Official Report 903KB pdf
The next item of business is a statement by Natalie Don-Innes on Scotland’s secure accommodation capacity. The minister will take questions at the end of her statement, so there should be no interventions or interruptions.
14:52
I am grateful for the opportunity to address the important issue of Scotland’s secure accommodation capacity. As Minister for Children, Young People and The Promise, I recognise and value the critically important role that secure care services play in safeguarding our most vulnerable children.
Members will be aware that, in passing the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill in April, Parliament voted to enshrine in law age-appropriate care and justice for vulnerable young people across the country. As part of wider work to further advance our commitment to children’s rights and embed the Promise, the bill—which became an act on 4 June 2024—importantly ensures that children are kept out of prison and young offenders institutions, with secure accommodation being the normal place of detention instead.
Secure accommodation services are the most intensive, restrictive and specialised form of childcare in Scotland. They are highly regulated and high-cost services. Secure accommodation is designed to meet the needs of a small number of children who need to be deprived of their liberty to keep them or others safe. It is therefore imperative that we have sufficient secure provision to meet Scotland’s needs.
The number of vacant places in secure accommodation fluctuates and is monitored closely. This morning, there were three places available in secure accommodation in Scotland. That is not unprecedented, because the needs of children in secure care can be complex, often requiring multiple interventions such as the use of multiple secure accommodation beds when a child’s needs are too complex to be managed within a single space. Capacity can therefore shift daily. Although that provides only a small margin—smaller than we would wish—it is vital that members recognise that redundant overprovision would run contrary to keeping the Promise and would be intolerably expensive.
There are, therefore, challenges within and around secure care, and I am here today to be transparent to Parliament and assure members that the Government is fully committed to taking action to address them. In this statement, I will describe how we are doing so.
Secure accommodation is not just about providing a safe place to stay. Providers work to understand and address the root causes of each young person’s behaviour and needs and they provide each child with the specialist and tailored care and support that they need to promote positive outcomes.
Secure accommodation is a demand-led service that is provided by four independent charitable organisations in Scotland. It is highly regulated and is subject to regular inspections by both the Care Inspectorate and His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education.
As I said at the outset of my statement, the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act 2024 saw Scotland take a major step forward to keep the Promise. Prior to those reforms, children who were in conflict with the law could be placed in young offenders institutions. Careful planning, additional resourcing and intensive preparations meant that we could introduce the reforms less than three months after the bill received royal assent. Implementing the reforms at pace has involved an enormous collaborative effort, and it is with thanks to our secure care providers and our wider partners that I can proudly say that Scotland is a country that does not imprison children.
However, the profile of and focus on this landmark legislation has brought into sharp focus some long-standing challenges around the provision of and access to secure care, and those issues need to be addressed to enable sustainability and resilience, particularly as demand fluctuates in these early post-commencement stages.
I will set out the actions that the Government is taking, but first I will provide some context. Today’s tight occupancy position is not unprecedented. There has always been pressure on secure care capacity due to the need for high occupancy levels to maintain viability. I reassure Parliament and the public that the Scottish Government is already addressing capacity. In recent years, we have seen a steady overall decline in the number of secure care placements that are required in Scotland, from an average of 74 in 2021-22 to 59 in 2022-23. That reduction in demand has opened up the opportunity and capacity for reforms. However, in recent months, the position has been affected by the small increase in remand and sentenced children being placed in secure accommodation rather than in young offenders institutions. In 2022-23, on average, there were nine under-18s in Young Offenders Institution Polmont.
St Mary’s Kenmure in Bishopbriggs was served an improvement notice by the Care Inspectorate following its inspection in October, which triggered a pause on new admissions. I was deeply concerned about that development, and the Government has been kept updated regularly on the progress of the Care Inspectorate’s review. It is right that admissions were paused while work was undertaken to make the required improvements. That pause has displaced demand to the other three centres and reduced the overall availability of beds across Scotland over recent months.
