Best Start Grant: analysis of consultation responses

General Questions on the Regulations

The BSG is intended to improve children's wellbeing and life chances by providing support to lower income families at key transition points in the early years and, as such, aims to help mitigate the effects of child poverty and material deprivation. The support is also intended to contribute to improving outcomes for children, including reducing health inequalities and closing the attainment gap.

Consultation questions were included to determine how likely it would be that the draft regulations would meet the policy intent, as well as to identify any potential unintended consequences and/or gaps in the regulations.

Q5. Do you think that the draft regulations (Annex A) are likely to meet the policy intent set out in this document?

Response	Number	Percentage
Yes	28	55%
No	1	2%
Don't Know	6	12%
No quantitative response	16	31%
Total	51	100%

Just over half of the respondents felt that the draft regulations would be likely to meet the policy intent for the BSG. Views were expressed that the proposals seemed full, fair and sensible, and that the timescales seemed appropriate.

Others felt that the proposals were positive, and would contribute to mitigating the effects of child poverty, with the increases to the value of the grant and the automatic entitlement of younger parents being particularly effective:

"The changes proposed are positive compared to the existing scheme and will provide support to mitigate the effects of child poverty at key stages in early years." (Organisation)

"The increased value of the Grant is extremely welcome, and provides recognition that low income families can be under significantly increased financial pressure during pregnancy, after the birth of a child, and during key transition points such as a child starting nursery and school. We also strongly support the automatic entitlement of 16 and 17 year olds to the Best Start Grant. This reflects the additional complexities and challenges often faced by young parents, and the heightened risk that they may experience poverty." (Organisation)

One respondent, however, felt that while the BSG would contribute to the policy intent, the amount of money awarded would be small overall and so it would only have a minimal/short term impact:

"However it must be acknowledged that this is still overall a small additional amount of money at three time points for low income families and is therefore, on its own, likely only to have a minimal impact on children's wellbeing and life chances or health and educational inequalities in the population." (Organisation)

This same respondent also outlined other areas of support in relation to the BSG, including plans for multiple application channels for BSG, the recommendations that Maternity Allowance be included as a qualifying benefit for lone parents, and that students in receipt of income-related student bursaries should be considered in eligibility criteria for BSG. They also recommended lowering the age threshold for determining subsequent child status to 10 years for existing child members of the household, as they considered that for longer periods new baby equipment is likely to be required, and that migrant families who arrive in the UK following the birth of existing children should be eligible for a first birth maternity/new baby payment as they considered it would likely be necessary to replace all previously owned baby equipment.

Another respondent, while supportive of the BSG and the proposals, highlighted the need for effective awareness raising and communication in relation to the second and third payments to ensure any changes in care arrangements for the child do not impact on payments to eligible parties:

"We strongly support the policy objectives of the BSG cash payments to improve children's wellbeing and life chances, by providing support to low income families and carers at key transition points in early years. It is critical that there is a concerted effort to target families and carers at nursery and school stages, rather than only when the child is born. This is because circumstances change for families and children may no longer be living with birth parents at a stage that they are eligible for the second and third stage of BSG. This is particularly relevant for kinship carers." (Organisation)

The one respondent who stated they did not think the proposals would meet the policy intent for BSG did not provide any qualitative comments to further explain this view. Of those who stated they did not know, however, one suggested two other benefits that could be assessed for eligibility, namely Council Tax Reduction and Disability Living Allowance, and another suggested additions to the regulations which they felt could further assist:

"(a) It would be helpful to confirm the intended timescales for the Agency to decide an application for BSG and whether such timescales are to be statutory or set out in guidance; and (b) Further clarity around the process and timescales for re-determination and appeals." (Organisation)

Of those that provided qualitative comments despite not answering the closed question, one again raised issues in relation to the responsibility tests and kinship carers and highlighted shortcomings of the test which could result in excluding this group (this sentiment was also provided by one of the supportive respondents):

"Currently the regulations… state that the child should not be looked after by the local authority. However, this would exclude kinship carers which we believe is not the Government's intention; paragraph 33 of the consultation states that "we propose to pay the BSG to kinship carers". We believe that kinship carers should be included and that this group is often in great need, accordingly we would ask the Government to consider addressing this anomaly." (Organisation)

Another expressed that changes to the wording of the regulations were required in order to provide reassurance in relation to the rights of applicants to have awards made in cash rather than in kind i.e. greater flexibility to meet the needs of a wide range of claimants:

