Found: Barbershops as a setting for supporting men's mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative

Found: crime, a new benchmark for collaboration was achieved in the town with the council, police, mental

Found: MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT In addition to this economic boost, each young trader who takes part in a Teenage

Found: complementing stretched NHS services in the future through complementary therapies in terms of wellbeing, mental

Found: also told that they had ongoing access to the University Counselling Service for specific support with mental

Found: Community Event Coordinators undertaking 6 weeks of hands on training -Opened up for emergency mental

Found: Supporting positive physical and mental health, amongst learners and wider rural communities. 3.

Found: of the Committee of Public Accounts House of Commons Palace of Westminster SW1A 0AA family, mental

Found: highlights the lack of purposeful activity on site and the deleterious effect this has on resident’s mental

Found: drive vulnerable people underground, and that they are having a severe negative impact on people’s mental

Found: Mental health and wellbeing Poor quality accommodation with restricted access to local services due

Found: Assurance that risk assessment for vulnerable residents (e.g. involving physical and mental health

Found: of the Committee of Public Accounts House of Commons Palace of Westminster SW1A 0AA family, mental

Found: 63rd HS2 Euston HC 1004 64th The Emergency Services Network HC 1006 65th Progress in improving NHS mental

Found: JUSTICE would urge the development of greater external services, including mental health support and

Found: Health Act.

Found: evidence commentary on the evidence in terms of screen-based activities in children and young people’s mental

Found: know this admission into a 22 neonatal service can increase family breakdown and adverse maternal mental

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to support the recruitment and retention of mental health specialists in Wellingborough constituency.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

To deliver the NHS Long Term Plan’s mental health commitments and help reduce waiting times in the Wellingborough constituency and nationwide, our aim has been to grow the mental health workforce nationally by an additional 27,000 professionals by March 2024.

We are making positive progress, delivering three quarters of this, or approximately 20,800 new professionals, by December 2023, with further growth expected to have been achieved once the full year figures for 2023/24 are available. This growth is in addition to the commitment to grow the National Health Service’s mental health workforce by 19,000 between 2016/17 and 2020/21, as set out in Stepping Forward to 2020/21: the mental health workforce plan for England, which was achieved in September 2021.

At a national level, we are committed to attracting, training, and recruiting the mental health workforce of the future, as well as retaining and developing our current workforce. The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan’s modelling projections set out a need to grow the overall mental health and learning disability workforce the fastest of all care settings, at 4.4% per year up to 2036/37, to help improve access to services and quality of care.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps she has taken to help reduce waiting times for child and adolescent mental health services in Stockport constituency.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

We want to ensure that children and young people get the mental health support they need, including in the Stockport constituency, and overall spending on mental health has increased by more than £4.7 billion in cash terms since 2018/19. This has enabled an expansion of child and young people's mental health services. As of January 2024, the latest data from NHS Digital shows there were 758,485 children and young people aged under 18 years old, supported through National Health Service funded mental health services with at least one contact.

We have introduced two waiting-time standards for children and young people. The first is for 95% of children, up to 19 years old, with eating disorders to receive treatment within one week for urgent cases, and four weeks for routine cases. The second is for 50% of patients of all ages experiencing a first episode of psychosis to receive treatment within two weeks of referral.

NHS England is developing a new waiting time measure for children and their families and carers to start to receive community-based mental health care within four weeks from referral. NHS England began publishing this new data in 2023 to improve transparency and drive local accountability.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of prisoners had (a) an identified mental illness and (b) a diagnosed neurodivergence in each of the last 10 years.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

NHS England is only able to produce data for the last 12 months, as we have improved our reporting mechanisms to include neurodivergent conditions. Prior to this improvement, information is not available.

As of 29 February 2024, there were 6,152 prisoners, or 7.3% of the prison population, with an identified mental health illness, according to the Quality and Outcomes Framework’s classifications. This only includes those with confirmation of a severe and enduring mental health illness such as schizophrenia, and does not include dementia, depression, and learning disabilities. 6,699 prisoners, or 8% of the prison population, had a confirmed diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. 2,684 prisoners, or 3.2% of the prison population, had a confirmed diagnosis of autism. It is not possible to produce a combined figure within the timescales, due to the fact that prisoners may have more than one diagnosis and therefore may be counted multiple times.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to enable adults with (a) learning disabilities and (b) autism living in in-patient units to live independently.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

We are taking action to support timely discharges of people with a learning disability and autistic people from mental health inpatient services, and to support them in leading ordinary lives in their communities. In January 2024, we published guidance which sets out key principles for how National Health Service bodies and local authorities should work together to support people to be discharged from mental health inpatient services.

To improve community support, in 2023/24 we invested an additional £121 million as part of the NHS Long Term Plan, including funding for children and young people’s keyworkers. The Building the Right Support Action Plan, published in July 2022, sets out cross-Government actions to strengthen community support and reduce reliance on mental health inpatient care for people with a learning disability and autistic people.

As set out in NHS England statutory guidance published on 9 May 2023, we expect integrated care boards to assign an executive lead role for learning disability and autism to a suitable board member. The named lead will support the board in planning to meet the needs of its local population of autistic people and people with a learning disability.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to provide housing for adults with (a) learning disabilities and (b) autism who are currently living in in-patient units so that they can live independently.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

On 26 January 2024, we published statutory guidance on discharge from mental health inpatient settings. This guidance sets out key principles for how National Health Service bodies and local authorities across adult and children’s services should work together to support people in being discharged from mental health inpatient services, including mental health inpatient services for people with a learning disability and for autistic people. This guidance states that strong links should be made with relevant community services prior to, and during, the person’s stay in hospital, and that this should include links in relation to meeting the person’s housing needs.

We continue to support the delivery of new supported housing by providing capital subsidies to providers, through the Care and Support Specialised Housing Fund and the Affordable Homes Programme in England.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is represented on the Building the Right Support Delivery Board. This cross-Government, cross-system board is responsible for driving progress on reducing the number of people with a learning disability and autistic people in mental health inpatient services.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he is taking steps to ensure that young offenders are provided therapeutic support (a) in the community and (b) in secure settings.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) are central to supporting children in the community who are on the cusp of offending, as well as those who have already offended. Working as multi-agency teams, with representatives from police, probation, education, health and social services, and specialist workers, such as accommodation officers and substance misuse workers, they are able to tailor their interventions and referrals based on an assessment of a child's vulnerabilities, risk and needs. YOTs are increasingly moving towards becoming a ‘trauma-informed’ service, and most have access to a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services practitioner who will assess children and provide early intervention to young people coming into contact with the justice system.

In secure settings, in collaboration with Health partners, the Youth Custody Service is committed to the delivery of an individualised, trauma-informed model of care for every child in custody across England and Wales. This approach ensures every child has access to a needs-based programme of therapy, interventions, treatment, and education. Interventions include a range of cognitive behavioural programmes, counselling psychology services and Family Therapy to promote desistance from future offending.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Mental Health Treatment Requirements were issued per year in each year since 2019.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

We are firmly committed to working with our partners to increase the use of Mental Health Treatment Requirements (MHTRs), which can form part of a tough and effective sentence that enables offenders to tackle the health-related causes of their offending behaviour.

There has been a sustained increase in the use of MHTRs, and the number of MHTRs sentenced has nearly tripled in the last ten years, from 760 in in 2012 to 2,000 in 2022.

Data on the number of MHTRs issued per year in each year is published on the Offender Management Statistics Quarterly page which can be accessed using the following link: Offender Management Statistics quarterly: October to December 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Annual data for 2023 is due to be published at the end of April 2024, alongside Q3 and Q4 quarterly data for 2023.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of mental illness on the size of the prison population.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The prevalence of mental health needs in prison is higher than amongst the general population and we are firmly committed to delivering improvements to mental health treatment for vulnerable people in the criminal justice system. An HM Inspectorate of Prisons Report 2022/23 highlighted that, of the surveyed prison population, 82% of female prisoners and 59% of male prisoners reported having a mental health need. The report can be found at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/inspections/annual-report-2022-23/.

