Scottish Government consultations

We asked for your views on the policy proposals for the Care Leaver Payment. This included questions on the intention of the payment, the proposed eligibility criteria of the payment, the application process and what support is required when applying for and after receiving the payment.

The consultation closed on 26 January 2024 and 80 responses were received, including 32 individual responses and 28 organisational responses. These have been published on the consultation hub.

An independent analysis has been commissioned by the Scottish Government and is currently underway. The analysis report will be published in Spring 2024.

The responses, along with reports from engagement events during the consultation period, will inform the policy development of the proposed payment.

We asked for views on two minor amendments to road works legislation. Firstly,  on the proposal to revoke the Scottish Statutory Instrument,  “The “Scottish Road Works Register (Prescribed Fees) Regulations 2022” and replace it with a new Regulation to account for the overall running cost in the 2024/25 and secondly, Secondly, we sought views on amending “The Road Works (Qualifications of Operative and Supervisors (Scotland) Regulations 2017”, and the Road Works (Reinstatement Quality Plans, Qualifications of Supervisors and Operative and Miscellaneous Amendments) (Scotland) Regulations 2023, by expanding the list of approved awarding organisations to include two additional bodies, “Highfield Qualifications” and “EUIAS ”

In total, thirteen responses to the consultation were received, primarily from roads authorities. One response was received from an individual, seven from local authority roads teams, four from statutory undertakers and one from a public body responsible for the regulation of road works in Scotland. Brief analysis of these responses is detailed below:

There was strong support for both proposals; ten of the thirteen responses gave full support for the proposal on Fees. One roads authority noted no objection or preference, and two statutory undertakers objected to the current splitting mechanism. Of the two undertaker responses in opposition to the proposal, one made no alternate suggestions, but noted that undertakers appear to be paying more than roads authorities generally. However as the mechanism is use based, and at present utility firms undertake 75% of works, this is to be expected. Another undertaker suggested a new splitting model for future years in addition to opposing the current one. Twelve of the thirteen responses gave no objection to the addition of two new awarding bodies in road works training for Scotland, with one response skipping the question. One comment was received caveating their ‘no objection’ response,  on the condition that the bodies in question meet the relevant standards

The consultation responses have been carefully considered, most of the respondents supported the proposal to replace the 2022 Scottish Statutory Instrument. As a result, we will now revoke the Scottish Statutory Instrument, “The “Scottish Road Works Register (Prescribed Fees) Regulations 2022”, and replace it with a new Regulation as proposed. We have also added the two new awarding bodies, “Highfield Qualfications” and “EUIAS” to the appropriate statute. We have passed on the single request for a new apportionment model for fees and amounts with the Roads Authority and Utility Committee (Scotland), as the industry body representing the road works community. We have advised that if the group wish to review, amend or replace their current proposed splitting mechanism, comment must be returned to Transport Scotland by September 2024, to allow for sufficient consultation ahead of the next financial year.

We asked your views on SSSC’s proposals to streamline and improve registration. In order to achieve this, we asked your views on reducing the number of Register parts from 23 to 4, requiring employees to apply for registration within three months of starting a new role and be registered within six months. We also asked about SSSC’s proposals to include more information on the public facing Register, such as specialist qualifications for social workers, and information relating to fitness to practise which is currently available on a different parts of the SSSC website. The consultation opened on 4 October 2023 and closed on 2 January 2024.

A total of 69 responses were received; of these, 53 were from individuals and 16 were from organisations. 

The vast majority of respondents were supportive of the proposals, with many highlighting that reducing the number of register parts will help improve the process of registering with the SSSC. 87% of respondents agreed with this proposal, with 77% agreeing with the proposals to reduce the timescales for applying and 77% also agreeing with the proposals to include more information on the public facing Register.

There were also some respondents who had some concerns with certain aspects of the proposals. Several respondents highlighted that they believed 3 months was too short a timescale to expect a worker to apply for registration and others believing that sharing additional information on the public facing register could have a negative impact on individuals.

A full analysis of the consultation is available on the Scottish Government website.

The Scottish Government intends to implement the proposals set out in the consultation by amending Regulation of Care (Social Service Workers) (Scotland) Order 2005, The Scottish Social Services Council (Appointments, Procedure and Access to the Register) Regulations 2001 and The Registration of Social Workers and Social Care Workers in Care Services (Scotland) Regulations 2013. More information is available on the Scottish Parliament Website.