Open Your Mind (Northern Ireland)
A unique piece of research into mental health was launched at the University of Ulster on 25 January 2010. A survey of students was carried out as part of the Open Your Mind project and aims to provide a measure of awareness and attitudes towards mental health among the further and higher education population across Northern Ireland.
The research has highlighted that more than one in ten students is suffering from mental ill health. The findings can be downloaded from the NUS/USI website, the Student Movement in Northern Ireland.
Improving Performance through Wellbeing & Engagement
Improving performance through wellbeing and engagement is a two year national project funded by the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE) in partnership with the Scottish Funding Council and the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales to support institutions to enhance their performance through their people.
The project is led by the Universities of Leeds and Glasgow in partnership with the Universities of Birmingham, Bristol, Chester, Newcastle, Winchester and Queen Mary, London, and Grimsby Institute for Further and Higher Education.
The project aims to:
- Develop a higher education specific business case for employee wellbeing and engagement - showing what aspects make have the biggest impact on performance
- Support institutions to enhance their practice by developing a bank of practical case studies and resources
- Support learning and sharing across the sector by developing an employee wellbeing network, supported by regional meetings.
National Research and Development Project on Healthy Universities
Following a mini-project call on Health Promoting Universities, the University of Central Lancashire was awarded £5,000 worth of funding from the Higher Education Academy Health Sciences and Practice Subject Centre (matched by the Department of Health). The aim of this National Research and Development Project, undertaken during 2008, was to scope and report on the potential for a national programme on Healthy Universities that could contribute to health, well-being and sustainable development.
The full report in PDF format is available by clicking on the link.
Stressed Out and Struggling (Young Minds)
'Stressed Out and Struggling Project' is a three year project funded by the Big Lottery Fund. It aims to highlight the mental health needs of 16-25 year-olds and campaigns to improve access to and acceptability of mental health services for this age group. Reports and publications from the Project can be found on the site.
Response and Prevention in Student Suicide
RaPSS is a UK research project which will look specifically at student suicide within higher education. The research team will work with a number of HEIs across the UK.
RaPSS is a joint project between PAPYRUS, University of Central Lancashire and King's College London. The research is managed by Professor Nicky Stanley and Professor Jill Manthorpe both of whom are experienced researchers in this area. They are also the authors of the book "Student Mental Health Needs: Problems and Responses."
Previous Projects
For details of previous national mental health projects, click on the link.