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The Scottish Government intends to refresh and modernise the School Premises Regulations (General Requirements and Standards) (Scotland) to ensure that they meet the needs of pupils and schools in Scotland. The Scottish Government still intends to re-consult this year on the Regulations.

Scottish Government officials are taking steps to engage with relevant stakeholders and will be reaching out to further interested parties. Consultation responses will inform areas of focus for any proposals for changes to update the Regulations before these are brought forward.

It is the statutory responsibility of local authorities to manage their school estate, including the provision of toilets in schools.

The Scottish Government and Education Scotland have provided funding in 2022 and 2023 to support Scottish Games Week, which included an Education Symposium.

The Scottish Government provided £49,425 in 2022 and £40,000 in 2023.

Education Scotland provided £7500 funding for the Scottish Games Week Education Symposium in 2023.

The Mental Welfare Commission have visited and reported on Skye House seven times since 2016 as part of its local visit programme, the most recent of which was in March 2024.

Some of the issues raised in these reports were also identified in the Disclosure documentary. These included staffing difficulties, support for young people with eating disorders in terms of standard of food, impact of isolation, and concerns regarding certain medical treatment under the Mental Health Act being properly authorised and monitored. The MWC does not comment on specifics such as self-harm, aggression or restraint in its visit reports, as there could be a risk to individuals being identified.

The MWC base their findings and recommendations on observations from the day of the visit and these local visit reports represent a snapshot of each facility at that moment in time, with recommendations made accordingly. MWC reports are an important part of ensuring standards of care and upholding rights, but they should not be seen as a comprehensive investigation or audit.

The Scottish Government has not provided funding directly to video game development companies in the past five years through targeted schemes.

The Scottish Government and Education Scotland have provided funding in 2022 and 2023 to support Scottish Games Week, which included an Education Symposium. This event brings together video game industry and education providers with an aim to share learning and establish partnerships.

Education Scotland has also supported (through attendance and delivery) the Scottish Games Education Symposium in 2024 and inaugural Scottish Esports Education Conference in 2024.

Video games development covers a range of skills and careers from the technical to the creative development so there are multiple routes into the industry. A college or university course in Computer Games Development is one pathway into the sector, but Apprenticeship pathways in Creative & Digital Media or Software Development will also provide transferable skills and knowledge.

Information on funding available for further and higher students can be found on the Student Information Scotland webpage.

Skills Development Scotland administers Scottish Apprenticeships on behalf of the Scottish Government, which incorporates Foundation Apprenticeships (FAs), Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) and Graduate Apprenticeships (GAs). Information on what funding is available to support access to apprenticeships can be found on the apprentices.scot webpage.

Under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, all children and young people of school age have the right to an education that helps them develop their abilities to their fullest potential. Local Authorities, who deliver education, also have a statutory duty to make special arrangements for any affected pupils to receive education elsewhere than at a school, or other educational establishment, if they are likely to be absent for a prolonged period as a result of ill health. This statutory duty applies regardless of the nature of the health condition keeping a pupil absent from school, including IBD, Crohn’s diseases and colitis.

The Scottish Government published guidance on the education of children unable to attend school due to ill health and, within this guidance, it states that legislation requires that local authorities make special arrangement for children and young people absent from school through ill health ‘without undue delay’.

The guidance on the education of children and young people unable to attend school due to ill health is available on our website through the following link: Introduction - Education of children unable to attend school due to ill health: guidance - gov.scot. Alternatively, this information is also summarised on user-friendly fact sheets which are available on the Enquire website through the following link: too-unwell-to-attend-school.pdf.

Artificial grass pitches play an important role in the delivery of sport and physical activity across Scotland, helping the nation to lead more active, healthy lives. Well maintained artificial pitches allow for year-round, intensive use and can provide significantly more playing hours than traditional grass pitches.

sportscotland, our national agency for sport, are part of the UK Artificial Grass Pitch forum monitoring work on the long-term viability of these products. sportscotland, continue to engage with sporting bodies, educational bodies and key partners across the sporting sector in the development of synthetic pitches and surfaces.

There are already alternatives on the market such as cork, corn husks and olive pits amongst others. St Andrews University has already installed a full-size 3G pitch with cork infill, and there is research and development continuing across the industry with more products in the market. Glasgow Life is also planning to trial the use of biodegradable corn as an alternative to 3G rubber crumb on two five-a-side courts at Glasgow Green – with further developments potentially taking place across the city.

The Scottish Government does not offer financial support (a-d) specifically for the video games industry. However, there is a large range of resources available through Scotland’s public sector and available to businesses in a variety of sectors which can be found at Find Business Support and Business Gateway websites.

Universities and Colleges are autonomous institutions, and the Scottish Government does not intervene in subject provision, or hold information on the number of courses related to video game development. The upcoming budget is providing over £2bn for colleges, universities and the wider skills system.

Latest data published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), shows that for 2022-23, 6 (out of 19) universities in Scotland have enrolments on courses under the subject classification 'Computer games and animation'. (source: Table 49 - HE student enrolments by HE provider and subject of study 2014/15 to 2022/23 | HESA)

While information provided by the Scottish Funding Council, based on course title analysis, indicated that for the 2022-23 academic year 14 (out of 24) colleges in Scotland ran courses relating to video game development.