Chamber and committees

I thank our witnesses for being here.

Willie Rennie spoke about the different rates of funding for different age groups because different ratios of staff to children are required. Are there any additional costs related to children with additional support needs, and how that is managed? I will choose Carrie Lindsay, at random, to answer first.

Wendy Brownlie, do parents feel that their options are limited? Do you get that message? Do you ask parents that question?

Wendy Brownlie and Margot Black both mentioned that they have foundation apprenticeships. Are ideas being shared across the regional improvement collaboratives? Is much work going on to share good practice and address any concerns?

That is really helpful. Margot Black mentioned providing support for parents to find the best or most suitable provider for their child. Do the other councils do that, too? Earlier, she mentioned working with health visitors and other health professionals, and I want to check whether that happens across the board.

In relation to ASN, I am also interested in whether the balance between children going to private providers and those going to local authority providers is monitored.

I will repeat it. You mentioned that wraparound care could not necessarily be provided. Do you get the message from parents that that limits their options? Do you ask that question when you consult?

Yes.

We are very focused on wellbeing, but it seems from the data that all the countries have struggled to measure success in that regard. Does anywhere stand out as having done good work on that? Is there any work that we should be looking at and incorporating into what we are doing?

I thank the panel for coming along. Sir Harry said early on that it is critical to ask people what matters to them and then to help them to achieve that, which can also save costs down the line. What further provisions could the bill include to ensure that the focus is on person-centred care rather than cost?

Does anybody else feel that there is anything that we could include in the bill that would help to centre that?

Earlier, Andrew Witty mentioned cross-agency work; perhaps James Dunphy or someone else would like to come in, too.

I think that we can all agree that community learning is of great importance in widening access, but there has been a shift towards encouraging students to take up full-time college places. Is that the best way to improve outcomes for young people from deprived backgrounds and young people with additional support needs? A range of training providers that work with young people who are furthest from the labour market, who often face significant personal challenges in their lives, focus on the softer outcomes of confidence, motivation, self-belief and self-worth, but they also deliver SQA qualifications, and many of those young people progress to college.

Are there too many students who are struggling to maintain full-time college places because they need a bit more preparation before they can sustain a full-time college place?