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The Scottish Government will address the impact of changes to service provision on access and availability to alcohol and drug recovery services by continuing to ensure that the specific needs of women are considered in the design and delivery of services, and that a gendered approach is taken in all new or developing initiatives across the National Mission to reduce deaths and improve lives.

The Scottish Government provided specific funding of around £1.5m per year to Glasgow City Council to support the 218 Service. As a result of that funding relationship, Glasgow informed the Scottish Government of its plans to re-tender the service last year and discussions took place to confirm that the funding would still be available following that exercise.

Glasgow City Council has provided assurances that it worked closely with Turning Point Scotland to support individuals in transitioning to other support arrangements and that other services, including residential placements, are available to support people with similar needs. In particular, it has confirmed that all 218 service residents had moved on from the service as of 31 January 2024 – some residents naturally came to the end of their stay, while others moved back to their own tenancy or to accommodation with support.

The Scottish Government remains committed to addressing the twin public health emergencies on alcohol and drugs and recognises the key role treatment and recovery services play.

Based on registrations for November 2023 Computing Science week, there were no schools registered for Education Scotland's organised live webinars from Argyll and Bute, Orkney Islands or West Dunbartonshire. It is difficult to be definitive on how many schools engaged as schools may also have participated by watching the recordings of sessions or by creating their own activities.

The Scottish Government will publish its response to the Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment as soon as practically possible in the new school year.

The relationships and behaviour action plan had been agreed by the Scottish Advisory Group on Relationships and Behaviour in Schools (SAGRABIS) at its meeting on 15 May 2024, subject to some identified drafting changes. The guidance was in the process of being finalised when the need to consider whether or not it could be published during the pre-election period arose. The guidance would otherwise have been published prior to the end of school year.

Scottish Government and Education Scotland have been working with stakeholders to determine the potential shape of a National Digital Academy. I am advised that this development work has not been affected by technological or connectivity restrictions.

The Scottish Government was at the final stage of completing the work required to publish a response to the Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment when the need to consider whether or not it could be published during the pre-election period arose.

Scottish Government and Education Scotland have begun user engagement around the development of a National Digital Academy. A survey capturing the views of 2,229 learners has been undertaken, and a series of interviews and focus groups have been held with learners, parents and virtual learning environment providers. Education Scotland will continue this engagement with teaching organisations and other national bodies over the next few months, with overall findings from engagement being shared in due course.

The Scottish Government is committed to helping displaced Ukrainians access sustainable accommodation, including in the PRS.

The Housing (Scotland) Bill includes a package of PRS reforms that provide additional rights and protections for tenants, including displaced people from Ukraine.

Information on tenants’ rights has been translated into Ukrainian and shared via the Scottish Government’s website and within the Ukrainian community. The Minister for Housing has engaged with landlords, estate agents and their representatives and will continue to do so to understand the challenges facing the PRS and how we may most effectively support displaced Ukrainians in accessing it.

The Scottish Government Residential Rehabilitation Literature Review published 30 May 2022 showed that demonstrating the association between residential rehabilitation and specific outcomes is complicated by the widely varied nature of provision in terms of programme length, treatment philosophy, the provision of throughcare (including preparatory work and aftercare) and quality.

The length of residential rehabilitation treatments varies substantially. This data on individual placements is not currently collated centrally. The Scottish Government have commissioned PHS to establish the necessary data infrastructure to monitor residential rehab in Scotland, and we expect that early extracts to be published in December 2024.

As the dataset continues to develop and becomes more mature, a greater level of insight and data will be available for publication, including treatment length and associated outcomes.