Many people with mental health needs can be well supported in prison, and all prisoners have access to integrated mental health services commissioned by NHS England as per the national Service Specification for Integrated Mental Health Service for Prisons in England.

However, with the right treatment and support to tackle the causes of their offending behaviour, many offenders can be managed more effectively in the community, and we are committed to diverting offenders with mental health needs away from prison or out of the criminal justice system altogether, where appropriate.

Together with NHS England, the Department for Health and Social Care and the Home Office, we are strengthening Liaison & Diversion services, which are present in police custody suites and criminal courts in England. We are also working to increase the use of Mental Health Treatment Requirements as part of community or suspended sentences.

To reduce inappropriate remands into custody solely on mental health grounds we are piloting a Health and Justice Hub in the Northeast, in partnership with HMCTS and NHS England, to improve the way that courts, health services and prisons work together at a local level to better support defendants with severe mental health needs.

The nationwide expansion of the HMPPS Bail Information Service, as well as the additional funding recently announced by the Chancellor, will also help to ensure judges have the necessary information to make a timely and informed decision on bailing a vulnerable individual with confidence.

Taken together, these steps will help reduce the number of people with mental illness in prisons and divert them into the appropriate support to tackle the root causes of their offending.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of people with mental illness held in UK prisons.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The prevalence of mental health needs in prison is higher than amongst the general population and we are firmly committed to delivering improvements to mental health treatment for vulnerable people in the criminal justice system. An HM Inspectorate of Prisons Report 2022/23 highlighted that, of the surveyed prison population, 82% of female prisoners and 59% of male prisoners reported having a mental health need. The report can be found at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/inspections/annual-report-2022-23/.

Many people with mental health needs can be well supported in prison, and all prisoners have access to integrated mental health services commissioned by NHS England as per the national Service Specification for Integrated Mental Health Service for Prisons in England.

However, with the right treatment and support to tackle the causes of their offending behaviour, many offenders can be managed more effectively in the community, and we are committed to diverting offenders with mental health needs away from prison or out of the criminal justice system altogether, where appropriate.

Together with NHS England, the Department for Health and Social Care and the Home Office, we are strengthening Liaison & Diversion services, which are present in police custody suites and criminal courts in England. We are also working to increase the use of Mental Health Treatment Requirements as part of community or suspended sentences.

To reduce inappropriate remands into custody solely on mental health grounds we are piloting a Health and Justice Hub in the Northeast, in partnership with HMCTS and NHS England, to improve the way that courts, health services and prisons work together at a local level to better support defendants with severe mental health needs.

The nationwide expansion of the HMPPS Bail Information Service, as well as the additional funding recently announced by the Chancellor, will also help to ensure judges have the necessary information to make a timely and informed decision on bailing a vulnerable individual with confidence.

Taken together, these steps will help reduce the number of people with mental illness in prisons and divert them into the appropriate support to tackle the root causes of their offending.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are providing to assist women and girls subjected to sexual violence in Darfur in Sudan.

Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Since the outbreak of conflict in April 2023, there has been a significant escalation of gender-based violence (GBV) in Sudan. The UK has pivoted our programme delivery to focus on GBV prevention, and protection and care for rape survivors. We have also integrated consideration of conflict-related sexual violence into the humanitarian system, making use of Women's Centres, mobile clinics and internally displaced persons' gathering points, for community engagement and service provision. In 2023, UK support provided for the delivery of 83,399 consultations offering sexual and reproductive health services, and delivered mental health and psychological support to over 104,225 people.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what action they are taking to help the mental health of boys who were impacted by the lockdown restrictions.

Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

We want to ensure that all children and young people get the mental health support they need, including boys.

By the end of 2023/24 the overall spending on mental health has increased by more than £4.7 billion in cash terms since 2018/19 (before the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions were introduced).

