The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC), which campaigns to improve services for vulnerable children and young people, has warned that a Scottish Government commitment to allocate 1 per cent of frontline NHS spending to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) by the end of the previous parliamentary term in Spring 2026 is now impossible to meet.
Figures from Public Health Scotland for financial year 2024/25, published today (11th August), show that spending on CAMHS accounted for 0.84 per cent of frontline NHS expenditure, up from 0.81 per cent in 2023/24 and 0.75 per cent in 2022/23 (see Notes to Editors for full figures).
The only health board to achieve this 1 per cent target is NHS Lothian.
Spending on CAMHS in Scotland in 2024/25 stood at just over £146.5 million, an increase of £12.5 million from just over £134 million in 2023/24. Given the scale of the remaining gap, it is now impossible to see how the 1 per cent target id to be achieved in 2025/26, the final year of the previous parliamentary term.
A separate commitment to allocate 10 per cent of frontline NHS expenditure to mental health services more broadly also looks unlikely to have been met. The latest figures show that this stood at 9.14 per cent in 2024/25, compared with 9.03 per cent the previous year and 8.53 per cent in 2022/23.
The commitments to direct 1 per cent of frontline NHS spending specifically to CAMHS and 10 per cent to mental health services overall were made in the Scottish Government’s 2021 Programme for Government.
When the commitments were made, in financial year 2021/22, spending stood at 0.66 per cent for CAMHS and 8.66 per cent for mental health services more broadly.
While spending has increased since then, the pressures on children and young people have also intensified. The long shadow of the Covid pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis and persistent poverty in Scotland’s most economically disadvantaged communities have all contributed to the scale of the mental health challenge.
With the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government due in September, the SCSC notes that this is a critical opportunity to reaffirm these commitments and set out a clear and credible plan for delivering them.
A spokesperson for the SCSC said:
“While there has been progress in increasing investment, the figures are clear: the Scottish Government is falling short of its commitment to spend 1 per cent of frontline NHS expenditure on children and young people’s mental health services. The wider commitment to spend 10 per cent on mental health services also remains unmet.
“These targets matter. They reflect the scale of investment needed to address Scotland’s growing mental health challenges and ensure that children and young people can access the support they need, when they need it. Against the continuing impact of the pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis and poverty, the need for action has never been more urgent.
“With the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government due in September, there is a critical opportunity to reaffirm these commitments and set out a clear and credible plan for delivering them. We urgently need to see the necessary investment put in place to meet the 1 per cent CAMHS and 10 per cent wider mental health spending targets.
“But increased spending must go hand in hand with a decisive shift towards prevention and early intervention. Mental health needs to be at the heart of policymaking across government, tackling the underlying causes of poor mental health and ensuring support is available before children and young people reach crisis point.
“The Programme for Government must therefore turn these commitments into action. Scotland’s children and young people cannot afford further delay. Meeting these spending targets must be treated as a priority, backed by sustained investment and a clear timetable for delivery.”
-ENDS-
Notes to Editors
1. Public Health Scotland, NHS Scotland Mental Health Expenditure
| Financial year | Total net NHS expenditure (£) | Total mental health expenditure (£) | CAMHS expenditure (£) | Mental health expenditure as a % of total NHS expenditure | CAMHS as % of total NHS expenditure |
| 2024/25 | 17,522,453,096 | 1,601,098,316 | 146,528,645 | 9.14% | 0.84% |
| 2023/24 | 16,462,628,663 | 1,486,265,478 | 134,030,817 | 9.03% | 0.81% |
| 2022/23 | 15,317,205,444 | 1,306,836,245 | 114,799,084 | 8.53% | 0.75% |
| 2021/22 | 14,797,490,449 | 1,280,803,772 | 97,714,563 | 8.66% | 0.66% |
| 2020/21 | 14,238,992,066 | 1,229,351,967 | 88,253,906 | 8.63% | 0.62% |
| 2019/20 | 12,686,600,865 | 1,066,931,443 | 76,928,279 | 8.41% | 0.61% |
| 2018/19 | 11,909,581,776 | 1,006,177,332 | 67,247,635 | 8.45% | 0.56% |
| 2017/18 | 11,568,617,961 | 967,643,571 | 64,569,842 | 8.36% | 0.56% |
| 2016/17 | 11,247,598,622 | 936,686,003 | 56,580,120 | 8.33% | 0.50% |
| 2015/16 | 10,784,479,954 | 928,945,605 | 55,674,805 | 8.61% | 0.52% |
| 2014/15 | 10,355,010,272 | 905,923,792 | 49,934,523 | 8.75% | 0.48% |
Source: Public Health Scotland, Scottish Health Service Costs, 11th August 2026. Available at: https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/scottish-health-service-costs/scottish-health-service-costs-summary-for-financial-year-2024-to-2025/
2. About the Scottish Children’s Services Coalition
The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC) is an alliance of leading providers of specialist care and education to vulnerable children and young people, as well as support for their families or carers.
It is committed to improving the lives of these children and young people, and its vision is to make Scotland the best place in the world for them to grow up in.
The SCSC aims toachieve this through campaigning to improve support for these vulnerable individuals. This seeks to ensure that a wide range of high-quality, well-resourced and easily accessible services is provided. Tailored to individual needs, this will help them to achieve their full potential.
Members of the SCSC are:
Further information about the SCSC can be found atwww.thescsc.org.uk.
