Resources for: Parents and Carers and Mental Health Support
Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also affects how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through to adulthood. Reference
Breathing Space
Breathing Space is a free, confidential phoneline for anyone in Scotland over the age of 16 who is feeling low, anxious or depressed.
Helpline number: 0800 83 85 87
Web: https://breathingspace.scot/
Al -Anon Family Groups
Al-Anon Family Groups offers free and inclusive local meetings for anyone whose life is or has been affected by someone else's drinking.
Helpline number: 0800 0086 811
Web: www.al-anonuk.org.uk
Anna Freud Centre
The Anna Freud Centre transforms mental health by working with infants, children, young people and their families, their communities and professionals to deliver timely evidence-based support for all.
Web: www.annafreud.org/
Carers of West Dunbartonshire
Carers of West Dunbartonshire provides a range of support for carers who are 18 and over.
Phone: 0141 941 1550
Web: www.carerswd.org/
Charlie Waller Resource Library
Charlie Waller works with young people, parents and carers, schools, colleges, universities and employers to give people the confidence and skills to look after their mental health.
Web: www.charliewaller.org/resource-library/
Children 1st and Parentline
Children 1st works to keep children safe, loved and well and together with their families. They offer practical, emotional and financial support to prevent and protect children and their families from harm and to support them to recover from trauma and abuse. If your family are feeling stressed or anxious Children 1st Parentline can help.
Helpline number: 08000 28 22 33
Web: www.children1st.org.uk/
Combined Minds
Combined Minds is a free app to help families and friends support a young person who has certain mental ill-health conditions. It helps them find ways to provide the right environment to help the young person affect their own change.
Web: www.combinedminds.co.uk/
Crisis Counselling (Erskine Counselling)
Crisis Counselling offers counselling therapy to children and young people aged 10 and over experiencing emotional and mental health difficulties. Referral through Education services.
Web: www.crisiscounselling.co.uk/
Distress Brief Intervention Service (Young person)
The Distress Brief Intervention (DBI) service provides support quickly to young people who are experiencing distress and feeling overwhelmed emotionally. Referrals are made by your GP or the police if aged 16-24 years (or up to 26 years if you are care experienced), or someone in school or college (from age 14 years). The service will contact you within 24 hours of your referral and will support you for up to 14 days, working with you to address some of the difficulties you may be experiencing now and in the future.
Web: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64l1JrM8Tio
Families Outside
Families Outside provides help, information and support for families affected by imprisonment via a Helpline and Regional Family Support Coordinators. They also provide training and information to professionals who come into contact with families affected by imprisonment, such as teachers, social workers, health professionals, the police, and prison staff.
Helpline number: 0800 254 0088
Web: www.familiesoutside.org.uk/
Feartools
An app for older teens or young adults featuring an anxiety test, relaxing music, guided meditation, TED talks, a thought diary and ideas for activities to help when you’re feeling anxious.
Web: www.feartools.com/
Feeling Good
Feeling Good offers Positive Mental Training audio programmes which can help you feel better, lift your mood and recover from stress, anxiety and depression by building resilience and developing positive feelings.
Web: www.feelinggood.app/
Happy Maps
HappyMaps website pools some of the best mental health resources for parents and carers, and for young people and children, in one place.
Web: www.happymaps.co.uk/
LGBT Hero
LGBT HERO is the national health and wellbeing charity supporting over 100,000 LGBTQ+ people a month by providing trusted information, advice and various types of support including one-to-one, group and peer-support.
Web: www.lgbthero.org.uk/
Lifelink
A confidential counselling service accessed through West Dunbartonshire secondary schools, where young people can chat to a counsellor to help manage personal and social issues which may be affecting their life.
Web: https://www.lifelink.org.uk/
Living Life
A free phone service run by a team of therapists, offering appointment-based telephone support based on cognitive behavioural therapy for anyone in Scotland over 16 years of age with low mood, mild to moderate depression, or anxiety.
Helpline number: 0800 328 9655
Web: www.breathingspace.scot/living-life/
Mood Gym
The Moodgym app is like an interactive self-help book which helps you to learn and practise skills which can help to prevent and manage symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Web: www.moodgym.com.au/
NHS Inform
NHS inform is Scotland's national health information service helping the people in Scotland to make informed decisions about their own health and the health of the people they care for. Also includes a service directory with details of health and wellbeing services across Scotland.
Web: www.nhsinform.scot
NHS24
The 111 service provides urgent care triage if you think you need A&E but its not life-threatening, and advice when your GP, pharmacy or dental practice is closed.
Web: www.nhs24.scot/
No panic
Provides a youth and adult helpline and services to sufferers and carers of people with panic, anxiety, phobias and obsessive compulsive disorders (OCD). No Panic also offers advice, support, recovery programs and help.
Helpline number: 0300 772 9844
Web: www.nopanic.org.uk
Runaway Helpline
Runaway Helpline can help if you are thinking about running away, if you have already run away, or if you have been away and come back. You can also contact if you are worried that someone else is going to run away or if they are being treated badly or abused.
Helpline number: call or text 116 000
Web: www.runawayhelpline.org.uk
SafeSpot
SafeSpot is designed to help you through tough spots. It gives you your own personalised coping plan, useful strategies and tools to help and directions to local resources to help you - all at your fingertips. Includes information on a range of mental health issues on the 'safespotopedia'.
