National Care Service: questions and answers - engagement sessions

Rights to breaks for carers

How do we ensure all carers receive a break? What about young carers?

• Local authorities currently have responsibilities to promote a variety of short break provision in their areas and we are funding Shared Care Scotland and Healthcare Improvement Scotland to assist them and share good practice. We have also expanded the voluntary sector Short Breaks Fund from £3m to £5m in 2022-23. We are talking with these and other stakeholders about what more can be done to improve capacity. The National Care Service Bill will enable the National Care Service to plan and commission services. The Financial Memorandum to the Bill sets out estimates of the additional costs the Scottish Government expects for additional support to meet the right to breaks.
• Separately from this Bill, there is ongoing national and local work to help identify those who are in caring roles and make them aware of the support available to them. This includes a national communications campaign which ran in late 2020 and again in March 2022.
• All young carers (and adult carers) have rights to a support plan, information and advice, etc. There is wider local and national work, to improve awareness of YC support among young people and education staff but agree more still needs to be done on this.

What does the change in local eligibility mean?

• Removal of local eligibility criteria from decisions about support for breaks from caring will reduce scope for variation in approaches between areas. The establishment of the National Care Service will also improve consistency in delivery of support.