Annual Report for Child Poverty for Scotland

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First published by the Scottish Government, September 2013

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The Scottish Government

St Andrew's House

Edinburgh

EH1 3DG

Produced for the Scottish Government by APS Group Scotland DPPAS14520 (08/13)

Published by the Scottish Government, August 2013

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgements

1. Child Poverty In Scotland

2. Activity Over The Past Year

3. Next Steps

4. Annex - Related Scottish Government Initiatives

Foreword from the Deputy First Minister

"Children and young people growing up in poverty are more vulnerable than their peers to a wide range of negative outcomes. This represents a huge injustice and waste of human potential."

These were the first words in the Child Poverty Strategy for Scotland[1] (the strategy) which was published in March 2011. It is shocking that children born in the poorest parts of our country can expect to live 14 years less than those in wealthier areas. It is wrong that cancer mortality rates are 50% higher for those in deprived areas[2]. It is unacceptable that, if Scotland's share of UK child poverty remains unchanged, we will have an additional 50,000 children in Scotland living in relative poverty by 2020/21[3]. No politician should ever be content with a political system which has produced those inequalities. When it comes to tackling child poverty, there is so much still to do.

The Child Poverty Act 2010 (the Act)[4] requires Scottish Ministers to publish a child poverty strategy and to lay an annual report in the Scottish Parliament on measures it has taken to progress the strategy. This is the second annual report on the strategy and this year it will reflect not only what the Scottish Government is doing to tackle child poverty but also highlight the excellent work that is being undertaken by local government, the third sector and business. The publication date for this annual report has been moved in order to incorporate the latest poverty statistics published in June 2013, so that we can assess our progress in light of the most up to date information available.

Evidence indicates that the experiences children have in their earliest years are pivotal in terms of their later outcomes. As a government we are already leading the drive to increase preventative spend across Scotland by overseeing the £272 million Early Years Change Fund. We will legislate to extend free early learning and childcare to all looked after 2 year olds. We have also established the Ministerial Advisory Group on Child Poverty to provide Scottish Ministers with advice on priorities and actions relating to child poverty. The group, which includes representatives from the third sector, local authorities, health boards, businesses and academia, acts as the advisory body for the Child Poverty Strategy, the annual reports on the strategy and for aspects of child poverty related strategies such as the Early Years Framework and Equally Well.

While we are doing all we can to tackle child poverty, the welfare changes of the UK Government will result in more than £4.5 billion being cut from Scottish households. As a devolved government we are seeking to mitigate the damage being done by welfare reform. We cannot possibly mitigate all of the impacts it will continue to have on children and families in Scotland. However, this document illustrates that we are doing what we can, where we can. And through our commitments on the social wage and protecting universal benefits we have already demonstrated what we can do with just some of the powers available to us.

2014 is a year of possibilities, and presents an opportunity to do things differently. Working with our stakeholders we will ensure our Child Poverty Strategy is relevant to the challenges we face in the coming years and beyond. This government's long term aim is to eradicate child poverty. I believe Scotland can do better and given the full range of powers that independence will deliver, I believe we will do better.

Nicola Sturgeon MSP

Deputy First Minister

Acknowledgements

The Scottish Government would like to thank everyone who provided us with information about their activities. This information has enabled us to prepare a report that recognises the contribution being made across Scotland to tackle poverty. In particular we would like to thank those who provided case studies.

1. Child Poverty In Scotland

This chapter sets out progress against the targets set out in the Child Poverty Act, and considers new evidence about the extent and character of child poverty in Scotland.

Section 1: Progress against targets

Child poverty is commonly measured using the following indicators:

- relative poverty

- absolute poverty

- material deprivation and low income combined[5]

These are three of the four poverty indicators which both UK and Scottish Ministers are required to report on by the 2010 Child Poverty Act. There is also a persistent poverty indicator in the Act that has not been defined or reported on previously. The Act allows both the target, and if necessary an alternative measure, to be prescribed in the regulations before 2015. The Understanding Society survey will be used for the measure, with data expected to be available later in 2013. This will be used to establish a Persistent Poverty figure for Scotland and for the UK.

Chart 1 below presents recent Scottish poverty trends for the three child poverty indicators currently available with an indication of the targets themselves.

Commentary

In general, there has been a decrease in the percentage of children living in relative and absolute poverty (Before Housing Costs - BHC) between 1998/99 and 2011/12. In 2011/12 the percentage of children in relative poverty (BHC) in Scotland was at its lowest level since 1994/95[6]. Absolute child poverty in 2011/12 is also at the lowest rate since 1994/95[7].

The most significant reductions in child poverty occurred between 1998/99 and 2004/05. Between 2004/05 and 2009/10, relative child poverty was largely unchanged at 20%. However, the percentage of children in Scotland living in relative poverty has decreased from 20% in 2009/10 to 15% in 2011/12. There was a similar change in the percentage of children living in absolute poverty, with large decreases recorded between 1998/99 and 2004/05, followed by little change until 2009/10. Between 2009/10 and 2011/12, the decrease in the rate of absolute child poverty in Scotland has been less pronounced than the decrease in the rate of relative child poverty.

Much of the reduction in the rate of child poverty since 1998/99 has been driven by increased entitlements to state support. Working Families Tax Credit was introduced in 1999, and replaced by Child Tax Credits and Working Tax Credits in 2003. This support for low income working families had a significant impact on reducing the rate of child poverty, particularly when measured as an absolute rate. This means families with children have seen their incomes rise in real terms. In the latest years, there have been continued small reductions in the rate of child poverty in Scotland.

Income and earnings

Between 1998/99 and 2007/08, average earnings growth was consistently higher than inflation (as measured by Retail Prices Index - RPI). As benefits were uprated by RPI, income from employment increased faster than benefits were uprated. However, the majority of families with children who fall below the poverty threshold have at least one adult in work, and so also benefit from the increase in income from employment, supported by tax credits for those in work. This period also saw small increases in both the male and female employment rates.

From 2008/09 until the present, average earnings growth has been less than the inflation rate. In 2011/12 average earnings increased by 2.5% in Scotland, compared with RPI inflation rate of 5%. Until 2011/12, many benefits and tax credits were uprated by RPI inflation rate. This meant, in terms of how child poverty is measured, the incomes of benefit dependent families at the lower end of the income distribution saw their incomes increasing at a faster rate relative to others. However, in April 2011, Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rather than RPI, was used to uprate many benefits and tax credits. In 2011/12, real incomes for households at the bottom end of the income distribution fell by roughly the same as real incomes for those at the median. Incomes across the distribution grew by less than inflation.

Indicators

Between 2009/10 and 2011/12, all three child poverty indicators reported a decrease in the child poverty rate:

- The percentage of children in relative poverty (BHC) decreased from 17% to 15%, a reduction of 20,000 children

- The proportion of children in absolute poverty (BHC) decreased from 17% to 16%, a reduction of 10,000 children

- The percentage of children in material deprivation and low income combined decreased from 12% to 8%, a reduction of 40,000 children[8]

Although not all of the annual decreases in poverty rates observed for children are statistically significant, it is reasonable to assume that the factors influencing this reduction in the latest year are:

- Median equivalised household incomes decreased in real terms in 2010/11 and 2011/12, which reduced the relative poverty threshold

- Individual earnings fell in real terms in 2010/11 and 2011/12

- In 2011/12, benefit and tax credit income grew in cash terms and fell only slightly in real terms. A similar pattern was seen in earned income. This meant the low income benefit dependent households saw their income fall at roughly the same rate as those households at the median, tending to have a smaller impact on the overall rate of relative poverty in 2011/12. In 2010/11, benefit and tax credit incomes increased at a faster rate than incomes for households at the median, resulting in a decrease in the overall rate of relative poverty in 2010/11

Longer term trends often give a clearer picture. In Scotland, there has been a significant decrease in relative child poverty rates from 20% in 2009/10 to 15% in 2011/12. There has been a smaller decrease in absolute child poverty, from 18% in 2009/10 to 16% in 2011/12.

Families with children in the lower income deciles generally receive a greater proportion of their income from benefits and a smaller proportion from earnings than households just containing working age families.

Children living in families with certain characteristics are more likely to live in low income households and households in low income and material deprivation. These include: living in a lone parent household; being in a large family; having disabled family members (particularly where there is no receipt of benefits related to disability); and living in a household headed by some ethnic minorities.

Benefit changes

In 2010/11 many benefits and tax credits were uprated at or above the rate of inflation. This increased the income of families with children in particular relative to other households, as benefit income increased at a faster rate than earned income. However, in 2011/12 many benefits and tax credits were uprated by CPI rather than RPI, meaning real incomes for those at the bottom of the income distribution fell by roughly the same rate as real incomes for households at the median. Incomes across the income distribution in 2011/12 grew by less than RPI inflation. Prior to 2010/11, average income had risen in most years since 1994/95.

From April 2011 onwards, the first of the welfare reforms have been implemented - although the majority will not be implemented until April 2013 and beyond. In 2011/12, there were a number of changes to tax and benefit entitlement, which have a differing impact on household income compared with the median income, dependent on where a household is in the income distribution. As the income distribution is skewed towards the lower end, with a relatively high concentration of individuals close to the 60% threshold, any changes to benefits and tax credits can have a significant impact on the number of households classified as in poverty. Some of these affect all benefit and tax credit recipients such as the move from uprating by RPI to CPI. With the exception of 2009/10, CPI is lower than RPI. This means increase in income of benefit dependent households is more in line with incomes of other households with earned income since 2008/09, so the gap remains between those on the lowest incomes and other households.

