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Monitoring and reporting results for year three of the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults.

Executive Summary

Introduction and Background

Funding

In April 2023, it was formally announced by the Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Sport that £15 million for a third year of the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults would be made available for 2023/24. This report relates to the delivery of Year 3 funding.

Aims

The overarching aim of the Fund is to:

Support community based initiatives that promote and develop good mental health and wellbeing and/or mitigate and protect against the impact of distress and mental ill health within the adult population (aged 16 or over), with a particular focus on prevention and early intervention.

Specifically, it aims to:

1. Tackle mental health inequalities through supporting a range of 'at risk' groups (outlined below).
2. Address priority issues of social isolation and loneliness, suicide prevention and poverty and inequality with a particular emphasis on responding to the cost of living crisis and providing support to those facing socio-economic disadvantage.
3. Support small 'grass roots' community groups and organisations to deliver such activities.
4. Provide opportunities for people to connect with each other, build trusted relationships and revitalise communities.

The Fund directly contributes to Outcome 4 of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy published in June 2023:

"better equipped communities to support people's mental health and wellbeing and provide opportunities to connect with others"

It also clearly supports the three key areas of focus in the Strategy:

• Promote positive mental health and wellbeing for the whole population, improving understanding and tackling stigma, inequality and discrimination;
• Prevent mental health issues occurring or escalating and tackle underlying causes, adversities and inequalities wherever possible; and
• Provide mental health and wellbeing support and care, ensuring people and communities can access the right information, skills, services and opportunities in the right place at the right time, using a person-centred approach.

In addition it delivers on strategic action 3.2 of the accompanying Delivery Plan published November 2023:

"We will continue to build capacity in local services and third sector community groups, in order to ensure everyone in Scotland, particularly people most at risk, are able to access mental health and wellbeing support within their local communities".

The at risk groups the Fund specifically seeks to support are:

• Women (particularly those affected by gender based sexual violence)
• People with a long term health condition or disability
• People from a minority ethnic background
• Refugees and those with no recourse to public funds
• People facing socio-economic disadvantage
• People experiencing severe and multiple disadvantage
• People with diagnosed mental illness
• People affected by psychological trauma (including adverse childhood experiences)
• People who have experienced bereavement or loss
• People disadvantaged by geographical location (particularly remote and rural areas)
• Older people (aged 50 and above)
• Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTQI+) communities.

Local partnerships can consider which of these groups and any locally identified groups should be a priority for the Fund in their local partnership plan, in line with local needs.

Delivery

The Fund is delivered through a locally focused and co-ordinated approach via Local Partnership Groups, working together and building upon existing partnerships to ensure that support to community based organisations is directed appropriately and in a coherent way. Each regional Third Sector Interface (TSI) has overall accountability for the spend at local level and for working in collaboration with Integration Authorities and other existing local partners. Each TSI leads in the coordination of the local plan and undertakes fund administration, capacity building support and local monitoring and evaluation.