'Moving on' from care into adulthood consultation

This consultation was about learning more on the right scaffolding of support that young people leaving care and moving into adulthood should have available to allow them to thrive in their futures.

In February 2020, Scotland's Independent Care Review published a series of reports, including The Promise. The Promise spoke about a vision and told Scotland what it must do to make sure that all children and young people are loved, safe and respected so that they can reach their full potential.

We are committed to keeping The Promise by 2030, by making sure that all children and young people with care experience are given the support they need to thrive as they move into adulthood and more independent living.

On 11 July 2024, the Scottish Government launched a consultation on ‘Moving on’ from care into adulthood, inviting views on a wide range of issues impacting young people as they transition from care. This 12 week public consultation closed on 3 October 2024, and 69 responses were received from young people, and those supporting them; including public, private and third sector organisations, and individuals.

Alongside the written consultation exercise, the Scottish Government undertook a series of engagement events to discuss the issues impacting young people as they transition from care with a range of stakeholders and young people. In total, over 100 people attended these events, including 29 young people.

The voices of children and young people were essential to the consultation, and through the Children and Young People Participation Framework, the Scottish Government commissioned Who Cares? Scotland and Barnardo’s Scotland to consult with children and young people with experience of care (up to age 26) on the transition from care into adulthood. Between November 2024 and January 2025, a further 34 care experienced young people (aged 9 to 25) from across Scotland shared their views and experiences.

We asked for your views on improving Scotland’s support services for young people transitioning from care to the next stage of their lives.

The consultation was launched in response to the Programme for Government 2023-24 commitment to hold a public consultation on the support available for young people with care experience when they become adults. 

The consultation asked 41 questions to find out how we can ensure that young people with experience of care can move into adulthood with the right level of financial and practical support in place at the right time to enable them to thrive.

The voice of young people with care experience was key to this process and views were sought on areas such as planning and preparation, Continuing Care, Aftercare, health and wellbeing support, education, employment and housing.

The Lines Between undertook a formal analysis of consultation responses, and this was published on 6 January 2025. Consultation responses were also published where permission was given.

The responses to this consultation and engagement events will help inform the development of guidance and policy, and the consideration of legislative change, which will support young people leaving care.

We are working across the Scottish Government to reflect upon, and respond to, the consultation feedback. We are also working with our partners and stakeholders, including people with experience of care, to develop our actions.

We have outlined below some of the relevant work ongoing throughout the Scottish Government. Where possible, we have grouped our intentions, developments and actions in line with the categories outlined in the consultation, for ease of reference.