Other changes, such as increasing the child element of Child Tax Credit by £180 above indexation, will increase the incomes of low income families with children relative to other low income families. For some families this will be counter balanced by other changes such as the freezing of child benefit rates, removing the baby element of Child Tax Credits and reducing the proportion of costs covered by the childcare element of Working Tax Credit from 80% to 70%.

The percentage of children in low income and material deprivation was 8% in 2011/12, representing 80,000 children in Scotland living in combined low income and material deprivation. This is a decrease from 12% in 2010/11. Under the previous measure[9], the percentage of children living in combined low income and material deprivation was largely unchanged since 1994/95 (when measurement in Scotland started). Evidence shows that children in workless households are much more likely to live in low income and material deprivation than children in households where at least one adult works. Children in workless families are more also likely to be in a household with severe low income (50% threshold) and material deprivation. The risk of relative low income for children in workless households is much higher than for children living in households where at least one adult works.

Policies that have had an impact on reducing child poverty have been focused on increasing the incomes of those at the lower end of the income distribution. These include policies that have boosted benefits, tax credits and wages and those that have removed some of the barriers to work. Other policy interventions that have impacted on child poverty through maximising income are: extension of free school meal entitlement, commitments around the 'living wage', investment in income maximisation, and improved access to debt solutions.

National Performance Framework

The National Performance Framework underpins the delivery of the Scottish Government's agenda. The purpose of the Government's Wealthier and Fairer strategic objective is to enable businesses and people to increase their wealth and allow more people to share fairly in that wealth. Creating a wealthier and fairer Scotland is central to the Government's Purpose. The Solidarity purpose target is "to increase overall income and the proportion of income earned by the lowest three deciles as a group by 2017". The healthy development of our society depends on reducing inequalities and sharing the future benefits of growth among people and communities, unlocking the economic potential of all individuals which will support economic growth by increasing labour market participation and by removing the personal and social costs of poverty.

Total income received by Scottish households increased every year from 1999 to 2011. Between 2010/11 and 2011/12, it increased from £79.8 billion to £82.3 billion (in 2011 prices)[10]. During this period the proportion of income received by those at the bottom of the income distribution remained broadly unchanged. Between 1998/99 and 2011/12 the proportion of income received by those in the bottom three deciles remained at around 13% to 14%.

Within the National Performance Framework (NPF), two of the 16 national outcomes focus on poverty:

- National Indicator 35: Reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty[11].
In order to create sustainable economic growth, with opportunities for all to flourish, Scotland needs to maximize its richest resource - its people. This means providing the opportunities and incentives for the whole population to contribute to and share in sustainable economic growth. This can only be done by decreasing the proportion of people who live in poverty. In 2011/12, there were 710,000 people (14% of the population) in relative poverty. Since 2009/10, the rate of relative poverty for all individuals has decreased from 17% to 14% in 2011/12, representing 160 thousand fewer people living in relative poverty in Scotland today.

- National Indicator 36: Reduce children's deprivation[12].
Growing up in poverty can have a profound and lasting impact on children's outcomes - income poverty and material deprivation are strongly associated with poorer outcomes for children. Evidence tells us not only of the cost to individuals, but also of the great cost to society caused by child poverty, and of the economic case for shifting resources into early intervention and prevention. Between 2010/11 and 2011/12, the percentage of children in Scotland living in combined material deprivation and low income decreased by 4 percentage points to 8%, representing 80,000. In the latest year, 40,000 fewer children in Scotland are living in combined material deprivation and low income[13].

Section 2 - Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey

The Poverty and Social Exclusion (PSE) Survey is the latest in a series of major UK poverty surveys that have been running since 1969. The survey is led by academics from five UK universities, including Glasgow and Heriot-Watt, and is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. In 2012, the Scottish Government provided additional funding for the survey to ensure sufficient coverage of Scottish rural areas.

The latest survey is the most in-depth study of poverty and social exclusion ever undertaken in the UK, with over 12,000 people interviewed in total in 2011/12, with about 2,500 of these in Scotland.

The surveys asked people what they thought the minimum standard of living should be, and what standard of living they actually had. The headline results are consistent with research undertaken by stakeholders such as Save the Children - Child Poverty in 2012 and the Poverty Alliance - The Impact of Lone Parenthood.

The headline PSE results for Scotland highlight some of gaps between the minimum living standard and the actual standard of living:

- Housing standards: 1-in-6 children (16%) live in a home which is either damp or not adequately heated.

- Going without food: The great majority of Scots (over 75%) think that all children should have: three meals a day; fresh fruit and vegetables daily; and meat/fish or vegetarian equivalent every day. 3% of Scottish families contain children who lack at least one food item. In all of the Scottish households where children lack a basic food item, at least one adult reported that they skimped on their own food so that others could have enough.

- Insufficient clothing: The majority of Scots (over 50%) think that all children should have: a warm winter coat; new, properly fitting shoes; some new, not second-hand, clothes; and at least four pairs of trousers, leggings or equivalent. 1-in-20 children (5%) has to go without one or more of these items.

- Social activities: The majority of Scots (over 50%) believe that there should be enough money for children aged 5 and over: to be able to join in celebrations on special occasions; to keep up a hobby; to take part in clubs or activities; to go on day trips with the family once a month; to go on a school trip once a term; and to have a holiday away from home one week a year. Almost 1-in-3 children (32%) lack one or more of these activities. 1-in-6 (17%) lacks two or more.

- Trends over time: Increasing numbers of children lack items considered essential for a stimulating environment, and for social participation and development. For example, the proportion of school age children unable to go on school trips at least once a term has risen from 2% in 1999 to 8% today.

Section 3 - Welfare Reform

The impact of the various welfare reforms is complex and varies by household type, including whether households have children, where they sit in the income distribution, and work status. The expected impact of welfare reform in Scotland shows the poorest households in Scotland will lose more income on average from benefit reforms than richer households[14]. Analysis published by the Scottish Government estimates welfare reform could potentially reduce benefits in Scotland by over £4.5 billion in the five years to 2015, with £1 billion of this relating directly to children[15]. With the introduction of Universal Credit, lone parents are the group that will suffer most, compared to other family types, in the longer term. On average, couples with children will benefit more than couples without children and single adults.

The tax and benefit reforms due in 2013/14 and beyond are expected to negatively impact households with children most, with lower benefit rates, and cash freezes to Child Benefit, Working Tax Credits and Child Tax Credits. This will have a larger impact on benefit dependent families at the lower end of the income distribution, particularly lone parents who may face additional barriers to moving into employment. The Institute for Fiscal Studies estimate that on average, households with children will lose more of their net income (1.4% decrease in net income) as a result of the reforms compared with working age families without children (0.5% decrease in net income) and pensioner households (0.5% increase in net income).

A number of other changes implemented through welfare reform will directly affect families with children. Uprating benefits by CPI rather than RPI is estimated to push an additional 15,000 children in Scotland into relative poverty by 2016. The changes to the Child Tax Credits and Working Tax Credits are estimated to affect 110,000 households in Scotland (88% of these being families with children), with an average decrease in income of £700 per year. Changes to Child Benefit are estimated to affect 91,000 families with children in Scotland, with an average loss of income of £1,400 per year[16].

The IFS also estimates the relative child poverty rate in Scotland will increase significantly by 2020, rising to 22.7%. This would account for an additional 50,000 children in Scotland living in poverty[17].

Section 4 - Local Child Poverty research

In August 2012, Save the Children Scotland published research on the extent and scope of action to tackle child poverty at local level[18]. This made clear that while senior local authority officials were aware of the level and scale of child poverty in their areas, the picture was mixed in terms of its priority: fewer than half of council officers felt that child poverty was a political priority.

Similarly, while the majority believed that the Child Poverty Strategy for Scotland had already made an impact on or was aligned with existing local action, visible action on the ground was limited, with only 16% having developed a local child poverty action plan. No authorities had developed a specific local child poverty target for their Single Outcome Agreements (SOAs), and it also seemed as if SOAs were not reflecting the broad scope of work that was taking place locally to tackle child poverty, including preventative activity. The report suggested that, while it was difficult to identify signs of progress in tackling child poverty at local level, a significant majority of Council officers were able to identify good practice in tackling child poverty and in establishing effective partnerships.

Section 5 - Further developments on child poverty data

There are a number of plans in place to improve data on child poverty. These include:

- Developing a persistent poverty estimate for Scotland. Persistent Poverty is one of the targets in the Child Poverty Act but has remained undefined until now. Scottish Government analysts have plans to undertake analysis of the Understanding Society dataset in order to produce an estimate of persistent poverty. Data is expected to be available later in 2013.

- Producing a methodology that provides robust local poverty estimates. In 2013/14, Scottish Government analysts will be exploring the possibility of using Scottish Household Survey (SHS) data to provide local estimates of poverty. This builds on recent work simulating local poverty estimates using a range of data sources to assess the feasibility of this approach and its potential uses. Part of this work will involve an assessment of whether local child poverty estimates will be feasible using this methodology. In March 2013, the Improvement Service published analysis by Heriot Watt University on behalf of four Local Authorities (Edinburgh, Falkirk, Fife and Highland) and the Scottish Government, looking at estimates of child poverty, using initial work undertaken by Scottish Government analysts[19]. This will provide a useful basis for further work. It is also worth mentioning that the Campaign to End Child Poverty, with Loughborough University, produced revised child poverty statistics, based on HMRC figures, for local areas in February 2013, including proxy figures for Scottish Parliamentary constituencies and local authority areas[20]. The challenge long term, however, is to produce genuinely robust Scottish data upon which Local Authorities can plan and produce strategy.

- A final report on the Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey for Scotland, looking specifically at urban/rural differences, will be published in Autumn 2013.

- DWP's Child Poverty Unit has been consulting on a new multi-dimensional measure of child poverty. The Scottish Government has expressed its reservations both about the way in which the consultation has been handled and the specific approach set out in the consultation. These views have been expressed via the Scottish Government's formal consultation response, by analysts representing the Scottish Government on a Senior Analytic Group developing the new measure, and via Ministerial correspondence.

- As the RPI is not classified as a national statistic, DWP are currently investigating the index applied to adjust for inflation when calculating absolute poverty, and will consult in due course. The Scottish Government and Scottish data users have been invited to respond to this.

2. Activity Over The Past Year

The Child Poverty Strategy for Scotland set out two main aims in respect of tackling child poverty. They are to maximise household resources and to improve children's wellbeing and life chances:

- To reduce the levels of child poverty by reducing income poverty and material deprivation by maximising household incomes and reducing the pressure on household budgets among low income families - using measures such as maximising the potential for parents to access and sustain good quality employment and promoting greater financial inclusion and capability.

- Improve children's wellbeing and life chances - with the ultimate aim being to break inter-generational cycles of poverty, inequality and deprivation. The Scottish Government will place particular focus on tackling the underlying social and economic determinants of poverty, and improve the circumstances in which children grow up - recognising the particular importance of improving children's outcomes in the early years.

While we are all aware of the technical definition of poverty, we should reflect on what it means to those actually living in poverty. How does it affect their lives? What sacrifices do they have to make? What do children think? Below are some quotes taken from recent reports which show how poverty affects real people and their children.

"I had shoes that were all broken up and full of holes. People at school laughed at me and took the piss. I saved up my own money for my own shoes, but I don't care about the brand or the make." - (Brendan, aged 13)

Save The Children - It Shouldn't Happen Here

"I shop in charity shops and I am not afraid to say it, car boot sales or hand me downs from my pals or just things like that. That is the only quality of life I can have." - (Interview respondent)

Poverty Alliance - Epic - Surviving Poverty - The Impact Of Lone Parenthood

"Just not being able to do things, my bairns' pals are getting to do this and mine can't, I do try to explain to them sometimes, especially my oldest. I try my best but sometimes it is not possible." - (Interview respondent)

Poverty Alliance - EPIC -Surviving Poverty - The Impact of Lone Parenthood

"My mum makes sacrifices so that I can do the hobbies I want to do to keep me off the streets. My mum cuts back on buying herself new shoes or clothes." - (Duncan, aged 11)

Save the Children - It Shouldn't Happen Here

"I regularly leave the heating off and use blankets and jackets to keep warm so that we have more money towards the food bill… I buy the cheapest brand foods so that I can afford the right amount of fruit and veg for the children. Missing a meal or two a week is not uncommon for me so that my children can eat. My children never go without what they need, but I sometimes have to." - (Low-income parent)

Save The Children - It Shouldn't Happen Here

Within this document we have identified an illustrative selection of the key activities undertaken over the past year by Government and organisations across Scotland in relation to the key measures identified in the strategy which were:

1. to reduce levels of child poverty and minimise the impact of socio-economic disadvantage on children

2. to increase the numbers of parents in good quality employment

3. to increase household incomes

4. to reduce pressure on household budgets

5. to ensure that more children have positive outcomes in the early years, and that more children grow up in nurturing, stable households, with good parenting and home learning environments

6. to reduce health inequalities among children and families

7. to ensure that children and young people receive the opportunities they need to succeed, regardless of their socio-economic background

8. to ensure that more young people are in positive and sustained destinations

9. to ensure that families receive the support they need, when they need it - especially the most vulnerable

10. to reduce levels of child poverty and minimise the impact of socio-economic disadvantage on children through communities and place

11. to drive change through working with local partners

These measures all remain important to our approach. We recognise that there is significant crossover between them. Following discussions with the Ministerial Advisory Group on Child Poverty, and in order to present activities in a manner that more closely reflects the main aims of the strategy, this document is organised under three headings:

1. Pockets - addresses costs, maximising income and minimising expenditure as immediate measures to alleviate poverty. Describes actions which maximise household incomes and contribute in particular to key measures 1, 3, 4 and 9 above.

2. Prospects - considers employment as a route out of poverty and relationships between skills, employment, childcare and poverty in Scotland. Describes actions which improve children's life chances and contribute in particular to key measures 2, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10.

3. Places - explores the relationship between poverty and place, recognising the pivotal role that housing (particularly affordable housing) plays in tackling poverty. Describes actions focussing on the importance of communities and place and which contribute in particular to measures 10 and 11.

It sets out the Scottish Government's approach

and some key actions over the past year, by Government and more widely, under each of

these headings. This is designed to be illustrative, showcasing good practice and indicating where it fits with the priority areas set out in the Scottish Government's National Performance Framework[21].

Pockets

The Scottish Government's purpose is to provide opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish through sustainable economic growth. The Solidarity target outlines our ambitions to increase incomes and reduce income inequality. Through our commitment to universal entitlements, we have developed policies designed to benefit all of the people of Scotland.

We therefore continue to develop programmes and initiatives designed to maximise the amount of money in the pockets of Scottish families.

Social Wage

A range of policy changes have been introduced as part of the 'social wage' contract between the people of Scotland and the Scottish Government. For example, we have re-introduced and maintained free university tuition, saving Scottish students around £27,000 compared to the cost of studying in England from Autumn 2012. Approximately 125,000 students benefit each year[22]. Council Tax has been frozen since 2008/09 to protect household budgets: this last action alone has, since 2008/09, saved one parent families, on average, a total of £283[23]; and couples with children £810. In relative terms, households in the bottom deciles (1-5) are estimated to see the greatest benefit from the council tax freeze as a proportion of net income, on average[24].

In addition, we have provided a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies in the Scottish Government and Health Service and championed the Living Wage.

More specifically in relation to helping families and children, we are extending the principle of the social wage to childcare by increasing funded early learning and childcare provision to a minimum of 600 hours for 3 and 4 year olds, and all looked after 2 year olds (covered under 'Prospects'), and through our support for the Scottish Living Wage which has now increased to £7.45 per hour.

Welfare Reform

The Scottish Government, in partnership with the Convention of Local Authorities in Scotland (COSLA), continues to take action to do all we can to mitigate the worst impacts of the UK Government's cuts and changes to the welfare system. For example, through the Scottish Welfare Fund, delivered in partnership with Scotland's Local Authorities, and by providing an additional £7.9 million for advice and support services to help people understand and manage the effects of these changes and make the transition to the new system. Further details are provided later on in this report. Furthermore, the Scottish Government and Scottish Local Authorities now have responsibility for assisting those who need help to pay their Council Tax in Scotland. In line with this transfer of responsibility, and to fund the new arrangements, the UK Government has added the total amount of Council Tax Benefit (CTB) payments in Scotland, less 10%, to the Scottish budget. However, in order that those who previously received CTB could be protected from this 10% cut in funding, the Scottish Government and COSLA have together provided an extra £40 million of additional funding for a transitional year in 2013/14.

Fuel Poverty

Fuel Poverty statistics published in December 2012 show that 684,000 households were in fuel poverty in October 2011, an increase of 26,000 since 2010. One in 10 families are fuel poor (13%). This accounts for around 80,000 households with children in Scotland. The picture is particularly challenging across lone parent households, where 29% are fuel poor[25]. Despite fuel price rises in the Autumn of 2011, improved energy efficiency prevented a further 35,000 households falling into fuel poverty.

The Scottish Government accepted the recommendations in the Fuel Poverty Forum's interim report published on 6 June 2012, and our plans for the Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland[26] (formerly the National Retrofit Programme) deliver on that. They will upgrade Scotland's housing stock, tackle fuel poverty and reduce carbon emissions. There are three strands:

- Area Based Schemes delivered by Local Authorities and prioritising fuel poor areas aiming to cover the whole of Scotland in around 10 years. Scottish Government funding of £60 million has been allocated for 2013/14. Note that data on child poverty levels will be used to help identify these priority areas[27].

- Affordable Warmth Scheme delivered nationally and targeted at private tenure households who are vulnerable to fuel poverty as defined by the UK Government's affordable warmth group. Entirely funded by ECO, in particular the Home Heating Cost Reduction Obligation.

- Energy Assistance Scheme which is an extension of stage 4 of the Energy Assistance Package, focusing assistance on the most vulnerable households, including low income households with children, which were previously eligible for heating and insulation measures but who would otherwise miss out under the Affordable Warmth Scheme. Scottish Government funding of £16 million has been allocated for 2013/14.

The Scottish Government spent £150 million on energy efficiency programmes between 2009/10 and 2011/12 with an estimated net gain in household income of around £700 million and a saving of 3 million tonnes of CO_2 as a result. We have allocated £79 million to tackle fuel poverty in the current year and in total the Scottish Government will spend around a quarter of a billion pounds over the spending review period on fuel poverty and energy efficiency.

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

CPAG - Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland

Aims: The aim of CPAG in Scotland's second-tier welfare rights activity is to contribute towards the eradication of child poverty in Scotland by maximising the income of families experiencing, or at risk of poverty. In doing so, CPAG aims to contribute to the national Solidarity purpose target to reduce income inequality in Scotland and to support the achievement of national outcomes relating to children, young people, families and inequalities.

The key objective is to increase the capacity of frontline agencies to provide accurate, high quality and effective advice and information on tax credits and benefits to eligible claimants and to enable them to understand the interactions between devolved sources of financial support and reserved benefit and tax credit entitlement. In doing so, the service enables frontline agencies in the public, voluntary and private sectors to better support those experiencing poverty by improving the quality of advice they provide, as well as supporting action to make work pay through ensuring people receive the in-work benefits and tax credits that they are entitled to.

Case studies from advice line

A couple with two children aged 5 and 13 years were getting child tax credit. Mrs B works 16 hours a week on minimum wage and gets Carer's Allowance. Mr B is on Disability Living Allowance at the highest rates. They were turned down for income support because of the part-time work. We advised that they could claim Working Tax Credit. Because Mr B is disabled, the new rule excluding couples with children from tax credit support unless they work at least 24 hours a week does not apply. The couple could apply for a month's backdated Working Tax Credit. Working Tax Credit could increase the family income by up to £160 a week.

A young person aged 16 attending a special needs school was getting Disability Living Allowance. He claimed and was refused Employment and Support Allowance because his mother still got child benefit for him. His mother was told by HMRC that they couldn't stop the child benefit claim until ESA was awarded - catch 22. We advised that ESA rules do not exclude you from entitlement if someone is getting Child Benefit for you. Because there had been a number of similar cases reported, we contacted the DWP who agreed the claim for ESA should have been awarded, and changed the decision.

http://www.cpag.org.uk/content/factsheets

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

Council Tax Benefit

Until April 2013 Council Tax Benefit (CTB) was administered by Local Authorities on behalf of the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP). The UK Government abolished the existing Council Tax Benefit in April and cut the successor arrangement funding by 10%. Support for Council Tax was then 'localised' to individual Councils in England and to the devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales. The Scottish Government and COSLA have worked closely together to put in place a system which protects over half a million Scots from UK Government cuts to council tax support. Note that analysis by the New Policy Institute suggests that, in England, 2 million families will lose on average £2.60 a week from changes to council tax benefit.

http://www.npi.org.uk/index.php/blog/blogsearch/?query=untold+story

Who is being helped?

Around 560,000 people in Scotland who were receiving council tax benefit have been protected from the UK Government's cut in 10% funding for successor arrangements.

Why?

The UK Government's Welfare Reform Act abolished CTB from April 2013.

Amount of Funding

The Scottish Government and COSLA have worked together and committed an additional £40 million in funding in 2013/14, with the Scottish Government providing £23 million and Scottish local government providing £17 million.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/welfarereform/scottishwelfarefund

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

Scottish Welfare Fund

The Scottish Welfare Fund, delivered in partnership with COSLA and through Scotland's Local Authorities, is providing similar local welfare provision to two discretionary elements of the Social Fund - Crisis Loans for living expenses, and Community Care Grants, which were abolished as part of the UK Government's welfare reforms, from April 2013. We are providing an extra £9.2 million for the Scottish Welfare Fund which will allow us to award an additional 5,600 Community Care Grants, and an additional 100,000 Crisis Grants for those individuals who need it most. Local Authorities have worked closely with us to develop and implement the Scottish Welfare Fund.

Who is being helped?

Community Care Grants and Crisis Grants can be awarded to those on benefits to support independent living or to help in an emergency or disaster. While the fund is available to many vulnerable groups, to help tackle child poverty we specified that one of the eligibility criteria is to "help families facing exceptional pressures and who lack the resources to meet irregular costs to provide a safe and secure environment for their children".

Why?

We have included several references to children in the factors that may increase the vulnerability of an applicant. This will help to ensure that applications for Crisis Grants or Community Care Grants from families with children are given a high priority, increasing the likelihood of their success.

Additionally, capital for expenses relating to supporting children, for example child maintenance, is fully disregarded under the Scottish Welfare Fund's guidance.

Amount of Funding

£23.8 million programme funding from DWP and £9.2 million top-up from the Scottish Government.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/welfarereform/socialfund/OUTLINEOFSCOTTISHWELFAREFUND

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

Advice Services Funding

The Scottish Government is investing more money to help ensure that people in Scotland have access to the advice and support services in relation to welfare reform. We have provided an additional £7.9 million for organisations providing advice and support services to help them respond to the increased demand for their services. This funding will pay for a range of additional resources including more advisors, further training and information materials for individuals and families in Scotland. Some of this funding has already been allocated to organisations that specialise in providing advice services for children and families.

Why?

In response to a substantial increase in requests for help as a result of Westminster welfare reforms, this new funding will help organisations providing advice and support to people across Scotland.

Changes in Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit will reduce the budgets of more than 100,000 households in Scotland - 88% of them are couples with children. On average, these families will be £700 a year worse off. Over 100,000 households across Scotland will also lose an average of around £600 a year as a result of 'The Bedroom Tax'. It is estimated that around 1 million working age households in Scotland will be affected by the uprating of benefits by 1% announced in the Autumn Statement, reducing the total income of Scottish households by around £210 million by 2014-15. The Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit analysis is taken from published DWP statistics.

Project Funding

We provided an immediate cash injection of £300,000 to a range of third sector organisations, including Child Poverty Action Group Scotland and One Parent Families Scotland. We allocated

£5.1 million towards the new £7.5 million Making Advice Work Fund, which will be administered by the Scottish Legal Aid Board. This Fund includes £2.5 million for social landlords to help individuals and families affected by 'The Bedroom Tax' and other housing benefit changes. We are also providing £2.5 million to Citizens Advice Scotland to help Bureaux across Scotland who are helping those affected by the reforms.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2013/01/welfare-reform21012013

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2013/03/social-welfare10032013

http://www.slab.org.uk/providers/advice/grant-funding/MakingAdviceWork/index.html

Prospects

The Scottish Government believes that Scotland can and should be the best place in the world for children to grow up and that our children deserve the best possible start in life. We do not want to see any child being born into or condemned to live a life of poverty and we understand that poverty undermines our best efforts to support parents.

Early Years

The Early Years Framework, published in December 2008, signified an important milestone in encouraging partnership working to deliver a shared commitment to giving children the best start in life and to improving the life chances of children, young people and families at risk. The Early Years Taskforce, chaired by the Minister for Children and Young People, COSLA and the Chief Medical Officer, is leading the Early Years Collaborative - a local quality improvement in the early years programme delivered at a national scale, the first time in the world that this kind of approach has been tried in a multi-agency context.

The objective of the Early Years Collaborative (EYC) is to accelerate the conversion of the high level principles set out in Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) and the Early Years Framework into practical action. This must:

- Deliver tangible improvement in outcomes and reduce inequalities for Scotland's vulnerable children

- Put Scotland squarely on course to shifting the balance of public services towards early intervention and prevention by 2016

- Sustain this change to 2018 and beyond

There is a range of compelling evidence to indicate that the experiences children have in their earliest years are pivotal in terms of their later outcomes - cognitively, socially and emotionally. The Early Years Taskforce is leading the drive to preventative spend across Scotland by overseeing the

£272 million Early Years Change Fund. This represents a significant commitment from across the public sector in Scotland to shift resource to where it makes the most difference - by supporting prevention and early intervention.

Community Planning Partners have been asked to draw together a report on the local operation of the fund to date. The purpose of this report is to provide the Early Years Taskforce with an overview of how work is progressing across Scotland.

We published the National Parenting Strategy in October 2012. Evidence shows that parents are the greatest influence on children. Therefore, if we are serious about improving the life chances of children and young people across Scotland, we need to ensure that parents feel empowered, valued and supported. Positive parenting in the early years has a significant impact on early brain development and builds firm foundations for learning and for developing positive relationships with others. This is important not just in the early years, but also as children grow into adolescence. We are also investing £18 million to support the development of high quality, co-ordinated and accessible family support.

Early Learning and Childcare

The Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill introduced in April 2013 includes provisions to increase the flexibility and amount of funded early learning and childcare to a minimum of 600 hours for 3 and 4 year olds; looked after 2 year olds; and 2 year olds under a kinship care order. The purpose is to increase high quality provision and consistency for children, and to support parents entering or returning to the labour market. This will represent an increase of 45% since 2007 and will benefit around 121,000 children and their parents each year from 2014. This is a significant step towards the Scottish Government's wider ambition to develop a universal system of early learning and childcare for all children, parents and families, to levels commonplace across Europe.

UN Committee on the Rights of the Child

In May 2012 we published the 'Do the Right Thing' progress report, setting out the priority actions it had taken forward in response to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child's 2008 Concluding Observations. As well as detailing progress, the report set out a number of new commitments linked to implementation of the UNCRC. These included a commitment to develop and deliver a three-year programme of work to increase awareness and understanding of children's rights through Scotland's schools and a commitment to developing an approach to child rights impact assessment for use within Government. Separately, in April of this year we introduced the Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill which includes a number of new duties designed to strengthen implementation of the UNCRC across the public sector.

We are confident that these developments, supplemented by the fundamental reforms to children's services announced in 2011, represent a significant step forward for the children's rights agenda. However, our ability to make progress is limited due to decisions being made elsewhere. The Scottish Government has made clear on many occasions that it disagrees with the UK Government's overall approach to the economy and public spending, and is concerned about the impact that cuts are having on the lives of children and young people across Scotland.

Health Inequalities

We are aware that those living in deprived communities have a higher risk of developing preventable ill health due to their life circumstances, and the Scottish Government remains committed to addressing these inequalities.

The latest publication of long-term monitoring of Health Inequalities: Headline Indicators show that while progress on reducing absolute inequality is being made in some areas, there are indicators where more work is needed. These are long term, complex problems that will not be solved overnight. Tackling health inequalities will require concerted action, with a willingness to recognise and take responsibility to address those social, environmental and economic factors that can cause and influence health inequalities.

One of the first actions this Government took in 2007 was to establish The Ministerial Task force on Health Inequalities. This strategy is kept under regular review, and the most recent Task Force on Health Inequalities reconvened in November 2012, under the Chairmanship of the Minister for Public Health. The Taskforce intend to publish a report later this year.

Educational Attainment

Raising the attainment of all Scotland's children and young people is a key priority for the Scottish Government and an explicit part of this is closing the educational gap and raising the attainment of children and young people suffering disadvantage. Based on robust evidence, expert advice and a partnership approach, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning announced the following priorities for action:

- The need for improving the evidence available to the education system - at different levels, and of the right kind at each level - to support positive change

- The need for more effective interventions in raising attainment, including facilitating and encouraging improvement partnerships across school and authorities

- The need for more and better leadership at every level in the education system

- The need to open a debate on the role that class sizes and teacher numbers can play in raising attainment of all, and closing the attainment gap

- The need to engage better with parents, other agencies and the community if the education system as a whole is to improve

Underpinning all of this is a desire to innovate and to bring new thinking into our education system.

Curriculum for Excellence is an essential tool for the successful delivery of improvements in education for all young people, including those from the poorest backgrounds, as is the investment in teaching and leadership through the work of the National Implementation Board (NIB). The continuing development of the Senior Phase Benchmarking Tool (SPBT) will help us measure our success in this area.

Employability

The Scottish Government, along with Local Authorities, have a strong focus on young people's employability and achieving Opportunities for All. The Scottish Government has appointed the first, and only, dedicated Minister for Youth Employment in the UK. In June 2012, we published our Youth Employment Strategy: Action for Jobs - Supporting Young Scots into Work: Scotland's Youth Employment Strategy. It is available at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2012/06/9210

Youth unemployment (between the ages of 16 and 24) in Scotland fell by 15,000 in March to May 2013 compared with the same quarter in 2012. Our commitment to all young people through Opportunities for All is a guaranteed offer of a place in learning or training for every 16-19 year old, who is currently not in education, employment or training.

This work builds upon a wide range of measures we have had in place to support our young people move on successfully from school though our More Choices, More Chances Policy and development of the 16+ Learning Choices planning process to support young people to move into positive and sustained destinations.

This has resulted in record high numbers of young people moving into learning, training or work after leaving school. Positive school leaver destinations, initial and sustained, are at an all-time high. In March 2012, 87.2% of school leavers (2010/11 academic year) were in sustained positive destinations. In September 2012, 89.9% of school leavers (2011/12 academic year) were in initial positive destinations.

Maintaining the education maintenance allowance

While the UK Government has withdrawn Educational Maintenance Allowances (EMA) for students in England, the Scottish Government remains committed to providing EMA support to those who need it most. Our EMA support targets young people from the most disadvantaged backgrounds, ensuring that our least well off young people can improve their life chances. The most recent evaluation of EMA was in 2007 when research was conducted to gather evidence of young people's awareness and experience of the EMA[28].

34,390 school pupils and college students received EMA payments in Scotland in academic year 2011/12, of whom 8,540 EMA recipients were from deprived areas. Young people benefited from a total spend of £27.6 million. Of this, £18.7 million (68%) was paid out to school pupils, and the remaining £8.9 million (32%) was paid out to young people attending college. The numbers of recipients from deprived areas have remained stable, although 2011/12 saw a decline in the number of college recipients and an increase in school recipients for this group.

Activity Agreements

Activity Agreements were introduced to address an identified gap in provision for young people, between 16 and 19 years old, who are not yet ready for more formal learning opportunities.

During 2012/13, 2,572 young people signed up to an Activity Agreement. Research shows that 65% of the young people on an Activity Agreement had a qualification below SCQF level 4 with almost 40% having no qualifications. Around 1,000 young people are listed as having an additional support need, a history of offending, drug/alcohol problems or were previously looked after and accommodated - all recognised characteristics of vulnerable young people. 70% of young people who completed their Activity Agreement went on to college, the Get Ready for Work programme or employment.

The following pages provide further case studies illustrating actions in line with the aim of improving prospects for Scotland's children and families.

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

One Parent Families Scotland (OPFS) Transforming Lives Young Parents Project

Transforming Lives' project, operating in Lanarkshire, aims to develop a holistic and supportive programme designed to assist and encourage young lone parents to achieve their potential and therefore provide a better life for themselves and their children.

Why?

With welfare reforms imminent OPFS staff undertook research in local nurseries in North Lanarkshire in 2010. The aim of this research was to identify the barriers and issues lone parents faced in planning for the future and moving into employment, training and education. Over 300 lone parents were surveyed, 80 of whom were young lone parents aged 16-25 years. It became clear from the results that young parents faced many additional issues such as homelessness or sustaining tenancies, issues around drugs/alcohol, lack of money management, family and relationship breakdown and a lack of positive role models. (One Parent Families Scotland, Survey Results, 2010.)

Case Study

NK is a young lone parent aged 18 years old with a daughter aged 18 months who resides in Bellshill, North Lanarkshire. NK found out she was pregnant at the age of 16 years old and soon after receiving the news her partner ended their relationship and she found herself homeless. Her life had turned upside down. NK now found herself young, single, pregnant and homeless.

After NK had her daughter she lacked in confidence and self-esteem because she felt isolated, had put on weight and had no one to talk to or support her through this difficult time she was facing. NK felt isolated as she was always in the house with her new baby, which led NK to develop a severe case of post-natal depression.

She attended the young mums Transforming Lives training programme in her local area and this gave her the chance to meet other young lone parents. NK felt it was a great experience. It made her realise that she wasn't the only person in a difficult position. She got to meet new friends. NK met with the Money Advice Worker and got all her problems with her debts sorted out. NK took part in confidence building training and awareness sessions on budgeting, health, parenting skills, stress management and much more. All of this helped NK to get on track, find a focus for herself and her daughter, and to realise that she has a lot to offer in life! NK is now planning to undertake a college programme in Health and Social Care.

Results

The Transforming Lives Project over the last year has enabled 59 young lone parents to prepare for the future and get access to the advice, information and support about returning to training, education and employment; family finances; and family support.

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "we live longer, healthier lives", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty", "reduce children's deprivation", "increase the proportion of babies with a healthy birth weight", "increase the proportion of healthy weight children" and "reduce premature mortality".

The impact of community cookery skills activities on families - a comparison between three different approaches

Community Food and Health (Scotland) - now part of NHS Health Scotland, commissioned research to explore the impact of different approaches to delivering community cookery skills activities on families.

Why

Increasing access to cooking and healthy eating advice is recognised as being able to contribute to positive outcomes across a range of socio-economic issues including poor health, social exclusion and deprivation. Success in this regard is often linked to alleviating a range of barriers which can impact upon confidence around food and food preparation including:

- Increasing access to fruit and vegetables of an acceptable quality and cost

- Reducing the cost of shopping and getting to the shops

- Improving confidence and skills in cooking and shopping

- Overcoming ingrained habits

The research looked at the following three approaches to delivering cooking courses:

- Hands-on cookery courses delivered to parents (or carers) learning cookery together with their children within a group

- Hands-on cookery courses delivered to young people only (up to the age of 16) learning within a group

- Hands-on cookery courses delivered to parents only (of nursery or school aged children) learning within a group

Comments from participants

"The amount of bad stuff in some foods was really surprising"

"I'll now eat peppers as my young one loves them - also tuna whereas I wouldn't eat that before"

"I eat more and new fruit and vegetables now such as squash, the kids look for 'funny-looking foods' in the supermarket which they want to buy and try"

"I've learnt how to budget and in particular recognise that you don't need to buy the best vegetables but that the value brands are fine to use in the recipes"

"My money lasts longer now and there's less waste as I'm freezing spare food"

Result

Each of the three approaches achieved positive learning outcomes linked to increased knowledge about food and health.

Full details of the research and outcomes can be found in the report

http://www.communityfoodandhealth.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/consilium-cookery-research.pdf

http://www.communityfoodandhealth.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/CFHS-impact-cooking-courses-families.pdf

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "realising our potential with more and better employment opportunities for our people", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

Enhanced Vocational Inclusion Programme (EVIP)

Run by Glasgow City Council, it is aimed at young people aged 15+ who have experienced severe problems in their lives and who, as a result, do not access the opportunities typically available to their peers. The target group includes young people who are looked after or looked after and accommodated, and young people with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. EVIP provides access to a range of vocational options in growth employment areas, a programme of core and life skills, integrated literacy and numeracy support, opportunities to undertake additional accredited qualifications; and, as such, acts as a springboard to further progression routes. A dedicated vocational coach supports a specific group of young people, co-working with college lecturers and providing feedback to parents, carers, referrers and schools.

Case Study

Janey (not her real name) had a negative experience of school; she also had been experiencing difficulties in the community. This resulted in her missing a substantial amount of her third year at school and she became somewhat socially isolated. Following a referral from her Social Worker, Janey was interviewed for a placement with EVIP and was enrolled in the hairdressing class in October 2010. The smaller class sizes and the extra support given by her EVIP Officer helped Janey settle in at her new school where she quickly showed her natural flair for hairdressing. Despite the fact that she had missed almost her full S3 year at school, her attendance at EVIP was excellent. Janey has shown that young people can achieve their goals with hard work and dedication whatever their background.

Education Services, Vocational Education who manage EVIP, in partnership with Scottish Business in the Community, arranged for a group of EVIP Hairdressing students at John Wheatley College to be visited by worldwide hair salon, Vidal Sassoon. Staff identified Janey as standing out from the rest of her class. As a result she was offered one week's work experience at the Glasgow Salon, Princes Square. Janey had a fantastic experience during her week getting involved in all aspects of working in the salon. She felt as though she was a real member of their staff and was included in their team. The staff at Vidal Sassoon were so impressed that they arranged for Janey to attend a second week of work experience.

