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National level reports on the NSA were not commissioned in 2019-20 or 2020-21, due to Covid-19 related disruption. The National Report was also not commissioned in 2021-22, as the handover process from the phase one SNSA supplier (ACER), to the current phase two supplier (AlphaPlus Ltd), was underway.

The National Standardised Assessments for Scotland are designed to provide valuable diagnostic information to teachers, schools and local authorities, on children’s progress in aspects of literacy and numeracy.

The National Standardised Assessments for Scotland - National Report (2022-23) is currently being drafted by the assessment platform supplier and quality assured by the Scottish Government and will be published shortly.

I am advised that this decision was taken jointly by the Scottish Government and Education Scotland when the assessments were introduced in 2017. This position fits within a wider policy approach, guided by Education Scotland, around discussing assessment outcomes with parents and learners.

I am advised that the view at that time was that presenting National Standardised Assessment data or reports to parents and learners on a standalone basis would run contrary to the diagnostic purpose of the assessments, and the central role of teacher judgement in considering NSA data amongst wider assessment activities.

NSA reports are designed for teachers, who have access to training and guidance on the use of these adaptive assessments and their outputs, allowing them to interpret and use the report format appropriately.

NSA data is retained for the duration of a pupil’s interaction with the school system, in order to ensure that school and local authority based longitudinal analysis of individuals’ assessment history is supported.

When learners leave the Scottish school system, their personal data will be retained for a maximum of nine months and then deleted. After that nine months, pupils’ assessments are retained in anonymised format. This allows longitudinal analysis at school level, beyond the point where a child or young person is attending school.

The Scottish Government does not compare or analyse outcomes data from the National Standardised Assessments for Scotland against Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels data, as these each have a distinct purpose and should not be compared directly.

The National Standardised Assessments for Scotland have been designed to provide diagnostic information to teachers, schools and local authorities on children’s progress in aspects of literacy and numeracy, and to inform next steps in learning and teaching. They provide teachers with a valuable additional source of nationally standardised information to add to their existing understanding of children’s progress. NSA data can be used as a part of a range of evidence when assessing children’s achievement of the relevant Curriculum for Excellence levels. However, they do not assess whether learners have or have not achieved a level within the Curriculum for Excellence.

Prescription numbers for Cannabis Based products for Medicinal use (CBPMs) are not collected by the Scottish Government.

There are three Cannabis Based Products for Medicinal use (CBPMs) available on the NHS in Scotland to treat specific conditions. These are:

• Nabilone, a synthetic cannabinoid, as an add-on treatment for adults with chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting;
• Sativex ® , a combination of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol for moderate to severe spasticity in adults with multiple sclerosis; and
• Epidyolex ® , a cannabidiol for treating seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome.

The biggest barrier to the prescribing of other CBPMs on the NHS is that most products remain unlicensed with a limited, or non-existent, peer-reviewed clinical evidence base for their use. We continue to engage with the manufacturers of these products, encouraging them to bring their products to clinical trial. This would allow them to go through the medicine licensing process and be available to be considered for routine availability on the NHS through standard health technology appraisal processes.

Private prescription numbers for Cannabis Based products for Medicinal use (CBPMs) are not collected by the Scottish Government.

The bus system was re-regulated by the UK Government in the 1980s and is primarily operated by private bus operators. The Scottish Government continues to support the bus industry through the Network Support Grant. The purpose of the financial support provided is to help to keep services more extensive and fares more affordable than would otherwise be the case.

Transport Scotland carried out studies last year to assess the possibility of including Langholm on the existing A74(M) signage. As the motorway signs in question are relatively new, extremely large and expensive to replace, it was felt the most appropriate way to consider this opportunity was to address it when the sign needs replaced upon its serviceable life. Based on the expected lifespan of these type of sign, there are no immediate plans to amend the signs in the near future.