Staff learning and development

Information on free mental health and wellbeing resources that can support staff learning and development range from short online guides to full accredited training

You have a responsibility to make sure your workers are aware of learning opportunities that can help to promote and support mental health and wellbeing in the workplace.

Finding the right approach for you

We know that all businesses are different and are likely to be at different stages in creating a mentally healthy workplace.

There is no "one size fits all" approach.

It's a good idea to start by building your understanding and awareness, so you can build a supportive workplace culture. 

Then, making sure managers have the training and skills to recognise issues and the need for support. 

Find more information on building your organisational culture.

General awareness raising and understanding

Several organisations that specialise in mental wellbeing have information and toolkits to help you understand mental health issues.

Video content

Health Scotland, jointly with NHS Education for Scotland, has produced three animations in an "Ask, Tell" series.

These are to help people start conversations around mental health and show all staff how to support people who may be feeling suicidal or experiencing mental distress.

Public Health Scotland and NHS Education for Scotland have produced videos to prompt discussion promoting children and young people’s mental health and preventing self-harm and suicide.

See Me have a YouTube channel with videos about mental health in the workplace.

Online learning

Mentally healthy workplaces - Learning resources - Public Health Scotland. This is training for anyone who wants to learn more about mental health in the workplace.

Stress and the Workplace – Public Health Scotland. This training focuses on the relationship between pressure and stress and how this can impact wellbeing.

National trauma training programme. The Programme offers free, evidence-based trauma training to help workers in all sectors understand and support people affected by trauma. It also provides resources to support staff wellbeing, which is key to creating trauma-informed workplaces.

The See Me in Work e-Learning Portal is an easy-to-use programme to help you understand more about mental health stigma and discrimination in work.

Case studies

You can view our case studies to learn how other organisations have implemented mentally healthy working practices.

Supporting mentally healthy workplaces: national learning network for employers

A new national learning network to help employers promote and support mentally healthy workplaces has been established.

The network is jointly hosted by the Scottish Government, Public Health Scotland and See Me.

To find out more, visit our National learning network for employers.

Mental health and suicide prevention learning provision

This is a review of the publicly available mental health and suicide prevention learning programmes in Scotland.

It does not include self-directed learning or programmes that focus on professional roles.

Feedback from programme trainers, providers and commissioners highlights:

  • what works well
  • opportunities for improvement

Major areas for improvement include:

  • matching the learning needs of participants to appropriate programmes
  • measuring the impact of learning on service responses

The review sets out five focus areas and suggested actions. 

This is to improve mental health and suicide prevention learning for workforces and communities in Scotland.

View the Mental health and suicide prevention learning provision.

Scottish Government | Riaghaltas na h-Alba | gov.scot