Current status: Answered by Neil Gray on 14 October 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what assistance it provides to people with diabetes on low incomes to afford podiatry treatments.
While the Scottish Government’s role is to set the strategic policy for the NHS in Scotland, it is NHS Boards that are responsible for delivering safe, effective, person-centred care at a local level.
To do this effectively, NHS Boards provide a tiered podiatry service, which includes offering support for self-management in order to promote foot health. No single medical condition is automatically deemed to require ongoing general NHS podiatry care and as such podiatry services assess and treat patients based on individual healthcare needs. Whilst routine nail cutting and personal footcare are considered part of daily hygiene, not a clinical service provided by NHS podiatry, advice is available to patients free of charge via their NHS Boards or as part of refreshed footcare guidance published by the Scottish Government in March this year.