"While we welcome the implication that a cash payment will be the default arrangement, we would welcome this to be explicitly stated in the regulations. For example, "If an individual asks for some or all of the grant to be given in a form other than money, Scottish ministers may decide to give the grant in that form"." (Organisation)

Another respondent again highlighted the risks with using Universal Credit to establish eligibility due to problems with this system, and highlighted that support would be needed for potential applicants to raise awareness and confidence of how to navigate through the full process and relevant benefits:

"Eligibility for the Best Start Grant relies on awareness and uptake of UK reserved benefits and tax credits in the first place. Therefore, it is essential that pregnant women and families with young children know about their entitlements, are supported to establish their eligibility and navigate their way through the Department for Work and Pensions and HMRC application processes and be in successful receipt of the qualifying benefits." (Organisation)

This respondent also outlined several examples of well-established financial inclusion referral pathways in place between maternity, health visiting, general practice and advice services in some places across Scotland (including Healthier Wealthier Children, Family Friendly Advice, Universal Pathway for Health Visiting and the maternity record). They felt that there needed to be consideration of how the new Social Security administrative systems could potentially link to these existing systems.

Q6. Can you identify any potential unintended consequences of the regulations?

Response	Number	Percentage
Yes	11	22%
No	19	37%
Don't Know	5	10%
No quantitative response	16	31%
Total	51	100%

Over a third of respondents indicated that they could not identify any potential unintended consequences of the regulations. Among those who provided qualitative comments in this respect, two simply stated that they could not see any potential negative impacts or unintended consequences, while two suggested that an evaluation, review or ongoing monitoring would be necessary following implementation to ensure all eligible persons are receiving the grant:

"We suggest that the Government undertakes monitoring to ascertain whether the BSG reaches all those women who are most in need and to see whether there are any unintended gaps in eligibility." (Organisation)

Again, respondents were concerned over the use of Universal Credit. One respondent was concerned regarding the number of months that needed to be evaluated, and felt that one month's Universal Credit award would not give a true reflection of a person's income, and suggested that perhaps an average could be taken over a longer period, or that a P60 could be used. Another had concerns over people failing to apply for BSG due to confusion and incompatibility with Universal Credit's two child policy:

"It would be possible that someone on a low earned income responsible for a new child may not qualify for UC/Tax Credits due to the two child policy… In such a situation they lose out on the UK means tested benefit due to the two child policy which then has a knock on effect for the Best Start Grant. Reliance on UK state benefits as a qualifying condition would run the risk that future changes at UK level to cut means tested benefits could interfere with entitlement to Best Start Grants." (Organisation)

This respondent also identified consequences of the regulations for those parents who elect to defer starting school when the child would be just 4, noting that in such situations it would most likely be preferable for the grant to be paid the year the child starts school and not before. They suggested that consideration should be given to creating a mechanism to allow the payment to be made in the actual year of starting school:

"If the parent [of a child age 4] elects to hold back the child for a year then the window for claiming will in fact have closed in the February prior to starting school. While some parents may be able to use this grant in the year prior to starting school it may be more appropriate for some to be able to access it in the year of starting school." (Organisation)

The same respondent also noted an anomaly in relation to counting months with differing numbers of days, and felt the current definition would result in extending the application window:

"Regulation 4 (3) attempts to resolve a problem of counting months where there are a different number of days in the relevant months. However, as currently written it would in some circumstances extend an application window further than intended. To achieve the desired result you would need to amend the current wording to include something along the following lines:- "… on the same day of the month as day 2 unless such a date does not exist, in which case the last day of that month"." (Organisation)

Another respondent felt that the eligibility and application process may be too complicated for some applicants, while another was concerned about how people would find out about the grant and who would be available to support them with the application:

"They may seem complicated to use for clients who might not understand the language and appeals process. Hopefully they will have a health professional to guide them, but then health professionals need to be up to date and proficient on how the grant works." (Individual)

"The success of the BSG will be dependent on people finding out about it, we are concerned the regulations do not state how people will find out about BSG, it would be useful if there was a clearly stated duty e.g. on the Agency, midwives, health visitors etc. to inform people about the BSG." (Organisation)

One respondent felt that the eligibility timescale for applications following the birth of a child needed to be extended to stop those on unpaid maternity leave and those who return to work on reduced hours missing out:

