Specific guidance on Reporting to Parents and Involving / Engaging Parent Councils during COVID–19 was published in November 2020. It states that “alternative methods and approaches to reporting will need to be used” in the current circumstances. Digital and online approaches are suggested as alternatives to in person meetings, and schools will be seeking to ensure engagement takes place such that all parents and carers can participate.

There is no specific guidance on meeting timings. Guidance emphasises that strong communications and collaboration between home and school remain key to ensure parents and carers can support their children and young people. Headteachers and managers will be working to ensure their setting or school continues to involve and engage parents and families .

Guidance states parents or carers may accompany children onto school premises where this is agreed and is considered necessary to support children and young people, including in relation to wellbeing, progress and behaviour.

Within the current control period, 2019 – 2024, it is the intention to (a) deliver the full electrification of the existing single track route between East Kilbride and Glasgow central and b) to deliver the relocation of Hairmyres railway station approx. 600 m to the west transforming it into an active travel hub.

In addition the project will c) enhance passenger facilities and circulation at East Kilbride with a new station building and d) continue to operate a four trains per hour service at peak times using cleaner, greener trains offering a zero-emissions service between East Kilbride and Glasgow Central.

Migrant Help and the Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance (TARA) were awarded a combined £1,484,606 for the current financial year to support adult victims of human trafficking and exploitation across Scotland. Support can include accommodation, assistance with day to day living, medical advice and treatment, language translation and interpretation, counselling, legal advice, help accessing other services and, if the victim wishes, repatriation.

Both Migrant Help and TARA maintain crisis accommodation which is available to potential victims of trafficking and exploitation.

The Victim Centred Approach Fund, which includes funding to support adult victims of human trafficking and exploitation, opened for applications on 18 October 2021. Information on the application process, including timelines, can be found at Victim Centred Approach Fund - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Potential victims of human trafficking can present or be recovered in a wide range of situations. First Responder organisations such as Police Scotland, Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority, Border Force, local authorities, the Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance (TARA) and Migrant Help can identify and refer potential victims to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). The NRM is the UK-wide system for identifying victims of trafficking and is operated by the Single Competent Authority (SCA) within the Home Office. Adults must provide informed consent to enter this process.

In June 2021, the Home Office launched a series of 12 month pilots to test devolving the responsibility to make NRM decisions for child victims of trafficking from the Home Office to local authorities. Glasgow City Council is one of ten pilot sites and the pilot has been underpinned by Scotland-specific guidance . The pilot will be subject to an evaluation by the Home Office which the Scottish Government will consider for any future policy development.

A range of training and awareness raising resources have been developed to increase the likelihood of victims being identified. In March this year, we launched a NRM toolkit for First Responders which aims to improve the formal identification of victims and we are establishing a working group to ensure the ongoing consideration of the quality and availability of training and awareness raising resources.

The Scottish Government’s National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland 2021 provides practitioners with information on identifying and responding to concerns about children or young people who have experienced or are at risk of experiencing abuse or neglect, including child victims of human trafficking and exploitation.

The decision to deliver the full electrification of the single track option between East Kilbride and Busby does not impact on the redevelopment of (i) East Kilbride and (ii) Hairmyres railway station. The project will deliver enhanced station facilities at East Kilbride and the construction of the new Hairmyres station with the enhanced facilities will be transformational in providing an active travel hub for passengers along this vital route.

This project will deliver for local communities with much needed accessibility improvements at key stations along the length of the route and the full electrification of the corridor will deliver a step change in capacity by using greener trains. Should passenger demand levels increase post Covid-19, this demand can be met by using increased train capacity rather than providing additional services.

All under 18 year olds are exempt from our COVID-19 status certification scheme. We will, however, keep this under review as the vaccine is rolled out to younger age groups, which takes into account important factors such as disruption to education.

Our decisions are taken, and reviewed on the latest data and clinical evidence. Our review process includes consideration of the impact assessments, such as the Children’s Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment.

The scheme is a necessary and proportionate measure limited to activities that are higher risk and is an alternative to the potential closure of higher risk venues. We have made clear that certification will never be a requirement for access to public services including education.

FLS takes an evidence-led approach to its deer management activities. On the National Forests and Land (NFL), FLS has a target of not incurring more than 10% deer damage to young trees. In 2020 the 3 year rolling average of deer damage impacts was 18% for the leaders on young trees, i.e. trees planted for 1 year in the ground. This is well above the FLS target. The regional variation for damage impacts ranged from 7% to 38% in 2020. Results at site level in 2020 ranged from 0% to 100% damage of young trees.

Along with monitoring deer impacts on biodiversity, FLS also monitors deer populations (densities). Over the past 5 years approximately one third of NFL have been surveyed as part of a rolling programme. The mean average deer density in these survey areas have ranged from 4.2 deer per km2 to 64.7 deer per km2. The FLS target range as published in the FLS deer management strategy in 2014 is between 2 and 7 deer per km2. Of the land surveyed in the last five years, 89% has deer density well above this widely accepted.

FLS works in partnership with neighbouring land managers with similar management objectives and FLS operatives therefore do, in specific locations or project areas carry out collaborative deer management operations on neighbouring ground. FLS data will therefore reflect this. Occasionally an FLS operative may make a simple numerical error when inputting a grid reference into the Wildlife Management System.

FLS takes an holistic approach to its management of land, forests and deer on NFL. It manages around 630,000 ha of land (9% of Scotland), of which approximately one third is open ground including open hill. Its aim is to protect a wide range of habitats and environments across NFL whether forested, riparian or open hill in order to deliver Scottish Government land-use priorities such as climate change mitigation, carbon capture through growing trees, peatland restoration, ecosystem services and biodiversity enhancement, all of which have added immediacy, impetus and focus to our deer management operation. FLS therefore has a very clear need to use Out of Season authorisations on the open hill as well as in forest and woodland areas. FLS always aims to achieve the highest standards of animal welfare when undertaking all deer culling operations, in line with best industry practice; i.e. when culling adult female deer prior to the start of the official open season all efforts should be made to cull associated juveniles first, if in any doubt about leaving a dependant young then the adult should not be culled.

Booster vaccinations in Scotland started as soon as possible once the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) provided their advice on boosters, which stated that the booster dose should be offered no earlier than six months after completion of the primary vaccine course.

627,898 people have received a booster to 29 October, and we are working as quickly as we can, prioritising those most vulnerable.

Data on boosters by JCVI priority group is not yet published. We continue to work closely with Public Health Scotland to develop the vaccination data to provide robust statistics that enhance public understanding.

The report ‘ How Should Scotland Manage its Scrap Steel?’ is the first in a series of reports being produced by Zero Waste Scotland looking at the circular opportunities for the energy transition in Scotland. I very much welcome the work being done by Zero Waste Scotland in this area and look forward to seeing the follow up reports, which will help inform our policy going forward. The report is very timely given the emphasis from COP26 in helping energy intensive industries like the steel sector as they move towards net zero.