Participation and Communities Team
The Participation and Communities Team (PACT) works with individuals and communities to support engagement with the Scottish Parliament.
The team helps people have their views and experiences heard by our committees. This ensures that the conversations are well-informed and more balanced.
We do this by partnering with
- voluntary groups
- business groups
- charities, and
- community organisations.
We offer awareness sessions – these help people learn more about
- the work of Parliament, and
- how to get involved.
We have three main areas of focus:
Communities
We are community participation specialists. We bring people together from around Scotland who are most affected by the issues being discussed in Parliament. We connect them to the relevant committee, so that their voices can be heard and considered by MSPs. We value hearing about people’s lived experiences. We work with organisations to make sure we are engaging with the right communities in the right way. We do this through a variety of activities, including targeted communications and workshops.
Our community participation specialists and their contact details are listed below:
Ewan Masson
ewan.masson@parliament.scot
Ewan is the committee lead for:
Ewan is the area lead for:
- Aberdeen
- Aberdeenshire
- Angus
- Dundee
- Fife
- North Lanarkshire
- South Lanarkshire
- Moray
Kerri Whiteside
kerri.whiteside@parliament.scot
Kerri is the committee lead for:
Kerri is the area lead for:
- Argyll and Bute
- Borders
- Dumfries and Galloway
- Highland
- Inverclyde
- Orkney
- East Renfrewshire
- Shetland
Leoncha Leavy
leoncha.leavy@parliament.scot
Leoncha is the committee lead for:
- Education, Children and Young People
- Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice
- Europe, External Affairs and Culture
Leoncha is the area lead for:
- Clackmannanshire
- East Dunbartonshire
- West Dunbartonshire
- Falkirk
- Glasgow
- East Lothian
- Renfrewshire
- Stirlingshire
Kate Smith
kate.smith@parliament.scot
Kate is the committee lead for:
Kate is the area lead for:
- East Ayrshire
- North Ayrshire
- South Ayrshire
- Edinburgh
- Midlothian
- Perth and Kinross
- Western Isles
- West Lothian
Digital
We know that not everyone can easily engage with Parliament in person. We’re exploring ways to connect with more people online, so that they can have their say in the work we do.
The Scottish Parliament currently uses a consultation website to support our Call for Views, and an online discussion website to help the public talk about issues and put forward their own experiences, ideas, and questions.
Deliberative democracy
'Deliberative democracy' is a process for getting people to engage in discussion and debate on certain issues. It encourages people to take part and arrive at a consensus. It's an inclusive approach to democracy. PACT encourage the use of deliberate democracy through Citizens’ Panels.
Our deliberative democracy specialist is:
Alistair Stoddart
alistair.stoddart@parliament.scot
Contacting the team
If you would like to know more about the work of PACT, please email the team at PACT@parliament.scot.
You can follow the team on Twitter at: @Engage_SP.
You can also find previous newsletters here:
Other information
Committees are regularly looking for the public to share their views on various legislative issues.
Find the latest list of calls for views
You can also read about our Privacy Policy, and our statement on trauma-informed working.