Chamber and committees

The definition of “looked after children” that the Scottish Government adheres to is as provided in Section 17(6) of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995:

“Any reference in this chapter of this part to a child who is “looked after” by a local authority, is to a child:

(a) For whom they are providing accommodation under section 25 of this Act;

(b) Who is subject to a supervision requirements and in respect of whom they are the relevant local authority;

(c) Who is subject to an order made, or authorisation or warrant granted, by virtue of Chapter 2, 3 or 4 of this Part of the Act, being an order, authorisation or warrant in accordance with which they have responsibilities as respects the child;

(d) Who is subject to an order in accordance with which, by virtue of regulations made under section 33(1) of this Act, they have such responsibilities; or

(e) In respect of whom a permanence order has, on an application by them under section 80 of the Adoption and Children (Scotland) Act 2007 (asp 4), been made and has not ceased to have effect.”

This definition will be amended by Schedule 5 of the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011. This Act introduces Compulsory Supervision Orders and Interim Compulsory Supervision Orders. The new definition will substitute the reference to supervision requirements in paragraph (b) with the new orders and paragraph (c) will be repealed.

The amendments will come into force on 24 June 2013.

At the end of Period 11 (February 2013), 82 young people have been supported through the targeted Employer Recruitment Incentive. Skill Development Scotland are unable to share a disaggregated figure as the overall number of individuals supported is small.

The Scottish Government has committed to supporting 1000 young people over three years within disadvantaged groups; 80 young people in 2012-13; 460 in
2013-14; and 460 in 2014-15.

The Scottish Government has committed £1.5 million over three financial years in support of the Employer Recruitment Incentive for 1000 young people within disadvantaged groups. The incentive amounts to £1500 per young person with up to £500 available for additional employability support.

80 young people will be supported in 2012-13; 460 in 2013-14; and 460 in 2014-15.

As at the end of February 2013, 82 individuals had been supported through the incentive.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting all young people with additional support needs who want to work, and it is our ambition that with the right support, they are able to find work in mainstream employment, taking account of their specific needs, and in line with their skills.

In support of this, the Scottish Government has:

Made a specific commitment to all 16 – 19 year olds seeking a place in education or training through Opportunities for All. This is supported by £30 million new investment;

Updated our Post 16 Transitions Policy and Practice Framework which includes specific guidance on how to support the transitions of young people with additional support needs from school into post-school education and employment;

Provided £1.5 million over three financial years in support of an Employer Recruitment Incentive for 1000 young people within disadvantaged groups, this incentive is available to Modern Apprenticeships;

Extended the Community Jobs Scotland programme to help vulnerable young people who face additional barriers to entering into employment by increasing the age criteria for these young people from 16-19 to 16-24;

Published our Supported Employment Framework In 2010, “A Working Life for All Disabled People”. The aim of the Framework is to provide the mechanisms necessary to support a disabled persons move to paid employment in the open labour market in a systematic and effective way; and

Held a series of regional youth employment action forums in Lanarkshire, Glasgow, Edinburgh and the Lothians, Dumfries and Galloway and West of Scotland. We now plan to hold an action forum to focus on young people with additional support needs. The format for the event has been decided and officials are working towards delivery of the event at the end of April.

In the Procurement Reform Bill we propose to introduce a requirement that public sector bodies consider community benefits clauses in all new major public contracts. It will be for individual public bodies to decide what those clauses will contain and who they will target based upon the particular circumstances of each contract. Where appropriate it will be open to public bodies to consider targeting young people with learning difficulties and care leavers.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting all young people with additional support needs who want to work, and it is our ambition that with the right support, they are able to find work in mainstream employment, taking account of their specific needs, and in line with their skills.

Further information on support offered by Scottish Government was provided in the answer to question S4W-12832 on 27 February 2013. 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/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that vulnerable groups of people are given the support they need to overcome barriers, enabling them to reach their full potential.

To support young people into work, we have:

made a specific commitment to all 16 to 19 year olds seeking a place in education or training through Opportunities for All, supported by £30 million new investment;

updated our Post 16 Transitions Policy and Practice Framework which includes specific guidance on how to support the transitions of young people with additional support needs from school into post-school education and employment;

provided £1.5 million over three financial years in support of an Employer Recruitment Incentive for 1,000 young people within disadvantaged groups;

extended the Community Jobs Scotland programme to help vulnerable young people by increasing the age criteria from 16-19 to 16-24.

published our Supported Employment Framework In 2010, “A Working Life for All Disabled People” to support a disabled person’s transition to employment;

arranged an action forum hosted by the Minister for Youth Employment in April focusing on young people with additional support needs;

allocated £2.7 million to develop a new strategy document to help to close the inequality gap that people with learning disabilities continue to face on a daily basis; and introduced the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2009 which places education authorities under a duty to identify, plan and review the support they provide for pupils in their area.

In relation to health and wellbeing, work taken forward since 2007 includes:

publishing “Equally Well” in June 2008, which made recommendations to improve health and life outcomes for particularly vulnerable groups. The Ministerial Task Force on Health Inequalities has been reconvened to review new evidence, look at lessons learned and highlight new areas for attention;

hosting a learning disability health inequalities network where all NHS boards come together to work together on addressing the health inequalities that people with learning disabilities face. £500,000 of Scottish Government funding was allocated to assist NHS boards to tackle this;

issuing a letter to health board chief executives setting out their responsibilities in relation to looked after children and asking them to appoint a director who will have responsibility for the health needs of all looked after children, young people and care leavers in their area (CEL 16 (2009)); and

convening a short life working group to develop a set of national recommendations for the health assessment of looked after children, young people and care leavers. This group will report in autumn 2013.

No data is held centrally regarding the employment status of all care leavers.

The Annual Population Survey (APS) provides estimates of employment across Scotland; however the only data available for those with learning difficulties covers those who have any learning difficulties or disabilities. The latest APS data covers the period from January to December 2012.

Number of people aged 16+ with learning difficulties or disabilities in employment, Scotland

Source: Annual Population Survey, Office for National Statistics

Notes:

1. Level rounded to nearest thousand.

2. The sub-group of interest here is relatively small therefore this estimate is not as reliable as those for the total population aged 16+.

3. Learning difficulties and disabilities includes conditions such as dyslexia or dyscalculia; mental impairments or mental handicap.

The amount of money local authorities could have gained from maximising business rates income is a matter for each individual local authority and that position remains irrespective of the review of the 2012-13 business rates incentivisation scheme targets.

The current review of the targets has nothing to do with the actions of local authorities in terms of delivery of economic growth, but is an administrative review, as part of the agreed process, of the lower than predicted loss of income from successful revaluation appeals and increased cost of providing mandatory business rates relief.