Following the Care Inspectorate’s visit to the centre on 18 December, it was satisfied that progress had been made and it agreed to lift the pause on new admissions. Some areas still require further work, so the Care Inspectorate has agreed that the maximum capacity should be capped at 12. That pre-Christmas progress is welcome, and it has increased the capacity in the secure estate by four beds. It is my hope that St Mary’s will continue to make the required improvements, as set out by the Care Inspectorate, as soon as possible.
Of course, secure capacity is not just about numbers of vacant beds; it is also about quality. We must ensure that children and young people receive the highest quality of care in environments where their welfare is prioritised. A secure capacity contingency plan has recently been developed in collaboration with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Social Work Scotland and the Care Inspectorate. The plan is designed not only to manage the current challenges but to strengthen our secure accommodation system for the future.
On short-term actions, one of the immediate actions has been for the Care Inspectorate to update the secure care admission guidance to provide greater flexibility in respect of the protocol for use of the four emergency bedrooms. That allows secure care providers the flexibility to make decisions on the use of an emergency bedroom to provide relief in emergency situations when its use is required for a live situation or to allow a child to be safely cared for temporarily until a place becomes available.
We are working closely with secure care providers and other stakeholders to establish a clear agreement on the minimum vacant secure care capacity requirements for Scotland overall at any given time. We are exploring the potential urgent establishment of a new national contingency resource and consideration is being given to opportunities to repurpose some elements of the existing secure accommodation estate on at least one site, which would provide additional capacity in the system. We will update Parliament on that as soon as possible.
We are in the process of finalising a memorandum of understanding with centres and other partners. That will set out a clear codification of responsibilities, as well as a robust protocol for managing issues relating to the most complex secure care placements.
As members know, secure care should only ever be used when it is absolutely necessary. Contingency actions, which are focusing on high-intensity wraparound services, include identifying and enabling effective alternatives to secure care, such as health interventions that focus on diverting individuals with certain mental health needs into appropriate settings.
The Scottish Government is making available funding of up to £7 million to cover the placements of sentenced and remanded children in this financial year, and the Government has committed to maintaining that funding in 2025-26. That is, of course, subject to parliamentary approval this year.
The Government also continues to pay for up to 16 beds across the secure estate. That is to maintain capacity for children who are placed by the courts and to provide a level of financial security to secure providers. That intervention has been effective in driving down reliance on cross-border placements, the number of which is down to 10 from 19 last January. In addition, last summer, £500,000 of funding was offered to secure providers to support their preparations for the movement of children from young offenders institutions to secure care.
In the medium to long term, we are committed to developing a more resilient and responsive system of secure care provision, capacity preservation and placement management. We commissioned the University of Strathclyde’s Children and Young People’s Centre for Justice to consider the future needs of children in or on the edges of secure care, which resulted in the publication of the “Reimagining Secure Care” report on 27 September. Our aim is to provide a more detailed response to the report in late spring. To do that, we are engaging with a range of stakeholders, including by holding a round-table discussion with the chairs and heads of all four secure care centres, which took place in late November.
Meanwhile, focused fortnightly post-commencement meetings are held with care and justice partners, and regular contingency action meetings continue with COSLA, Social Work Scotland and the Care Inspectorate.
We will continue our work to keep the Promise and ensure that our care and justice services for children are informed by the views, rights and needs of our children. I look forward to setting out a vision for the proposed Promise bill in the weeks ahead and to working with colleagues across the chamber to ensure that we uphold the promise that each of us made five years ago.
I hope that today’s statement has provided reassurance to members that secure care capacity and delivery are of the utmost importance to the Scottish Government. We continually monitor capacity and have structures in place to ensure that demand is met. However, I hope that it is clear from what I have said that we are committed to making the system more adaptable and robust in the year ahead.
Given that this is a complex and shifting issue, I am aware that members will have further questions or will want to seek clarifications, and I am happy to answer their questions now.
The minister will now take questions on the issues that were raised in her statement. I intend to allow about 20 minutes for that, after which we will need to move on to the next item of business.
