Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-24956

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 19 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide any details of the key stakeholders that it is currently engaging with as part of its preparations for the Centre of Teaching Excellence.

The Scottish Government is providing a variety of ways for teachers and practitioners to feed into the design process, including working with the following stakeholder groups:

• Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA)

• Scottish Council of Deans of Education (SCDE)

• General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS)

• Association of Directors of Education (ADES)

• Professional Associations and Trade Unions; including EIS, SSTA, NASUWT, SLS and AHDS.

• Scottish Government Strategic Board for Teacher Education

• Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS)

• National education bodies

• Early Learning and Childcare representatives

• Community Learning and Development representatives

Question reference: S6W-24947

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 19 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government which stakeholders it engaged with regarding Education Scotland's Inclusion, Wellbeing and Equalities Professional Learning framework.

I am advised that Education Scotland’s draft Professional Learning Framework has been an iterative process, developed as a result of formal and informal feedback from a wide range of practitioners and other users who have participated in Education Scotland’s professional learning. This includes direct work with Local Authorities, schools, teachers, Senior Managers in schools, and other stakeholders. Evaluations from these activities and discussions with users over a two-to-three-year period, has shaped our current offer.

Some of the stakeholders involved in shaping the concept and content of the draft Framework are:

ES Inclusion Link officers National Network. Almost all 32 local authority officers attended a presentation of the Professional Learning Framework and provided feedback.
ASLO (Additional Support for Learning Link Officer) National Network, which been involved in commenting over the development phase of the framework. Almost all authorities are represented on this Network.
Social Emotional and Behavioural Needs National Network representing 31 Education Authorities.
Complex Needs National Network. 32 Local Authority representatives working with the most challenging children and young people, have provided feedback.
Evidence from recent Collaborative Improvement Activity with Renfrewshire, North Lanarkshire, and Scottish Borders, helped to identify gaps in resources, and where a refresh of resources and/or focus was required in current materials.
Cheryl Burnet National Parent Council.
National Network comprising Children’s Parliament, Young Scott, UNICEF, Children in Scotland all of whom are part of a and helped us to identify strengths and gaps in resources.
SG Programme boards in Inclusion, behaviour, anti-racism, gender, Hate Crime, and LGBTI.

Question reference: S6W-25149

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 19 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its work to prepare schools and infrastructure for the expansion of free school meals.

We are working with local authorities on the infrastructure required to deliver our commitment to the expansion of free school meals.

The 2024-25 budget has made provision for £43m of capital funding for school infrastructure, in addition to the £10m of capital funding provided in 2023-24.

This will support the expansion to P6 & P7 pupils in receipt of the Scottish Child Payment, as part of our wider commitment to expansion.

Question reference: S6W-25171

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 16 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will extend the 100% non-domestic rates relief for eligible day nurseries beyond June 2023.

Question reference: S6W-25023

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it anticipates that the advisory group considering the implementation of the recommendations from the review of allied health professionals will report.

The Advisory Group is expected to offer expert advice and provide assurance on activities being taken forward to progress the implementation of the recommendations of the Allied Health Professions Education and Workforce Policy Review and, although is not expected to exist in perpetuity, will continue until such time as systems, processes and activities are embedded that can demonstrate that progress is adequately assured..

This is likely to mean at least 4 quarterly meetings and meetings are currently scheduled until October 2024.

The group is chaired by Professor Carolyn McDonald, Chief Allied Health Professions Officer, who will report progress towards the implementation of the recommendations to the Chief Nursing Officer and Scottish Ministers as required.

Question reference: S6O-03101

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 February 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to support access to health and social care services in Glasgow.

Question reference: S6W-24980

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don on 13 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-24473 by Natalie Don on 26 January 2024, what impact it anticipates the reallocation of funding away from regional improvement collaboratives will have on the newly appointed speech and language leads carrying out their objectives.

Question reference: S6W-24473

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 12 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don on 26 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23500 by Jenni Minto on 11 December 2023, how it expects that regional leads for early years speech and language will work with regional improvement collaboratives.

The Regional Early Years Speech and Language Leads will work alongside the Regional Improvement Collaboratives and across local services and agencies to encourage the development of a sustainable whole systems approach to improving children’s speech, language and communication outcomes from pre-birth to school entry. They will work together to connect partners, develop and share resources and expertise, and maximise opportunities to support children’s speech, language and communication development.

Question reference: S6W-23885

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 23 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many probationer teachers are currently supernumerary.

The total number of Teacher Induction Scheme (TIS) probationers allocated to local authorities in May 2023 on a supernumerary basis was 626.

This is the number for which local authorities have declared there are no specific probation places for. Probation numbers fluctuate due to deferrals and drop-outs etc. To date there are over 500 deferrals and withdrawals from this year’s initial cohort so the 600 “supernumerary” figure as of May 2023 does not mean there are 600 surplus teachers.

The teacher workforce planning model estimates future student teacher intake numbers by rolling forward recent patterns in the school pupil and staff censuses and other data including national population projections and teacher wastage and turnover.

Question reference: S6W-24453

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 22 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23872 by Jenny Gilruth on 8 January 2024, how the £11 million of funding that it provided to directly support pupils with complex additional support needs has been distributed, and how the spending of this funding has been monitored and recorded.

Funding of over £11 million is provided each year to directly support pupils with complex additional support needs and to support services to children and families.

This includes a total of £10.7 million each year for 7 grant-aided special schools and a combined total of £800k to CALL Scotland, ENQUIRE and the Scottish Sensory Centre to help local authorities to meet the educational needs of children and young people with complex communication and sensory needs.

Through grant funding conditions targets or milestones are agreed between Scottish Government and the grantee. Progress is reported on and recorded through both quarterly reports and an annual report summarising outcomes and performance against the agreed targets or milestones.