Chamber and committees

While the Scottish Government commissioned the Lessons Learned Report, the recommendations are for those involved in the National Bargaining arrangement to take forward. The Scottish Government has no powers to impose an implementation plan on stakeholders.

However, to encourage the taking forward of the findings of the report, I met with a range of stakeholders on 13 March to commence a dialogue around next steps for the Sector. I will continue to engage with this group as they, I hope, are able to work towards finding a better way forward than currently exists.

The Scottish Government considers youth work within the school environment to be incredibly valuable.

An independent review of Community Learning and Development (CLD), was launched in December 2023 and is expected to conclude in June 2024. This review aims to assess the impact of CLD on learners across Scotland which will provide valuable insights for the delivery of CLD in a reformed education system.

As part of our work to develop a sustainable healthcare workforce, we continue to look for opportunities to increase levels of student attraction to healthcare professions. Careers in NHS Scotland are promoted on the NHS Education Scotland (NES) NHS careers website, designed to promote opportunities to school leavers, those in education and those looking to change careers. This site can be accessed at NHSScotland Careers

Additionally, NES are leading on the AHP Careers National Working Group. The group have developed materials for a national career service including a ‘workshop toolkit’ for careers advisors and teachers.

Following the completion of the Allied Health Professions (AHP) Education and Workforce Policy Review, an advisory group has been established. NES are represented on this group and will work in conjunction with the Scottish Government, and wider stakeholders, to oversee the effective implementation of the recommendations.

The group held its second meeting on 4 March 2024 and will consider the timescales required to meet the overarching aims at its future meetings, scheduled in June and October 2024.

The Scottish Government invests significantly in skills development, including through a £2.4 billion investment in the post-school education and skills system. This includes £200 million for Skills Development Scotland to deliver against Scottish Government priorities, including our net zero ambitions.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on what proportion of this support is targeted to SMEs in the construction sector.

Of the 2.5m jobs in Scotland, the research mapped nearly 40% of those as green jobs. Of those green jobs, 13% were classified as ‘new and emerging’ construction sector jobs, 12% were ‘enhanced skills and knowledge’ construction sector jobs, and 25% were ‘increased demand’ construction sector jobs. The research did not seek to define how many of these were as a result of policy initiatives nor does the Scottish Government hold that information.

The full report can be found here: https://www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk/media/q2lhg1v5/green-jobs-in-scotland-report_final-4.pdf

It remains the Scottish Government’s intention to update the School Premises (General Requirements and Standards) (Scotland) Regulations 1967.

Given the time elapsed between the consultation that took place in 2017-18, we must now consider the updated context that the regulations exist in.

We are now taking this work forward and will re-consult on the Regulations in due course.

The Scottish Government welcomes the participation of civil society in developing local responses to issues affecting people in Scotland.

It is for Local Authorities, Health Boards and other public services to best engage on issues regarding service delivery at a local level, and the Scottish Government encourages all voluntary and community organisations to work with public bodies for the best outcomes for their communities.

Individual voluntary sector organisations are not routinely involved in Scottish Government Resilience Room meetings.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W- 26745 on 18 April 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The information requested is available on the Scottish Transport Statistics 2023, published on 27 March 2024, at Tables 9.15 and 9.16 and via CalMac’s website and can be found by following the links below:

www.transport.gov.scot/publication/scottish-transport-statistics-2023/

www.calmac.co.uk/corporate/your-carrying-statistics

The carryings statistics for 2023 on the CalMac website, are up until 16 May 2023, although further carryings should be available in due course.