There are now around 400 mental health support teams in place across England, covering 3.4 million children or around 35% of pupils in schools and colleges. We estimate this will increase to 44% by April 2024 and we are working to increase this coverage to 50% of pupils by March 2025.

There are also currently around 65 locally funded early support hubs in England. These hubs are open to those aged 11 to 25 years old and, importantly, they are for anyone who may not meet the threshold to receive National Health Service support. Following a competitive commercial process from hubs across the country, the government is now providing up to £8 million to 24 existing hubs to provide even more support. This means children and young people, including boys, who are experiencing feelings of anxiety or stress will have a physical space to go to in their community when their problems first emerge, without the need for a referral.

East Lothian Roots and Fruits and National Lottery funding

I believe CAMHS waiting lists are unacceptable, especially when a child is in crisis. Since COVID, we think CAMHS has been struggling with staffing, resources and funding. I think the Government should take youth mental health more seriously and provide more funding.

Found: According to the NHS 2022 youth mental health surveys, in 2022, 18.0% of children aged 7 to 16 years

We urge the Government to put an end to what we consider to be the outdated practice of clock changing. This biannual ritual not only disrupts daily routines but we believe it may inflict significant harm on animals and on people's mental health.

Found: Stop Clock Changing for the Sake of Animals and Mental Health

The government needs to have stricter rules for schools in regards to supporting and helping teachers in schools. The government needs to put clear boundaries in place for schools, so they cannot put pressure upon pressure onto teachers who are already overworked and overwhelmed.

Found: role, schools are increasingly criticising and overworking teachers to the point of leaving due to mental

We want a new body to monitor senior leaders in all schools and intervene in any toxic environments created by senior leaders. Allow frontline staff to approach this body directly with concerns. There should be an investigation if a certain % of staff off sick or high staff turnover.

Found: senior leaders, they may not be removed or may get severance pay, while affected staff might suffer mental

The SQE was designed to give aspiring solicitors a wider chance of becoming solicitors as opposed to the LPC. However, majority of very intelligent and knowledgable individuals are failing the SQE due to how tough it is to pass. The SQE may be accessible but it is difficult to pass, which is costly

Found: shared their experiences of either just about passing or failing have said it has had a strain on their mental

We want the Government to amend statutory entitlements to bereavement leave so all employers have to offer at least four weeks of fully paid bereavement leave, where an employee loses a child or has a stillbirth.

Found: Death is a fact of life yes but mental health is on the rise and the Government can help support people

We want the UK government to:

Extend VAT exemption to all registered mental health service providers, including counsellors and psychotherapists.

Conduct a comprehensive review of the impact of VAT on access to mental health services.

Found: We call for VAT exemption for all registered mental health service providers, including all counsellors

Found: decision-maker considering whether such removal would negatively affect the physical health, mental

Found: Low-traffic neighbourhoods A question was asked by Lord Berkeley and answered by Lord Davies of Gower. 7 Mental

Found: decision-maker considering whether such removal would negatively affect the physical health, mental

Found: health tribunals (1) Chapter 2 of Part 3 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004

Found: LORD BELLAMY _ After Clause 17, insert the following new Clause— “Victim representations to mental

Found: Minister for Mental Health and Women’s Health Strategy, Maria Caulfield said:  I spent twenty years

Found: those from younger generations are out of work due to long term sickness, in large part been driven by mental

Found: inhumane prison conditions are clearly designed to inflict further damage to both his physical and mental

Found: Government confirms scope of Essex mental health inquiry

Found: benefits from helping to reverse biodiversity decline and increasing green jobs to aiding physical and mental

Found: Commissioner to ensure support available to all Victims and families able to make impact statements at Mental

Found: do this not just though Universal Credit, but with specialist employment support, record levels of mental

Found: the report at www.grenfelltowermemorial.co.uk/report •The local NHS service offers physical and mental

Found: Tower fire - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) Health and wellbeing The local NHS service offers physical and mental

Found: There is growing evidence on the association between air pollution and mental health, cognitive decline

Found: Health Act 1983 – (After -care); or (ii) Part 1 of the Care Act 2014 (Care and Support).

