Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government wants all children and young people to get the support that they need to reach their full learning potential and to do so it is important that pupils not only attend school but that they engage in their learning.

The Scottish Government is clear that parents and carers have a role to play in supporting young people to attend school. We recognise that parents have a legal duty to ensure that their child attends school. Included, Engaged and Involved Part 1, our national guidance on attendance, encourages education authorities and schools to engage with children, young people and families to support improved attendance and reduce absence. We know engagement with children, young people and families to understand and address barriers to regular attendance is the most effective way of addressing this issue.

The Scottish Government has been working intensely to address concerns about the impact of the pandemic on attendance. Education Scotland are working to deliver enhanced support for schools and local authorities in monitoring and tracking absence, to develop policy at school and local authority level to support improvements in attendance, and to provide practical support for local authorities who need it. The Scottish Government has also strengthened our understanding of the issue, through increased analysis of attendance data, such as the data on persistent absence published in March 2024. The Interim Chief Inspector has been tasked with ensuring persistent absence is addressed in every school inspection, and identifying successful approaches which can be shared more widely.

We are considering the findings on attendance within the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research and Education Scotland’s report ‘Improving Attendance: Understanding the Issues,” as part of the joint Scottish Government and COSLA action plan on relationships and behaviour, which published on 15 August.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving attendance in Scottish schools. Last year, we requested that Education Scotland undertake a “deep dive” to support greater understanding of the issue and the reasons for it.

Within the resulting report, five recommendations were identified. Education Scotland and Scottish Government officials have been working together to support the implementation of the recommendations. An online package of support, designed in collaboration with local authorities and schools, has been published.

Education Scotland are working with local authorities to improve attendance through both universal supports and through a bespoke support package using Quality Improvement Methodology. The first cohort of the ‘Improving Attendance Quality Improvement Programme’ will run from October to January.

Our commitment to delivering these recommendations is set out in ‘The National Action Plan on Relationships and Behaviour: 2024 – 2027 (The Joint Action Plan, 2024)’. This includes actions to review and revise national guidance on attendance This will enable refreshed guidance to be produced.

In recognition of the challenge of persistent absence, HM Chief Inspector for Education has also been asked with addressing this during school inspections and to identify successful approaches which can be shared more widely.

The Scottish Government’s Education Analytical Services division conducts analysis on issues related to school attendance, including absence and attendance statistics. These statistics are collected and published annually. Additionally, our team regularly reviews both internal and external literature on school attendance, examining various types of attendance issues, the factors influencing attendance patterns, and interventions aimed at addressing these challenges.

While we continuously track attendance trends, we draw upon the latest academic studies and research to ensure our understanding of the consequences of long-term school absence remains current. This includes considering the immediate impact on academic performance as well as the broader social, emotional, and economic effects of school absence. Our work informs policies and strategies designed to mitigate these impacts and promote equitable outcomes for all learners.

The Scottish Government recognises the long-term impacts of persistent absence and is committed to improving school attendance. Following a comprehensive review by Education Scotland, five key recommendations were identified, including the need for tailored support in areas where attendance remains a challenge, and ensuring that children and young people's voices are central to solutions. An online support package has been developed for use by local authorities and schools. Education Scotland is also working with local authorities through the ‘Improving Attendance Quality Improvement Programme,’ launching in October. Additionally, the Chief Inspector for Education is focusing on persistent absence during inspections to identify and share successful strategies across Scotland.

Within an extremely challenging financial context, the Scottish Government has made difficult funding decisions. Local authorities have received all the funding they have requested for flood protection in 2024-25 and, as such, £26 million from the Flood Risk Management Programme is being repurposed this financial year to support local government pay and avoid impactful industrial action. Decisions on the status of future projects will therefore be made by individual local authorities. We have sought assurances from local authorities through COSLA that redirection of this portion of the funding will not impact on councils progressing with their flood protection schemes as planned.

Successive Scottish budgets have demonstrated Scotland’s commitment to addressing the climate change crisis, using all resources at our disposal to accelerate the just transition to a net zero, climate-resilient and biodiverse Scotland. The 2024-25 Budget committed £4.7 billion for activities with a positive impact on our climate change goals.

Use of ScotWind revenue is an action we would rather not take but must carefully consider given the fiscal challenges faced, given the limited options available under existing fiscal framework arrangements. We will seek to minimise usage of ScotWind in 2024-25 – just as we did in 2023-24.

ScotRail Trains Ltd. regularly engages with a range of business groups to understand their views. All weekend, later evening and between-peak tickets remain available at off peak rates and many products are available which offer further discounts to passengers depending on their circumstances at all times of the day.

The number of police recorded crimes of shoplifting are published in Table 1 of the Recorded Crime in Scotland bulletins. The latest data is shown in the following table.

The Scottish Government’s Criminal Proceedings in Scotland statistics primarily focus on prosecutions and convictions in criminal courts. However,­­ they also include some non-court disposals, including police-issued Antisocial Behaviour Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) and COPFS-issued FPNs. The former are not used for shoplifting offences and the latter are only very rarely used for them. The most recent data show no FPNs issued for shoplifting since 2018-19.

The UK Government’s decision to introduce means-testing of Winter Fuel Payments in England and Wales in 2024-25 significantly reduces the annual funding available to the Scottish Government, by an estimated £140 million to £160 million. It is with deep regret and only following careful consideration that the Scottish Government has decided it must replicate that decision in Scotland and Pension Age Winter Heating Payment will therefore be payable to people over state pension age in receipt of certain benefits. Those benefits are Pension Credit, Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support, Universal Credit, Working Tax Credits and Child Tax Credits (where the award is not less than £26 in respect of the tax year 2024-2025).

Payments of Pension Age Winter Heating Payment in 2024-25 will be made by the Department of Work and Pensions on behalf of the Scottish Government.

The latest labour productivity statistics for Scotland are available at Labour productivity statistics: 2023 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot). This reports estimates of gross value added (GVA) per hour worked and per job filled for the whole economy and for industry sectors, including results for the public administration and defence, education, and health and social care sectors. Results from the statistics release for 2022 were reported within the Public sector: economic overview publication available at Public sector: economic overview - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

An update on the Government’s Public Service Reform (PSR) programme will be shared with the Finance and Public Administration Committee setting out the details of a wide range of activity, including work to drive efficiency and effectiveness. A key component of this is the Public Bodies Programme where work is progressing to gather comparable and consistent data across public bodies to interrogate efficiency and effectiveness. This data and our wider engagement will drive a culture of continuous improvement across all public bodies.