Recovery College characteristics, fidelity, commissioning models and unit costs: a cross-sectional global survey of 28 countries

BackgroundRecovery Colleges (RCs) support the recovery of individuals who have mental health issues, using the principles of coproduction and adult learning. There has been little international research on RCs and none investigating costs, staffing, or fidelity to these and other principles. We aimed to characterise RCs internationally. MethodsWe conducted an observational study integrating two equivalent cross-sectional surveys, one conducted within England in 2021 and one in all other countries in 2022. We included all RCs meeting recovery orientation, coproduction and adult learning criteria. Managers completed a survey capturing organisational and student characteristics, fidelity and budget. RCs were grouped by country and continent to allow for regression models exploring continental differences in fidelity.OutcomesWe identified 221 RCs operating across 28 countries, spanning five continents. Overall, 174 (79%) RCs participated in the survey. Most scored high on fidelity. Compared with England, RCs in Asia scored lower on overall fidelity, ‘coproduction’ and ‘tailored to the student’. Annual budgets in the 133 (60%) colleges providing economic data were €0-2,550,000, varying extensively within and between continents. Among the RCs who provided data, annual budgets totalled €30m, providing 19,864 courses for 55,161 students. InterpretationRCs exist in many countries. There is an international consensus on key operating principles, especially equality and a commitment to recovery, and most RCs achieve moderate to high fidelity, irrespective of the income band of their country. Cultural differences need to be considered in assessing coproduction and approaches to individualising support.