I wish a happy new year to everyone in the chamber.
I thank the minister for advance sight of her statement. During the passage of the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill last year, my party consistently warned the Scottish Government that the capacity of Scotland’s secure accommodation provision would be a significant barrier to delivering the bill’s aims. In 2022-23, the number of admissions to secure care increased by 3 per cent. Unfortunately, the Government appears to have fallen at the first hurdle, and the provision of sufficient secure accommodation is now in question. Although the secure capacity contingency plan is welcome, it comes with huge additional challenges.
First, can the minister confirm that greater flexibility in respect of use of the four emergency bedrooms in the secure accommodation centres will be sufficient to prioritise welfare for all? Secondly, I appreciate that there needs to be action in the medium to long term to create a more resilient system, but what preventative support is being provided to those leaving secure accommodation, the wider community and their families to prevent a return to secure accommodation in the future?
Finally, one of the Scottish Conservatives’ key concerns was the need for adequate support for key agencies. That is still a concern, so what is the minister doing to rectify that issue?
I thank Roz McCall for her questions—there was a lot in there.
I do not necessarily agree with the suggestion that we have fallen at the first hurdle. With regard to the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act 2024, I stood here and said that we will continue to ensure that capacity is available. A lot of planning was undertaken and a lot of safeguards were put in place before the provisions were commenced. In addition, a lot of engagement took place between the secure accommodation providers, the Scottish Prison Service, Scottish Courts, Police Scotland and Social Work Scotland. We were ready for the provisions to be enacted.
As I said, I was deeply disappointed by the situation at St Mary’s Kenmure, which has exacerbated things, but I hope that, through my statement, I have given assurances about the actions that were taken to resolve the matter.
On the standards that children and young people can expect after secure care, those are contained in the secure care pathway and standards. All young people can expect those standards to be applied.
The member also asked about the four beds. I do not expect that provision to solve all the problems, but, as I said in my statement, that is one of a number of measures that we are taking to try to solve the issues with capacity. If there is anything that I have not touched on, I am more than happy to follow up with the member afterwards.
I thank the minister for her statement, which was requested before Christmas recess, along with an assurance that there was not going to be a capacity issue over the Christmas recess period. During that time, on average, only one bed was available. The minister talked about three beds being available this morning. In fact, only two beds are available at the moment, and no emergency beds are available, so the spare capacity is only two beds.
There is great concern that young people who are placed in secure accommodation on a care and welfare basis are possibly being rushed out before it is safe in order to create space and to facilitate the flexibility that is being talked about. Can the Scottish Government reassure the people of Scotland and, more important, the young people who are caught up in the system that no one, on any occasion, is rushed out of secure accommodation to make provision for a more serious case as perceived by those who are deciding who goes where?
I can absolutely give that assurance. Given the situation before Christmas, the matter received a lot of attention. The problem has been alleviated, and, as I said in my statement, three beds are available across Scotland.
As I also said in my statement, the shift in capacity in secure care can happen daily. The heads of secure care centres and other organisations engage with each other and discuss the best interests of the child. I reassure Mr Whitfield that what he suggested is not the case. The best interests of the child are at the heart of every decision that is made in relation to placements in secure care.
How does the situation in Scotland compare with the situation elsewhere in the United Kingdom?
The issue is faced across the UK. It is well known that placements across the rest of the UK are volatile, with children often placed in secure accommodation in Scotland due to the limited availability of placements in England and Wales. I understand that the UK Government is currently working on that, through its recently introduced Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. Officials are in regular contact with UK Government counterparts, and that engagement will continue.
It is good that the Care Inspectorate is satisfied with the improvements at St Mary’s Kenmure, but the original report highlighted “dangerously low” levels of staffing. What is the minister doing to ensure that staffing levels are and remain appropriate across the whole estate?
As I laid out in my statement, and referred to in response to other members’ questions, we regularly engage with St Mary’s Kenmure. Engagement with St Mary’s continued over Christmas and prior to the period when the restrictions were in place.
