Chamber and committees

Work on developing a Stigma Action Plan has taken place, alongside progress with the National Collaborative, who are publishing a Charter of Rights for People Affected by Substance Use on 11 December 2024.

The Charter was developed by a wide network of people with experience of substance use and aims to shift power and change culture, by empowering people affected by substance use to name and claim their rights, and be involved in decisions which impact them. It will also support service providers to understand how to realise these rights.

The purpose of the Medication Assisted Treatment standards is to improve access to treatment and enable people to make an informed choice about their care. The work that services are doing to embed the MAT standards is part of realising the right to health, and therefore very much aligns with the Charter of Rights.

Since the launch of the Young Patients Family Fund in July 2021, Health Boards have reported the following number of claims were made.

From 2022 Local services have been directed to implement the Medication Assisted Treatment standards. MAT Standard 1 has an aim to ensure individuals get into treatment and have access to workers on the same day they ask for it.

The Scottish Government also provide additional funding to Alcohol and Drug Partnerships to ensure this is achievable.

We continue to monitor the impact and effectiveness of the Young Patients Family Fund (YPFF) and keep this under review.

I recognise that domestic abuse can have significant physical, social, and emotional impacts on children. While one child experiencing domestic abuse is one too many, it is positive that children are reaching out to Childline to seek support. I welcome the NSPCC Christmas campaign to highlight to children and young people that there is a dedicated service, Childline, to provide support over the festive period and beyond.

Through the Children, Young People and Families Early Intervention & Adult Learning and Empowering Communities third sector funds, the Scottish Government provides £726,600 in funding, across 5 organisations to deliver outcomes supporting child protection. This includes £312,900 in funding to the NSPCC, allocating £207,900 specifically to its Childline services.

We are also investing £19 million a year in specialist services and projects through the Delivering Equally Safe (DES) Fund to support 83 projects to undertake work with children and young people who have experienced violence and abuse.

Our National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland 2021, updated 2023, includes detailed advice on domestic abuse considerations in safety planning.

Through our Equally Safe Delivery Plan, we are also progressing work to strengthen the links between domestic abuse and Child Protection systems, and to ensure that staff are trained and confident to identify and deal sensitively with the issue.

The Scottish Government has directed NHS Boards to move forward with detailed implementation planning led at a regional level, with a designated lead Chief Executive Officer to deliver this programme from planning to full implementation.

Accommodation is a key part of the model of neonatal care described in Best Start and we expect all Boards to provide emergency overnight accommodation on the unit for parents who need it, with other accommodation for neonatal parents nearby.

Initial plans were submitted to the Scottish Government in September 2024 for consideration. Feedback has been provided to the Regional Chief Executives and NHS Boards will continue to refine and develop plans as implementation proceeds.

We are working to improve outcomes for people receiving drug treatment by recognising family members can play an important role in a loved one’s recovery. MAT Standard 2 ‘Choice’ and MAT Standard 8 ‘Independent Advocacy’ states individuals should be entitled to choice of treatment and who accompanies them.

We also recognise that families affected by substance use must be supported in their own right, as well as being involved in their loved one’s treatment and recovery.

We have provided ADPs with £3.5 million per year over the life of the Parliament for local implementation of our framework Drug and alcohol services - improving holistic family support - gov.scot (www.gov.scot), to improve holistic support for families affected by drugs and alcohol by taking a whole family approach and using family inclusive practice.

We are providing £138,876 over three years (2023-2026) to Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs to develop, test and deliver a national Family Inclusive Practice Development Programme. This programme will focus on supporting practice implementation of Family Inclusive Practice through continued work with existing areas and expansion into other localities.

The Scottish Government and our partners remain dedicated to bringing innovative and structural change to this complex issue and remain fully committed to reducing drug deaths and harms.

On 31 October, Audit Scotland published a report on alcohol and drug services which acknowledges that we have improved national leadership and made significant progress in tackling Scotland’s longstanding issues with drugs and alcohol. Notably, through significant investment and innovative action in our National Mission, including sustaining a record £112 million for Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs) this year, as well as innovative initiatives such as piloting a Safer Drug Consumption Facility in Glasgow, which will open early in the new year.

Through the National Mission to date we have:

• Supported over 300 grassroots community organisations through the £65 million Corra National Drug Mission Funds
• Driven improvement in services with 90% of Alcohol and Drug Partnerships assessed as having implemented Medication Assisted Treatment standards 1-5, and 91% of standards 6-10 assessed as partially implemented as of July 2024
• Helped widen access to lifesaving naloxone with 77% of people at risk of overdose estimated to have access to a Take Home Naloxone kit as of June 2024
• Seen a 21% increase in residential rehabilitation beds since 2021 (513 beds as of September 2024) due to our £38 million residential rehabilitation capacity investment.
• Made £1.5 million available for investment in Planet Youth - a whole community approach for substance use prevention
• Provided £480,000 per year since 2023 to support additional trainee placements on Scottish Drugs Forum's 'National Traineeship' which supports people with lived and living experience to undertake an SVQ and access a paid work placement.

Alongside these important practical steps to making improvements to front line services our whole system approach is driving change across mental health, stigma, workforce and children and families, and the Charter of Rights which was published on 11 December, will support people affected by substance use to know and understand their rights in accessing support services.

The five-year National Mission is now in the final stages of delivery, and we have begun to work with partners to ensure long-term strategies are managed smoothly through to the next parliament. The ongoing independent evaluation of the National Mission being undertaken by Public Health Scotland (PHS) will help to ensure these strategies are underpinned by robust evidence.

It is crucial that we continue to prioritise surveillance to better understand and respond to emerging drug trends. RADAR reports and other surveillance measures play a vital part in providing us with an early warning and to alert services and people who use drugs.

RADAR aims to monitor drug-related harms, service usage and toxicology data to provide an early warning of emerging drug trends and identify actions to reduce and prevent drug harms and deaths.

There is also a focus on ensuring services across Scotland have treatment pathways available for all types of drugs including stimulants, and the Scottish Government work closely with all areas to support them to achieving this successfully.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.