THE Minister for Mental Wellbeing and Social Care, Kevin Stewart MSP, has launched a new engagement toolkit – Run your own Conversation Café – developed by the Scottish Recovery Network. 

The toolkit has been created to help organisations and services involve people with lived experience of mental health challenges in the planning, design, delivery and evaluation of mental health support.

People with lived experience of mental health problems have a wealth of experience, knowledge and skills to offer but often find it difficult to have their voices heard. 

Providing a different approach to engagement, a Recovery Conversation Café moves away from traditional consultation. It creates a welcoming environment where people are not just passive responders but active participants, listening to each other and building on ideas.

On launching the Run your own Recovery Conversation Café toolkit, the Minister said:

“I am delighted to be involved in the launch of this resource. We need to recognise the value of the voice of lived experience and integrate it into all parts of our mental health system.

“Lived experience enriches our understanding in a way no second hand accounts can. The Recovery Conversation Café approach is a really good example of an innovative way to capture what is important to people, allowing us to work together to make sure the valuable insights and ideas from people with lived experience are heard and acted on.”

The toolkit is based on learning from tried and tested initiatives from the Scottish Recovery Network and their partners. It’s proven to be a great way for people to share their experiences with others in a way that feels positive, connected and empowering.

The Mental Health Network Greater Glasgow worked in partnership with the Scottish Recovery Network to deliver a series of Recovery Conversation Cafés to identify what more can be done to support the mental health recovery of people they engage with. 

Ann Jones, Manager at the Mental Health Network Greater Glasgow, said:

“The Recovery Conversation Café approach gives people an opportunity to come together, share with and learn from other people with similar experiences. This approach supports people to maintain their wellbeing and take control of their recovery whilst generating invaluable insights and intelligence about what we can do to better support recovery.”