- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 5 December 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what work it is undertaking to ensure that there is a sufficient number of teachers at Dargavel Primary School, in Bishopton.
Answer
Local councils are responsible for the recruitment and deployment of their staff. This includes providing a complement of teachers which best meets the needs of each of their schools and its pupils within the resources available.
During the pandemic, the Scottish Government provided an additional £240m to local authorities to support the recruitment of additional teachers and support staff. We have since committed further permanent funding of £145.5m a year to further support education staffing.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Ben Macpherson on 5 December 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether low-income families that are comprised of children in (a) kinship care and (b) foster care are eligible for the new Scottish Child Payment.
Answer
Scottish Child Payment offers financial support to families with children, and is paid as a top-up of certain qualifying reserved benefits, such as Universal Credit. Applicants must also demonstrate child responsibility to meet the qualifying criteria in full.
The regulations for Scottish Child Payment specifically define kinship care as a way of meeting child responsibility and so low-income families that are also kinship carers may be eligible for Scottish Child Payment if they meet all the eligibility criteria. We recently amended the definition of kinship care to ensure more low income kinship carers are eligible now we have rolled out Scottish Child Payment to children under 16. These regulations can be found at https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2022/336/contents/made ..
Low income families that are also foster carers are not eligible for Scottish Child Payment. This is because children in foster care are considered looked after by the local authority and, as such, foster carers do not satisfy the legal responsibilities or rights that entitle them to child responsibility benefits. Foster carers receive allowances from local authorities to cover the needs of children living with them.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 1 December 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with the Leader of Renfrewshire Council to address the reported issues surrounding the school roll at Dargavel Primary School, in Bishopton.
Answer
We are taking the capacity issues at Dargavel Primary School very seriously, and we continue to be in close contact with Renfrewshire Council.
On 30 November, I met with Dargavel Primary Parent Council, Neil Bibby MSP and Natalie Don MSP, and had a constructive discussion about this important matter. Officials will remain in close contact with the Council on this matter going forward.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 1 December 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how Education Scotland plans to review Dargavel Primary School, in Bishopton, to monitor any impact of the reported miscalculation in the school roll on pupils’ learning experiences and attainment levels.
Answer
In Scotland the provision of education is the responsibility of local authorities who have a duty under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 to provide adequate and efficient school education. Under the Standards in Scotland’s Schools etc. Act 2000 the local authority is responsible for improving the quality of education within their schools with a view to raising standards.
In the case of Dargavel Primary School, Renfrewshire Council is responsible for ensuring the quality of education within the school and any concerns should be raised with them.
Renfrewshire Council has commissioned an independent review to determine what went wrong and why – the findings of which will be made public.
The Council is working on a long-term solution for the school, and has committed to engaging with parents and carers on proposals.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Kevin Stewart on 30 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government when the £10 million of funding for Changing Places toilets that it announced will be released.
Answer
The Scottish Government will invest in Changing Places Toilets over this parliamentary term, in order to increase the number of these facilities across the country and to support mobile Changing Places Toilets to allow people easier access to events and outdoor venues.
The Scottish Government is currently planning its budgets for 2023-24 and will publish its draft budget on 15 December. More detailed information about budget allocations will be available next year, once the Scottish Parliament has approved the draft budget.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Kevin Stewart on 30 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been allocated for the construction of new Changing Places toilets in the current parliamentary session.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to investing in Changing Places Toilets over this parliamentary term, in order to increase the number of these facilities across the country and to support mobile Changing Places Toilets to allow people easier access to events and outdoor venues.
Funding for the construction of new Changing Places Toilets has not yet been allocated. We are progressing the first phase of work in order to design an investment programme that ensures that the Changing Places Toilets which are built are fit for purpose. Further information about this fund will be available next year. We have recently published our Changing Places Toilets: Planning Guide and an accompanying easy read for people who are planning to develop Changing Places Toilets now.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Kevin Stewart on 30 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how it works with people with lived experience to co-design its current policy regarding Changing Places toilets.
Answer
We are committed to working with people with lived experience as we progress our first phase of work to design an investment programme that ensures that the Changing Places Toilets which are built are fit for purpose. We work closely with PAMIS (Promoting A More Inclusive Society) and will engage further with people with lived experience as we develop our Changing Places Toilets investment programme. On 2 November, I also attended a meeting of the Cross-Party Group on Changing Places Toilets to provide an update on progress.
Engaging with people with lived experience is at the heart of policy-making in the Scottish Government. We believe that people have the right to contribute to, and to influence, the decisions that affect their lives, choices and life chances, and that involving the people likely to be affected by the decision in the process results in better decision making.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 November 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Kevin Stewart on 30 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what work it is undertaking to review the current planning procedures for funding allocated for the construction of Changing Places toilets.
Answer
The Scottish Government introduced Scottish Building Regulations in 2019 requiring the provision of Changing Places Toilets in larger new buildings to which the public have access. These provisions are detailed in the Building standards technical handbook 2020 . At the same time, we also amended our Planning System to include these amended building regulations and further detail can be found within the Planning Circular 1/2020: Changing Places Toilets Regulations.We are not planning any further legislative changes in this area at this stage. Our work to amend building standards in 2019 was robust and sought to strike a sensible balance between encouraging further CPT provision across Scotland whilst recognising the resource needed to build these facilities may be prohibitive for smaller buildings.
We have recently published our Changing Places Toilets: Planning Guide and an accompanying easy read . This guide, written in collaboration with PAMIS (Promoting A More Inclusive Society), details practical considerations when considering installing a Changing Places Toilet in both existing and new buildings. This helpful toolkit will improve Changing Places Toilet provision in the immediate term and ensure that new toilets built following our changes to legislation are appropriate and well considered
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 November 2022
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 23 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what the reduction in funding for Covid Recovery will be as part of the Emergency Budget Review.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 23 November 2022
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 November 2022
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 16 November 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported concerns raised by the Chief Constable and SPA Chair regarding the impact of the resource spending review on service delivery in Police Scotland.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 16 November 2022