1. Planning, preparation and accessing Information Services and Support – You said: Access to information helps young people, their families and those supporting them know the process clearly at all points, and to understand their rights. Respondents highlighted that gaps in staff knowledge, lack of engagement between children and their service providers, and challenges in multi-agency working were all barriers to people with experience of care being able to access information about their support. Respondents asked for more clarity through guidance, staff training, inclusive practices and information sharing with young people and their families or supporters in this process, and the need to improve the commencement of planning for this process at an early stage.             
2. Continuing Care and Aftercare - You said: Moving into adulthood can be challenging for all young people. Continuing Care and Aftercare services aim to support young people with experience of care through this period of their lives. Respondents spoke of practical and financial barriers to providing Continuing Care, and the extra considerations required in residential care and foster care when young children and older young people live in the same home. Several respondents expressed a view that Continuing Care and Aftercare eligibility should extend to include other groups of young people with care experience.        
3.  Support for specific groups leaving care – You said: Again, the need for improved planning, robust systems and multi-agency working was highlighted by many, and the need to ensure that clear person-centred pathways and adequate support are available to our young people, and those who support them. This was across all groups, but felt to be particularly significant where young people may have complex needs, for example Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children, those with complex health needs, young parents or children and young people who are leaving Secure Care or Young Offender Institutions. A more joined-up approach, particularly between Children’s and adult services was called for. Trauma informed training, more effective multi-agency working and consistent practices implemented nationally were all reported to offer a solution. Guidance, toolkits and training were suggested as ways to achieve this, as well as upskilling staff with awareness of information on entitlements, processes and services.                                                          
4. Peer and lifelong suport - You said:  Maintaining relationships between those who have left care and the adults who supported them while they were in care was another common theme raised, as well as the benefit of peer support in helping young people as they leave care and their caregivers being able to establish support networks.                                   
5.  Health and wellbeing – You said: Respondents highlighted the importance of the development and signposting to comprehensive services that are consistent across the country for all that need to access them, with good transition links between Children’s and adult services, especially in mental health services and services for those with complex health needs. Better resourcing of mental health supports and a ‘joined up’ approach to services was called for, supported by family or carer involvement at an early stage.                                                                       
6.  Housing – You said: Some respondents called for changes to legislation and addressing the current housing crisis to ensure young people with care experience are not forced to declare themselves homeless in order to access housing. Inconsistency in the availability of suitable housing was also highlighted. A lack of support and multi-agency working, dedicated staff, information and signposting around housing was also highlighted.                                                                                    
7.  Education – You said: Views on funding for education were generally positive, however improvements suggested included making the grant application process more accessible for all people with care experience in terms of supporting evidence and providing a consistent funding package across a full period of study. There were also calls from young people to provide training in life skills to help them make the transition to adulthood, with a particular emphasis on money and budgeting.                
8. Employment – You said: Supported work experience and voluntary opportunities was suggested by some respondents, with calls for the Scottish Government to lead the way by providing priority places to those with experience of care. Careers advice, along with mentoring and interview preparation and support was also called for. Educating employers and the workforce on the needs of those with care experience was again highlighted.                                                                                 
9. Workforce training, trauma informed practice, consistency and transparency in service provisions - You said: The importance of ensuring all young people get equal access to the support and services they need to thrive during their transition, regardless of where they live in Scotland, was another common theme. Respondents noted the importance of clear care or pathway plans. Several respondents suggested clear guidance from the government would ensure multi-agency collaboration and learning, and information sharing across departments. Another common theme was the need to reduce stigma through raising awareness of care experience by fellow students or employers, including trauma-informed training sessions for staff working with people with care experience across public and private sectors. Trauma informed training and practices appeared across the consultation in respect of all groups who came into contact with those with care experience.

1. Planning, preparation and Accessing Information Services and Support – We did: We will continue to engage with colleagues across Scottish Government on the development and implementation of policies which help improve the transition between children’s and adult services. The Scottish Government will continue to work in partnership with stakeholders to better understand local challenges around the consistent, high-quality implementation of Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC), which promotes well-planned and supported transitions by providing a single, shared and strengths-based approach to planning. This will include working with local GIRFEC leads to identify where GIRFEC practice guidance requires further promotion across services, and building an understanding of how the workforce can be further supported to engage consistently in multi-agency working. We will also work in partnership with NHS Education for Scotland to further promote, review and evaluate two new GIRFEC e-learning modules which were launched in December 2024 to support knowledge and understanding across the workforce of the GIRFEC approach and its application in everyday practice.

   We are currently exploring an online information platform which is intended to improve knowledge of available services for young people with care experience. We are working with our stakeholders in an effort to improve multi-agency working. 

2. Continuing Care and Aftercare – We did: Clear and concise guidance helps young people, their families and those supporting them understand their rights. We have committed to reviewing and refreshing our guidance on Continuing Care and Aftercare, and are working closely with Scottish Government colleagues, including those in foster care, residential care and kinship care to ensure support is consistent for all across our guidance. Working groups are being established with practitioners in the sector to ensure changes are impactful and equip the workforce to better meet the needs of our young people. In response to your feedback, our commitment to keeping The Promise includes the consideration of legislative change, where required.

3.  Support for specific groups leaving care – We did: We are working with colleagues across Scottish Government in key areas to ensure that young people with additional needs get the tailored support they need to thrive. It is important to emphasise that Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children have the same entitlement to Continuing Care and Aftercare supports as other eligible young people who are looked after in Scotland and we will ensure this is made clear in our guidance refresh.

