In 2011 Iriss embarked on an asset mapping project with East Dunbartonshire Council to discover both the community assets in Kirkintilloch that were useful and available for positive mental health and well-being, but also to help others identify their own personal assets.
The project involved 59 people in total, 63% of which were people who had experience of, or who were, currently using mental health services in East Dunbartonshire. The rest were practitioners from across health, social work and voluntary sector providers.
The project process involved stakeholder interviews, mixed group workshops and also facilitation of one-to-one sessions with individuals. At each of these sessions different approaches, conversational tools and methodologies for mapping assets were tested.
The results of the study found the assets mapping approach to be particularly effective as a positive approach in engaging people to talk about their community, as well as opening up new conversations and dialogue about personal experiences.