Professor John Robertson OBA

From the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults – Year 4 – Monitoring and reporting summary published today:

Key Findings – Reach of Funded Projects:

Number of awards: 1,462 grants have been awarded in Year 4 which has resulted in funding for 1,446 organisations. This means 6,192 awards have been made across the first four years of the Fund.

Balance of new and existing projects: Of the project data returned, 41% were new projects, 56% were existing projects, and data was not available for 3% of projects.

Small grants: Overall, most grants (56%) were for £10,000 or less. 35% were for grants between £10,000 and £20,000, 10% were for between £20,000 and £50,000, with only four grants (0.3%) over £50,000. Additionally, Capital funding was awarded to 109 projects. The majority of awards (70%) were awarded between £1,000 and £5,000 with 23% receiving between £250 and £999, with the remaining projects (7%) receiving less than £250. Smaller organisations: The majority of grants (87%) were allocated to either small or medium sized organisations.

Types of projects: It is clear that a diverse range of projects are being supported. The most common types of projects being funded are: Social or group activity (511); Peer support and mentoring (223); Counselling or Therapeutic (213); and Sport or physical activity (124).

Target groups and priority issues:

Targeting: 24% of projects were aimed at general population, whilst 51% were open to all but with a focus on particular target groups. 24.2% were aimed directly at particular target groups.

The most commonly targeted groups were: People with a long term health condition or disability (549); People facing socio economic disadvantage (481); Older people aged 50+ (385); People experiencing severe and multiple disadvantage (333); and People with diagnosed mental illness (287).

https://www.gov.scot/publications/communities-mental-health-wellbeing-fund-adults-year-4-monitoring-reporting-summary/pages/2/

How does the Scottish Government’s Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults compare with similar initiatives elsewhere in the UK?

In comparison, other UK nations lack a direct equivalent—a standalone, national government fund ring-fenced for community-based adult mental health promotion. This makes Scotland’s fund more targeted and scalable for grassroots delivery, though all regions share goals of prevention and community resilience. The CMHWFA’s strength lies in its devolved, community-centric model, enabling rapid local adaptation (e.g., suicide prevention in rural areas).

Overall, Scotland leads in dedicated, accessible funding for preventative community work, fostering greater third-sector empowerment. Other nations could benefit from similar ring-fenced pots to enhance equity and scale. For the latest application details, check official government sites.

https://x.com/i/grok?conversation=1992958165374111893

Sources for the above claims:

1. https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/publications/mental-health-foundation-northern-ireland-manifesto-2022
2. https://www.nhsconfed.org/publications/mental-health-policy-group-submission-mental-health-and-wellbeing-plan-call-evidence
3. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7547/
4. https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/our-work/policy-and-advocacy/putting-prevention-heart-national-and-local-systems-england-our-policy-perspective