Seòmar agus comataidhean

The latest Scottish Fiscal Commission forecasts for Best Start Grant were published in May 2019, increasing their 2019-20 forecasts from £12m to £21m.

The forecasts from the Scottish Fiscal Commission were then used by Scottish Government and Social Security Scotland in resource modelling for Best Start Grant Pregnancy and Baby Payment. Following Best Start Grant Pregnancy and Baby Payment being introduced, the Best Start Grant Early Years and School Payment were based on revised estimates.

The social security uprating analytical report was supplied to the Scottish Commission on Social Security on 2 September 2019.

There are currently 172 contingent works across each division of the Social Security Directorate. Each contingent worker is appointed on a full-time basis so headcount is directly comparable to FTE. The following table breaks this down by Division and number of quarters.

The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

[In case further information is helpful, please see the following sources of published information on Social Security and Scottish Government workforce:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/foi-19-00617/

https://www.gov.scot/publications/workforce-information/ ]

The following tables provides (a) how many and (b) what proportion of (i) its and (ii) the Social Security Directorate staff recorded (A) short- and (B) long-term absences in each (1) quarter and (2) year since 2016, broken down by the number of days lost (1) overall and (2) as a proportion of days worked by staff.

Data for the Directorate for Social Security begins at September 2016.

Table 1. Number of directly employed SG Core staff who had at least one period of short term sickness or long term sickness during a rolling year period ending in each quarter. Including the total number of scaled sick days and the percentage of working days lost

Young Carer Grant forms part of Wave One social security delivery. Information on the cost of delivering Social Security will be set out in the Programme Business Case, which will be published around the time of the Scottish Budget.

For anticipated benefit expenditure please also refer to Scottish Fiscal Commission forecasts . For information on Scottish Government Spending plans refer to the Medium Term Financial Strategy and the Scottish Budget . Information on Social Security Scotland expenditure will be available in the annual report and accounts to be published in the Autumn.

Links

http://www.fiscalcommission.scot/publications/scotlands-economic-and-fiscal-forecasts/

https://www.gov.scot/publications/scotlands-fiscal-outlook-scottish-governments-medium-term-financial-strategy-2019/

https://www.gov.scot/budget/ .

The following table provides the number of directly employed staff in the Social Security Programme Management and Delivery Division in 2018-19.

Headcount of directly employed staff in Programme Management and Delivery Division

The following table provides (a) how many and (b) what proportion of the Social Security Programme Management and Delivery Division staff recorded (i) short- and (ii) long-term absences in each (A) quarter and (B) year since 2016, broken down by the number of days lost (1) overall and (2) as a proportion days worked by staff in the programme.

Data for the Directorate for Social Security begins at September 2016.

Table 1. Number of directly employed Programme Management and Delivery staff who had at least one period of short term sickness or long term sickness during a rolling year period ending in each quarter. Including the total number of scaled sick days and the percentage of working days lost.

While there is no legal impediment to automatic social security payments, in introducing the Scottish Child Payment the Scottish Government prioritised the delivery route which would deliver the benefit to the quickest timescales and with the least impact on the remaining devolved benefits.

As set out in the Scottish Child Payment position paper ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-government-position-paper-scottish-child-payment ), an automated model was rejected for a number of reasons, including the technical complexity of designing it, the resulting risks to delivery of the other devolved benefits, and the ongoing uncertainty around delays to Universal Credit migration.

The Scottish Government recognises the value of automating payments. However, in light of the considerations made during our analysis of options, detailed in the position paper, we settled on the approach of adopting an application based process which offers a more timely and efficient model for delivery.

Nearly half a million households were receiving some level of Council Tax Reduction (CTR) in June 2019, and on average recipients saved over £700 per year. 58% of CTR recipients live in one of the 30% most deprived areas in Scotland. At the end of this financial year the Scottish Government will have provided over £1.7 billion in funding for the scheme since it began.

Entitlement to CTR is determined by household circumstances and ability to pay, but also depends on the household’s Council Tax liability which in turn depends not just on the band a property is in and the council tax rate set by the local authority, but also whether any discounts or other reductions apply.

We have promoted take-up of the CTR scheme, and continue to do so, as part of the Money Talk Team service, which is delivered by the Citizens Advice Network in Scotland and supported by the Scottish Government.