   Examples of some of the work going on across the Scottish Government in these areas are noted below:

   The increasing number of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children in Scotland led to the Scottish Government increasing funding for the Guardianship Scotland service in 2024-25, to support those who may have been a victim of, or may be vulnerable to becoming a victim of, human trafficking. This increased funding has been continued in the new contract for the service from April 2025.

   The Scottish Government invest in the Independent Living Fund Scotland’s Transition Fund to support disabled young people between the ages of 16 and 25 through their transition to adulthood.  Over 11,300 awards from the Fund have been made to young people since it opnened at the end of 2017, totalling nearly £22 million, making a positive difference to the lives of thousands of young people.  

   Respondents on Secure Care called for clear pathway plans with a consistent set of rules and clear guidance in place. This information is already in place through the Scottish Government’s Secure Care Pathways and Standards. This sets out the support children should expect from professionals when in secure care, and what is required from local authorities. We will continue to work with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (CoSLA) and other partners to understand and address any barriers that prevent these pathways and standards being followed.

   Being a parent can bring challenges for anyone who cares for a child. For young parents with experience of care, the Family Nurse Partnership programme has been delivered in Scotland for 15 years. This programme acknowledges the additional support that is needed for young parents with experience of care, who may also experience stigma which can be a barrier to accessing and receiving services. Since 2022, the Family Nurse Partnership programme has extended support for first-time mothers who are care experienced up to age 25, and all first-time mothers up to age 21, where there is capacity. The programme delivers intensive tailored support to young first time mothers and their children in their own homes by specially trained nurses. It works to build pathways into community supports which address social and economic factors, such as welfare, education, employment and money advice.

4.  Peer and lifelong support – We did: The importance of peer support and maintaining lifelong links will be promoted and encouraged as we work closely with other policy areas in Scottish Government and with our stakeholders.                                                                                                 

5. Health and wellbeing – We did: We are working with colleagues across the Scottish Government and with our stakeholders to support improvements in these areas. The Transition Care Plan guidance describes the standards required in the planning of good transitions for young people moving from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) to Adult Mental Health Services for 18-26 year olds with care experience. This approach allows flexibility to continue care and treatment with CAMHS where this is in the young person’s best interests rather than any automatic transfer to adult services, including using a staged approach to transitions. The National Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Specification requires a robust Transition Care Plan for those children and young people who are more at risk of adversity too.

   The Child and Family Mental Health Joint Strategic Board, led by the Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, is taking a whole-system approach to improving children and young people’s mental health. This includes focusing on four early priorities, improving support for children and young people in distress and crisis. This includes those in the most at risk groups, such as those who have care experience.

   The 18-week CAMHS national performance standard has been met, with 90.6 per cent of children and young people starting treatment within 18 weeks of referral. That progress has been made due to an increase in CAMHS staffing levels by 63%. We are making progress on the achievement of the CAMHS performance standard through a combination of early intervention and enabling the service to focus on those children with the most acute needs.

   The Scottish Government understands the importance of early intervention and prevention in supporting children and young people’s mental health. Since 2020, the Scottish Government has provided local authorities with over £65 million to develop and deliver these supports and services. Where appropriate, the services offer an alternative to CAMHS by providing support in a community setting.

   The Joint Strategic Board for Child and Family Mental Health is co-chaired by Scottish government and CoSLA. The Board have agreed 4 priority areas of crisis supports, prevention, children, young people and families in vulnerable situations (including the impact of care experience), and perinatal and early years mental health supports. The Board has two implementation groups focused on awareness raising and promotion, and barriers and access to support and services. Ensuring that children, young people, their families and practitioners are all central to policy development and decisions is a priority. This includes those in the most at risk groups, such as those who have care experience.

6. Housing – We did: Respondents noted the inclusion of housing considerations in their care plan. Social Work Scotland noted that the framework for inclusion of individual views on housing exists already in the process for pathway planning. The Scottish Government has linked with stakeholders to make improvements around planning and housing will feature in this consideration. Work is underway across the Scottish Government and with our partners to ensure that the response to the changes called for enables young people to access the co-ordinated housing support they need which will help them thrive.

   The Improving Care Leavers Housing Pathways report offers a step-by-step guide on how to prevent homelessness for young people leaving care. We will engage with colleagues from Housing as they work on implementing the recommendations of the ‘Improving Care Leavers Housing Pathways’ report.

