Chamber and committees

It is estimated that the capital stimulus package funding of £100 million will support around 800 full time equivalent Scottish jobs, with just over half of those in construction.

The impact on economic growth in 2016-17 will not be known until the projects being funded have been taken forward. However, it is anticipated that this investment will deliver a vital boost to the economy, helping retain skills and activity in key sectors as well as enhancing Scotland's asset base.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving rail services and connectivity within Dumbarton. We have, through the ScotRail franchise, increased the frequency of passenger services between Glasgow and Dumbarton from four to six services per hour and have continued this level of service following the completion of the Glasgow Queen Street tunnel improvements. Passengers in Dumbarton are now able to enjoy a more frequent level of service to and from Helensburgh, Balloch and Glasgow with improved journey times on the Balloch services.

The Scottish Government recognises the extremely important role of unpaid carers and the valuable contribution they make within their local communities. The Social Care (Self-directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013 provides local authorities with a statutory discretionary power to support carers in their own right. This assessment should focus on the personal outcomes of the carer and can lead to services for the carer or the supported person.

Through the Self-directed Support in the Right Direction Fund, five projects are receiving over £440,000 during 2016-2017 to provide support and information to unpaid carers.

To support individuals who have been made redundant, or are at risk of redundancy, in the oil and gas industry and other sectors affected by the downturn, Skills Development Scotland (SDS) organised four high-profile PACE events held in Aberdeen in March, June and September 2015 and also in June 2016, with three,165 unique individuals attending these events.

As part of a wider programme of engagement through the Energy Jobs Taskforce, SDS has also provided in-depth support to individuals affected by the downturn in the sector and who have taken up an offer of support. This amounts to an estimated 1,620 individuals. This support includes workshops on CV preparation, careers guidance interviews, one-to-one employability support and coaching.

The Honourable Member may also be aware of the £12 million Transition Training Fund to support individuals and help the sector retain talent. The latest figures show more than 500 people have had applications approved from the fund, with more than 650 applications currently being processed, we expect this number will increase substantially.

The Social Care (Self-directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013 became Scotland’s approach to social care on the 1 April 2014. It places firm duties on local authorities to offer a range of options for how social care support is delivered. The Statutory Guidance that accompanies the Act states that all options must be described in full and that all options are equal.

The Self-directed Support, Scotland, 2014-2015 report highlighted data recording issues which the Scottish Government’s analytical services is working with local authorities to improve.

Empowering people to have choice and control of their social care support is a long term cultural and systemic change. Since 2011 the Scottish Government has invested £58.8 million to aid the implementation of self-directed support across Scotland. This has included:

£32 million to local authorities to support system and culture change.

£12.7 million to the support in the Right Direction Fund to ensure people are supported in setting their personal outcomes and able to make informed decisions (34 organisations received a share of £2.8 million in 2016-17).

£8.6 million to the Innovation Fund to enable third sector social care providers to deliver flexible and creative support and promote culture change through the workforce (21 projects received a share of £1.1 million in 2016-17).

£2.8 million to embed self-directed as the approach to social care across the workforce.

£2.7 million on various projects including engagement, evaluation and independent living.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and Social Work Scotland are currently carrying out a survey of local authorities about their implementation. The finding of this will inform a structured improvement programme.

The Social Care (Self-directed Support) Act 2013 is founded on the principles of dignity, empowerment and collaboration. It places firm duties on local authorities to offer a range of options for how social care support is delivered and to give individuals the support and information required to enable them to make informed choices. This includes the option of a direct payment. The Statutory Guidance that accompanies the Act states all options must be described in full.

Through the support in the Right Direction Fund the Scottish Government has invested £12.7 million since 2011 in third sector organisations to support people to set their personal outcomes and to make informed decisions about their social care support. This includes information on option one, direct payments, and support to manage direct payments if this is the chosen option. The current fund of £2.8 million per annum is currently supporting 34 organisations. In the six months between October 2015 and March 2016:

3,200 people were supported to access their existing community resources;

2,400 individuals received training and development support;

1,000 people received brokerage support;

950 people were helped to set up and manage their care packages;

800 people were helped to employ and manage personal assistants.

These 34 projects continue to receive a share of £2.8 million in 2016-17.

The Social Care (Self-directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013 became Scotland’s approach to social care on 1 April 2014. It places firm duties on local authorities to offer a range of options for how social care support is delivered. The Statutory Guidance that accompanies the Act states that all options must be described in full and that all options are equal.

The Self-directed Support, Scotland, 2014-2015 report highlighted data recording issues which the Scottish Government’s analytical services is working with local authorities to improve.

Empowering people to have choice and control of their social care support is a long term cultural and systemic change. Since 2011 the Scottish Government has invested £58.8 million to aid the implementation of self-directed support across Scotland. This has included:

£32 million to local authorities to support system and culture change.

£12.7 million to the Support in the Right Direction Fund to ensure people are supported in setting their personal outcomes and able to make informed decisions (34 organisations received a share of £2.8 million in 2016/17).

£8.6 million to the Innovation Fund to enable third sector social care providers to deliver flexible and creative support and promote culture change through the workforce (21 projects received a share of £1.1m in 2016/17).

£2.8 million to embed self-directed as the approach to social care across the workforce.

£2.7 million on various projects including engagement, evaluation and independent living.

The Scottish Government, COSLA and Social Work Scotland are currently carrying out a survey of local authorities about their implementation. The finding of this will inform a structured improvement programme.

The Social Care (Self-directed Support) Act 2013 introduces a range of options for how social care support is delivered and to give individuals the support and information required to enable them to make informed choices. This has opened up support to all individuals requiring social care support.

Of the uptake of self-directed support by client group included in the report, 32% of people have physical difficulties and 10% have learning difficulties, which is in line with the Social Care Survey 2015 as a whole.

Through the Self-directed Support Support in the Right Direction Fund, 13 projects are receiving over £1 million during 2016-2017 to provide support and information to people with learning disabilities.

I will meet with representatives from Inclusion Scotland, Independent Living in Scotland, the Glasgow Centre for Inclusive Living, Scottish Independent Living Coalition and the Coalition for Carers in Scotland in the near future to discuss the Shared Ambition for the Future of Social Care Support in Scotland.

The Scottish Government has committed to considering how best to address the issues raised around charges for social care. We have already made significant progress in reviewing the fairness of charging in the social care system.

As a result, from 1 April 2015, no-one in the last six months of a terminal illness should be charged for the social care that they receive at home.

For 2016-17 the Scottish Government provided additional funding of a quarter of a billion pounds for social care. This offer included £6 million to cover changes in the charging thresholds used by local authorities as a first step towards making charging fairer. Local authorities received this additional funding to raise the income threshold at which point people begin to pay charges, and we will seek to make further progress on this, by taking an anti-poverty approach by prioritising support for those on low incomes first, including around how war pensions and guaranteed income payments for veterans are assessed for calculating social care charges.