Chamber and committees

The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 introduces a new framework to ensure that all children and young people with additional support needs, including those with learning disabilities, benefit from education. The act also places new duties on education authorities and appropriate agencies to ensure early planning and preparation and effective exchange of information. This supports children and young people with additional support needs to make a smooth and successful transition to post-school life.

Our widening access policy is helping to break down barriers to participation in further education faced by all groups including students with learning disabilities. Further education colleges receive additional funding in respect of students who either require to attend a special programme or who require additional support to undertake a mainstream course.

The forthcoming Children’s Report, from The same as you? implementation group, aims to raise awareness that it is the responsibility of every organisation and individual involved in service provision to give children and young people the opportunity to access mainstream services.

As part of the school estate strategy we have initiated the largest school building programme of modern times which will deliver 300 new or substantially refurbished schools by 2009 along with widespread improvements in many other schools. We are supporting school building through public private partnership projects with a capital value of some £2.5 billion, the schools fund capital grant of some £100 million per year and the general capital resources available to local authorities under the prudential framework. This investment is transforming the learning and teaching environment for many young people and teachers, with well designed, well built schools that have modern facilities that inspire young people, teachers and communities, and meet their aspirations and evolving needs.

A comprehensive programme of action is in place to encourage physical activity in and around the school day. Following the recommendations of the World Health Organization, Scotland is one of the few countries to have put in place a national physical activity strategy including national activity targets for children.

In the school curriculum, we are taking forward a programme of work aimed at providing more time for, more teachers of and more choice in physical education. This was followed up recently with a commitment to provide Local Authorities with an additional £18 million in 2006 and £44 million in 2007 to support the recruitment of additional teachers, including PE teachers. In taking forward A Curriculum for Excellence we are looking at ways in which to ensure that the curriculum is flexible enough to allow schools to provide sufficient time for high quality PE.

As regards physical activity in the wider school environment, since 2003 we have invested £24 million in the Active Schools Programme and currently have more than 600 Active School Co-ordinators in post. We are committed also to ensuring that every school in Scotland is a Health Promoting School by the end of 2007, developing a whole school approach to promoting the physical, social, spiritual, mental and emotional well-being of all pupils and staff. In addition, the Scottish Executive Transport Group has invested £110 million to support safe, walking and cycling to school, including the creation of 20 miles-per-hour zones around schools. School Travel Co-ordinators in local authorities oversee and enable progress making clear links to the importance of physical activity for health.

I refer the member to the question S2W-22686 answered on 2 February 2006. 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/webapp/wa.search.

The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 requires education authorities to publish information about a range of specified matters such as their policy in relation to provision for additional support needs. This could include provision available to assist in the post-school transition process. They must also provide details of any other persons the authority think appropriate who could provide advice and further information and support in relation to provision for additional support needs.

Enquire, the national advice service for additional support for learning, is funded by the Scottish Executive to provide information and advice to parents and young people on a range of matters relating to additional support needs. These include: a new online factsheet for young people on getting ready to leave school; the Have your say video which includes advice and suggestions from young people about the process of making choices for the future; links on the young person’s website at www.enquire.org.uk to Skill Scotland and Careers Scotland. In addition, the Parents’ Guide to Additional Support for Learning contains a section on leaving school and information and advice is also available from the helpline.

Careers Scotland provide key worker and other employability services to give tailored support to those young people who face the most complex barriers to entering and sustaining training, post-school education and employment. Careers Scotland advertise their services through a wide range of media.

The Scottish Executive does not provide funding or support directly to football supporters’ trusts. Funding was made available by the Executive to support the establishment of Supporters Direct in Scotland in 2002 to work with responsible groups of supporters looking to set up a supporters’ trust at their football club. Funding was initially provided at the level of £75,000 each year for the two years to 31 March 2004. Funding was continued at the increased level of £90,000 each year to 31 March 2006 to enable Supporters Direct in Scotland to continue and develop its work of supporting new and existing trusts. I am currently considering a business case from Supporters Direct in Scotland for continued financial support from 1 April 2006 and hope to be in a position to make an announcement shortly.

Although adjustments for deprivationwithin the local government finance distribution methodology are made to 25 servicesor sub-services, linked to allocations of over £2 billion out of a total currentprovision of £8.7 billion, it is not possible to give an exact proportion specificallyrelated to deprivation levels.

The Scottish Executive is working closely with the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority, as well as with VisitScotland, VisitBritain, the local enterprise companies, the local authorities and the local business community to ensure that the park is effectively promoted.

TheLoch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority is expectedto fund all its activities within its overall budget allocation. The Executive hasindicated that, to the extent that the park authority faced additional and previouslyunforeseen costs, associated with byelaw enforcement and with bringing forward thebyelaw review process, and which could not be contained within their budget allocationfor the current year, additional funds would be made available. Whether thepark authority will require additional funds will not be clear until the end of the financial year.

The Executive have supplied the following corrected answer:

Rhona Brankin: The Loch Lomondand the Trossachs National Park Authority is expected to fund all itsactivities from within its overall budget. The Executive has indicated that, tothe extent that the park authority faced additional and previously unforeseencosts, associated with enforcement and bringing forward the byelaw reviewprocess, that could not be contained within this year’s budget, additionalfunds would be made available.

Following ministers’consideration of the allocation of end year flexibility resources, officialswrote to the Park Authority to indicate that additional resources were beingmade available to support various projects. This included £71,000 to assist indelivering the byelaw review and to help with enforcement activity.

I announced on 19 May the Executive’s decision to dissolve NHS Argyll and Clyde and consult on the boundaries of the boards – namely, NHS Greater Glasgow and NHS Highland – that will assume responsibility for the planning and provision of healthcare services in the area.

The matter of the boundaries of the successor boards has been subject to formal public consultation which was launched on 8 August and ran until 11 November.

I have carefully considered all representations and the results of the consultation and concluded that the healthcare interests of patients and local people would be best served by adopting option one; that is: incorporating the Argyll and Bute council area within NHS Highland, and the rest of the Argyll and Clyde area within NHS Greater Glasgow.

I genuinely believe that by redrawing the boundaries of NHS Greater Glasgow and NHS Highland in this way we will have a basis for the more rational and effective planning and provision of services; an opportunity to better reflect and respond to patient flows; the chance to reduce overheads by sharing services, and, in line with Delivering for Health, a real opportunity to explore all options for providing high quality, safe and sustainable healthcare services as close to people’s homes as possible.

This decision will be the subject of an Executive debate at 14:55 this afternoon in Parliament.