Positive Minds is a peer led training programme with a focus on mental health. Having successfully been delivered in the East end of Dundee, the programme was rolled out within the central area of the city. Young people were consulted to ensure the programme and the activities were relevant to them.

Once young people have completed the Positive Minds training programme, they then design and deliver sessions for other young people in order to raise awareness of Positive Mental Health.

As part of the group, young people build their own health and wellbeing and develop their communication and teamwork skills. The sessions were delivered weekly by CLD practitioners with input from various agencies such as Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and The Corner, exploring all aspects of mental health. Working in partnership helped to deliver and discuss sensitive topics areas, providing accurate and credible knowledge.

Nine young people from the group are in the final stages of the training and working towards an SQA level 4 in Mental Health and Wellbeing Award, looking at the factors that can affect mental health and wellbeing: social, emotional, personal, and cultural. The group designed a leaflet focusing on each of these four areas and carried out social media investigations looking at the positives and negatives of being online.

The programme, which included a residential trip helped young people to gain confidence and become active citizens within their local community with the young people planning and supporting various community events. The group increased confidence in discussing mental health issues and were able to apply strategies to cope with mental health issues in their own lives. As a result of the positive minds programme one group member has become a regular volunteer with the Youth Work team. One participant said they have gained more knowledge and confidence by participating in the group.

“True, it was one of the best trips I’ve ever been to so thank you very much! Honestly appreciate it a lot!”

“Thank you so much, it was an escape from reality”

Next steps

Positive Minds started as a partnership with The Corner funded through Our Place Douglas. The recruitment focused on young people from Douglas. The programme has now expanded across the city, and we aim to continue to deliver Positive Minds as part of our peer led approaches.

Improvement questions

• How well do we listen, learn from and act on the lived experiences of, and impact of identity, on learners, communities and other stakeholders to inform our approaches?
• How well are we supporting learners of all ages to be more resilient and to manage change?
• How well is our CLD offer enhancing the physical, social and/or emotional wellbeing of participants?