Disability Assistance for Working Age People (Transitional Provisions and Miscellaneous Amendment) (Scotland) Regulations 2022: children's rights and wellbeing impact assessment

Executive Summary

1. The Disability Assistance for Working Age People (Transitional Provisions and Miscellaneous Amendment) (Scotland) Regulations, therefore, make provision for the transfer of the award of any individual in Scotland in receipt Working Age Disability Living Allowance to Adult Disability Payment, where the individual wishes to move to Adult Disability Payment or would otherwise be required to apply for Personal Independence Payment.

2. A Children's Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment was carried out for the Disability Assistance for Working Age People (Scotland) Regulations 2022. This assessment noted the policy intent of Adult Disability Payment is to provide payments to contribute to the additional care and mobility costs resulting from a disability or long term condition, to enable people to mitigate these costs, and to mitigate societal barriers to ensure they are able to live a life of their own choosing.

3. Adult Disability Payment is anticipated to be broadly positive in relation to the impact on children's rights and wellbeing. This is both directly where a young person is an Adult Disability Payment individual and also for the children of parents who are an Adult Disability Payment individual. Based on the evidence gathered, previous consultative engagement with users and stakeholders, and assessment of the demographic makeup of current Personal Independence Payment recipients, the Scottish Government does not consider that Adult Disability Payment infringes upon the rights of the child as set out in the articles of the UNCRC. The assessed impacts of the policy make a positive contribution to the rights and wellbeing of young people who are eligible to receive Adult Disability Payment as set out in the assessment of the policy against UNCRC articles outlined above.

4. The Scottish Government also assessed Adult Disability Payment against the indicators of wellbeing as set out by the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 and has concluded that the policy is likely to have a positive impact against each of the indicators, for young people who meet the eligibility rules and for the children of adults who are awarded Adult Disability Payment.

5. Individuals transferring from Working Age Disability Living Allowance to Adult Disability Payment will be between 25 and 74 years old. We do not anticipate that these regulations will apply directly to children and young people. However, children and young people may be living in households and/or cared for by an individual in receipt of Working Age Disability Living Allowance. Where this is the case, we anticipate that the same positive impacts will be felt when an individual transfers to Adult Disability Payment from Working Age Disability Living Allowance.