7. Education – We did: In relation to financial education, Education Scotland are currently reviewing the curriculum in line with the Curriculum Improvement Cycle programme. Financial Education has been identified as one of the curriculum core competencies and Education Scotland are engaging with a wide range of practitioners and stakeholders, including children and young people, to review current Financial Education teaching and practice.

   Scottish Government provides funding to the MCR Pathways mentoring programme for young people with care experience. This is co-funded across the Education and Skills and Social Justice portfolios and multi-year funding has been agreed for 2025-26 and 2026-27 as part of the Fairer Funding Pilot.

   In order to improve the information available to care experienced students in Further and Higher Education, the Scottish Government worked with Widening Access teams across Scotland and Become, a charity for care experienced young people which hosts the Propel information website on support for care experienced people in further and higher education, to update and collate information for Scottish institutions.

   The Share Foundation deliver Stepladder Plus, a structured programme offered to every local authority in the UK which provides an incentivised financial education course for children aged 15-17 who have been ‘looked after’ for more than 12 consecutive months.

8. Employment – We did: The Our Future Now and Discovering Your Potential programmes, delivered by Inspiring Scotland and the Young Person’s Consortium respectively, continue to form an important part of post-school support for young people who are at risk of not transitioning to a positive destination and require additional help to move into employment, post-school education or training. These programmes have also received multi-year funding, agreed for 2025-26 and 2026-27 as part of the Fairer Funding Pilot.

   Through No One Left Behind, the Scottish Government and Local Government are working together with public, private and third sector partners to shape and deliver employability provision which responds to local needs. This includes working alongside childcare, education, housing, justice and health services, so that people can quickly and easily access the support needed to enter and sustain employment. The Scottish Government is committed to supporting all young people to achieve their potential.

   Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) aims to link young people with employers to support them to transition into the world of work. We will continue to engage with employability colleagues in the Scottish Government as they consider the employability landscape and highlight the need for specialist employability support in Scotland that recognises the distinct needs of those with care experience.  

   To acknowledge the challenges often faced by disabled individuals and those with care experience in their career journey, enhanced Modern Apprenticeship funding is available for individuals up to the age of 29.

   The Care Leavers Internship Scheme helps young people with care experience to develop their skills and confidence in a professional environment through an 18 month placement in departments across the UK Civil Service, including the Scottish Government. The scheme will open for applications on Civil Service Jobs over the summer.

   ​Our Employee Passport aims to help build an inclusive and supportive environment where everyone can perform at work to their best. Passports are voluntary, however everyone is encouraged to use them if they require a workplace adjustment to be considered. The Employee Passport criteria explicitly includes the potential need for support for colleagues with care experience.

     

9. Workforce training, trauma informed practice, consistency and transparency in service provisions – We did: All children need support when moving from childhood to adulthood, and when making decisions about their future. For young people with experience of care, support is needed to help with these transitions to give them the best start for their future. The Scottish Government has a joint ambition with CoSLA for a trauma-informed workforce and services across Scotland, supported by the National Trauma Transformation Programme.

   The National Trauma Transformation Programme provides free resources, guidance and support for implementation to help all members of the workforce and services understand the impact of psychological trauma, and to respond in ways which support recovery in those affected and avoid further harm.

   Since 2018, the Scottish Government has invested over £14 million in the National Trauma Transformation Programme and we are working with our stakeholders to develop a parenting resource to support kinship, foster, supported lodging carers and adoptive parents to provide trauma-informed care for their children and young people to help them to thrive now and in the future.

   Working with NHS Education for Scotland, initial learning materials and resources have been developed into a course. Initial small-scale testing took place in March 2025. We are continuing to work with stakeholders and carers as we consider our next steps to further test and develop this resource in 2025-26.

   The Trauma Responsive Social Work Services Programme aims to ensure Scotland’s Social Work services are given the necessary support and learning to recognise where people are affected by trauma, and to respond in ways which reduce risk of further harm and support recovery for children, young people and families. The programme will draw on the expertise of those with lived experience of care and trauma to deliver the programme.