Mental health: policy context

"A Scotland where we have good mental wellbeing" is one of Scotland's public health priorities.

The Scottish Government published its 'Mental Health Strategy 2017-2027' in March 2017. This focuses on a series of actions to achieve: prevention and early intervention; accessible services; physical well-being of people with mental health problems; rights, information use and planning; and data and measurement. 

This builds upon previous policy and research frameworks including: the Mental Health Strategy 2012-5; What research matters for mental health policy in Scotland (458kB)), the Scottish Strategy for Autism (856Kb), the Learning Disability strategy “the keys to life” (3.7MB), Scotland’s National Dementia Strategy 2017-2020, Changing Scotland’s Relationship with Alcohol: A Framework for Action (510kB), Rights, respect and recovery: alcohol and drug treatment strategy (384kB), and The Road to Recovery: a new approach to tackling Scotland’s drug problem (5.4MB).

A broad range of factors, including poverty, employment, income, and welfare reform, impact mental health. A 2022 study found that, for adults aged 16 and over, persistent precarious employment was strongly associated with risk of poor mental health symptoms. Similarly, many aspects of welfare reform since 2008 have been associated with worsening mental health. Further information can be found on the ScotPHO Welfare Reform pages.

Public Health Scotland maintain a suite of resources on mental health and wellbeing. 

See Key references and evidence for other relevant mental health policy documents and initiatives.