"The client may become entitled to receive a qualifying benefit more than six months after childbirth but be unable to claim BSG due to the rules limiting applications to six months. As examples, the client may qualify for IS or UC during unpaid maternity leave… Likewise, the entitlement to Flexible Work leads to many workers reducing hours on returning to work after maternity leave, and their income may drop to the point where they receive qualifying benefits when they return to work. I believe the option to apply for BSG should be there throughout the first two years." (Organisation)

Again, several respondents highlighted the issues of not paying the money directly to young parents and the risk of abuse of the money by grandparents was cited as an unintended consequence, along with the risk that cash payments again risks the money not being used as intended. One respondent suggested that a solution may be for the Scottish Government to set up a framework for the supply of goods in order to achieve greater value for money and lower unit cost prices:

"There may be a risk to the proposed approach for 18 and 19 year olds as it does not support self-efficacy and could be open to potential abuse from coercive grandparents. The draft regulations propose that the grant "is to be given as money". While this provides choice for recipients there is a risk that the grant will not be used for its intended purpose and as a consequence, there may be potential knock-on negative impacts for the child(ren)." (Organisation)

The one respondent who indicated 'Don't Know' and provided a qualitative comment was concerned about the timescale for appeals and how this will be communicated to those with chaotic lifestyles and/or mental health issues:

"I am slightly concerned about the 31 days to contest the decision in relation to those who live in chaos and may have mental health difficulties. Will the exact date of the required re-submission be printed on the letter? This exact and tiny detail may help, especially if you put it in a different colour." (Organisation)

Another respondent (who did not provide a quantitative response) indicated that, while awareness and support for applicants in relation to the first and third grants were likely to be high (due to the involvement of midwives and school support at these stages), consideration was needed regarding the middle (nursery) payment:

"Not all children have contact with nurseries or early years services; further consideration may be required to ensure uptake of the grant at this key stage in a child's life, particularly as children do not have to attend a nursery to be eligible for the Best Start Grant Award." (Organisation)

This respondent also stated " discrimination and inequality" as unintended outcomes, along with referring to the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child: Article 2; Article 6; Article 7; Article 26; Article 28 ( UNICEF, 1990) - however, no further details were provided at this question to elaborate on these issues.

Two respondents also linked their responses at this question to those detailed later in the consultation ( i.e. Q7), and these comments are covered below.

Q7. Can you identify any gaps in the regulations?

Response	Number	Percentage
Yes	11	22%
No	22	43%
Don't Know	3	6%
No quantitative response	15	29%
Total	51	100%

Of those respondents that were unable to identify any gaps in the regulations, a few indicated that they thought the regulations were comprehensive, provide an easy process for applicants, and that they generally could not identify any gaps. Two however, felt that gaps could only really be determined after the final eligibility was established.

Of those that did identify gaps, several mentioned that the Council Tax Reduction, Maternity Allowance and Disability Living Allowance had been excluded from qualifying benefits and that including these may help ensure that the BSG reaches all who need the support that it intends to provide-:

"Rather than rely completely on benefits that are reserved to UK to establish the income threshold for entitlement, it would seem appropriate to also include the one means-tested provision that is already devolved to Scottish Parliament, that being Council Tax Reduction ( CTR). Unlike the UK means-tested benefits the Scottish Government has not implemented the two child policy within CTR, and as such it reflects a slightly different approach to means testing. It would seem appropriate for this to be included in the list of qualifying benefits." (Organisation)

"Maternity allowance should also be a qualifying benefit where the claimant does not have a partner… If these women are single and not eligible to receive help with housing costs (and therefore not in receipt of UC or HB) they would not currently be eligible for a Best Start Grant. We also think recipient of Council Tax Reduction should be a qualifying benefit. We still see in work poverty in families who don't get UC and at the moment don't get HB but get CTR. This would take into account students and families affected by the Benefit Cap." (Organisation)

"We also recommend that Child DLA should be added to this list in Regulation 8… While acknowledging the view in paragraph 60 that "costs associated with the disability of a child were better looked at through Child DLA", we would contend that these two benefits have different policy intentions as the BSG is not designed to cover costs associated with the disability of a child, but rather to provide the "best start". It would therefore be entirely appropriate for Child DLA to be a qualifying benefit for the BSG, since in the truest spirit of the policy intention, this would give the child who has disabilities - and is therefore statistically at a disadvantage - support to have the "best start" in life." (Organisation)

Two respondents also noted that the draft regulations did not specify how quickly an application would be processed:

