A pioneering peer support project, Plan 2 Change employs people with a personal experience of mental ill health to act as ‘recovery guides’
for others.

This unique and distinctive service was developed by Penumbra, NHS Lothian and the Scottish Recovery Network with funding from the Scottish Executive’s Social Inclusion Division as part of a new initiative designed to improve services for people experiencing multiple and complex needs.

The service involves the employment of peer support specialists on the basis of their own personal lived experience of recovery. This approach, in allowing peer workers to contribute or ‘give back’, not only helps promote the recovery of people engaging with the service but also promotes the recovery and inclusion of the peer support workers who, like the majority of people who experience long-term mental health problems may experience problems in securing employment and the exclusion that can often entail.

Research has shown that identifying with others like them creates an environment in which individuals can share suggestions and tips for recovery with each other, allowing them to try out different strategies with the support of their peers.

This service is available in Edinburgh and we hope to expand throughout Scotland soon. For more information on the project in Edinburgh see the menu on the left.