Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-22855

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis has been undertaken to support the presumption of mainstream education for deaf pupils.

The Guidance on the presumption to provide education in a mainstream setting , published in 2019, was informed by a wide range of information and evidence taking into account all children and young people with additional support needs, including those pupils who are deaf or deafblind.

The presumption of mainstreaming policy and the guidance which supports it enshrines the right of all children and young people with additional support needs to learn in mainstream schools and early learning and childcare settings.

Question reference: S6W-22852

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when the BSL National Plan Implementation Advisory Group will be formed, and how often it will meet.

Question reference: S6W-22872

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether discussions are underway to make BSL a mandatory part of teacher training.

The content of initial teacher education (ITE) programmes are the responsibility of university providers. All ITE programmes are accredited by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) based on the Standard for Provisional Registration. The Professional Standards that both student teachers and registered teachers are expected to meet now specifically recognise Additional Support Needs. The Standards ensure that the needs of all learners are assessed and successfully addressed. This is at the heart of all teachers’ work and is recognised throughout the Standards.

Specifically, the GTCS has produced a professional guide “ Teaching and supporting deaf learners ” in partnership with the Scottish Sensory Centre. The purpose of the guide is to provide support for teachers to reflect on their actions and consider whether they may need further advice or professional learning and complements employer’s policies. Supporting learners and other members of the school community who have a sensory impairment is a key part of a teacher’s role. All teachers should know about the implications for learning of having a sensory impairment and should be aware of what support is available.

Question reference: S6W-22857

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what funding is available for BSL lessons for entire classes in schools in which there is a deaf pupil or pupils.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving the experiences and outcomes for young people with additional support needs, which we have outlined in our Programme for Government 2023-24.

The legislative framework is clear about the responsibilities for the provision of additional support for children and young people. Education authorities are under a statutory duty to identify, provide for, and to review the support that they provide for pupils with additional support needs including those who are deaf or deafblind. In our most recently published figures, spending on additional support for learning by authorities reached a record high of £830m.

Modern Languages is one of the eight core curricular areas within Curriculum for Excellence, and British Sign Language (BSL) is one of the languages that can be provided within a school’s language offer to their pupils. While it is the responsibility of local authorities and schools to choose the specific languages covered within their language curriculum, the Scottish Government is taking a range of steps to promote and support BSL learning.

Since 2013, Scottish Government has provided more than £50 million in funding to local authorities and partners to support the teaching of additional languages in schools.

Question reference: S6W-22867

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what work will be conducted with the General Teaching Council for Scotland to facilitate pathways for BSL users to obtain qualified teacher status.

The Scottish Government and the General Teaching Council for Scotland are supportive of pathways that will allow BSL users to obtain qualified teacher status. We have held discussions with the University of Edinburgh about the programme they are currently developing, which aims to include pathways for both hearing and non-hearing students. This is currently undergoing internal university validation.

Question reference: S6O-02808

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 November 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to support children with long COVID.

Question reference: S6W-22870

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 22 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what support will be made available to encourage the learning of BSL as a second language for (a) people who are hard of hearing, (b) deafened people and (c) people at risk of a second sensory loss.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting children and adults who have deafness, sight loss and dual sensory loss to access the support and social care they need through its See Hear Strategy, published in 2014.

The Scottish Government provides Section 10 funding for Deafblind Scotland’s BSL Café Project. This project supports people who are at risk of a second sensory loss to acquire further communication skills by teaching them BSL. We will encourage Deafblind Scotland to share the learning from this project.

A refreshed See Hear Strategy is due to be published in February 2025 and will incorporate the views of people with lived experience. Communication will of course be an important theme of the new See Hear strategy. An action on encouraging learning BSL as a second language will be included in the first draft of the strategy, to be considered by stakeholders.

Scottish Ministers have allocated almost £6.2M of funding since 2014 to support the local implementation of the Strategy and help drive progress.

Question reference: S6W-22749

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 21 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what recent assessment it has made of the adequacy of support and services available for people with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

The Scottish Government is committed to preventing the harm caused by alcohol consumption during pregnancy and to supporting those impacted by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).

We recognise there is more that needs to be done to support people with FASD, that is why we provide funding to the Fetal Alcohol Advisory Support and Training Team (FAASTT) to allow the delivery of training to improve knowledge, attitudes and confidence in professionals working with individuals with FASD.

We also provide funding to the FASD Hub in Scotland with the aim of providing support, training and advice to families, carers and professionals supporting children affected by FASD as well as a new project supporting adults with FASD. This was the first FASD Hub of its kind in the UK.

Question reference: S6W-22752

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 21 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is considering to better support parents and families facing foetal alcohol spectrum disorder during pregnancy and early years.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that Scotland’s babies have the best possible start in life. Before birth, midwives, maternity and other professionals can apply the values and principles of ‘Getting it right for every child’ to support parents in considering their wellbeing, and that of their baby.

As part of their booking process, all women are asked a variety of wellbeing questions, including on alcohol consumption, to assess for additional care needs which may assist them, and their families, to prepare for parenthood and facilitate positive maternal health.

All of Scotland’s young families are entitled to the support of a Health Visitor until a child starts school through the Universal Health Visiting Pathway. Where additional input is required, the pathway provides a gateway to other levels of Health Visiting provision and referrals to more specialised healthcare services.

Additionally we have established The Family Nurse Partnership programme which provides intensive, tailored support to eligible first-time mothers aged 19 and under across Scotland. An expansion of this programme will see an additional 500 families supported per year by the end of 2025.

Question reference: S6W-22869

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 21 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what support it will provide to SMEs to help and encourage them to employ BSL users.

In November 2023 the Scottish Government launched the British Sign Language National Plan which contains 45 actions focused on addressing the barriers faced by BSL users in their daily lives.

The Scottish Government has since 2020 provided around £1,000,000 funding to Apt-PSP to enable employers to better attract, recruit, and retain disabled people. Since the outset, Apt-PSP has included representation from organisations that focus on British Sign Language users, and this has included support for employers, including micro, small and medium sized employers assist them in supporting them in BSL related issues.