Local Authorities have a responsibility in law under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 to make the arrangements they consider necessary for the transport of school pupils between home and school. They have discretion about how such services are provided and will balance the needs of their local communities alongside efficient use of public funds.

I believe it is important to ensure children are given a nutritious breakfast at the start of the day, and breakfast clubs can form an important part of the school day for many children and families. I know that regularly eating nutritious breakfasts supports both positive health and learning outcomes in children.

Education authorities already have a statutory duty under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 to take reasonable steps to ensure that every pupil who is entitled, by virtue of their families’ circumstances, to receive school lunches free of charge.

Schools and local authorities are responsible for supporting children's learning. We have taken a range of steps to support them in this role:

Guidance: Our “Coronavirus (COVID-19): support for continuity in learning guidance” (published July 2020, updated October 2020) provides advice on how to support vulnerable children and young people in relation to mental health, transitions, and blended/remote learning and reinforces the need for multi-agency working. Schools can access further national guidance on promoting and managing school attendance, as well as attainment adviser support on attendance.

Funding and programmes of support: We are investing £182 million via the Attainment Scotland Fund in 2020-21, supporting the attainment and achievement of learners from disadvantaged backgrounds. We are undertaking an Equity Audit to deepen our understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on children from disadvantaged backgrounds, and to set clear areas of focus for accelerating recovery. The national e-learning offer is ensuring that remote learning is supported for those who need it, expanding access to live lessons, recorded lessons and online digital learning. We are tackling digital exclusion amongst disadvantaged children and young people through our £25m investment in devices and connectivity.

Health and Wellbeing: Education Scotland has produced a range of professional learning opportunities as well as a series of wakelets (online resources) focusing on health and wellbeing. Data on the availability of school counselling services are being analysed. We expect a summary analysis to be published early next year. School staff also have access to a wide range of mental health training such as Scottish Mental Health First Aid and LIAM ('Let's Introduce Anxiety Management') for mild anxiety interventions.

The Scottish Government, along with public, private and third sector partners and the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) issued a joint statement outlining fair work expectations in July to support the transition out of lockdown and a principle of no detriment. The statement still applies now and we remain committed to the principle of no detriment.

It is important that employers are as supportive as possible and that mitigation measures are put in place. We would not expect teachers to be financially penalised, however pay and conditions for teachers are matters for the Scottish Negotiating Committee (SNCT) to determine and discussions on this issue are underway as a matter of urgency. The Scottish Government will play our part in those discussions.

We currently have no evidence regarding any disproportionate effects on women, but will keep this issue under careful review.

Our most recent data on uptake of free school meals is contained within the Schools Healthy Living Survey Statistics Report, which was published on 8 September 2020. This survey was carried in February 2020 therefore the data contained within this report pre-dates the introduction of any COVID-19 related regulations.

We do not hold further information about uptake rates since then, although individual Local Authorities may hold information on uptake of free school meals since schools reopened in August. With regards to alternative provision for families eligible for free school meals whilst the schools were closed, Scottish Government officials monitored returns from local authorities during the summer which showed that up to 175,000 children and young people were receiving alternative provision in lieu of free school meals.

Despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, education authorities continue to have a statutory duty, under section 53 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, to promote the availability of school lunches at all schools under their management and to encourage all children and young people in attendance to consume them, and to ensure that all food and drink served their in schools complies with the standards set out in The Nutritional Requirements for Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2008.

In addition, education authorities continue to have a statutory duty to take all reasonable steps to ensure that any child or young person who is entitled to free school lunches receives them.

The Scottish Government does not issue guidance to local authorities about using local suppliers and producers for the supply of ingredients for school meals, since they operate independently from Scottish Ministers for their procurement activities. They are therefore responsible for running their own tendering exercises and for the decisions taken as part of those exercises.

Where the value of a contract exceeds £50,000 local authorities, and other public bodies, are required to follow the terms of the Procurement (Scotland) Act 2014 and its associated regulations. The Scottish Government’s website contains a section on Public Sector Procurement Support, which provides a range of tools and guidance to help public bodies carry out transactions efficiently, and to improve and enhance their procurement capability. This information is available on the Scottish Government’s website through the following link: Public sector procurement - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

In addition we support the Soil Association’s Food for Life programme which is now held by 15 local authorities across Scotland. The programme aims to help school catering staff serve freshly prepared meals made from locally produced ingredients that are healthy and sustainable and brings benefits to local food producers by protecting jobs and supporting local farmers. Not only does it encourage local sourcing but it is making a great difference in ensuring that our school children have access to delicious, healthy, sustainable food that has been grown, sourced and produced in Scotland.

Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance on reducing the risks in schools sets out the considerations that education and authorities should take to ensure that appropriate arrangements are made for those who are asked to shield (at protection level 4). This is available from Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance on reducing the risks in schools - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) The guidance also sets out the considerations that should be made for school staff who have underlying health conditions. This is available from Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance on reducing the risks in schools - gov.scot (www.gov.scot).

In both cases the appropriate arrangements which may be put in place would be determined by individualised risk assessment.

There are currently no nutritional regulations which apply to food delivered to school age children in settings other than school.

The Nutritional Requirements for food and drink in schools (Scotland) Regulations 2008 sets strict nutritional standards that all food and drink served in schools must meet. This includes lunchtime, breakfast clubs, tuckshops, vending machines and at any other times of the day where food or drink is provided.

New regulations governing the nutritional requirements for food and drink in schools will come into effect in April 2021. The four key themes of the new regulations will be that they will increase access to fruit and vegetables, ensuring that our children and young people can access their ‘five-a-day’ at school; reduce the amount of sugar that can be accessed in school; bring provision of red and red processed meat in line with the Scottish Dietary Goals and; change the way food and drink is offered in secondary schools to better meet the needs of young people.

The Health and Social Care Standards set out what children should expect from their care and support included from their school age childcare service. This includes being able to choose healthy meals and snacks, including fresh fruit and vegetables and that meals and snacks meet cultural and dietary needs, beliefs and preferences.

In 2019-20 the Scottish Government invested £2 million in activity to tackle food insecurity during school holidays. While the regulations for food and drink in schools do not apply to meals provided by community organisations, Scottish Government funded third sector holiday meal and activity provision has promoted healthy meals, maximising choice and dignity for recipients.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, local authorities, community organisations and local businesses were involved in the provision of meals for primary school children. The Scottish Government recognised the need for flexibility in adhering to the regulations, and requested that local authorities take all reasonable steps to ensuring that nutritious options were made available wherever possible.

Food Standards Scotland provided further guidance on the nutritional quality of food provision during the pandemic. This was widely shared with local authority and community organisations who were encouraged to follow it. Feedback received from local authorities indicated that they worked proactively and in partnerships to meet need, actively applying the principles in the guidance.

Data on deaths by suicide is published annually by National Records of Scotland and Public Health Scotland. The most recent data, that for 2019, was published on 24 November 2020. The data for 2020 is scheduled to be published in June 2021.

In partnership with the National Suicide Prevention Leadership Group, we have been working closely with Public Health Scotland and Police Scotland to establish protocols that will provide more timely local data on possible suicides. This approach will enable local services to provide a faster, more effective response to those impacted by possible suicides. We expect these protocols to be ready for implementation early next year.

The Scottish government does not hold this information. Under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, it is the statutory responsibility of local authorities to manage their school estate.

In addition, local authorities have a statutory duty to promote the availability of school lunches at schools under their management, and to ensure all children and young people in attendance consume those lunches. They are also required to take all reasonable steps to ensure that any child or young person who is entitled to free school lunches receives them.