This edition covers my 2.5 year journey in Scotland so far and a significant responsibility I now hold: being a trustee at the Scottish ADHD Coalition.
There’s a thread throughout – about change – that if the existing situation isn’t working for you, what can you do to affect that story?
I’ll cover
- Setting the scene: Peer Support Groups and why they matter
- What I did next
- The current Scottish ADHD landscape
- Scottish ADHD Coalition: Opening The Door
- Scottish ADHD Coalition: Plans!
Setting the scene: Peer Support Groups and why they matter
When I arrived in Glasgow in August 2023, I immediately sought out an ADHD group. I had never sought out an ADHD group previously, despite having been diagnosed a few years earlier, but the mental reset of moving country gave my brain a chance to review this matter afresh.
I went along to the Glasgow Adult Peer Support Group and had a whale of a time. I found people understood my language, my skip- and tangential-thinking, and didn’t mind me interrupting (…too much). Being heard and realising that I wasn’t alone was incrediblyvalidating – we share each other’s joy, and have empathy for the painful aspects.
It rather reminds me of attending in-person meetings of a certain network of IT people that I am still part of (hello Salesforce Trailblazers!).
Both give me a safe space to process my thoughts and emotions, understand the current environment, learn from one another and spark ideas, all with many people that often share a similar value set.
One takeaway: If you have ADHD, or think you might have ADHD,check Eventbrite, Facebook and Meetup to see if there’s an ADHD group in your locality, to meet a group of like-minded compassionate souls. The UK-based ADHD Aware also runs monthly online meetings. In Scotland there is also the Scotland ADHD Coalition’s listing.
What I did next
Gradually, I have become more involved with the running of the Glasgow peer support group, partly due to sheer necessity: our meeting venue being condemned, following an electrical fire, meant there was an opportunity to get stuck in!
We also used this happening to review what we were doing, and expand our services when looking at new venues: to formalise a second evening per month, which was previously just being tested occasionally. In raw numbers, 2.5 years ago we were a group that met once a month, with 25 attending. This year, we’ve just added a third evening, so we’re now helping 75 a month. All without advertising.
Worth noting that in the meantime, a parallel organisation has become established, initially as an off-shoot of the Peer Support Group. The Glasgow Adult ADHD Peer Socialising offers weekly opportunities to meet up in a less formal environment, offering everything from board games at a local library, to coffees and pub quizzes, and everything in between, creating a space which supports many more.
Second takeaway:Plant ideas in fertile soil, which is responsive to your offer.
The current Scottish ADHD landscape
Our ADHD group would love to claim that the above growth was because of the amazing space we created, but we don’t think that’s the only reason. Here in Scotland, ADHD waiting lists have increased exponentially, with strong rumours that local publicly-funded ADHD assessment services are about to be closed, so even after the four-year waiting period, a diagnosis won’t be obtainable. This has already happened elsewhere in Scotland, although there is a legal case based on discrimination law currently under way to challenge that approach: the basis being that mental health is not treated equally to physical health, which is against equality legislation.
It’s not like these services were good even in the first place, but that’s another story.
Grim factoid:Unlike in England, there is no “right to choose” or “shared care” in Scotland (where the state refunds the cost of seeing an alternative provider), so people with serious mental health conditions are just abandoned by the state.
The inevitable consequence, although I don’t have Scottish-specific facts to hand, because no one has invested in getting them, is that people reach crisis point or end up in prison. The rate of ADHD people in the criminal justice system isat least10x the baseline level as seen in the rest of society.
It’s not because ADHDers have a different moral compass, but asking the question “Why did you do that rash, spontaneous action, without thinking?” might provide a clue! Without access to medication, mindfulness, and coaching – all proven to help with ADHD – certain consequences are far more likely. Exercise can definitely be useful too in regulating ADHD, but only goes so far.
Scottish ADHD Coalition: Opening The Door
Enter the Scottish ADHD Coalition. They set up in 2017 to do the following:
- To raise awareness of ADHD and of the voluntary support groups available to parents and people with ADHD across Scotland.
- To build the capacity of leaders of voluntary ADHD groups to run effective, sustainable support in their local areas by sharing ideas, resources and encouragement between groups.
- To represent the views of member groups and the people they support, and provide a platform for joint campaigning to improve diagnosis and support for people with ADHD… with other organisations wherever possible and appropriate.
I had been in contact with the Scottish ADHD Coalition during 2023 and 2024 to try to get them to update their website when our group had to move venues. My email was acknowledged, but nothing happened. Twice. On the third time, inspiration struck: I added that I was experienced with IT and could normally work my way around a website – would they like assistance?
The door was opened, and conversation started.
Third takeaway:When wanting to volunteer it can be useful to find a specific point to help out with; it shows both skill and perception of the current landscape. Offering to do something specific reduces friction. It’s not ideal, but saying “can I volunteer” adds a lot of overhead, in that it requires time-poor charities to think, qualify and only then match your skills, as well as filter out many people who are well-intentioned but not realistic about their ability to commit.
Scottish ADHD Coalition: Plans!
Here’s the exciting bit: when I approached the Scottish ADHD Coalition the third time, luck was on my side. They were in a process of renewal and reaching out.
On reflection, we are the onlygroup covering the whole of Scotland that represents ADHDers. Sometimes when the call comes to step up, you have to answer. The Coalition was doing ADHD training, but other organisations now offer that; they’ve realised that it was important to focus on the core remit, as it’s easy to get side-tracked with projects which may be financially appealing, but take you away from your central mission.
The Coalition is now focused on being more proactive about helping establish new support groups, as these are a low-cost form of support for ADHDers, as well as supporting existing groups as and when they have needs. We are also proactively reaching out to the Scottish Parliament to highlight the solutions that alreadyexist in countries as diverse as Canada, the Netherlands and Sweden amongst others. The next step is to try to engage with the Scottish NHS, which seems to have no outreach at all to the ADHD community, despite ADHD being a formal medical diagnosis.
And where do I come in? I’ve been invited to join as a trustee. After a few months volunteering, there was a clear match in terms of values and aims. I bring my technical skills, lived experience, growing knowledge of the sector, experience as a support group organiser, as well as a clear compatibility in working with my fellow trustees. This hands-on position is a great responsibility, which I will do my best to honour.
The awesome thing about working with trustees who share the same vision and value set is that you can review existing processes, contribute your experience, inspire one another and take a moment to step back and ensure that current working practices still meet current circumstances.
I’ve already done some work on the website and improved underlying admin processes (updating the FAQs has saved so much time in answering emails!), but I get to learn from others too.
One of Bill Colley’s, our Chair, first discussion points was that although the Coalition claims to represent support groups, we haven’t actually checked that for many years(!) The action point was to invite all the Scottish ADHD Support Groups to a meeting, where we were pleased to learn that they were happy for us to continue supporting them, generating many ideas about how this could be better achieved in the process. I simply hadn’t thought of it – experience and perspective matter!
Concluding, fourth, takeaway:You can’t think of everything. Working in teams and recognising when it’s time to freshen up the staff/volunteer running order has massive benefits.
I write about neurodivergency matters, with a dash of inclusivity and tech. Subscribe directly to avoid missing out; you can have a nose through my back catalogue. Want even more? You can also follow me on Bluesky and/or LinkedIn.