Seòmar agus comataidhean

Statement on trauma informed working by committees

The Scottish Parliament encourages people from across Scotland to contribute their views and experiences to the work of Parliamentary committees.  We aim to provide welcoming and inclusive activities, a safe space and services that reduce or remove barriers that might prevent people from engaging with us.   

We recognise that when people have experienced trauma or adversity, this could create a significant barrier to being able to participate fully.  Designing our services in a trauma-informed way is a crucial step to making them welcoming and inclusive.   

Our commitments are: 

• Staff and members will be trauma-informed, understanding the possible impact of trauma and taking it into account when working directly with the public

• The staff who support participation will be trauma-skilled, able to recognise when someone may be affected by trauma, to adjust how we work to avoid harm and support recovery, and to recognise and support people’s resilience

In designing participation activities, we will follow the Parliament’s values of:  

• Stewardship – contributing to the Parliament’s overall aim of improving the lives of the people of Scotland

• Respect – collaborating with participants to give them choice and empower them  

• Inclusiveness – creating an atmosphere of safety and trust 

• Excellence – following best practice in the way we work, including assessing risk carefully when we engage

We will also ensure that the wellbeing of our staff and our MSPs is cared for and supported as they support the needs of others; this includes recognising that some of our staff and MSPs will also have experienced trauma or adversity.