Seòmar agus comataidhean

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-19549 on 9 August 2023. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The Skills Delivery Landscape Review was carried out as an independent review, and as such the Scottish Government was not involved in consultations that led to the recommendations.

As set out in Fit for the Future: developing a post-school learning system to fuel economic transformation the Independent Advisor, James Withers, ran an open call for evidence and engaged directly with a range of individuals and organisations as a core part of his review process.

Small and micro businesses tend to make up a high percentage of Modern Apprentice (MA) employers. Data from Skills Development Scotland (SDS) shows that in 2019, 49.7% of MA employers were microbusinesses (0-9 employees) and 30.8% were small businesses (10-49 employees).

SDS, our national skills body, undertakes a variety of activity to promote apprenticeships to small businesses. This includes Scottish Apprenticeship Week (SAW) which is a long-standing and award winning campaign designed to raise the profile of apprenticeships, supported by hundreds of employers each year.

During SAW, the annual Scottish Apprenticeship Awards recognises apprenticeship delivery and seeks to reward and recognise employer apprenticeships, including a category for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

SDS also commission learning providers to promote and recruit apprentice employers including SMEs. Apprenticeships.scot is a platform which enables employers to advertise apprenticeship opportunities for free which SMEs are encouraged to use. SDS undertakes a comprehensive digital marketing programme in support of Scottish Apprenticeships, including ongoing engagement through social media channels and promotion of Apprenticeships.scot .

The Scottish Government accepted the recommendations in the 2022 Planning for Skills Report and have taken action to improve our assurance and oversight of skills planning, including through the actions taken as part of the Shared Outcomes Framework (published in March 2022). The Scottish Government also published the National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET) in March 2022, which includes analysis and actions to develop Scotland’s Skilled Workforce.

In Autumn 2022, the Scottish Government initiated the independent review of the Skills Delivery Landscape, led by James Withers, to provide recommendations on how the skills functions of our public bodies, including skills planning, should change to ensure the system remains fit for purpose for delivering the ambitions in NSET.

In his final report, published in June 2023, James Withers recommends that the Scottish Government takes responsibility for national skills planning. Following that report, in its Initial Priorities paper, published on 28 June 2023 alongside the Purpose and Principles for post-school education, research and skills, the Scottish Government accepted the basis of many recommendations made by James Withers including taking responsibility for national skills planning and enhancing the role of employers in shaping system planning priorities, pathways and provision.

We will be working over the coming months, with partners, to explore the practicalities of implementing these priorities including our approach to developing new national and regional skills planning processes.

Apprenticeships in Scotland are demand-led, and our apprenticeship system aims to be as responsive to industry demand as it can be. Any new Modern Apprenticeship (MA) frameworks created would be as a result of sufficient demand from employers for a new MA and a clear indication that an MA is the right training route. Skills Development Scotland (SDS) work with industry to assess the level of demand and can support the development of new apprenticeship frameworks where required.

There is no time limit for accessing Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) in Scotland. Any individual over the age of 16 can start an MA at any point in their career. Skills Development Scotland provide funding contributions which depend on the type of apprenticeship, the qualification level and the age of the apprentice, however there is no specific time limit on funding available.

Scotland has led the UK in providing affordable housing. We are making £3.5 billion available in this Parliamentary term, towards the delivery of more affordable and social homes. An estimated 3,480 households with children have been helped into affordable housing in the year to March 2023.

We also know that many victims of domestic abuse will have particular housing and support needs, and that is why we are also firmly committed to implementing the social housing tenancy related provisions at Part 2 of the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act 2021 and aim to bring these provisions into force by early 2024, subject to the necessary rules and forms of court also being in place.

As part of the Homelessness Prevention Duties we propose to make it a legal requirement for social landlords to develop and implement a domestic abuse housing policy which outlines how they will support their tenants who are experiencing domestic abuse.

The Scottish Government has had no discussions with the Scottish Housing Regulator about allocation rules for the victims of domestic abuse. The legal framework for social housing allocations in Scotland is the responsibility of the Scottish Government. The Social Housing Allocations Practice Guide for social landlords published by the Scottish Government is clear that landlords should consider giving a high level of priority to anyone who is experiencing domestic abuse.

Those opting to take part in an apprenticeship are employed by various organisations across Scotland. Therefore, it is at the discretion of individual employers in regards to placement opportunities available outside of Scotland and the rest of the UK.

The Scottish Government has committed to developing a Scottish Education Exchange Programme to support the international mobility of staff and learners. It is our aspiration for this programme to support apprenticeship training under the vocational education and training stream.

We are working with stakeholders to develop and will undertake a test and learn pilot for the Scottish Education Exchange Programme in 2023-2024. We will share additional information in due course.

The latest data published by Public Health Scotland (13 June 2023) suggests that referrals to a chronic pain clinic are now back to levels seen prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the quarter ending 31 March 2023, 5,049 patients were referred, an increase of 5.5% on the previous quarter, when 4,787 patients were referred. Referrals are up by 4.3% compared to a year earlier, when there were 4,839 during the quarter ending 31 March 2022. The number of direct encounters for GPs is typically between 1.5 million and 1.8 million per month, and analysis via statistical process chart demonstrates that there has been no change in activity outwith normal variation for the period of March 2021 to April 2023.

Through the ‘Framework for Pain Management Service Delivery – Implementation Plan’ we are promoting a more consistent approach to specialist services in each Health Board; we have invested in a new Pain Service Managers’ Network. This group is working through shared issues faced by specialist pain services such as resourcing and financial challenges and identifying opportunities to solve these through sharing of best practice and different ways of working. We have also established a national working group to make recommendations on how to reduce variation in the support that is provided in different local areas and improve how care for people with chronic pain is coordinated across community, primary and specialist services.

Additionally, we have carried out a review of the Scottish National Residential Pain Management Programme to help remobilise the service impacted during the pandemic, improve the quality of referrals from local Health Boards, and continue to explore how to widen access to highly specialist care from across Scotland. Funding for this service from the Scottish Government is over £600,000 this financial year 2023-24.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-20107 on 8 August 2023. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers