Developing the Social Security Charter: visual summary

The Charter – What it should be like?

Making a Charter that is practical

The people who took part then thought about how this list could be turned into steps that Social Security Scotland or Scottish Government can commit to.

This is to make sure that it is clear what they need to do to deliver the Charter.

Creating sections in the charter

The Core Groups agreed that the Charter should be called "Our Charter."

They agreed the subtitle "What you can expect from the Scottish Government and Social Security Scotland."

They also agreed that the Charter would include:

• An Introduction
• A People's Service
• Processes that Work
• A Learning System
• A Better Future

The Introduction:

The introduction sets out:

• The background to the changes to social security in Scotland and the eight principles from the Act
• A summary of what the charter is
• Who was involved in writing the charter
• That the Charter is important to everyone in Scotland
• The process for making sure the Charter commitments are delivered and who would be responsible for this
• What the difference is between the Scottish Government, Social Security Scotland and the Scottish Parliament, and what their roles are for the Charter
• Who people should get in touch with if they have a problem

A People's Service

The summary for this section is:

"We are here to make sure your get everything you are entitled to"

This section tells you what staff should do to help you and to make sure that you can get everything you are entitled to.

It also tells you what responsibilities clients have when they use Social Security Scotland's services.

People felt it was important that staff were:

• Knowledgeable
• Kind
• Flexible

They also said it was important for clients to give staff feedback to help Social Security Scotland to improve.

Processes that Work

The summary for this section is:

"We will design services with the people who use them"

This section tells you how Social Security Scotland will design its processes so that they work for the people that will use them.

People said it was important that process are:

• designed with people who use them
• that they should be flexible, adaptable and inclusive
• simple and clear.

A Learning System

The summary for this section is:

"We will encourage feedback and empower people to deliver the best service possible"

This section is about what the culture of the new system should be like.

People said it was important that:

• clients are involved
• Social Security Scotland owns up to mistakes and learns from them
• Social Security Scotland builds trust
• Social Security Scotland supports their staff
• Social Security Scotland is committed to being accessible

A Better Future

The summary for this section is:

"We will use new powers to invest in the people of Scotland – making a positive difference to all of our lives"

This section is about what Scottish Government will do to make sure it is making a positive difference.

People felt it was important that:

• Scottish Government uses the new powers that it has for Social Security to make a positive difference
• Scottish Government treats social security as an investment in the people of Scotland