Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government, through Skills Development Scotland, ensures that there is fair and open access to all our national training programmes, including modern apprenticeships. Government supported training programmes are delivered by a wide range of stakeholders such as local authorities, colleges, training providers and employers. They must all meet their statutory obligations and operate within the appropriate laws, such as The Equality Act 2010 and the Employment Relations Act 1999.

The recent interim report from the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce makes a number of recommendations relating to government supported training programmes, and I am currently considering these recommendations, with the final report due in early summer. An important stage in the second half of the Wood Commission will include a focus on equality issues, looking to make meaningful recommendations to improve employment outcomes in relation to gender, disability and ethnicity.

We will use the findings from this work to develop a way forward for government supported training programmes which will better meet our aims and ambitions for Scotland.

The Scottish Government contributed £5.1 million to the £7.45 million making advice work fund, the remainder being contributed by money advice services. Stream three of this funding was focussed on tackling barriers in accessing advice for priority groups, one being people experiencing domestic abuse and several of the projects focussed on advice for women.

This data is not held centrally. I will ask the chief executive of Skills Development Scotland to write to you with the information you have requested.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20607 on 30 April 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20607 on 30 April 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

The Scottish Government is committed to understanding the experience of applicants for public appointments, and to using different application and selection methods to enhance the diversity of our public bodies.

We have fully supported and worked in collaboration with the Commission for Ethical Standards in Public life in Scotland on the content of the questionnaire about applicants experience in 2012 and 2013. This research has been published and can be found on the: Commission for Ethical Standards and Public Life in Scotland website.

The Scottish Government’s Public Appointments Centre of Expertise have used the applicant research to inform actions on our continuous improvement agenda. This includes a project on improving the applicant tracking system, making it simpler for applicants to apply online, improving the quality and availability of feedback offered to applicants and the use of social media to publicise appointments.

We will also use the research to understand more fully how applicants view different application and selection methods. No other formal evaluation has been carried out in addition to the 2012 and 2013 surveys. However the 2013 survey has shown significant improvements from 2012 in the views of applicants about almost all aspects of the process. This includes improvements in applicant experience of the application and selection processes. Applicants have also reported that they feel feedback and the overall experience has improved. There is still work to be done and we will use the research to inform our future improvement work.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20607 on 30 April 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

The initial costs of the DVD production including 1,000 copies was £2,705 in June 2009. Since then a further two reprints have been ordered of 200 copies each time costing £994.92. The total costs for DVDs production and reprint to date is £3,699.92. We have distributed approximately 1300 copies of the DVD to date through various awareness events organised by Scottish Government or through events we have been invited to attend.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20607 on 30 April 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20617 on 30 April 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at;

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.