Current status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 23 February 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of World Health Organization Resolution 76.6, adopted in May 2023, which recognises rehabilitation as essential to universal health coverage and calls for its integration across all levels of care, particularly primary care, alongside strengthened workforce, financing and emergency preparedness, what steps it has taken to strengthen rehabilitation services.
The Scottish Government published its Once for Scotland approach to rehabilitation on 21 June 2022: Rehabilitation and Recovery: A Person-centred Approach. This sets out the Six Principles of Good Rehabilitation, which set out our expectations for rehabilitation services in Scotland.
NHS Boards are encouraged to use these Six Principles as a benchmarking tool and to test and scale up improvements at a local level. We continue to work with Allied Health Profession leads in NHS Boards to refine the tool to best support local self-assessment of rehabilitation services in NHS Boards.
While the Scottish Government sets the strategic policy for the NHS in Scotland, it is NHS Boards and healthcare professionals locally who have responsibility for both service delivery and ensuring people receive the right care for them, taking into account relevant guidance and the needs of patients. The National Rehabilitation Network, established by the Scottish Government, brings together professionals working in rehabilitation services across NHS Boards to share good practice, to support learning and improvement.
The Scottish Government is delighted to be a member of the World Rehabilitation Alliance (WRA), which formally launched in July 2023. We are supportive of the principles underpinning the WRA’s work, which aligns with our existing policy, and are committed to improving and supporting rehabilitation services in Scotland and sharing our approach and learning internationally.