As I said, the Care Inspectorate is satisfied that St Mary’s has made the appropriate improvements, which allows the provision of additional capacity and enables children to be placed there. I will continue my engagement with St Mary’s and the other centres to ensure that staffing and any other problems that they might raise with me are monitored and actioned.
I welcome the minister’s statement and the reassurance about the current capacity in the system. What plans does the Government have to increase the capacity of secure accommodation, and how does the Government plan to meet increasing demand in future?
As I set out in my statement, through a new secure care contingency plan, which was developed in collaboration with COSLA, Social Work Scotland and the Care Inspectorate, we are tackling the issue head on. The contingency plan is designed not just to manage the current challenges but to strengthen the secure care system and accommodation for the future.
In my statement, I set out some of the immediate actions that we will take in the coming weeks and months. They include the actions that we are taking collaboratively with partners to increase accommodation capacity by, for example, exploring opportunities such as the establishment of a new national resource. We are also considering effective alternatives to secure care, such as health interventions, to ensure that children and young people receive the care that they need in the setting that most appropriately suits those needs. We are laying the groundwork for a resilient and reimagined future for secure care and, equally, for the children who will rely on that.
It is concerning that the minister said in her statement that the Government has not yet established
“a clear agreement on the minimum vacant secure care capacity requirements for Scotland ... at any given time”.
Given that there has been a change in the law, which many have welcomed, I ask the minister to be clear on what will happen to a young offender who previously would have been in Polmont if, on the day of sentencing, they are required to go to a secure place but none is available. Can I have the minister’s cast-iron assurance that that young offender will remain in Scotland? What will happen in that situation?
Ms McNeill is dealing with hypotheticals. Before Christmas, we were in a situation in which we had one place in secure care. I agreed that that was extremely concerning, and I have laid out in my statement the actions that were taken to ensure that that situation did not continue. We have increased capacity. If the situation at St Mary’s Kenmure continues to improve, the capacity will continue to increase. In the year-to-year data, we have seen reductions in the numbers in secure care, regardless of the changes in legislation in the past year.
I do not want to deal with hypotheticals; I want to deal with the situation as it is now, and I have laid out the action that the Scottish Government is taking in relation to that.
Many children and young people in secure care are vulnerable and have faced significant adverse childhood experiences. What is the Government doing to ensure that local authorities can provide intense alternative-to-care support services that focus on keeping young people out of secure care, so that it is only ever used as a last resort?
Obviously, the quality of secure care is extremely important, but, in line with our work to keep the Promise, we want to use alternatives for children and young people and, when possible, divert them to alternatives to secure care. The Scottish Government takes a rights-based approach to youth justice, which is reflected in our investment in services and initiatives that are aimed at addressing the underlying causes of offending and at supporting young people in the community. That is done through funding streams such as the cashback for communities fund and the whole-family wellbeing fund. I have witnessed how transformational whole-family interventions have been for families, and I know about the difference that they undoubtedly make in the long term.
The Scottish Government also provides ring-fenced funding to all local authorities through the section 27 grant allocation, which includes funding for alternatives such as diversion from prosecution, bail supervision and electronic monitoring. Local authorities also have their own initiatives not only to divert but to prevent, and I am always willing to hear more about any positive initiatives that are going on at the local level.
I want to press the minister further on Martin Whitfield’s point. There is anxiety that those who might need a secure place on care or welfare grounds might be denied that place because of insufficient capacity. What independent processes are there, perhaps involving the Care Inspectorate, to ensure that we have a proper assessment of all the individual cases and that there is capacity for those who need it?
We have our secure care pathways and standards, which relate to what a child or young person should expect before, during or after they are in secure care. If somebody is there on welfare grounds, that would be relevant to them.
