Mental health and wellbeing
This section of Communities Channel Scotland lists information, resources and sources of support which should be useful for helping community groups support the mental health and wellbeing of people in their communities as well as staff and volunteers.
Mental health and wellbeing in Scotland and the wider UK has been described by many as in crisis. As this Community Health Exchange (CHEX) briefing highlights, not only is there increased demand on mental health and wellbeing services but community organisations and other services providing vital support are being under-resourced - all of which has an impact on the wellbeing of staff and volunteers.
See below for this growing list of potentially useful resources featured on Communities Channel Scotland.
Inspiring Scotland offers support to the charity sector, aiming to deliver real and lasting change in areas where social organisations and public policy had struggled to have a big enough impact.
This set of films documents people’s experiences of living through the Covid-19 pandemic. They demonstrate how communities can come together in times of adversity to produce positive outcomes, and also highlight how our mental health connects to wider aspects of life.
The Hub of Hope is a UK-wide database of local mental health support including support provided by community groups and charities.
Legal Services Agency (LSA) is a Scottish Law Centre and Charity committed to defending legal rights and using the law to effect social change
Andy’s Man Club is a men’s suicide prevention charity, offering free-to-attend peer-to-peer support groups across the United Kingdom and online. Andy’s Man Club aims to end the stigma surrounding men’s mental health and help men through the power of conversation.
The Community Wellbeing Exchange is a funded programme enabling community organisations to buy mental health and wellbeing focused activities from social enterprises. It provides a menu of over 170 activities that you may be interested in whether or not you are part of the programme.
Near Me is NHS Scotland’s free online video consulting service for health and care. Community organisations can use it in their work and may also want to help raise awareness of it among their community.
Scottish Recovery Network promotes and supports mental health recovery, bringing people, services and organisations across sectors together to create a mental health system powered by lived experience which supports everyone’s recovery journey. Their website contains a collection of resources, including tools to support people and groups to work together to support recovery.
LGBT Health and Wellbeing (LGBT Healthy Living Centre) was set up in 2003 to promote the health, wellbeing and equality of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Scotland. It provides support, services and information to improve health and wellbeing, reduce social isolation and stimulate community development and volunteering.
This toolkit helps you to measure the impact of existing work on social capital, health and wellbeing, to think about your outcomes and develop new ideas. It includes a range of tools and templates to assist you with logic modelling, weekly diaries, recognised measures of mental health and questionnaires.
Tesco Community Grants funds community projects across the UK helping to fight holiday hunger, tackle mental health, support young people, host community events and more.
The Co-op Local Community Fund supports projects that make a difference to local communities near to Co-op stores and funeral homes.
See Me has developed and produced an number of resource packs for communities to help you make sustained change around mental health in your community.