This gave her the confidence boost she needed to apply for an apprenticeship with Vidal Sassoon. She worked closely with her EVIP Officer and staff within John Wheatley College on her application form and employability skills in preparation for her interview. Janey was successful in gaining her apprenticeship.

"She was really keen and enthusiastic; she brought along her portfolio and was willing to give up her free time and work when required. Janey is everything we look for in a staff member at Sassoon." - Natalie Hinton

Creative Director, Vidal Sassoon

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "realising our potential with more and better employment opportunities for our people", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

Working For Growth

Working for Growth: A Refresh of the Employability Framework for Scotland published in September 2012.

Developed in consultation with a wide range of partners, this document reflects how approaches to employability have developed since 2006 and provides a clear framework to strengthen our combined focus on jobs and growth. It does so under the following themes, inspired by the four pillars of our response to the Christie report on the Future Delivery of Public Services:

- Strategy and Effective Leadership

- Better Integration and Partnership Working

- Towards Prevention - Tackling Inequality

- Improving Performance

The economic downturn has increased demand for employment support at all levels. This includes people with higher skills and more recent, and extensive, experience of work. However, as Working for Growth notes, it remains essential to provide the right level of tailored support for those who are less work-ready and who may have been economically inactive for some time. We will therefore work closely with DWP and local areas to ensure that employability services continue to work effectively for the most disadvantaged members of society.

Why?

While evidence confirms varying degrees of disadvantage in the labour market for young people, women, disabled people and ethnic minorities at this time, people of all backgrounds can require help to find, and remain, in work. Increased participation in the labour market is a key part of our economic strategy.

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "realising our potential with more and better employment opportunities for our people", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty", "reduce children's deprivation" and "increase the proportion of young people in learning, training or work".

Employer Recruitment Incentive

The Employer Recruitment Incentive (ERI) for Targeted Young People is a Scottish Government initiative to assist vulnerable young people (aged 16-24) facing specific barriers to employment. It can be used as a wage subsidy which is payable if the young person who sustains 13 weeks working, 15 hours per week or more.

Aims

- encourage employers to assist the transition of young people who have a background as a care leaver, ex-young offender or are a young carer into sustainable employment, including a modern apprenticeship

- support these targeted young people with the transition to employment

- contribute to the positive destinations of these young people

The programme will run until March 2015 and it aims to support 1,000 young people from the target groups into work. Three agencies are contracted to deliver the programme - Action for Children, Barnardo's and Carers Trust - and they work together to ensure the whole of Scotland is covered.

Case Study

Carers Link in East Dunbartonshire aims to support young carers in the area by ensuring they are informed, involved and that their experience as a carer is respected and valued. EA works with carers between the ages of 16-25.

"Being a carer for my mum who struggled with depression allows me to have a deep understanding and empathy to the issues, feelings and problems that caring often results in. I think it really helps the carers that I work with to know that I have had my own caring experiences and they feel more comfortable to discuss their situation.

The ERI has had a real impact on my experience within this role for various reasons - the money allows me to access relevant training sessions, something I will find beneficial for this role and in the long term for other future career opportunities. It has also provided me with a project mentor who is my first point of contact for support if I have any worries or concerns.

Something I have realised is that being a young carer doesn't have to be seen as entirely negative. After years of struggle, frustration and sadness, my caring role has helped me gain this job at Carers Link and within this job I can use my experiences to support fellow carers."

She added: "I've had a great outcome from something which I once looked upon with huge bitterness."

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "we live longer, healthier lives", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty", "reduce children's deprivation", "improve children's dental health", "increase the proportion of babies with a healthy birth weight", "increase the proportion of healthy weight children", "reduce premature mortality", "reduce the percentage of adults who smoke", "reduce alcohol related hospital admissions" and "reduce the number of individual with problem drug abuse".

Equally Well Support from the Start

The intention of Equally Well is to break intergenerational cycles of inequalities from poor early years experiences by giving the best support possible for good health from the very start of life. Support from the Start is East Lothian's Equally Well test.

Support from the Start focused on five communities within the west end of East Lothian. These communities were selected because, compared with the rest of East Lothian, they are known to experience significantly poorer health outcomes. The specific indicators which were taken into consideration were:

- Lower educational attainment at key stages

- Lower rates of breastfeeding

- Higher rates of smoking

- Higher rates of obesity

- Poorer dental health

- Higher rates of referral to child and adolescent mental health services

- More problems associated with alcohol and drug misuse

- Lower average age of first time mothers and more teenage pregnancies

Result

This collective effort in East Lothian has created significant outcomes for children and their families. Children who were involved in 'Support from the Start' had new-found confidence, improved social relationships, were better equipped to cope with change, were more ready for school, and benefited from a more structured, and more settled, day/ family life. Parents involved in 'Support from the Start' improved their relationships with their children, were more able to avoid significant mental health issues and become less stressed, were more able to cope with life events, experienced an increased level of personal confidence, and were able to find support from extended social networks.

http://edubuzz.org/equallywell/

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "realising our potential with more and better employment opportunities for our people", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

Women's Employment Summit

The Scottish Government, together with STUC, held the first ever Scottish Women's Employment Summit (WES) on 12 September 2012. The purpose of the Summit was to consider the issues that hinder women's access to and participation in employment and to identify actions that public sector bodies, employers, trade unions, other partners and women themselves can take forward, based on the feedback from the various commissions, panel and satellite sessions.

Early in 2012, statistics showed that while male employment had risen in recent months and male unemployment fell, the reverse had been the case for women. There are also multiple barriers which prevent women from fulfilling their potential in the labour market and consequently contribute to the pay gap. Women tend to be concentrated in the lower paid jobs (e.g. caring, catering, cleaning, clerical, cashiering) and the lower grades within an organisation. They are under-represented at every level in non-traditional occupations such as construction, science, engineering and technology.

Unemployed women can face a range of challenges in entering sustained employment. These include the availability and affordability of childcare, a lack of flexible working opportunities and low pay/temporary work issues. Some of these problems are worse for those living in rural areas, who will often experience additional difficulties because of a lack of available transport.

Over 150 delegates attended the Summit which included commissions on Childcare; Women in Enterprise; Research and Analysis; Multiple Obstacles to Work; Occupational Segregation; and Workforce Issues. Rural issues were discussed by satellite from Inverness and Dumfries.

The Minister for Youth Employment has set up the Strategic Group for Women and Work group consisting of external and Scottish Government policy and practice experts to support her in ensuring that proposed issues/actions are progressed. The first meeting was held on 27 March 2013.

Actions are now underway to:

- address the lack of availability of gender disaggregated data that is available in some UK level statistical measures

- prepare recommendations for the Scottish Government on practical steps to encourage and enable more women to start their own businesses

- re-convene the Cross Government Occupational Segregation to drive forward the implementation of the WES occupational segregation recommendations and work to mainstream activity across all relevant areas of the Scottish Government and key partners' policy work

Reports from the Summit can be accessed at:

http://www.employabilityinscotland.com/news/201208-women-s-employment-summit-12-september-2012

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes on "realising our potential with more and better employment opportunities for our people", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty" and "reduce children's deprivation".

One Job Programme - Scottish Business in the Community and the State Street Foundation

In May 2012, the State Street Foundation funded (£50,000) Scottish Business in the Community (SBC) to work with young people and workless adults from deprived communities. SBC built a series of support activities to help business with advice on how to support new employees in work and how to access resources for training and development. They supported the target group by matching each with a business mentor to help with the transition into work and enhancing their confidence and employability skills to allow them to compete for real jobs.

Outcomes

Target - Establish 15 New Modern Apprentice opportunities and 15 new full-time or part-time jobs created within SMEs across Scotland.

SBC worked closely with BskyB and Glasgow 2014 to develop and deliver new modern apprenticeships in admin, HR and finance. SBC then assisted BskyB to recruit 10 young people who were leaving schools in West Lothian and SBC carried out the same process for Glasgow 2014 who recruited 10 young people from Glasgow schools. In both cases, SBC worked with the pupils in school to prepare them for interviews etc.

SBC placed 30 young people and long-term unemployed adults into employment with SME businesses in Edinburgh, Glasgow and North Lanarkshire. 18 jobs were full-time and 12 part-time.

Target - Recruit and train 30 business mentors to support young people. Match and maintain 30 business mentors to work with young people.

SBC exceeded the target, over 80 mentors were recruited and trained to work with young people across Central Scotland to help support them into employment and encourage them to sustain the employment. All 80 mentors were matched with young people and 44 mentors are still continuing the mentoring relationship beyond employment.

Target - Support 40 SMEs to generate opportunities for young people.

Through the SME Hubs, SBC is supporting 50 SME businesses to offer opportunities to young people who are struggling to gain their first employment opportunity.

Highlights and Key Learning

Through working closely with young people and their mentors, we are convinced that the following common barriers - poor literacy and numeracy skills, low confidence levels, lack of awareness of what a job role entails, fear of taking responsibility, need help to complete an online job application, need basic preparation to cope with an interview, need help to find job opportunities and a non-supportive family background - many of these (with the exception of background) can be addressed and removed by building a relationship of trust between the young person and a strong, effective mentor.

Places

The National Performance Framework sets out National Outcomes that we live in well designed sustainable places, where we are able to access amenities and services we need; that we have strong resilient and supportive communities where people take responsibility for their own actions and how they affect others and that we value and enjoy our natural and built environment and protect and enhance it for future generations.

Added to this is recognition of the crucial role that communities and place must play in addressing issues such as child poverty.