"The regulations do not specify the timescales for the Agency to decide an application and there is no reference to such in the consultation… it will be helpful to have openness and transparency around the Agency's decision making timescales for applications." (Organisation)

A further two respondents also sought clarification around the re-determination process and, in particular, whether a second tier re-determination would be available:

"There is no mention of the re-determination process within the regulations. What aspects of a decision are appealable? What avenues are available if a customer is unhappy with a 1st tier tribunal?" (Organisation)

Individual respondents also outlined the following gaps:

• some students may not have a qualifying benefit - it was noted that allowing Independent Student's Bursary to be considered could assist in including students within the eligibility criteria, and that for care experienced students there would be the opportunity to link with the Student Award Agency Scotland's Care Experienced Student Bursary;
• for parents with care experience there should be an 'assumption of entitlement' so they do not need to meet an eligibility threshold related to a qualifying benefit to receive the BSG;
• a need to ensure that all young children who are looked after or are on the edges of care will receive this support, regardless of their living arrangements;
• consideration of the extension of devolved powers or use of 'top up' payments for kinship carers - this would have the advantage of separating financial assessments and allowance provision currently undertaken by local authority social workers to a national Agency with the required skill set;
• there is no reference to applicant fraud or error, or indeed to error on the part of the Social Security Agency, which is an area that requires further consideration;
• there is no information provided regarding how payments will be made to applicants who do not have a bank account;
• consideration should be given to automatic notification of entitlement;
• accountability should be included in legislation, including around informing applicants of their rights if an application is turned down;
• regulations should hold a requirement to keep up with inflationary methods to offset higher costs of living;
• emphasis needed to be placed on the human right to social security as outlined in the Social Security Charter - this was seen as necessary to lessen stigma around claimants, and also may go some way to alleviating the discriminatory effect that being from lower income households has on children;
• some families in need of assistance with babies due soon, would miss out on the BSG due to its scheduled implementation in summer 2019; and
• to ensure the grant is as responsive as possible to the needs of people experiencing poverty, there should be further consideration of how automatic or expanded entitlement could more closely reflect the priority groups identified in the Scottish Government's Child Poverty Delivery Plan.

One respondent also noted that the draft regulations did not provide any detail regarding in what form, or accompanied by what evidence, a valid application for Best Start Grant would need to be made. They suggested that the requirements needed to be clear to allow individuals to apply without assistance. This respondent also highlighted the gaps in the availability of grants at the point in time when some parents would most need them:

"There is a gap between the age of 3½ and the child starting school where they may enter nursery or early learning, but would be ineligible for a Grant. To ensure that individuals can receive the Grants when they are most needed, as opposed to having to apply for them many months before the start of nursery or school, we would suggest the Scottish Government consider making adjustments to ensure that otherwise-eligible parents retain entitlement if their child begins nursery after the age of 3 ½; and to extend eligibility to parents of children who request to defer the start of school by a year." (Organisation)

One respondent sought clarity over any 'exclusions' from the grant, in particular around asylum seekers:

"The Best Start Grant regulations do not provide clarity on exclusions. [We] would argue that the Scottish Government recognises and states within the regulations which groups of babies and very young children (especially those groups experiencing poverty, low family income, and/or destitution) are excluded from having equal access to the benefits of receiving a Best Start Grant award (or equivalent) and why; e.g. due to their "status"… [We] understand that matters related to immigration are controlled by the UK Home Office, that immigration is not a devolved matter. However, the Best Start Grant is a grant for children and offered by the Scottish Government to alleviate the impact of poverty on their lives." (Organisation)

Another sought clarification around the procedures and timescales for payments where domestic and/or financial abuse is a contributing factor in a break-up, they sought reassurances around how the system would ensure future payments (or re-payments) could be paid to the right parent. They also sought clarity for single parents who have recently split up from their partner and/or lost their job just outwith the application/re-determination period.

One respondent did not understand the need for an application process, considering that it would be more efficient for it to be granted automatically where people qualify for other benefits. They considered that the application form could present a barrier to those with literacy issues or where English is not the first language, or that claims may be dismissed where forms are incorrectly completed. This respondent also suggested that it would be helpful for applicants to provide evidence following the submission of the application, and that the application window should be extended to 12 months following the birth of a child in order to be consistent with maternity leave. Consideration was also needed, it was felt, for families who have a first child born outwith Scotland, suggesting the regulations should state 'first child born in Scotland'. Finally, the same respondent questioned whether kinship carers and those with informal care arrangements can apply for the BSG.