Chamber and committees

The CYPFEI & ALEC Fund aims to support activities which build opportunities and improve outcomes for children, young people and their families.

The key components of the CYPFEI Fund are:

• Promote the GIRFEC wellbeing indicators and the implementation of the UNCRC.
• Delivery of prevention and early intervention activities.
• Improving parenting capacity and family support.

As part of the initial assessment process, applicants to the fund were asked to list up to 4 key national performance indicators that their organisation would contribute to improving. As part of the ongoing monitoring and evaluation process, all recipients of the CYPFEI and ALEC Fund are also asked to submit a 6-monthly monitoring report, outlining progress made against each of their identified outcomes.

The 5 outcomes which Scottish Youth Parliament have reported progress against are:

• Young people in Scotland influence, inform and contribute to policy making and practice.
• Young people who face inequality or barriers to participation are actively engaged in Scottish Youth Parliament.
• MSYPs have the skills, confidence, support and opportunities to carry out their role effectively.
• Young people in Scotland are aware of their rights are encouraged to participate and are seen as valuable contributors to a democratic society.
• Scottish Youth Parliament is an efficient and effective youth-led organisation, responsive to its MSYPs, young people other key stakeholders, and is robustly resourced in a sustainable way.

The Scottish Youth Parliament are provided with core funding through the Scottish Government’s Children Young People and Families Early Intervention & Adult Learning and Empowering Communities (CYPFEI & ALEC) Fund. This fund is administered by the CORRA Foundation on behalf of Scottish Ministers.

When an unpaid work or other activity requirement is imposed by the court as part of a Community Payback Order, the management and delivery of that requirement – including determining what work is to be carried out - is the responsibility of the relevant local authority. There are a number of factors for local authority social work staff and unpaid work managers to consider when arranging unpaid work. Planning and assessment is informed by national Community Payback Order Practice Guidance and, while there is no prescribed list of activities, the guidance makes clear that activities should be appropriate to unpaid work taking account of a number of considerations.

Unpaid work schemes should make placements available across a wide range of work settings and types of activity and have regard to the circumstances and circumstances of the individual (such as employment, education, caring responsibilities, health, equality and diversity issues). For example, work which does not involve significant physical exertion may be the only appropriate option for some individuals (including for health-related reasons).

Unpaid work has a strong focus on reparation and providing opportunities to make amends and prevent reoffending though strengthening relationships with the community, and through developing useful skills. Justice social work staff and unpaid work managers in local areas are best placed to determine what unpaid work is suitable, taking into account each individual’s particular circumstances, to help ensure that individuals complete their unpaid work hours in a way which benefits the community.

The most recent reconviction rates show that 29% of people with a Community Payback Order (CPO) imposed in 2017-18 were reconvicted within a year, which is the lowest rate since they were introduced. These statistics are not typically broken down in regard to different requirements within CPOs such as unpaid work or supervision. However, Justice Analytical Services published ‘Community Payback Orders: What the Unit Level Data Tells Us So Far’ in February 2020 which found that the reconviction rate for those given unpaid work between 2012-13 and 2014-15 was 33% where this was accompanied by justice social work supervision, and 27% where it was not. These figures compare with 41% for those given orders with no unpaid work. While no conclusions can be drawn about the impact of unpaid work on offending behaviour, this may suggest that individuals who do not have unpaid work imposed are likely to have more complex and entrenched issues to address and may have greater likelihood of reoffending.

Overall, CPOs are an important aspect of a sustained focus on prevention and effective community interventions which has helped see Scotland’s reconviction rate fall to its lowest level since comparable records began more than 20 years ago.

CPOs offer opportunities for rehabilitation by requiring individuals to tackle the underlying causes of their offending behaviour. They also deliver real benefits to communities, and while capacity to deliver unpaid work has been significantly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, around 9 million hours of unpaid work have been carried out since CPOs were introduced.

The information requested is not held centrally and is a matter for the Parole Board for Scotland.

The Scottish Government has committed to dedicate £100 million funding, of the £180 million Emerging Energy Technologies Fund, to accelerate the development of the hydrogen economy in Scotland over the next five years and support the realisation of our ambition for 5GW installed hydrogen production capacity by 2030. More details on the proposed design and scope of the Fund will be published alongside the Hydrogen Action Plan later this year.

(a) No notifications have been received since issue of the provision in April 2021. Monitoring is only on receipt of such notifications. (b) No intention to publish such information but it will be summarised as part of reporting on the consultation on external wall systems which includes the onward use of BS 8414. This is scheduled to close 08 October 2021.

The Scottish Government recognises children and young people with care experience, including adoptees, have poorer outcomes and can often need additional support. The Scottish Government has provided Local Authorities with £11.5 million for academic year 2021/22 through the Care Experienced Children and Young People Fund to support the educational development of children and young people with care experience d from birth to the age of 26.

The introduction, in 2017, of a full care experience bursary reinforces the Scottish Government’s ambition to improve outcomes for young people with care experience by ensuring that they are supported to access further and higher education.

The Young People’s Guarantee aims to ensure that every person between 16 and 24 has the opportunity of a job, apprenticeship, further or higher education, training programme or volunteering. Supporting greater equity and opportunity is central to the Young Person’s Guarantee and additional support is available for those that need it most, with care experienced young people specifically referenced. Through the Young Person’s Guarantee, over £1.7 million has been committed to delivering the Discovering Your Potential employability programme which provides flexible and intensive support for young care leavers.

Scottish Ministers have committed to “Keeping the Promise”. The Promise was published in February 2020 and highlighted the need for robust “scaffolding” or support network to support those with care experience. On 31 st March 2021, The Promise Scotland published ‘The Plan 21-24’ the first of 3 plans which outlines what actions must be taken to deliver The Promise. In June this year The Change Programme was published by The Promise Scotland which shows what work is underway and what work is required to ensure each of the actions in The Plan 21-14 can be delivered.

In the 2021 SNP Manifesto, we committed to the introduction of a new grant of £200 a year for care experienced young people between the ages of 16 and 26 – as part of the Scottish Government’s Promise to those with experience of care. This will provide additional support and security as young people transition from the care system to more independent living.

The data currently held on heat networks comes from data collected by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) under the Heat Metering and Billing Regulations. Heat network operators are required to notify every 4 years. The latest data held is for 2018. Figures for 2019 and 2020 are not yet available.

The latest statistics from OPSS indicate that at the end of 2018:

• Almost 30,000 homes were connected to district or communal heating networks in Scotland
• An estimated 1.18 TWh of heat and cooling demand was supplied via heat networks.

The Scottish Government is committed to continuing to work with partners to take forward the recommendations of the National Review of Care Allowances, including development of a Scottish Recommended Allowance for foster care and kinship care. This will improve consistency and transparency for looked-after children, their families and their carers across Scotland.