Continuing her summer recess schedule, Emma Roddick MSP recently visited Skye-based charity and social enterprise RagTag and Textile. Established in 2003, the charity promotes mental and social well-being in North-West Scotland through guided, creative workshops and drop-in “cake and conversation” days. RagTag have a unique framework that supports both mental health and the environment. By [...]

As part of her summer recess tour, Emma Roddick recently visited the Distress Brief Intervention in Inverness. Emerging from the Scottish Government’s work on the Suicide Prevention and Mental Health strategies, the Distress Brief Intervention approach works to improve the response to people presenting in distress. Speaking on her visit Roddick said: “It’s clear that [...]

Emma walking alongside a Street Pastor observing one of their shifts Emma Roddick has dedicated her first weeks of summer recess to meet with community groups and charities supporting mental health across the Highlands & Islands. These groups included Highland Befrienders, Centred (formerly Birchwood Highland), and Inverness Street Pastors. Following these visits, Roddick said: "I [...]

SNP MSP Emma Roddick has called on her party to do more to ensure that public sector workers are trauma-informed, telling them that witnesses to the Social Justice and Social Security Committee have reported being re-traumatised or frightened to engage with services due to difficult experiences. She said: “A message that’s come through loud and [...]

Highlands and Islands MSP Emma Roddick praised the mental health support work developed by Penumbra at their Edinburgh Crisis Centre and called for a similar model to be rolled out across the country, including in the Highlands and Islands. The Edinburgh Crisis Centre is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and provides [...]

Emma Roddick has today raised the issue of mental health services in the Highlands and Islands by asking the Scottish Government to provide an update on the Distress Brief Intervention programme, highlighting the need for island and rural communities to have equal access to crisis services. The pilot project, which was launched in the Highlands [...]

Highlands and Islands MSP Emma Roddick is planning to answer questions surrounding mental health in Scotland at Eden Court’s OneTouch Theatre on Thursday evening. The event, organised by local personal trainer Alan Goodwin, is part of a series of talks aiming to destigmatise mental illness through open discussion. Emma Roddick, who will be supporting Mr [...]

SNP MSP for the Highlands & Islands, Emma Roddick, has used her column in the Highland News & Media Group to talk candidly about her own mental health experiences. As a member of the Scottish Parliament's Cross-Party Group on Mental Health, Roddick is particularly interested in what support can be provided to those who are [...]

In her first speech in Parliament on 1st June 2021, Emma Roddick addressed the ongoing mental health crisis that is especially acute in the Highlands and Islands, drawing attention to the fact that loneliness and isolation are an ongoing problem in rural communities and warning that these issues cannot be ignored during the recovery period. You can watch [...]