Scotland Act 2016 implementation: eighth annual report
Report to inform parliament of the implementation work that has been carried out on fiscal powers devolved in the Scotland Act 2016.
8. Employability
The Scotland Act 2016 gave Scottish Ministers the powers to deliver employability support that helps disabled people or those at risk of long-term employment to seek, obtain, and retain employment, where the assistance is for at least a year.Costs
| £m | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Implementation | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Administration/Operation | 30.0 | 25.8 | 23.3 |
2023-24 Developments
89. Fair Start Scotland, launched in April 2018, continued to provide tailored, person-centred support to people who need help to find and stay in work, and achieve their full potential. Unlike some UK Government initiatives, participation in Fair Start Scotland continues to remain voluntary.
90. In early 2023 Scottish Ministers made the decision to extend receiving Fair Start Scotland referrals for a final 12 months. Referrals will now be accepted to the service until 31 March 2024. Those receiving Fair Start Scotland support on that date will continue to do so into 2026 until their time on service completes.
91. This decision to extend Fair Start Scotland has supported stability within the system and continues to provide employability support to people at risk of long-term unemployment for at least 12-18 months.
92. The Scottish Government has continued to regularly publish national statistics releases on Fair Start Scotland service performance, alongside independent evaluation reports. The latest statistics release[21], covering the period from launch to end September 2023 shows that there were 63,763 starts and 22,659 job starts.
93. In November 2023, the Scottish Government published Fair Start Scotland Evaluation Reports[22] [23] which provided an insight into participants experiences of the support they received while on the service in years four and five.
94. The Evaluation Reports highlighted the service continued to deliver positive results for participants, with high levels of satisfaction with their experience feeling they were treated with dignity and respect and offered support to improve their general quality of life and well-being.
95. FSS also helped build participants’ motivation to find work with the majority of those who were not working reporting their motivation to find work had increased.
96. Areas taken forward from the Evaluation Reports as part of Fair Start Scotland’s continuous improvement activity included improving the consistency of delivery of the personalised approach to support; exploring additional support tailored to those with childcare difficulties; the continued use of varied communications strategies to ensure all potential participants were made aware of the service and identifying methods to maximise training and work experience opportunities offered to participants.
97. As part of the Supported Employment review recommendations[24], in Spring 2023 changes were implemented to Fair Start Scotland contracts removing the requirement for participants to work 16 hours or more. This improvement supported people with some of the most difficult barriers to join a mainstream employability service for the first time and take up work.
98. Fair Start Scotland continuous improvement activity has continued to focus on enhancing engagement with under-represented and under-supported groups and developing better support for individuals with more complex needs.
Future Plans
Fair Start Scotland
99. Referrals to Fair Start Scotland will end on 31 March 2024. Those participants who remain on the service at that point will continue to receive the full employability support it delivers, including up to 18 months pre-employment support and 12 months in work support.
No One Left Behind
100. Scottish Ministers are committed to supporting the continued development and delivery of devolved employability services. On the 10 August 2023, Cabinet Secretary Neil Gray approved the further implementation of No One Left Behind from April 2024. No One Left Behind promotes a strengthened partnership approach where Scottish and Local Government work together in partnership with third and private sectors and with service users to design, deliver and improve the Scottish approach to employability, ensuring that support is more flexible and responsive to individual and local labour market needs.
101. The Scottish Government in partnership with Local Government held a total of six National Discussion Events between August and November 2023. These events provided approximately 300 stakeholders the opportunity to support the further implementation of No One Left Behind and have their feedback and ideas inform the Scottish Government’s Employability Strategic Plan, 2024-27, set to be published in March 2024.
Contact
Email: rory.mack@gov.scot
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