Found: Health Act 1983 – (After -care); or (ii) Part 1 of the Care Act 2014 (Care and Support).

Found: Lampard Inquiry: terms of reference The Lampard Inquiry (formerly known as the Essex Mental

Found: For example, in March 2023, 2.4 million working age disabled people had a mental health condition as

Found: For example, in March 2023, 2.4 million working age disabled people had a mental health condition as

Found: Not measurable within timeframes N/A Bradford Improved physical and mental health Achieved Medium

Found: funded two additional multi-disciplinary hubs , providing one single point of contact for people with mental

Found: Outcome % of volunteer survey respondents reporting improved capability to manage mental health crisis

Found: We want prisoners to get more support with mental health problems .

Found: NHS England are tendering the Health, Social Care and Mental Health services at HMP Wymott in 2024/2

Found: This may have also explained why, in our survey, 20% of prisoners with mental health difficulties told

Found: The Assumptions Review Group noted the increase in mental health discharges, which are often tier 1

Found: sections.Expected retirement age for members now aged 45 1995 ManualMale Female 1995 Non -manual Male Female 1995 Mental

Found: Mental Health Services Monthly Statistics, Performance February 2024

Found: Out of Area Placements in Mental Health Services, January 2024

Found: legislation on health and longevity impacts, the IA could consider the relationship between smoking and mental

Found: guidance Report sub -heading: Evidence -based care and treatment  E1.1 Are people's physical, mental

Found: Health Act 1983 – (After -care); or (ii) Part 1 of the Care Act 2014 (Care and Support).

Found: or has experienced abuse • the young person’s maturity • physical and medical needs, including mental

Found: In 2021, Op Courage was launched as a bespoke mental health support for veterans supported by professionals

Found: health Victim was vulnerable, deliberately put in considerable fear or suffered personal attack,

Found: meet with a multi-agency panel on a weekly basis which includes representatives from police, primary mental

Found: Does the child have emotional wellbeing and mental health needs, if so, what are they?

Found: benefits from helping to reverse biodiversity decline and increasing green jobs to aiding physical and mental

Found: will assist Dame Christine in obtaining any specialist advice she requires, such as in the areas of mental

Found: 0068Information not heldFOI 23/749Can you provide me with the information for if antipsychotics and mental

Found: of sentenced children were assessed to have safety and wellbeing needs, 72% were assessed to have mental

Found: 90% of sentenced children were assessed to have safety and wellbeing needs, 72% were assessed to have mental

Found: We want prisoners to get more support with mental health problems .

Found: NHS England are tendering the Health, Social Care and Mental Health services at HMP Wymott in 2024/2

Found: This may have also explained why, in our survey, 20% of prisoners with mental health difficulties told

Found: The Inquiry will investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths of mental health inpatients within

Found: have clarified that the Inquiry’s definition of an inpatient death will include some deaths outside mental

Found: There are very rare circumstances when a GBGBlicensed trainer suffers from health or mental health

Found: They feel there is more work to be done to look at things like chronic pain, mental health, chronic

Found: This is because disclosure would, or would be likely to, endanger the physical or mental health or safety

Found: Bereavement Support Service (SBSS).Following a competitive tendering exercise, Penumbra and Change Mental

Found: Following a competitive tendering exercise, Penumbra and Change Mental Health, working in partnership

Found: MSPBilly Alexander, Chief Executive Officer Autism & Neurodiversity North ScotlandAutism support, General mental

Found: support, as well as ways to give feedback on this document.Breathing Space – Free and confidential mental

Found: Breathing Space – Free and confidential mental health helpline, offering advice for individuals over

Found: staff online wellbeing services, digital marketing and software licences • in the health sector – mental

Found: ongoing across various areas such as: Education Reform; National Discussion; Hayward review; ELC and Mental

