Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund

The Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund (CMHWF) for Adults was established in October 2021 and to date, it has distributed around £51 million to community initiatives supporting mental health and wellbeing across Scotland. Funding for a fourth year was announced in March 2024 and a further £15 million is available for 2024/25. The fourth round of funding has a strong focus on prevention and early intervention - it aims to support grassroots community groups in tackling mental health inequalities and addressing priority issues of social isolation and loneliness, suicide prevention and tackling poverty and inequality. In Year 4, there will be a continued emphasis on responding to the ongoing cost of living crisis and supporting those facing socio-economic disadvantage, with a particular focus on supporting the six priority groups identified under the Best Start Bright Futures: Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan.

• Only VASLan Members can apply. VASLan membership is free and organisations can apply for membership by sending an email to membership@vaslan.org.uk.
• All groups and organisations no matter how small or inexperienced you are. The only condition is that the award must be used to deliver the service in South Lanarkshire.

• equipment, materials and capital costs  
• one-off events  
• hall and room hire, including appropriate refreshments  
• participation costs  
• staffing costs  
• training costs  
• transport  
• utilities and running costs  
• volunteer expenses   
• safety equipment and PPE  

1. Tackle mental health inequalities through supporting a range of ‘at risk’ groups (as outlined in the Equalities section).  

2. Address priority issues of social isolation and loneliness, suicide prevention, poverty and inequality with a particular emphasis on responding to the cost-of-living crisis and support to those facing socio-economic disadvantage.  

3. Support small ‘grass roots’ community groups and organisations to deliver such activities.  

4. Provide opportunities for people to connect with each other, build trusted relationships and revitalise communities. 

Specifically, the intended outcomes of the Fund remain the same as in previous years, and are to:   

• Develop a culture of mental wellbeing and prevention within local communities and across Scotland with improved awareness of how we can all stay well and help ourselves and others.  
• Foster a strategic and preventative approach to improving community mental health.  
• Support the resilience of communities and investing in their capacity to develop their own solutions, including through strong local partnerships.  
• Tackle the social determinants of mental health by targeting resources and collaborating with other initiatives to tackle poverty and inequality.  

• Small, 1 year Grants up to £10,000 
• Multi-year Grants between £10,000 - £20,000 
• Partnership Grants between £20,001 - £35,000 

• Fund guidelines and example application form will be online from the 11th of August 
• Fund opens 25th of August 
• Fund closes 6th of October at 5pm  
• Panels will meet week of the 12th of January  
• Payments will be from the 1st of February 

Full details of the evaluation process can be found in the guidance document. 

Guidance documents will be available soon.