Chamber and committees

As part of the Whole System Approach, we would expect the rehabilitation of under 18s to be supported as set out in the answer to S5W-11415 on 2 October 2017.

A number of organisations are working together to provide support to young people both while in custody and upon their release. This advice and support includes education, employment, housing, access to addiction services and general support with practical matters to deter the young person from further offending; to support them to make positive choices and to maximise their life chances.

The Scottish Government provide funding to Up-2-Us to deliver their Time for Change project which supports extremely vulnerable high risk girls and young women to improve transitions and achieve a more settled and positive lifestyle. Funding is also provided to the Wise Group to deliver a Get the Life You Want pre-release course for young people in Polmont Young Offenders Institution. The course is aimed at fostering an increased motivation, a more positive mind set and development of coping strategies.

The Scottish Government has funded a group of dedicated through-care services for over 18s. In these projects, third sector organisations are working in partnership to provide a voluntary service for those leaving prison. These services provide a one-to-one service between the individual and a professional mentor, who will meet with the individual to help plan their release, before meeting them on the day of release to assist them with any practical problems. The mentor will continue to offer support, advice and encouragement, as required, for up to 6 months. The Scottish Government and its partners have invested £18m in these services over 2012-17.

In addition the Scottish Prison Service provide Through-care Support Officers within prison to work with individuals not only prior to release, but upon release from custody and for up to 3 months thereafter release, meeting them in the community and providing practical support and advice to assist their rehabilitation and reintegration.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

The Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) has provided the Scottish Government with the following information regarding the numbers of looked after young people who received Assistance by Way of Representation (ABWOR).

For the three year period from 1 September 2014 to 31 August 2017 inclusive, publicly funded legal representation in the form of (ABWOR) was provided to 667 looked after young people who were under 18 years of age and subject to Compulsory Supervision Orders.

ABWOR was also provided to another 53 young people at a Statement of Grounds children’s hearing. This is the initial hearing where the reasons for the reference are put to a young person, if they are old enough to understand the proceedings.

ABWOR was also provided to another 61 young people who were classed as ‘relevant persons’ to a child who was the subject of the hearing, for example the young mother of a child. At present, SLAB does not have the facility to specifically record if such a young person falls within the definition of a ‘looked after young person’ but due to the fact that they are a relevant person to an even younger child, this could be possible.

ABWOR was provided to another 3 young people who were classed as ‘non deemed relevant persons’ and who were seeking to become deemed relevant persons to the child in question, such as a young sibling of the child or other young relative/carer. Again, SLAB does not have the facility to record if such a young person falls within the definition of a ‘looked after person’ but we intend to be able to record this information in the future.

Statistics relating to Fatal Accident Inquiries are held not by the Scottish Government, but by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS). COPFS do not, however, hold information centrally which identifies that a death relates specifically to a care-experienced young person. All determinations are, however, published by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) and can be viewed individually at the following address: https://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/search-judgments/fatal-accident-inquiries.

We do not yet have detailed information on the number of young people who have requested Continuing Care. The first full year of data will be collected in 2017-18 and, depending on data quality, published from 2019 in the annual National Statistics publication Children’s Social Work Statistics. We will monitor this information and any other evidence offered by Scotland’s local authorities to clarify numbers in the years post-implementation and will use this evidence in our collaborative approach to policy development.

If a local authority becomes aware that a child or young person who is looked after by them or is in receipt of advice, guidance or assistance from them has died, the local authority must, within 24 hours, notify the Care Inspectorate. The Care Inspectorate, on behalf of Scottish Ministers, receives, reviews and provides feedback to the local authority on a report compiled by them reviewing the circumstances of the child or young person and his/her death.

Once notified, the Care Inspectorate alert Scottish Ministers as soon as reasonably practicable, and information around the name of the child, his or her date of birth, the legal circumstances in which he or she was being looked after and where, and brief details of the cause and circumstances of his or her death, if known are recorded.

The exact (medical) cause of death is not always known. The Care Inspectorate’s principle concern is with the circumstances of the child's life and pathway. It should also be noted that this group of children includes children with life limiting conditions whose deaths are anticipated.

The Scottish Government funds CELCIS (almost £5 million in 2017-18), to provide capacity building in the sector to improve the care and support provided to care-experienced young people on the basis of what is known about what works and how improvements can become sustainable in the long run.

We also fund the Realigning Children’s Services programme (approximately £450k per annum). This provides support to community planning partnerships to improve local collaborative decision making, to ensure the total available resource meets the needs of - and improves outcomes for – vulnerable children and families.

As corporate parents, local authorities have duties under the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 to ensure they safeguard and promote the wellbeing of Scotland's looked after children and care leavers. The Scottish Government committed to support these, and other, measures in the 2014 Act.

Scottish Local Government Finance Statistics show that overall gross revenue expenditure on Children and Families Social Work by Local Authorities in 2015-16 was £923 million, an increase of £39 million compared to 2014-15 (3.7 per cent increase after adjusting for inflation).

I refer you to the answer to question S5W-11400 on 2 October 2017. We do not yet have detailed information on the number of young people who have requested Continuing Care. The first full year of data will be collected in 2017-18 and, depending on data quality, published from 2019 in the annual National Statistics publication Children’s Social Work Statistics. We will monitor this information and any other evidence offered by Scotland’s local authorities to clarify numbers in the years post-implementation.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

The Scottish Government commissioned resources for young people and promotes those developed by other organisations including the Children and Young People's Commissioner in Scotland and Who Cares? Scotland. These have been specifically developed for children and young people to help them understand their rights.

The Scottish Government has paid £4.2 million to Scottish local authorities in 2015-16 to support costs of implementing Continuing Care and this funding commitment rises to £9.3 million by 2019/20.

Taking into account the 2017-18 local government finance settlement, including the extra £160 million announced at Stage 1 of the Budget Bill, plus the other sources of income available to councils through reforms to council tax and funding for Health and Social Care Integration, the overall increase in spending power to support local authority services now amounts to over £383 million (or 3.7%).

The majority of funding to local authorities is provided by means of a block grant. It is the responsibility of each local authority to allocate resources on the basis of local needs and priorities.

The duty to provide Continuing Care does not apply if the accommodation the person was in immediately before ceasing to be looked after was secure accommodation. Continuing Care placements are intended to entitle eligible care experienced young people to extend their care setting in order to maintain established relationships with trusted, supportive adults. For a number of reasons, secure accommodation is not an appropriate setting for Continuing Care. However, when external factors outwith the young person’s control make a Continuing Care placement unavailable local authorities will be expected to discuss and agree alternative support measures which meet the young person’s needs.