Hilda Campbell MBE: COPE Scotland - A Story of Relationships, Co-Design, and Legacy

The story of COPE Scotland is a story of relationships and connections between people with lived experience of mental distress, communities facing multiple challenges, people seeking to offer support, and partners working together to find ways for people and the planet to suffer less. It is a story of network weaving, co-design and production, and servant leadership. A story of collaboration not competition, where the capacity for those providing services, using services, and communities is enhanced by creating conditions for trust to build and realising our collective potential. A story of having the courage to say, 'this is not working' and the patience and perseverance to explore alternatives, even against the odds. It is a story of creativity and imagination, to find a collective vision of a kinder world. The following captures the essence of that story.

Once upon a time, 1st of April 1991 to be exact, the first person to work for what is now COPE Scotland walked into the social work department in Drumchapel to take up post. Back in 1991 mental health wasn't really discussed, it was mental illness. Asking communities and people with lived experience 'how would you spend this money?' wasn't the norm. However, that's what we did, with support from local volunteers. From this initial engagement the vision and objectives for the charity were born. Our core mission: to work with others to find ways where people and the planet suffer less. We have grown not from boardrooms or policy papers, but a strong value base which has at its core listening to and respecting the voices of lived experience and a deep commitment to working together, recognising the many experts in the room. What we learned was that mental distress often resulted from life challenges that could lead to anxiety, depression, hopelessness, and helplessness. A pill alone was not the solution. People needed something more.

Co-designing and developing solutions over 35 years, we have touched the lives of thousands across Glasgow and beyond. Our impact cannot be measured solely in numbers. It is the softer indicators that are harder to quantify: a young child thanking you for giving their mum back her smile, a community group discovering new ways to support one another and no longer needing paid workers, a volunteer realising their own capacity to make a difference, a person who was despairing and considering suicide deciding to give their life a chance.

Our approach has included co-designing resources and sharing them freely. From practical self-care and self-management wellbeing tools to training programmes, coaching and mentoring to community development initiatives and more. We recognise the impact emotions can have on mental health and wellbeing, and our work has included sharing practical strategies for managing difficult moments. Our approach has always been rooted in compassion rather than clinical distance. We believe in promoting self-agency and resilience to help people take ownership of their own wellbeing journeys, it is their life, their community, we just share the journey for a while when the road is hard, or people are seeking a new direction that works better for them.

We recognise no one person or charity has all the answers, it's when we pull together that real change happens. Our work has included establishing and convening communities of practice, bringing together professionals, volunteers, and community members to share learning and build collective capacity. We see ourselves as a pebble in a pond, helping to create ripples which then take themselves in the direction that makes sense for them.

We are recognised as a subject matter expert in mental health and wellbeing, contributing to policy discussions, healthcare improvement initiatives, and cross-sector partnerships. Our voice has consistently advocated for co-production and design led by experience, ensuring that those who use services have genuine power in shaping them.

We were one of the third sector groups involved in the original social prescribing work that led to the development of the now National Community Links Practitioners programme. We became local champions for the prevention of suicide. We were part of the first cohort for ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) and MHFA (Mental Health First Aid). The evidence of our work in suicide prevention helped contribute to Glasgow City receiving the Suicide Safer Community Award by Living Works.

We have been asked to speak at many events locally, city-wide, and nationally on what we have learned since we began and were finalists in the Health and Social Care Self-Management Champions of the Year awards for our work in promoting self-management. We are also recognised champions in selfcare and have been the focus of many case studies e.g. RCN case study: Rebel with a Cause. Hilda Campbell was awarded an MBE in the New Years Honours List in 2022 for services to mental health during the Covid 19 Pandemic.

We were one of the founding cohorts of the Q Community, a connected community working together to improve health and care quality across the U.K. and Ireland and remain active in that space convening two groups with a focus on staff wellbeing and relationships through the principles of Network weaving.

We recognised the one-to-one work which was core to what we did for so many years is now being offered by others. However, we could not stop what we had been doing overnight. Between 2020 and 2023 we phased out the one-to-one service. With limited funding to support initiatives, we did not want to find ourselves in competition with the very community groups and new organisations we have seen emerge. We work collaboratively not competitively. We transitioned from a direct provider of services to a virtual learning platform that shared what we learned since 1991 and developed new responses to the emerging challenges we all face to our mental health and wellbeing. We are now in the final phase of our planned exit strategy as success is also what you leave behind. We transferred our resources and website to a partner organisation who we know will help keep our legacy alive Snowdrop Argyll Legacy. While we retained a simpler website which has a sole focus on the Glaswegian Way to wellbeing, these materials shall also go on to be shared when we are gone COPE Scotland. We are working with our local Council for the Voluntary Sector in Glasgow also on our legacy materials GCVS. Success is also that you are no longer needed.

Hilda Campbell MBE (the first person to walk in the door of the social work department back in 1991)………. And what next for me after COPE? Well, I am a social architect but that is another story LinkedIn profile.