Seòmar agus comataidhean

The precise number of problematic spaces will be dependent on a range of factors over time, such as weather and occupancy levels, and many of the problematic spaces will already have been addressed. The Scottish Government has agreed formal reporting requirements regarding the number of remaining problematic spaces with local authorities. This information will be used to update the Education, Children and Young People’s Committee in due course, subject to receipt of local authority returns.

Local authority feedback indicates that all learning, teaching and play spaces in Scottish schools and ELC settings have received CO2 assessments and, at a point in time (in the most part before the October holidays 2021), around 2-4% (around 2,000) of those spaces had been problematic. Problematic spaces are defined as those having consistently high CO2 readings (above 1500ppm) despite basic mitigation measures being implemented.

Following the assessment, local authorities will have then taken remedial action and therefore we would expect the issues in those problematic spaces to have been addressed.

However, ventilation is a complex issue requiring, among other things, ongoing monitoring and management. For example, changes in room use or weather conditions can result in assessments of air quality changing over time, requiring fresh remedial action.

Our guidance makes clear that all learning, teaching and play spaces should be assessed at least once per week. The Scottish Government has agreed formal reporting requirements regarding the number of remaining problematic spaces with local authorities. We will provide an update to the Education, Children and Young People Committee in due course, subject to receipt of local authority returns.

Feedback from local authorities last term confirmed that there were around 27,000 CO2 monitors deployed across Scottish schools.

We and our local authority partners recognise the importance of continuing monitoring in schools and ELC settings. Guidance has been updated to advise that every learning, teaching and play space should be monitored at least one full day every week.

We expect to be able to provide the Education, Children and Young People Committee with updated figures for the number of CO2 monitors purchased and deployed by local authorities in due course.

The precise details about CO2 monitors being used are not held by the Scottish Government, as it is the statutory responsibility of local authorities to manage their school estate.

The duty to ensure compliance with the new legislation on interlinked fire alarms in domestic properties rests with local authorities. The legislation provides flexibility for people to fit the necessary alarms in due course if they have been unable to do so by the February 2022 deadline.

The Scottish Government published a joint statement with COSLA on 21 January, which set out that local authorities will be taking a proportionate and measured approach to compliance taking individual circumstances into account as well as reflecting the evolving situation with the COVID-19 pandemic. No one will be criminalised if they need more time and there are no penalties for non-compliance.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the social work workforce. We greatly value their contribution to supporting the most vulnerable in society, particularly throughout the pandemic.

Over the last five years, £25 million funding has been invested to support the training of social workers, including via postgraduate bursaries and support for practice-based learning. The postgraduate social work bursary scheme provides a contribution to the fees level set by universities.

There are other sources of funding that can be applied for. Full details of these can be found at www.saas.gov.uk and www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Education/Funding-Support-Grants

There are a range of social work degrees available from full-time undergraduate to in-work postgraduate courses. Social work courses are offered at nine universities across Scotland. More information can be found here: Studying social work at university - Scottish Social Services Council (sssc.uk.com)

As part of our ambition to increase access to the social work profession the Scottish Government is working with Skills Development Scotland and the Scottish Social Services Council to explore the creation of a Graduate Apprenticeship in Social Work.

The Scottish Government is acutely aware of the importance that our social work workforce has on Scotland’s community, particularly in the lives of our most vulnerable individuals. In order to fully support our community, the capacity and skill level of our social workers is of vital importance.

Although no specific campaigns have been run to raise awareness of the potential to study in the social work field, social work degree courses are often found to be oversubscribed year on year. There are currently nine universities in Scotland who deliver social work programmes. The number of individuals applying for these courses continues to exceed the number of places available, with an overall increase of almost 100 individuals in the last three years. This is shown by 629 applications in 2018-19 versus 720 applications in 2021-22.

As part of their response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) on behalf of Scottish Ministers developed the Temporary Social Work Register. This was a public campaign which called for anyone who had left the social work profession in the last five years, as well as final year social work students, to re-join the field on a temporary basis to help alleviate some of the pressures which the pandemic caused. This initially encouraged an influx of almost 300 applications to re-join the sector, with many finding employment.

Whilst no public campaigns were run for employment specifically in the social work field, the Scottish Government has undertaken three phases of the ‘CaretoCare’ campaign, which encourages individuals into a career in Adult Social Care, therefore raising awareness for the social services sector as a whole.

Local authorities have discretion over whether they provide the £150 cost of living payment as a credit to the council tax accounts of eligible households or as a cash payment, with the overriding objective being that payments are made by the end of April 2022. Eligibility is not determined by the age of those present in the household but is based on whether the home is in council tax valuation bands A, B, C or D, or, in any council tax band and the household is in receipt of a council tax reduction. Additionally, certain types of household exempt from council tax are eligible to receive this payment, including where properties are unoccupied because the resident has gone to someone else's home to provide care or the resident receives care elsewhere .

Reducing health inequalities is a clear priority for the Scottish Government and one of the biggest challenges we face, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Providing people with the right support locally and connecting them to the right services is crucial if we are to improve their wealth and their health.

The SG established a Short Life Working Group (SLWG) in October 2020 in acknowledgement of the key role of Primary Care in relation to tackling inequalities. The purpose of the group was not to conduct an academic or systematic review of the literature but to draw on the expertise of a wide range of stakeholders with extensive experience in this field. The group has also worked closely with an expert reference group of people who have lived experience of suffering the impact of health inequality first hand.

The SLWG’s remit was to identify service improvements and actions specifically for Primary Care to help reduce health inequalities and improve health equity. The report of the Primary Care Health Inequalities SLWG can be accessed here: https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781804351642 . It makes a series of recommendations which cover a range of short-term and long-terms actions, which will tackle health inequalities and inequity head-on in primary care settings and wider communities. These include actions to improve equalities data in general practice, strengthening the focus of inequalities through the GP contract and a new Enhanced Service for the first time focussed on activating practices’ full potential to proactively support vulnerable people at risk of poor health outcomes.

I intend to give detailed consideration to the recommendations made and implementation options. I also wish to place on record my sincere thanks to the SLWG and the Chance to Change Group, both of whom gave considerable time and energy to this key priority during Covid-19.