That the Parliament welcomes the Action for Children report, A Place to Call Home: Understanding home quality in the children’s social care system in Scotland; understands that the report highlights that children should receive the highest quality care, in a home that is well-matched to their individual needs, but that this is not the case for every child; notes that the report explored recommendations to address this, specifically centring around commissioning processes, investing in the right workforce to provide love, care and support, and ensuring that the voices of those care experienced children and young people with disabilities are heard, listened to and acted on; understands that Action for Children has also published similar reports for all the nations across the UK, where it states that the care systems are failing to deliver good experiences and outcomes for every care experienced child; further understands that Action for Children commissioned UK polling among care experienced 18- to 44-year-olds, which showed that 20% of adults did not feel loved by their carer, while 91% felt lonely and isolated during their time as a child experiencing care; acknowledges that, in Scotland, the Promise states that all young people will grow up loved, safe and respected and able to realise their full potential by 2030; considers that it is therefore disappointing to learn that these polling figures, alongside the report, show that there is a long way go to ensure that the Promise is kept and delivered; believes that everyone has a collective responsibility to ensure that the Promise is kept, and thanks Action for Children for its work in providing love, care and support to children, young people and families.
Supported by:
Jackie Baillie, Jeremy Balfour, Sarah Boyack, Miles Briggs, Alexander Burnett, Foysol Choudhury, Pam Duncan-Glancy, Monica Lennon, Gillian Mackay, Pauline McNeill, Paul Sweeney, Brian Whittle