Question reference: S4W-00362
- Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 31 May 2011
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Current status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 9 June 2011
Question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it provides guidance to NHS boards regarding how much they should allocate to funding mental health advocacy services.
Answer
The Scottish Government sets the national direction of policy on mental health and provides funding to agencies, including NHS boards and local authorities to support implementation of these policies. The management of local actions in implementing national policy, and decisions on local spending priorities are the responsibility of relevant local agencies.
Under the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, advocacy is provided, or its provision secured, at local level by local authorities and the NHS. As recognised in the 2010 report by the Parliament’s Equal Opportunities Committee, significant resources were given to local government and health boards as part of the implementation of the 2003 Act. Since 2005-06, overall funding for local authorities has included £13 million per year to help them implement the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, of which advocacy is an important part. Similarly, £5 million per year has been made available to NHS boards to help them deliver the Act.