See Me See Change
About See Me See Change in schools
See Me See Change (SMSC) is a whole institution approach that has been developed by See Me (Scotland’s national mental health anti-stigma programme) through a combination of co-production with young people, piloting the approach with various institutions and local authorities across Scotland, and input from a range of key partners and stakeholders.
SMSC is for anyone who is interested in learning more about the impact that stigma and discrimination can have for people who experience mental health problems and wants to do something to make things better.
The approach links with existing policy and practice including the Scottish Government’s whole school approach framework for supporting children and young people’s mental health, as well as supporting pupils in the achievement of their level 4 SQA Mental Health and Wellbeing Award.
Exploring SMSC in college and university settings
Think Positive is really excited to be working with See Me to explore how SMSC could be used within Scottish college and university settings. SMSC has been very successful within schools, equipping both pupils and staff with knowledge around mental health stigma and discrimination, as well as identifying ways to create meaningful institutional change.
Whilst progress has been made over the years, we know there’s still more to be done. The Thriving Learners college research (2022) and Thriving Learners university research (2021) found that 56.9% of university students and 55% of college students reported concealing a mental health problem for fear of stigmatization.
Supporting Scottish colleges and universities to build capacity to tackle stigma and discrimination through a whole settings approach will support culture change and ensure that education institutions are stigma-free and mental health inclusive.
Colleges, universities and students’ associations across Scotland are already working towards tackling mental health stigma and discrimination through their Student Mental Health Agreements, and we believe that SMSC will both strengthen and complement the work already taking place.
Get involved in shaping SMSC for college and university settings
We’re keen to explore this approach collaboratively and coproduce this work with students and staff. We’d love to work with you to influence this work.
Throughout August 2024 a group of students and a group of staff will sit on feedback groups to:
- Provide feedback on the current resources and activities.
- Share thoughts on how SMSC could work within Scottish colleges and universities.
- Share lived experience of mental health stigma and discrimination within college and univeristy settings.
Registering interest for these feedback groups has now closed.
However, we’re still looking for students and staff to share their experiences of mental health stigma and discrimination within Scottish college and university settings via email. These real-life examples could be shared anonymously in the resources and training materials for upskilling students and staff. If you’d like to share your experience, please contact us for more information.
