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The Scottish Government remains committed to Keeping The Promise, working in partnership with Local Authorities, The Promise Scotland, the third sector, health boards and importantly the care community.

On 30 March 2022 the Scottish Government published our Keeping The Promise Implementation Plan , which sets out a large number of actions, spanning a wide range of policy areas including education, health, justice and child poverty, that will all contribute to Keeping The Promise by 2030.

The Promise Scotland has been established to work across all stakeholders, including the Scottish Government, to support delivery of The Promise. Independent to this, the Promise Oversight Board, which includes a number of representatives with care experience, will monitor the progress organisations make individually, and the progress Scotland makes collectively towards The Promise's key priorities.

The Oversight Board will report to the care community and publicly on the progress made and will use its networks, relationships and governance structure to provide support and guidance wherever necessary.

From 29 August, a person moving from England to Scotland, who is in receipt of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) at the time of moving, will have their award moved to Adult Disability Payment via our case transfer process. As a result they will experience no gap in payment.

In the future, following completion of case transfer, the Disability Assistance for Working Age People (Scotland) Regulations 2022 allow for Adult Disability Payment to be awarded from the day after the day on which an individual’s entitlement to PIP ends, following a move to Scotland from elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

Scottish Government fund 31 third sector organisations throughout Scotland to deliver Support in the Right Direction, offering Advocacy and Brokerage Services, of which there is an administrative element. In financial year 2022-23 Scottish Government invested £2,959,658.23 in the Support in the Right Direction programme.

Part of the Grant tender process for SDS funding includes an assessment criterion that all funded projects should be accessible to anyone who might need social care, which includes disabled people.

Scottish Government has provided £46.6m funding since 2014 to organisations providing a range of support services. All people requiring support through the four Self-Directed Support options can benefit from administrative services. Figures are not available solely for the delivery of options 1 and 2, nor available solely for administrative support.

Information on the delivery of SDS Options 1 and 2 is not held centrally nor is the information on administrative support.

We are currently reviewing processes and systems for gathering such data going forward.

Rooms for Refugees is a hosting service run by Positive Action in Housing. Scottish Government officials met with representatives from Positive Action in Housing on 4 August 2022 and discussed the Scottish Government’s Super Sponsor scheme.

Officials updated Positive Action in Housing on our Warm Scottish Welcome programme and discussed how the Scottish Government could continue to collaborate with Positive Action in Housing going forward.

The Tackling Child Poverty Programme Board is part of the Scottish Government’s internal governance. It advises the Scottish Government’s Director-General Communities for tackling child poverty on the Scottish Government’s overall performance in relation to the implementation of Best Start, Bright Futures : Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2022-26.

The Board has both Scottish Government senior officials with expertise from areas which will contribute most to tackling child poverty and leaders, delivery partners and champions of change from beyond the Scottish Government. This includes representatives from organisations with extensive experience working with women with lived experience of poverty, such as the Joseph Rowntree Foundation; One Parent Families Scotland; Child Poverty Action Group; The Poverty Alliance; and Aberlour Children’s Charity.

The Scottish Government recognises the inextricable links between women’s poverty and child poverty. As part of overall monitoring and governance for the delivery plan, the Scottish Government will seek to maintain and further strengthen the collection and use of qualitative data in order to continue making progress towards the statutory Child Poverty Targets and to further understand and address the specific barriers faced by women experiencing poverty.

We are committed to improving the experiences of children and young people with additional support needs at key transition points.

The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 (“the 2004 Act”) requires authorities to plan for the transition of a child or young person when they are moving between provisions and when they are leaving school.

We provide statutory guidance to education authorities and schools on their responsibilities under the 2004 Act. This includes clear guidance on supporting transitions and the provision of flexible packages of support and learning for pupils. As part of our response to the Additional Support for Learning Review, we are working with partners to consider how to further strengthen guidance in this area.

We are also committed to introducing Scotland’s first National Transitions to Adulthood Strategy in this Parliamentary term to ensure there is a joined-up approach to supporting our disabled young people as they make the transition to adult life.

Rooms for Refugees is a hosting service run by Positive Action in Housing. Scottish Government officials met with representatives from PAIH on 30 June to discuss their experience of running a matching service.

Scottish Government is working with NHS 24 and partners to develop a new Musculoskeletal (MSK) pathway, with particular consideration being given to digital options and a more preventative approach.

NHS 24 conducted a comprehensive analysis of the Musculoskeletal (MSK) Helpline data on the use of the service as well as examining the service model. This will inform the development of a new pathway, with particular consideration being given to digital options and a more preventative approach.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-09575 on 25 July 2022 for the next steps. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

The Housing for Varying Needs design guide offers good practice in the design of homes in order to help them achieve a degree of flexibility, suit people of varying needs, be convenient to use, and be fit for purpose. Where possible, all new affordable homes delivered through the Affordable Housing Supply Programme are built to Housing for Varying Needs standards.

As set out within the Housing to 2040 route map, we are reviewing the Housing for Varying Needs design guide. We want the guide to help better meet the needs of an ageing population, help people to live in their home for longer, consider a wider range of needs, and learn lessons from the pandemic by recognising the importance of outdoor space, and space for home working or study.

We plan to consult on proposed changes to the guide over the coming months and will wish to engage with disability groups and those with experience of living in homes delivered to Housing for Varying Needs standards, as well as those involved in the delivery of new homes.

Once complete, the review of Housing for Varying Needs will inform the introduction of building standards in 2025-26 to underpin a new Scottish Accessible Homes Standard, which all new homes will need to achieve, regardless of tenure.