Found: Since 2012/13, disabled people are identified as those who report any physical or mental health condition

Found: This is because disclosure would, or would be likely to, endanger the physical or mental health or safety

Found: vicƟm-survivor involvement Barriers to a vic Ɵm-centred approach  Capacity is stretched  Mental

Found: 0 4.2 0 0 Digital health and care 11.6 0 11.6 0 0 Health workforce - Expansion Posts 3 0 3 0 0 Mental

Found: • Over £1 .3 billion for mental health services, with £290.2 million direct investment – more than

Found: 2020/21 and 2021/22.Following that, the work has been included within the Early Years and Children's Mental

Question

To ask the Scottish Government what advances in training on perinatal mental health have been made following the recommendations made in the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee's 1st Report, 2022 (Session 6), Inquiry into perinatal mental health (SP Paper 104), which was published on 8 February 2022.

Answered by Todd, Maree - Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport

The Scottish Government has worked with NHS Education for Scotland (NES) to develop ‘Perinatal mental health curricular framework : a framework for maternal and infant mental health’. This framework sets out the different levels of knowledge and skills required by members of the Scottish workforce who have contact with mothers and their babies, to enable them to support mothers, babies and their families to have positive well-being and good mental health during the perinatal period.

The Scottish Government has also worked with NES to advance training on Perinatal and Infant Mental Health. Training in evidence-based approaches and interventions is delivered to staff across sectors and across practice types including informed, skilled, enhanced and specialist, as appropriate to their role.

This includes education and training within Perinatal and Infant Mental Health through e-learning modules which are available on TURAS, covering seven topic areas of essential knowledge. We have also worked with NES to create a specialist Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Learning Programme which allows NES to track the progress of staff in Specialist Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Services including Mother and Baby Units, Community Perinatal Mental Health Teams and Maternity and Neonatal Psychological Interventions.

During 2024-25, NES will continue to promote training at all levels across the sectors that support the development of positive relationships and attachment in the early years. This will be achieved through increasing workforce capacity to deliver evidence-based parent-child relationships focused interventions and approaches from the antenatal period, through infancy and across childhood.

Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work it has undertaken to ensure that primary care staff have appropriate training so that they are able to adequately signpost mothers and families towards appropriate third sector provision of perinatal mental health services.

Answered by Todd, Maree - Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport

The resource for Mental Health and Wellbeing in Primary Care Services was published in June 2022. The resource was developed to support staff working as part of a multi disciplinary team within GP settings. The resource provides a directory of additional sources of help, which patients can access, to complement the support, assessment and treatment they receive from the team. It brings together a range of national resources and tools that support and improve mental health and wellbeing. Section 7 of the resource contains links to sources of support specifically for Perinatal and Parent Support. The resource was promoted via the Mental Health in Primary Care National Oversight Group, Mental Health in Primary Care Leads and NHS Board Mental Health Leads.

The Scottish Government recognises the document is not exhaustive and there will be a number of local resources and tools that staff will also want to use. The resource can be found at the following link the link for the resource Resources for Mental Health and Wellbeing in Primary Care Services (www.gov.scot) .

In addition to this wider work, there is also a resource dedicated to promoting third sector perinatal and infant mental health services. This resource is available to provide information to families and professionals, including in primary care, to raise awareness of over 110 local third sector services. In the last year the resource page has received 2,693 views. Inspiring Scotland have been promoting the tool on X and in their recent newsletter which reaches NHS staff as well as wider partners. The resource can be found here: Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Third Sector Service Directory - Inspiring Scotland .

Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been distributed in each local authority area from the £50 million Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund since 2020.

Answered by Todd, Maree - Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport

Funding for Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Supports and Services for children, young people and their families has been distributed to each local authority area as follows:

Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recommendation in the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee's 1st Report, 2022 (Session 6), Inquiry into perinatal mental health, which was published on 8 February 2022, whether it has established a comprehensive strategy to improve communication, collaboration, co-operation and exchanges of best practice between third sector and statutory perinatal mental health support to make sure that women and families are appropriately and adequately supported.

