated with Children in Scotland to evaluate mental health services from a youth-led perspective. Their findings highlighted the need for additional funding to address barriers to accessing high-quality support, particularly for children and young people. Among the report's key findings was that 61% of young people surveyed had received support from multiple mental health services.

In 2023, Together supported a group of children and young people (including Members of Children’s Parliament, Scottish Youth Parliament and Young Advisors to the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland) to travel to Geneva to give evidence to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to help inform the UK’s review. The group, named #TeamScotlandUN, highlighted the need for improved mental health support – including a specific call for community-based provision. This led to the UN Committee making a specific recommendation to the Scottish and UK Government to ensure access to community-based mental health services for children and young people.

• Click here to read more about the announcement from Scottish Government
• Click here to read more about #TeamScotlandUN and the UN’s recommendations.