Chamber and committees

National level reports on the NSA were not commissioned in 2019-20 or 2020-21, due to Covid-19 related disruption. The National Report was also not commissioned in 2021-22, as the handover process from the phase one SNSA supplier (ACER), to the current phase two supplier (AlphaPlus Ltd), was underway.

The National Standardised Assessments for Scotland are designed to provide valuable diagnostic information to teachers, schools and local authorities, on children’s progress in aspects of literacy and numeracy.

The Scottish Government does not compare or analyse outcomes data from the National Standardised Assessments for Scotland against Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels data, as these each have a distinct purpose and should not be compared directly.

The National Standardised Assessments for Scotland have been designed to provide diagnostic information to teachers, schools and local authorities on children’s progress in aspects of literacy and numeracy, and to inform next steps in learning and teaching. They provide teachers with a valuable additional source of nationally standardised information to add to their existing understanding of children’s progress. NSA data can be used as a part of a range of evidence when assessing children’s achievement of the relevant Curriculum for Excellence levels. However, they do not assess whether learners have or have not achieved a level within the Curriculum for Excellence.

NSA data is retained for the duration of a pupil’s interaction with the school system, in order to ensure that school and local authority based longitudinal analysis of individuals’ assessment history is supported.

When learners leave the Scottish school system, their personal data will be retained for a maximum of nine months and then deleted. After that nine months, pupils’ assessments are retained in anonymised format. This allows longitudinal analysis at school level, beyond the point where a child or young person is attending school.

There are three Cannabis Based Products for Medicinal use (CBPMs) available on the NHS in Scotland to treat specific conditions. These are:

• Nabilone, a synthetic cannabinoid, as an add-on treatment for adults with chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting;
• Sativex ® , a combination of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol for moderate to severe spasticity in adults with multiple sclerosis; and
• Epidyolex ® , a cannabidiol for treating seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome.

The biggest barrier to the prescribing of other CBPMs on the NHS is that most products remain unlicensed with a limited, or non-existent, peer-reviewed clinical evidence base for their use. We continue to engage with the manufacturers of these products, encouraging them to bring their products to clinical trial. This would allow them to go through the medicine licensing process and be available to be considered for routine availability on the NHS through standard health technology appraisal processes.

Private prescription numbers for Cannabis Based products for Medicinal use (CBPMs) are not collected by the Scottish Government.

Prescription numbers for Cannabis Based products for Medicinal use (CBPMs) are not collected by the Scottish Government.

The bus system was re-regulated by the UK Government in the 1980s and is primarily operated by private bus operators. The Scottish Government continues to support the bus industry through the Network Support Grant. The purpose of the financial support provided is to help to keep services more extensive and fares more affordable than would otherwise be the case.

The majority of services in Scotland are operated on a commercial basis by private bus companies. Under the Transport Act 1985, where there is a social need local transport authorities can provide subsidy for services that are not provided on a commercial basis, this is entirely a matter for the local authority to consider and action.

The Scottish Government have brought forward an enhanced suite of options for local transport authorities to improve bus services according to their local needs, including formal partnerships, franchising and running their own bus services. The Community Bus Fund was launched in September 2023 to support local transport authorities to explore the options in the Transport Act, and to improve public transport in their areas.

Transport Scotland carried out studies last year to assess the possibility of including Langholm on the existing A74(M) signage. As the motorway signs in question are relatively new, extremely large and expensive to replace, it was felt the most appropriate way to consider this opportunity was to address it when the sign needs replaced upon its serviceable life. Based on the expected lifespan of these type of sign, there are no immediate plans to amend the signs in the near future.

Eligible 2 year olds and all 3 year olds are eligible for funded early learning and childcare from the beginning of the first term after the child’s 2nd or 3rd birthday. Local authorities have discretionary powers under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 to provide funded ELC to 2 and 3 year olds earlier than the statutory start dates, and are responsible for setting local admission policies.