I understand what Mr Rennie and Mr Whitfield are saying. They are scared that somebody who requires to be deprived of their liberty would not be, perhaps because of more people being in secure care on offence grounds. As I have said, however, there are regular conversations between the Government, partners and heads of secure care to ensure that a situation such as that does not happen. I am positive that, if there were any moves or discussions around that, I would hear about it, and that is absolutely not the case. The interests of the child are absolutely at the heart of everything that we are doing, and I would be very disappointed if that was not the case.
I welcome the work that the Government did through the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill, particularly in ensuring that children and young people are not placed in adult institutions. Can the minister tell us more about the support that the Government has provided to secure providers to help them to plan for children moving from young offenders institutions into secure care?
We wanted to prioritise that prior to the provisions in the bill being implemented. I felt that that was a very important issue that came out of the bill process. We moved at pace to ensure that secure care providers were supported to be able to take children from young offenders institutions.
I have spoken about the regular engagement that took place, and funding was provided by the Scottish Government to secure care providers to make any necessary changes or adaptations that were required. I will continue to listen to secure care providers about any concerns that they may have in the light of the move that has been made.
It would be helpful, minister, if you addressed your remarks towards the microphone, although I know that it is counterintuitive when speaking to somebody behind you.
Apologies, Presiding Officer.
A stage 3 amendment to the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill from my colleague Sue Webber, which was agreed to by the Parliament, ensures that a child is not placed in the same residential establishment as another child who has committed an offence against them or whose behaviour poses a serious risk to their health, safety or development. In the light of the minister’s statement, can she confirm whether that vital safeguarding measure is being properly enforced and what action the Scottish Government is taking to ensure that it is applied in practice to protect vulnerable children?
Unfortunately, some children need to be in secure care not only for their safety but for the safety of the public. I ask the minister again to clarify what will happen if and when capacity is reached.
The member has touched on amendments made to the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill at stage 3. The member will be aware that the Government supported those amendments, of which I am still very supportive.
I have spoken about that in referring to the discussions that take place prior to a child’s placement to ensure that the centre in which they are placed is adequate for their needs and for those of the children around them. Those conversations will continue to be had about any coming placements, and I will continue to monitor that. I continue to ask my officials about any issues around that, and I have been assured that there are none.
I am sorry, but I missed the second point of the member’s question. If she could follow that up with me in writing, I would be grateful.
Regarding young people who are in secure care as a last resort, I would be grateful if the minister could say more about what the Scottish Government is doing to support young people with mental health needs, which may not ordinarily be appropriately met in secure care. What other support is being provided or could be provided that they may need or benefit from?
A number of initiatives are relevant to that. The Government is developing the national secure adolescent in-patient service for Scotland, known as Foxgrove, which was commissioned by the national services division. It will be a medium-secure in-patient service for children and young people aged from 12 to 18 years with appropriate forensic child and adolescent mental health services—CAMHS—needs. It will open in late 2025 and will provide four beds for young people who require care in an in-patient setting with medium levels of security.
We are also providing just under £3.5 million across the west, east and north of Scotland to support the planning and development of regional elements of the CAMHS national service specification. That includes the development of a four-bed adolescent intensive psychiatric care unit in the west of Scotland and forensic CAMHS and intensive home treatment CAMHS services and pathways.
The Scottish Government is also providing funding of up to £380,000 to the Kibble-based interventions for vulnerable youth service, which is a specialist psychological and social work service that offers therapeutic forensic mental health risk assessment and management support to children and young people who present a risk of harm to others.
I could go on—there is more that we are doing that I could expand on. I am happy to give Ben Macpherson more information in writing, but I emphasise that mental health is a priority.
Thank you, minister. That concludes this item of business.
On a point of order, Deputy Presiding Officer. I seek your guidance on how to place on record that the minister’s statement that, this morning, there were three places available in secure accommodation in Scotland was factually incorrect and that, at 10.46 this morning, there were only two places in independent secure centres listed as being available.
I think that you have answered your own question, Mr Whitfield: you have put that on the record. It is not a point of order.
There will be a brief pause before we move to the next item of business, to allow members on the front benches to change.
Air ais
Portfolio Question Time