Proposed Community Empowerment and Renewal Bill

The benefits of people, families and communities having a sense of ownership and control over their own lives are now well understood. This sense of a stake in their own futures helps to build community confidence and unlocks the creativity and potential that all of our communities contain.

Our proposed Community Empowerment and Renewal Bill will help to remove barriers and provide communities with the tools to help them better shape services that affect them and take their own independent action. We intend to consult on a draft Bill later in 2013.

Community Planning Partnerships and Single Outcome Agreements

In 2007, a Concordat between the Scottish Government and Local Government set out the terms of a new relationship, based on mutual respect and partnership. As part of the Concordat package, Single Outcome Agreements (SOAs) were agreed between Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs) and the Scottish Government. The SOAs set out local outcomes which partners (including local government, NHS, police, fire and third sector representatives) agree reflect local priorities for their area.

Following a review of community planning held in early 2012, guidance on the development of new SOAs was published last December. The new SOAs should continue to be developed and delivered within the context of the Scottish Government's National Performance Framework and should reflect local priorities. However, the SOA should have a particular focus on six key priorities (economic recovery and growth; employment; early years; safer and stronger communities and reducing offending; health inequalities and physical activity; and outcomes for older people). The aim is to achieve transformational performance improvement in these key areas.

Regeneration

Achieving a Sustainable Future: The Regeneration Strategy sets out the Scottish Government's vision of a Scotland where our most disadvantaged communities are supported and where all places are sustainable and promote wellbeing. The strategy also sets out our plans for delivering this vision in partnership with our stakeholders.

The key messages from the strategy are:

- Tackling area-based deprivation by reforming how mainstream resources are used and working together more effectively

- Stronger focus on community-led regeneration

- Realising the economic potential of Scotland's communities through focused funding and other support mechanisms

In March 2013, the Scottish Government and the Chartered Institute of Housing Scotland published Regenerating Our Communities - A snapshot in time. This gives details of the current regeneration activity based around new or refurbished housing provision. It is a snapshot, taking its material from 13 entries to the 2013 Chartered Institute of Housing Scotland/Scottish Government Excellence in Regeneration Award. The winning project was 'ng homes', a community based housing association in North Glasgow. This is detailed as a case study later on in this report.

Affordable Housing

The supply of new affordable housing remains a high priority for the Scottish Government, which has made clear its commitment to deliver at least 30,000 affordable homes, of which at least two-thirds will be for social rent, including 5,000 council houses, during the lifetime of this Parliament.

From 2012/13, a new three-year resource planning approach has been adopted which enables each Council to exercise its strategic role more flexibility and to put forward to Scottish Government strategic local proposals of social and affordable housing developments, based on their Local Housing Strategy.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/Housing/investment/ahsp

The following pages provide further case studies illustrating the importance of community and place.

Case Study

This example relates in particular to National Outcomes of "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty", "reduce children's deprivation" and "improve access to suitable housing options for those in housing need".

Renfrewshire Council - A Time 2 Mend

'A Time 2 Mend' is a unique project which provides focused mediation and support to young people and their families to help reduce youth homelessness. It also helps young new tenants to maintain family support when moving in to their first home. The project is a result of effective partnership working, and could be easily replicated in other local authorities with the same positive results. This proactive approach to tackling and preventing homelessness has delivered the ambitious outcomes we set out to achieve, and the focus on early intervention and homeless prevention is helping to reduce the long-term demand and costs for services.

Since the launch, the service has had 388 referrals of young people, many of whom would have previously been admitted to temporary accommodation such as B&B, and subsequently provided with a tenancy of their own.

The success to date of the initiative has also led to a significant reduction in the number of 16-25 year olds who have had to be dealt with by our mainstream Homeless Services as a result of being asked to leave/dispute within household - the rate fell by 34% between June 2011 and June 2012.

The evidence suggests that A Time 2 Mend will continue to have an impact and further reduce the volume of young people who need assistance from mainstream homeless services in order to resolve their housing difficulties, as well as reduce the cost of providing temporary accommodation and new tenancies.

Organisations working together on this project include Housing Advice & Homeless Services, Education Services, Social Work Services, Youth Employability Service and Strathclyde Police.

A Time 2 Mend was a silver award-winning project in the 2013 COSLA Excellence Awards.

http://awards.cosla.gov.uk/2013/03/achieving-better-outcomes-renfrewshire-council-a-time-2-mend/

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes of "we live in well designed, sustainable places where we are able to access the amenities and services we need", "we value and enjoy our built and natural environment and protect it and enhance it for future generations", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty", "reduce children's deprivation", "improve people's perception of their neighbourhood" and "improve access to suitable housing options for those in housing need".

Dundee City Council Dallfield Regeneration Project

Dundee's Dallfield Regeneration Project is changing the lives of 336 tenants. With the assistance of the Community Energy Saving Programme, Dundee City Council is providing energy efficient homes which tenants can heat for around 30% less cost, thanks to a new district heating system and insulated render on the properties.

To secure this investment, the council made it part of a wider regeneration project which has transformed the appearance of the buildings, improved housing management, tackled crime and anti-social behaviour and left a community legacy in the form of a residents' lounge and community space. A multi-agency local action team was set up to support the planned investment by tackling the area's poor reputation.

As a result of the achievements of the Council, its partners and the local community, Dallfield is now a sustainable community where demand for properties has increased and 85% of people offered a property now accept at the first offer, compared to only 15% before the initiative began.

Organisations working together on this project include the Housing Investment Unit at Dundee City Council, Scottish Gas, Top of the Hill Tenant's Association, McGill Electrical Ltd and subcontractors, Tayside Police and the Community Safety Wardens.

Dundee's Dallfield Regeneration Project was a gold award-winning project in the 2013 COSLA Excellence Awards.

http://awards.cosla.gov.uk/2013/03/strong-and-sustainable-communities-dundee-city-council-dundees-dallfield-community-regeneration-project/

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes of "we live in well designed, sustainable places where we are able to access the amenities and services we need", "we value and enjoy our built and natural environment and protect it and enhance it for future generations", "we live longer, healthier lives", "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and "improving the life chances for children, young people and families at risk" and contributes to National Indicators "reduce the proportion of individuals living in poverty", "reduce children's deprivation", "reduce the percentage of adults who smoke", "reduce alcohol related hospital admissions", "reduce the number of individual with problem drug abuse", "improve people's perception of their neighbourhood" and "improve access to suitable housing options for those in housing need".

People and Communities Fund

The People and Communities Fund (PCF) was launched in May 2012 to support delivery of the Regeneration Strategy Achieving a Sustainable Future via community-led regeneration. The Fund is available to support robust community anchor organisations to grow and strengthen by delivering outcomes to meet and respond to the aspirations of their communities. PCF is aimed at registered social landlords and other community anchor organisations such as community development trusts. Since its launch, 102 projects have already been approved which includes 51 Registered Social Landlord led projects.

There are two priorities for the main grant element of the fund:

- Employability - activities or support focused on increasing an individual's chances of entering employment, remaining in employment and/or progressing further in work

- Preventative Action - acting now to provide better solutions and outcomes for individuals and communities and averting future costs or negative consequence

As part of the preventative action priority, the fund can support initiatives to help children and young people that are experiencing poverty in disadvantaged areas. The range of initiatives supported to date includes:

- bespoke training to assist with the development of interpersonal and communication skills, numeracy and literacy (that also help to strengthen employability skills)

- peer educator, youth mentoring and volunteering programmes (e.g. delivering drugs, alcohol and tobacco awareness sessions for other school pupils)

- intergenerational projects

- healthy eating initiatives for families on a limited household budget

- parenting classes

Our commitment to ensuring equality of opportunity and support for the places and people that need it underpins our approach to regeneration. Many of Scotland's people still live in communities suffering the effects of deprivation and disadvantage. This Regeneration Strategy will reinvigorate efforts to change that. There will be at least £6 million available for allocation in each of the years from 2012/13 to 2014/15 for the main grant element. This PCF funding is available to organisations and/or projects that have been identified by the community as helping it achieve its outcomes.

An example of a successful project is South East Area Lifestyles (SEAL), a community health project that will improve the health and wellbeing of at least 300 people living in the south east area of Glasgow. Volunteering opportunities will be provided through fruit barrows increasing the skills of volunteers. A range of healthy eating and living initiatives will also be supported including household budgeting, training courses and support for people with addictions. The project is an excellent example of preventative action combined with employability that supports economically and socially sustainable communities via strong local partnerships. The PCF contribution of £164,000 represents 30% of the total project cost. Longer term, the project intends to adopt a social franchising model that can be replicated in other areas of Glasgow via income generation.

Case Study

This example relates in particular to the National Outcomes of "we live in well designed, sustainable places where we are able to access the amenities and services we need", "we value and enjoy our built and natural environment and protect it and enhance it for future generations" and "tackling the significant inequalities in Scottish society" and contributes to National Indicators "improve people's perception of their neighbourhood" and "improve access to suitable housing options for those in housing need".

ng homes Regeneration in Action in North Glasgow

ng homes is a community based housing association in North Glasgow managing 5,500 rented homes and factoring 1,500. The area of operation covers Springburn, Possilpark, Parkhouse and Balornock. The area is recognised as one of high multiple deprivation, being ranked amongst the worst 10 data zones in Scotland. This presents itself in terms of unused and derelict land, high unemployment, low educational attainment, poor health and lack of aspiration.

ng homes operate very much within an 'asset based community development approach' as they look to build on the life experiences, skills and aspirations of local people.

A Sense of Place

Working with the community, they have developed a number of regeneration activities. For example 'chute recycling' which is a pilot in the multi-storey flats: this has a strong fit with our 'social regeneration' as they have worked with tenants on 'community swap shops', 'make do and mend' and 'leftover food workshops'.

