3. Improving Student and Staff
Mental Health and Wellbeing
The College continues to recognise the importance of supporting the positive mental health
and wellbeing of its students and staff with for example, an effective organisational structure,
a partnership agreement with NHS Ayrshire and Arran and innovative initiatives and campaigns
reflecting this. It is as result of these, the College is enabling improved student and staff mental
health and wellbeing. In the years ahead, the College aims to secure its commitment through
the development primarily of its Promoting Mental Wellbeing action plan. The Promoting Mental
Wellbeing action plan is a service-level agreement with NHS Ayrshire and Arran and is supporting
the College to improve its operational workings to benefit student and staff wellbeing. The effect
of such, will be a cont inued emphasis on promoting positive mental health and wellbeing within
the College. The College will also, following a successful expression of interest to the Equality
Challenge Unit (ECU), undertake a project focused on improving staff disclosure of a disability
including mental health conditions.
Key Highlights
Organisational structure continues to reflect commitment to promoting positive mental
health and wellbeing with dedicated teams in place including Student Services, Inclusive
Learning, Equality and Inclusion, Health, Safety and Wellbeing, and recent partnership post
of a student Mental Health and Wellbeing Advisor
Three-year Promoting Mental Wellbeing action plan 5 continues to be developed in
supporting a whole-College approach for the promotion of positive student and staff mental
health and wellbeing
Annual College campaign #mymentalhealthmatters month (10th Sept-10th Oct) continues
to grow in strength raising awareness of positive mental health and wellbeing and tackling
stigma; the blog series in academic year 2015-2016 as part of the month was positively
received with Employability and Engagement Officer, Steven Fegan’s blog ‘Real men don’t’
talk, do they?’ becoming, at that time, the most highly viewed College blog in one day and
remains one of the top 3 most viewed College blogs
Successful staff 8-week Mindfulness course pilot in academic year 2015-2016 with reported
impacts felt in relation to working life
Front-line and Student Association staff trained in Mental Health First Aid and Staff
Development Days including wellbeing focus
Annual all Staff Wellbeing Day in June
5
42
This replaces the previous action plan known as ‘Mentally Healthy College’s action plan’