91% of all colleges and universities in Scotland commit to developing mental health support
Today Think Positive, a student mental health project from NUS Scotland, has announced that a record number of colleges, universities and students’ associations across Scotland have signed up to take part in their Student Mental Health Agreement (SMHA) project, funded by the Scottish Government.
Participation has increased steadily in recent years, demonstrating the value that the education sector places in Think Positive. In addition to this, following the recent launch of the Scottish Government’s Student Mental Health Action Plan, in which the SMHA project features as a key action, participation has risen further to include 32 out of 35 of all of Scotland’s colleges and universities.
To develop a Student Mental Health Agreement, colleges and universities work in partnership with students’ associations to develop, promote and evaluate the mental health support they offer. The project enables institutions to bring all their mental health and well-being activities into one clear document and helps to highlight what is working well as well as areas for development. Central to the SMHA project are the values of co-production and collaboration with students throughout. Due to Scottish Government funding, Think Positive can provide a range of free tools and resources to support institutions and students’ associations throughout their journey.
During the academic year 2023-2024, 9,454+ students were consulted to help institutions improve their mental health work. In addition, 71% of project participants said that their mental health work has developed as a result of the SMHA Project. With the increased participation levels, the impact of the project could reach over 469,966 students in Scotland during the academic year 2024-2025 alone.
Commenting, NUS Scotland President Sai Shraddha S. Viswanathan said:
“This record level of participation in the Student Mental Health Agreement project demonstrates how valuable Think Positive is to students and the education sector. As students face increasing challenges and crises, mental health support is more vital than ever and because of Think Positive’s work colleges, universities and students’ association across Scotland are offering better joined up, quality mental health support services which have been tailored to suit the specific needs of students today.
The Student Mental Health Agreement project is indispensable to students’ associations as they work tirelessly to ensure that the students they represent receive the support they need to not just survive but thrive.”
Minister for Higher and Further Education Graeme Dey said:
“I welcome the increased participation of colleges and universities in the NUS Think Positive Student Mental Health Agreements. Supporting the mental health and wellbeing of students is incredibly important and will require institutions and Government to work collectively together with students to understand the challenges they face.
“Our support for platforms like this ensures students can better access the services they need and builds on the Scottish Government’s recently published Student Mental Health Action Plan, which calls for robust institution-wide planning and local cooperation to ensure students are supported throughout their time at university or college.”
Read more about the impact of Think Positive’s work.
All launched Student Mental Health Agreements are available to view on The Think Positive Hub which brings together all the latest projects, services, resources and news relating to student mental health in Scotland into one place for students and those who support them to easily access. The Think Positive Hub shares a summary of the mental health support services available at every college and university in Scotland, which are updated by colleges and universities themselves every six months.