'Community Connections' is a programme to connect older people from different areas through a programme of cultural visits and 'get togethers' to reduce isolation. They are also carrying out intergenerational work with young people teaching older people how to use iPads.

Community activities include football, sporting events and fun days. They also support a wide variety of community organisations to carry out activities such as 'Piece and Play' during school holidays.

Contributing to Broader Local Regeneration

In economic terms, regeneration is demonstrated through the establishment of ng2 - a subsidiary of ng homes. Originally set up in 2010 with 15 trainees, this now employs over 45 people who are delivering high quality estate caretaking and maintenance services.

'Keys to Learn' is a 12-week part-time course to learn new skills and help manage tenancies and is open to anyone who has been homeless or is having housing problems. This is a partnership with Anniesland College, Glasgow Homelessness Network, Glasgow Regeneration Agency and the ng homes tenancy sustainment staff.

ng homes Regeneration in Action in North Glasgow was the winner of the 2013 Excellence in Regeneration Award.

3. Next Steps

Working Together

We will continue to work closely with stakeholders and colleagues across the Scottish Government on shared themes such as reducing inequalities, fostering asset-based approaches, reforming public services, tackling climate-change and improving outcomes for children and young people.

We recognise that welfare reform will continue to have a significant impact on the most vulnerable in our society. We will continue to act where we can and support those actions with focus on the process of building capacity in our local communities to prepare for the changes.

We will use any new local level data to better understand the impacts of poverty across Scotland. We will continue to promote and support local innovation and engage with local communities to ensure best use of resources, including funds for promoting social inclusion and combatting poverty available through the next round of the European Social Fund.

We will continue to work to ensure that the principles of the Child Poverty Strategy are fully recognised across Scottish Government and Community Planning Partnerships. Single Outcome Agreements should continue to be developed and delivered within the context of the Scottish Government's National Performance Framework and reflect local priorities as well as focusing on economic recovery and growth; employment; early years; safer and stronger communities and reducing offending; and health inequalities and physical activity. The aim is to achieve transformational performance improvement in these key areas and ultimately impact on the Solidarity target.

Through the Ministerial Advisory Group on Child Poverty, we will continue to work with the third sector and business. We will continue to fund projects which tackle poverty with a focus on early years and mitigating the impacts of welfare reform. Over the next year we will be looking at how best to use the expertise and knowledge within the business sector to tackle social issues as we formulate our future strategy.

This and Future Reports

This report has set out progress towards the targets in the Child Poverty Act, reflecting recently published 2011/12 data, and associated analytical work on child poverty from the Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey 2012. It has also spotlighted a range of case studies where the Scottish Government and its partners are taking action to tackle particular facets of child poverty, oriented around 'places', 'prospects' and 'pockets'.

The report sets out the diversity and ambition of approaches and of partners involved. Despite this, tackling child poverty is likely to prove still more difficult in coming years because of the UK Government's programme of welfare reform. This is estimated to lead to an additional 50,000 children in Scotland living in poverty by 2020. As acknowledged in this report, the main levers for addressing child poverty come with independence, so while we are delivering positive outcomes from our joint work, so much more could be achieved under independence.

With this in mind, it will be important to ensure that maximum benefit is extracted from our collective effort and reflected in future reports. Case studies are very valuable examples of success in particular circumstances, but they can only go so far in demonstrating impact or indicating the most beneficial direction of travel. Where case studies are included in future reports, therefore, these will consider how some of the familiar barriers have been addressed, how challenges encountered along the way have been overcome, and where possible provide information about the number of beneficiaries and how they gained from being involved.

Future reports will seek to bring into their discussions evidence of positive impacts from high quality evaluations, in order to be clear about the interventions that offer the best outcomes. Where such high quality evidence is not available, other available evidence should be considered in order to make sure that the lessons we learn about child poverty help us tackle it. This means, for the Scottish Government and its partners, considering how best to draw together and present that evaluative evidence so that it is of most use; and a more analytical report in future years.

4. Annex - Related Scottish Government Initiatives

Below are just some examples of Scottish Government initiatives and forthcoming legislation. The annex is not intended to be an exhaustive list but to provide details of some key activities.

Funded Activities

Scottish Welfare Fund - £23.8 million programme funding from DWP and £9.2 million top-up from the Scottish Government. Introduced in April 2013, and delivered in partnership with local authorities, it will provide Crisis Grants and Community Care Grants.

Scottish Government Fuel Poverty Policy - In the current year (2013/14) we have allocated £79 million to tackle fuel poverty and in total we will spend around a quarter of a billion pounds over the spending review period on fuel poverty and energy efficiency.

Tackling Poverty Funding - £1.2 million provided to Stakeholders including Macmillan Cancer Support, Child Poverty Action Group, Poverty Alliance and One Parent Families Scotland, are funded to tackle key poverty issues. The stakeholders report regularly to Ministers on the progress achieved as outlined in their annual work plans.

Third Sector Early Intervention Fund - A new £20 million third sector early intervention fund that came on stream in 2013/14. Funding will support third sector organisations to deliver national prevention and early intervention outcomes relating to children and young people, and the families and communities that support them.

Third Sector Strategic Funding Partnerships - £10 million over 2013/14 and 2014/15 to support the core costs of third sector organisations delivering Scottish Government priority outcomes for children and young people.

Communities and Families Fund - £6 million fund will support local projects that help families and communities give children the best start in life.

Go2Play - £3 million funding package over three years, from 2012/13 to support people within the play sector to turn ideas from a concept into a reality, positively impacting upon the lives of children and supporting the development of play in Scotland.

Free childcare for vulnerable children - £1.5 million a year over the next three years to expand early learning and childcare opportunities for vulnerable 2 year olds.

National Third Sector GIRFEC Project - Funding of £757,000 to bring the third sector together with local and national government to make sure that all groups working with children and families are in partnership.

People and Communities Fund - £6 million in each of the three years from 2012/13 to 2014/15 to allow organisations to deliver the services and/or projects that have been identified by the community as helping it achieve its outcomes. The two main priorities are employability and preventative action.

Community Jobs Scotland is a partnership between the Scottish Government and SCVO which provides funding to third sector employers to create full-time community based job opportunities for up to nine months and part-time opportunities for up to 18 months. These opportunities are for 16-19 year olds and for vulnerable young people aged 16-24 across the whole of Scotland. Total funding is £28.75 million.

Ministerial Groups

Ministerial Advisory Group on Child Poverty

Early Years Taskforce

Ministerial Taskforce on Health Inequalities

Upcoming Legislation

Children and Young People Bill

Community Empowerment and Renewal Bill

Footnotes

1. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/03/14094421/0

2. http://www.jrf.org.uk/publications/monitoring-poverty-scotland-2013

3. http://www.ifs.org.uk/projects/136

4. http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/9/contents

5. Material deprivation is calculated from a suite of questions in the Family Resources Survey about whether people can afford to buy certain items and participate in leisure or social activities. This measure is applied to households with incomes below 70% of median income to create the 'material deprivation and low income combined' indicator. This indicator aims to provide a measure of children's living standards which, unlike relative and absolute poverty, is not solely based on income.

6. Data for Scotland is not available prior to 1994/05. IFS statistics for the UK show relative child poverty (BHC) in 2011/12 at the lowest rate since mid-1980s.

7. Data for Scotland is not available prior to 1994/05. IFS statistics for the UK show absolute child poverty (BHC) in 2011/12 at the lowest rate since the 1960s.

8. Material deprivation is based on a suite of questions in the Family Resources Survey. Because new material deprivation items were introduced, replacing some existing items, material deprivation figures prior to 2010/11 are not comparable to 2011/12.

9. Material deprivation is calculated from a suite of questions in the Family Resources Survey. In 2010/11 four new items were included and in 2011/12 four old items were removed. This creates a break in the series, with the measurement for 2004/05 to 2010/11 on the old basis and 2010/11 and 2011/12 on the new basis.

10. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/Performance/scotPerforms/purpose/solidarity

11. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/Performance/scotPerforms/indicator/poverty

12. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/Performance/scotPerforms/indicator/childdeprivation

13. Measurement of material deprivation is based on questions in the Family Resources Survey. Because new material deprivation items were introduced in 2010/11, figures prior to 2010/11 are not comparable to 2011/12.

14. Welfare Research - Summary of Institute of Fiscal Studies Analysis

15. UK Government cuts to welfare expenditure in Scotland Scottish Government analysis published March 2013.

16. Scottish Government Analysis Impact of Welfare reform on families published February 2013

17. http://www.ifs.org.uk/comms/r78.pdf

18. http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/sites/default/files/images/Local-action-tackle-poverty-Scotland.pdf

19. http://www.improvementservice.org.uk/library/download-document/3838-local-incomes-and-poverty-in-scotland/

20. http://www.endchildpoverty.org.uk/why-end-child-poverty/poverty-in-your-area

21. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/Performance/purposestratobjs

22. Note that this figure includes non-UK EU students as well as Scottish students, it is not possible to differentiate between the two groups.

23. Scottish Government Analysis.

24. Among the bottom half of the income distribution (deciles 1-5) the average benefit of the council tax freeze in 2013/4 is equivalent to 0.8% of income. This compares to an average benefit of 0.6% of income among households in the top half of the income distribution (deciles 6-10).

25. Scottish House Condition Survey 2011, at October 2011 prices.

26. http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/scotland/Take-action/Home-Energy-Scotland/Home-Energy-Efficiency-Programmes-for-Scotland

27. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/Housing/warmhomes/fuelpoverty/ScottishFuelPovertyForum/SFPFinterimreportmay012

28. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/184869/0052021.pdf