Sport and physical activity play an important role in supporting our physical, emotional, social and mental health.
Since 2020 sportscotland and SAMH (Scottish Action for Mental Health) have worked together to help partner organisations increase their understanding of mental health and wellbeing, as well as aims to build capacity across sport and physical activity communities.
Over the years, the learning and development offering provides insights into wellbeing, understanding mental health barriers to participation and inclusion, and exploring resources to support individuals to look after their wellbeing.
The sportscotland and SAMH Mental Health Route Map has supported all 32 local authorities and 19 Scottish Governing Bodies of Sport (SGBs) with the aim of improving confidence and capacity in this area across sport and physical activity environments across the country.
Since 2020, we have delivered a series of learning and development opportunities for sportscotland’s professional staff network engaging both local partner organisations and SGBs. The focus has been exploring and understanding mental health and wellbeing in the context of sport and physical activity.
Across 2025, we continue our focus on activating this learning, deepening understanding, and sharing good practice across local and national partners. This supports partners to achieve mental health and wellbeing outcomes for their communities, whilst contributing to the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion agenda, improving equality and reducing discrimination. This will ultimately ensure mental health and wellbeing is not a barrier to engaging, participating, and achieving in physical activity and sport.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Leads
43 individuals are currently part of a network championing mental health and wellbeing across 32 local and national partners. The network meets quarterly as a group with the aim of providing updates, peer learning, exploring new content, and sharing ideas for delivery. This staff member has a role to take learning back to their organisation, with a view to further embedding mental health and wellbeing into sport and physical activity.
Organisations represented in this network are asked to sign up to the SAMH Charter as this will support the learning journey.
Training has been provided on areas such as suicide prevention, managing anxiety, how to have a mental health conversation and mental health awareness in general - meaning SGBs and local authorities are well placed to provide open and welcoming environments for employees and participants in sport alike.
The network will meet quarterly encompassing 4 national full day face to face sessions exploring;
- Reflections on learning from previous route map - success and challenges
- Practical help in how to use tools from previous learning input
- Barriers to engagement on mental health and wellbeing work
- Support around developing partnerships to collaborate with organisations/people who have mental health problems themselves and to reduce barriers
- How to support young leaders – understand Education’s approach to mental health
- How to measure the impact of our work on mental health and wellbeing
- Liaising with staff teams to ensure new staff can access previous training
- SAMH Club level Charter implementation with local organisations
- Boundaries in their role as Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead - responsibilities and roles
Chief Executive of sportscotland, Forbes Dunlop said, “The continuing partnership with SAMH over the last five years, working together to form and implement the mental health route map has been fantastic. The aim of this partnership was to build understanding, confidence and capacity across sport and physical activity communities when it comes to mental health awareness and training.
It is important that we continue to work with as many of our local and national partners to implement the mental health route map and provide opportunities and training to as many people as possible.”
SAMH’s Chief Executive, Billy Watson, said: “Physical activity and sport have been proven to help people to improve their mental health, and our invaluable partnership with sportscotland has enabled us to work with teams and clubs across Scotland to share that message and help them to support their members.
“The popularity of the Mental Health Route Map is one of the many things we have achieved together and it’s great to see it having such an impact across Scotland.”
Find out more
- About the mental health route map