Web: www.safespot.org.uk/
Samaritans
A 24 hour support service for anyone who’s struggling to cope, who needs someone to listen without judgement or pressure.
Web: www.samaritans.org
SHOUT Crisis text service
Shout is the UK's first and only free, confidential, 24/7 text messaging support service for anyone who is struggling to cope.
Helpline number: 85258 free text support service
Web: www.giveusashout.org/
Staying Safe from Suicidal Thoughts
If you’re struggling and you’re not sure if you want to live or die, can you, just for now, hold off making this decision and visit this website for some ideas about how to get through. There may be things that you - and other people - can do to make things better.
Web: www.stayingsafe.net/
Stepping Stones
Help for people over 16 years old in West Dunbartonshire who are experiencing common mental health difficulties such as depression, anxiety or stress. Stepping Stones also offers a Bereavement and Loss support service.
Phone: 0141 941 2929
Web: www.stepstones.org.uk
The Mix
The Mix is a UK based charity that provides free, confidential support for young people under 25 via online, social and mobile.
Phone: 0808 808 4994
Web: www.themix.org.uk/
Time for You - SAMH support service
Time for You is an online wellbeing support service for anyone experiencing mild to moderate emotional or mental health difficulties aged 16 and over and living in Scotland. Time for You offers access to Wellbeing Coaching and Counselling for anyone experiencing symptoms that have a limited effect on their daily life.
Web: www.samh.org.uk/about-us/our-work/time-for-you?mc_cid=00f4aeddf4&mc_eid=abf485ff65
Young Minds
Young minds provide young people with tools to look after their mental health. The website is full of advice and information on what to do if you're struggling with how you feel. There is also information to empower parents and adults who work with young people, to be the best support they can be to the young people in their lives.
Web: www.youngminds.org.uk/
Young People in Mind Service
Young People in Mind (YPIM) is for young people aged 0-21 years who are looked after and accommodated in West Dunbartonshire, including young people who are homeless or living in supported/homeless accommodation.
This service is also available to young people aged 16 – 25 who are vulnerable to homelessness whether care-experienced or non-care-experienced.
Young People in Mind offers a variety of therapeutic interventions to this group of young people who might have experienced adverse early life experiences or are struggling with their emotional or mental health.
The service aims to promote good mental health and emotional well-being.
YPIM offer individual interventions and consultation with young people and other professionals involved in their support plan.
Phone: 01389 754121
Web: http://www.wdhscp.org.uk/how-do-i-access-wdhscp-services/?#coll-3676
Anxiety UK
Offers a range of innovative and high quality services delivered by professionals. Free resources to download on a range of anxiety conditions.
Helpline number: 03444 775 774
Web: www.anxietyuk.org.uk/
Feeling Good Teens
Feeling Good offers Positive Mental Training audio programmes which can help you feel better, lift your mood and recover from stress, anxiety and depression by building resilience and developing positive feelings.
Web: https://www.feelinggood.app/teens-download/
SAMH (Scottish Action for Mental Health)
Whether you’re living with a mental health problem or supporting someone who is, accessing information about a condition is vital. SAMH provides resources, support and online information to help.
Helpline number: 0344 800 0550
Web: https://www.samh.org.uk/
NHSGGC Perinatal Mental Health Service
Scotland’s first specialist perinatal mental health inpatient and community service for mothers, babies and their families. We are a comprehensive service providing care and treatment to women who are pregnant or are up to one year postnatal and are at risk of, or are affected by, mental illness. We also offer expert advice to women considering pregnancy if they are at risk of a serious mental illness.
Phone: 0141 211 6500 for professionals
Web: https://www.nhsggc.scot/hospitals-services/services-a-to-z/perinatal-mental-health-service/
Wee Minds Matter
A specialist multi-disciplinary infant mental health service working with babies and their families during pregnancy and up to three years. The service aims to raise awareness of infant mental health for all professionals providing essential support to families. This includes midwives, health visitors, family nurses, GPs and other health, social care and early years professionals.
Phone: 0141 201 0808 for professionals
Web: https://www.nhsggc.scot/hospitals-services/services-a-to-z/specialist-childrens-services/hosted-and-tier-4-services/
PANDAS perinatal depression awareness and support
PANDAS is a community offering hope, empathy and peer-to-peer support for every parent, family or network affected by perinatal mental illness.
Helpline number: 0808 1961 776
Web: https://pandasfoundation.org.uk/
Parenting Mental Health
PMH is one of the few charities in the UK that specifically helps parents who are supporting a child with mental health challenges and whose needs and impact for positive change are all too often overlooked. Current support includes the Partnering not Parenting programme, a safe Facebook community with a variety of sub-groups to reduce isolation, Listening Circles, online support groups, as well as respite care. The work they do equips parents to deal with and cope more effectively with their situation, provides access to free resources, enables more appropriate support, better help for their child and improved mental health within the family.
Web: https://www.parentingmentalhealth.org/?
West Dunbartonshire Violence Against Women and Girls Partnership
West Dunbartonshire’s Violence against Women Partnership is a multiagency mechanism that works collaboratively to provide support to all victims of Gender-Based Violence and reduce its prevalence in the area. If you, or someone you know, are experiencing Domestic Abuse or other forms of GBV, we have resources and support services in the area. You can find more information on local specialist services and national resources on our website.
Web: http://www.wdhscp.org.uk/violence-against-women-and-girls/?