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Although Pupil Equity Funding is allocated directly to schools on the basis of the estimated number of children and young people in P1-S3 registered for free school meals, headteachers can use their professional judgement to identify any children in their school who may benefit from the targeted interventions and approaches, with the aim of closing the poverty-related attainment gap. Pupils who speak English as a second language are therefore already eligible to benefit from Pupil Equity Funding under the existing allocation criteria, with headteachers having discretion to make decisions about which children and young people would benefit most from any particular intervention or approach, whilst keeping a clear focus on delivering equity through improving outcomes for learners impacted by poverty.

I wrote to NHS National Services Scotland on 16 June 2023 to request that an evaluation of post COVID services (including long COVID clinics) in comparison to pathways in Scotland was added to the long COVID Strategic Network’s workplan for 2023-24. Consequently, the Strategic Network has contracted the University of Leeds to support the initial evaluation of long COVID services in Scotland.

The University of Leeds is currently the only institution in the UK evaluating long COVID services under the LOCOMOTION study, which includes NHS Highland as a pilot site. The University of Leeds also collaborates with ELAROS which has produced the C19-YRS digital tool which has been procured for use within NHS Scotland to monitor long COVID services. This partnership will also enable Scotland to benefit from the lessons already being learned from NHS England’s long COVID services.

As part of the evaluation, the University of Leeds will provide an: analysis of demand and capacity within Scotland’s long COVID services; analysis of longer-term outcomes for long COVID patients assessed within NHS Health Board services; and where possible, compare differences in service models.

The Scottish Government remains committed to implementing NHS dental payment reform on 1 November 2023 which will retain independent dental practices as the mainstay of NHS provision. Payment reform will also continue to comprise fee-per-item, capitation and allowance payments within a blended model.

In bringing forward payment reform, Scottish Government is seeking to address how best to maximise patient care and access to NHS dental services within a challenging financial position, and ensure value-for-money to the public sector. It is our view this can only be done by maintaining the blended system of payment, and our engagement with the sector during the development of reform has shown that dentists prefer being able to determine their own income and workload through the fee-per-item model.

The Scottish Government is currently responding to the committee’s letter in full, and this response will be published in due course.

All NHS Scotland Boards are providing support for children and young people with long COVID.

Assessment and initial investigation is being provided by local primary care teams, who can give advice and guidance about the management of symptoms and any potential treatment options for these in the first instance. Primary care clinicians can refer to occupational therapy and physiotherapy for further support where appropriate. In cases where referral to secondary care is required, children and young people may be referred to general paediatric services for investigation and management.

The Scottish Government is making available funding of £3 million over this financial year to support NHS Boards to increase the capacity of existing services providing support to people with long COVID, develop these in to more clearly defined pathways and to provide a more co-ordinated experience for those accessing support.

The individual delivery models being utilised and progressed by NHS Boards will vary, as they are tailored to local circumstances and needs. For example, some NHS Boards have developed single points of access for assessment and co-ordinated support from services including physiotherapy and occupational therapy. In other areas, the co-ordination role will be fulfilled by the primary care team based in the person’s local GP surgery.

The deployment, working conditions and health and wellbeing of officers are matters for the Chief Constable. There are processes and mechanisms in place for the Scottish Police Federation to raise any concerns or suggestions for change with Police Scotland through the Joint Negotiating Consultative Committee (JNCC), whose membership includes staff associations and trade unions.

I have three scheduled meetings per year and met with the Scottish Police Federation on 21 December 2022, 10 May 2023 and is scheduled to meet them on 21 September 2023. The Federation also meet regularly with senior Scottish Government officials. During these meetings matters of interest and concern to federation members are discussed.

At this time, the only form of electronic monitoring available in Scotland is radio frequency monitoring (RF).

As at 11 September 2023 the number of non-custodial sentences being electronically monitored was 1,583. This compares to 1,177 non-custodial sentences being electronically monitored at the same time last year.

The Scottish Government has no plans to establish a database with regards to the monitoring of individuals with Lynch Syndrome.

We are currently in discussion with clinicians including members of the Scottish Strategic Network for Genomic Medicine and the Clinical Genetics Forum to bring together all stakeholder specialities to advise on testing, screening and management for individuals at increased risk of cancer.

The Scottish Government does not routinely gather or centrally hold information on staff attrition rates across all public sector, or publicly funded, bodies.

National Statistics on employment across the public sector in Scotland, including headcount by devolved and reserved sectors, are published on a quarterly basis and can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/collections/public-sector-employment-statistics/.

In the case of some specific workforces, further information relevant to attrition rates is also available:

• Official Statistics on the NHSScotland workforce, including staff turnover, are published and can be found at: https://turasdata.nes.nhs.scot/data-and-reports/official-workforce-statistics/ .
• National Statistics on the composition of the Civil Service workforce, including staff turnover by department and devolved administration, are published annually and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/civil-service-statistics

Since December 2022, the Scottish Government has allocated over £896,000 to NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHS GGC) to support work to improve their adult and young people’s gender identity services.

NHS GGC is using this funding to recruit to its Young People’s Service multidisciplinary team; contact those currently on the waiting list to identify unmet needs; and improve support for those waiting.

The Scottish Government has engaged with NHS England on the developing plans on clinical research, and the Scottish Government/NHS Scotland will join the planned NHS England study development process as an observer.

s set out in our answer on 21 June, decisions on prescribing are for clinicians to make in consultation with the patient, following individualised assessment, and they are subject to regular monitoring. The Scottish Government remains proactive in its commitment to help to deliver high-quality healthcare to children and young people in that sensitive field of medicine.

The Scottish Government has also committed to support the establishment of a nationally commissioned young person’s gender identity service. Work is underway with NHS National Services Scotland on how best to sustainably provide gender identity healthcare for young people in Scotland in the long term. This process includes considering existing and future treatment pathways.