Examining outcomes associated with Social Security Scotland spending: an evidence synthesis

5. Maximising the impact of social security benefit spending

Background

In addition to the benefits themselves, it is recognised that the benefits process – or how benefits are delivered – can have both positive and negative impacts on outcomes such as wellbeing, health, and reducing inequality and poverty. The way in which benefits are delivered can therefore amplify, or reduce, any potential positive impact of the payments that people receive.

Social Security Scotland aims to deliver a social security system built on dignity, fairness, and respect. Social Security Scotland’s Charter^[16] sets out the standards of service and the principles that people should expect from Social Security Scotland; for example, a commitment that services should reflect human rights values, services should be accessible, and that the social security system in Scotland will ‘challenge the myths and stereotypes about social security to help reduce stigma and negativity’.

Ministers have a statutory duty^[59] to promote take-up of devolved benefits and have produced a series of Benefit Take-up Strategies^[60]. This is supported by a Social Security Scotland Charter commitment to ensure that ‘as many people as possible get what they are entitled to, making a particular effort to reach people who are most likely to be excluded’. Promoting take-up also helps to maximise the wider outcomes of social security spending through encouraging eligible people who may otherwise not make an application to understand their entitlements and support and empower them to access these.

Maximising take-up

Estimates of the proportion of people entitled to a Scottish benefit who actually receive it are published annually by Scottish Government analysts, most recently in November 2023^[61]. An overview of each benefit including the most recent take-up rates, is provided in Annex A. Take up is highest for the Five Family Payments and ranges from 80% for the BSG Early Learning Payment to 97% for BSG School Age Payment, in part because some of these payments are made automatically to eligible parents or carers who receive SCP.

Take-up rates for most, but not all, benefits were stable or increased between 2021-22 and 2022-23^[61]. For example, SCP take-up rates for children aged under 6 years rose substantially from 87% to 95% meaning the vast majority of eligible families with children of this age are receiving this benefit. At the end of March 2023, the rate for children aged 6-15 years was lower at 77%, this is likely to reflect the more recent expansion of the benefit to this age group. The Scottish Fiscal Commission expect the gap in rates for younger and older children to narrow over time. In 2022-23, SCP take-up rates for local authorities tended to be higher in more deprived, and also more urban, local authorities.

The lowest take-up rate was for JSP (15%, down from 29% in 2021-22). To address this, marketing and media campaigns promoted the payment during 2022-23. Further promotion work will take place throughout 2023-24, including working with DWP Youth Work Coaches and Skills Development Scotland.

Social Security Scotland has actively targeted specific groups to promote benefits and maximise take-up rates. For example, people from non-white minority ethnic groups face particular barriers, especially those with English as a second language. Social Security Scotland creates all its promotional materials in seven alternative community languages with other languages available on request. Materials are written for a reading age of 9 years, the average reading age in Scotland.

Disabled people are another group more likely to live in poverty. To maximise awareness and promote take-up of ADP and CDP, it was reported in 2022 that Social Security Scotland had delivered 110 engagement events with over 6,500 stakeholders signing up to attend^[61]. The Charter makes the commitment that disabled people who need help with the application process can access independent advocacy. The new Social Security Independent Advocacy Service launched in January 2022, and has cleared over 3,900 client cases to date – supporting people to access and apply for devolved benefits^[61].

More generally there has been an extensive programme of research to understand experiences of seldom heard groups, including survivors of domestic abuse, mobile and prison populations and care experienced young people^[62]. These insights were used, for example, to design more inclusive, accessible information and simpler application processes.

The Charter also commits Social Security Scotland to delivering services in local communities, and ensuring these are provided in places that are convenient and accessible. Local Delivery support is now available across 197 outreach venues in every local authority in Scotland. In 2022-23 over 50,000 appointments were completed helping people to access devolved payments, of which over 27,000 were conducted in people's homes. As part of a test-and-learn programme funded by the Scottish Government, dedicated welfare rights advisors have been provided in up to 180 GP practices across Scotland’s most deprived settings and remote rural and island communities since 2021. Early findings have already highlighted the value of this approach. Almost 10,000 people were supported by the service between January 2022 and March 2023 and were helped to take up £16.2 million of benefits they were eligible for; 89% of those were ‘new’ users of advice^[61].

Understanding people’s experiences of the devolved benefits system

Progress towards meeting the commitments contained in the Charter is measured annually and reported^[63] using a framework^[64] of measures co-designed with people who receive benefits .

The 2022-23 Measuring our Charter report^[63] indicates that the vast majority of Social Security Scotland clients had a positive experience. 93% of Client Survey respondents agreed or strongly agreed that they were treated with kindness and 88% of applicants agreed or strongly agreed that the benefits application process was clear.

Analysis of client experience broken down by protected characteristic and socio-economic information showed relatively small differences between groups^[65]. For example, minority ethnic respondents were more likely than White respondents to agree that they ‘felt trusted’ (91% compared to 86%) and that Social Security Scotland staff made them ‘feel comfortable’ (95% compared to 89%). A slightly smaller proportion of people aged 16-24 (84%) said they ‘felt trusted’ compared to older age groups.

When considering clients’ experience by benefit, in 2022-23^[18] people with experience of YCG were consistently less likely to agree that staff made them feel ‘comfortable’, ‘listened to’ or ‘trusted’ compared with respondents who had experience of the 11 other benefits. This had not been the case in 2021-22 and could therefore be a temporary finding or due to the small number of responses (113) from recipients of YCG.

Approval rates for benefits applications were also found to differ between certain protected characteristics^[65]. For example, between December 2020 and May 2021 applicants from Asian ethnic groups (71%) were less likely to be successful compared to those from African (77%), White (76%) and mixed or multiple ethnic groups (78%). Multiple factors, including English language ability or disability, could potentially account for such differences but the evidence available precludes this type of analysis.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, people whose benefits applications were successful had a much more positive view of the process than those whose applications were refused.

Conclusion

Social Security Scotland and the Scottish Government have made extensive efforts to maximise the take-up of Scottish benefits, including among marginalised groups and in areas of higher deprivation. These efforts are likely to have enhanced the positive outcomes associated with the benefits administered by Social Security Scotland, for example by addressing income inequalities and fostering a belief among individuals, including those from marginalised groups who may not previously have applied, that they are entitled to benefits. Evidence from large scale surveys of clients to date shows that the vast majority of people who have interacted with Social Security Scotland are positive about their experience and feel that they have been treated with kindness and respect.