Answered by Todd, Maree - Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport

The Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Managed Clinical Network Scotland (PIMHNS) has developed a workstream ‘Parents as Patients’ to develop guidance around joined-up working (i) between perinatal/infant mental health services and other mental health services (e.g. general adult mental health, unscheduled care, liaison mental health), and (ii) between perinatal/infant mental health services and other relevant medical care services (particularly primary care and acute hospital care). The important role of the third sector will feature in both. Initial meetings of two Short Life Working Groups (SLWG) have taken place to progress these workstreams, along with amending the existing care pathways which were published in 2021 ( https://www.nn.nhs.scot/pmhn/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2021/06/Care-Pathways-full.pdf ) .

Both SLWGs will focus on the themes of:

• Interfaces – to cover both care between specialist and general or universal services. This would also include principles of joint working and good practice.
• Education and training – to address knowledge of parent infant relationships and infant mental health needs as well as child protection issues and risks in relation to childbearing.

The final guidance and updated care pathways are due to be published in the final quarter of the financial year.

Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work it is undertaking to ensure that a more preventative approach to the health and wellbeing of young people is being adopted within communities across all government portfolio areas.

Answered by Minto, Jenni - Minister for Public Health and Women's Health

The Scottish Government wants to ensure that every child can attain the highest level of health and wellbeing possible.

Between pre-birth and starting school, all children in Scotland are entitled to support from our universal Health Visiting service. In addition, 3- and 4-year-olds are entitled to 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare (ELC). We have also invested in targeted early years interventions such as the Family Nurse Partnership, ELC funding for eligible 2-year-olds and perinatal and infant mental health services. This work is underpinned by our Early Child Development Transformational Change Programme which focuses on prevention, better integration of policies, identifying policy and implementation gaps, and building collaboration across the whole system.

The health and wellbeing of school-aged children is also supported by Curriculum for Excellence (CfE). Health and Wellbeing is one of the eight curricular areas in CfE and is one of the three core areas that are the responsibility of all staff in a school. Furthermore, the Scottish Government has invested in the recruitment of School Nurses and School Counsellors, both of whom are able to prevent the escalation of health and wellbeing concerns.

Our work across all child health and wellbeing interventions continues to be guided by ‘Getting it right for every child’ (GIRFEC). GIRFEC is embedded across Scottish Government portfolios and helps to safeguard, support and promote the health and wellbeing of all children and young people.

Question

To ask the Scottish Government what targeted training is currently offered to teachers to help them to assess, monitor and improve the health and wellbeing of pupils.

Answered by Gilruth, Jenny - Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills

In June 2021, the Scottish Government published a new professional learning resource for school staff aimed at providing essential learning required to support children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing https://www.cypmh.co.uk/

Education Scotland also offers a comprehensive suite of professional learning resources to support teachers in assessing, monitoring, and enhancing the health and wellbeing of pupils. These include trauma-informed training delivered to over 1,000 practitioners in collaboration with NHS Education for Scotland. Additional Education Scotland resources, such as the Cycle of Wellbeing and Positive Mental Wellbeing guide practitioners in fostering positive change, are also available.

The Inclusion, Wellbeing, and Equalities Professional Learning Framework , launched by Education Scotland in November 2023, further supports educators in building capacity and understanding across the four key themes of Inclusion, Rights and Equalities, Relationships and Wellbeing and Care.

Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work it is undertaking to consider self-referral routes within primary care to services that currently require prior GP referral.

Answered by Gray, Neil - Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care

The Primary Care Multi-Disciplinary team may include local physiotherapy services, community mental health services and community links worker services. These services can often be seen safely and effectively without a prior GP referral.

Through our Phased Investment Programme, which will strengthen the evidence base on the national context for implementation of primary care multidisciplinary teams, we will consider any existing barriers to effective multidisciplinary team working, including any barriers regarding patient pathways to services.