Chamber and committees

Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) are invited to submit an application for the amount of funding required to deliver a programme of general adaptations across the financial year based on their understanding of need among their tenants and for any major adaptations required by their tenants.

For the 2026-27 financial year, funding requests from 82 RSLs were received for general adaptations funding with 32 requests for major adaptations funding. Every RSL which requested funding has received and accepted its funding offer.

The estimate of 8,500 general adaptations contained in the 2025 Programme for Government was for the 2025-26 financial year. This was calculated by dividing the funding available in 2025-26 by the average cost of a general adaptation delivered in 2024-25 to estimate how many general adaptations could be delivered. As the average cost of adaptions delivered in 2025-26 has increased, these calculations have been revised for 2026-27. It is estimated that the £20.9m budget for 2026-27 could deliver 6,935 general adaptations and 32 major adaptations.

(a) The Scottish Government approved funding for all 82 Registered Social Landlords that applied for funding to the Registered Social Landlord Adaptations Programme in 2026-27.

(b) 100% of Registered Social Landlords that have requested funding have been awarded funding.

(a) Funding requests totalling £21.691m were received from 81 Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) for general adaptations. Of these 82, 15 RSLs also made funding requests totalling £1.901m for 32 major adaptations.

(b) The total value of funding requested for the 2026-27 RSL Adaptations Programme is £23.592m.

The delivery of police services, including call handling arrangements and the use of technology to support operational policing, are matters for Police Scotland with oversight from the Scottish Police Authority which is responsible for holding the Chief Constable to account.

The Scottish Government know that neurodivergent people, including autistic people face significant structural barriers to employment. We also recognise the valuable contributions that neurodivergent people bring to the workforce and are committed to supporting those individuals to both enter and sustain fulfilling employment.

Employability support in Scotland is delivered through our No One Left Behind approach in partnership with local authorities. This allows Local Employability Partnerships (LEPs) to design and deliver services that meet the needs of their communities and local labour markets. Through this approach, tailored support is available to people of all ages, who are furthest from the labour market, helping them to gain skills and confidence, helping them prepare for employment, training, education, and/or volunteering.

In addition, Specialist Employability Support is also available in all 32 Local Authorities, targeted specifically at disabled people and people with long term health conditions, including those with autism who may benefit from longer-term support. This service also has a particular focus on significant aftercare and in-work support to help people sustain and prosper in employment.

The Scottish Government has also committed to work closely with local authorities and delivery partners to identify and share good practice, strengthen local provision and ensure that employment support is responsive to the needs of neurodivergent people and disabled people across Scotland.

This includes developing a stepped care model for neurodevelopmental services and is working with NHS Boards, clinicians, people with lived experience and third sector partners to support its implementation. The model aims to provide earlier access to advice, support and interventions, while ensuring that specialist assessment services are available for those who require them.

Through these measures, we are helping to ensure that autistic people can access timely, person-centred support and clear pathways towards fair and sustainable employment.

In 2025, the Scottish Government consulted on strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), including a draft Model Law prepared by interested stakeholders. The majority view expressed by respondents was that SLAPPs need to be tackled and that reform should resemble the Model Law consulted on. The Scottish Government agreed and further work is being carried out on aspects of the Model Law, including how it would operate in practice. The Scottish Government continues to consider how this may be taken forward. The legislative programme will be agreed by Ministers and announced to Parliament in due course in the usual way.

The Scottish Government has directly funded the remediation of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in a number of Health Boards and is expecting to directly fund several further RAAC remedial projects across the health estate in due course. However, as a matter of building maintenance, any remediation of RAAC is primarily considered the responsibility of building owners and estate managers, including public bodies such as NHS Health Boards and Local Authorities, with costs met directly from their own budgets.

The Scottish Government is committed to strengthening Scotland’s international presence, in line with commitments set out in the manifesto, with the number of Scotland Houses expanded to over forty by the end of the Parliament.

An expanded Scotland House network will play an important role in attracting investment, supporting jobs and economic growth, and promoting Scottish Government priorities while helping Scottish businesses and key sectors access international opportunities.

Work is underway to develop options for delivery of these commitments, including consideration of future Scotland House locations. Decisions will be announced, and projected costs will be published, in due course.

The Scottish Government has no current plans to extend kinship care allowances to age 21.

We recognise, however, the importance of supporting young people in kinship care as they move into adulthood. Existing legislation allows local authorities, where they consider it appropriate, to provide an allowance to certain eligible young people in kinship care after they reach 16 and until age 18.

A range of other support is available to eligible care-experienced young people as they move into adulthood, including Continuing Care and Aftercare, depending on their individual circumstances and care history.

The funding awards for the Registered Social Landlord Adaptations Programme 2026-2027 are set out in the following table. This is a total of £21.707m which is 3.9% over budget to allow for slippage of the programme across the year.