Fair Start Scotland (Official Statistics)

Introduction

FSS is Scotland’s devolved employability support service which aims to help those further from the labour market move into and sustain fair work. FSS launched on 3 April 2018 with funding to support a minimum of 38,000 people into work over an initial three year period (Fair Start Scotland Statement - opens in a new window). The service has been extended to March 2024. Further details on the nature of Fair Start Scotland can be found in table 3 of the supplementary Background and Methodology Report.

This report refers to the following groups throughout:

• People – unique individuals counted only once. If a participant has joined the service more than once, they will only be counted once under the people metric.
• Starts – number of starts on the service. As people can now re-join, the number of starts may not equal the number of unique people. For example, if a participant has joined the service on two separate occasions, this will be counted twice under starts but only once under people.
• Re-joins – refers to starts that are not first time starts. It should also be noted people may re-join more than once. The sum of the people metric and re-joins equals the number of starts on the service.

Most of the statistics in this report cover the period since FSS was launched in April 2018 up until the most recent quarter (October - December 2023). However, for some data items such as job outcomes, it is more appropriate to only consider those participants where enough time has passed that we have complete data. This varies depending on the metric but is noted within the relevant sections of the report.

How many FSS referrals and starts have there been?

There were 98,850 referrals to FSS between its launch in April 2018 and the end of December 2023. Of the total referrals to FSS, 66,440 started receiving employability support, including 6,134 re-joins to the service.

In the most recent quarter, referrals decreased by 11% from 4,200 last quarter to 3,732 this quarter. Compared to the equivalent quarter in 2022, referrals are 15% lower. Starts have decreased by 11% from 3,001 last quarter to 2,675 this quarter. This is 9% lower than the equivalent quarter in 2022.

Figure 8: Referrals and starts on Fair Start Scotland decreased this quarter

Referrals and Starts on Fair Start Scotland, by Quarter, Apr 2018 to Dec 2023

Who are the people that have joined FSS?

Of 66,440 FSS starts, 60,306 people have started on the service, with the difference reflecting participants re-joining the service. The following breakdown of equality groups are based on the characteristics of those 60,306 people when they first joined FSS.

Sex

Most people joining FSS are male (62%; 37,237) while 38% (22,915) are female. The proportion of females has increased from 35% in year 1 (2018/19) to 39% in year 5 (2022/23). In the most recent quarter (October - December 2023), 35% of participants were female.

Age

The most common age group of people joining FSS is 35 to 49 years (29%; 17,586), followed by 25 to 34 year olds (25%; 15,008). The lowest proportion is the 16 to 24 years old age group (20%; 11,954).

The proportion of participants in the youngest and oldest age groups tends to show larger fluctuations than those in the 25 to 34 and 35 to 49 years age groups. Those in the youngest age group represented 16% of all participants in year 1 (2018/19) compared to 25% in year 3 (2020/21). In the most recent quarter, the proportion was 21%. In comparison, the oldest age group represented 30% in year 1 (2018/19) compared to 20% in year 3 (2020/21). In the most recent quarter, the proportion was 23%.

Ethnicity

Overall, 8% (4,598) of people joining FSS were from a minority ethnic background and 74% (44,713) were white with ethnicity unknown for the remaining 18% (10,995) of participants. In the most recent quarter, 16% of participants were from a minority ethnic background and 73% were white. Each quarter in year 6 (2023/24) has had the joint highest proportion of participants from a minority ethnic background in a single quarter.

Monitoring changes to ethnicity can be challenging due a high proportion of unknowns. However, there has been continued improvement in response rates for this variable. In the most recent quarter, unknowns represented 11% of all participants. This compares to the higher proportions observed in earlier years (year 1: 17%, year 2: 31%, year 3: 29%).

Disability

Disability is defined based on answers to two questions related to long-term health conditions (LTHC) and ability to carry out activities. Overall, 44% (26,392) of FSS participants have a disability compared to 48% (29,004) who do not. This was unknown for the remaining 8% (4,910) of participants.

The proportion of disabled people has varied across years with the highest proportion (55%) in year 1 (2018/19) and the lowest (32%) in year 3 (2020/21). The collection of equalities data in year 3 was impacted by the move away from face to face service delivery and policies such as shielding during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the proportion of disabled people accessing FSS has subsequently increased from this low point, it continues to fluctuate. In year 4 (2021/22), the proportion increased to 47% but decreased to 43% in year 5. In the most recent quarter, 43% of people reported a disability.

Convictions

People with a conviction may find it harder to enter employment. There has been 6,407 people (11%) joining FSS that reported having a conviction. In year 4 (2021/22) this peaked at 13% but reached a low of 8% in year 5 (2022/23). In the most recent quarter, 191 people (9%) reported having a conviction.

Benefit Claimants

The majority of people (78%; 47,194) joining FSS are benefit claimants. This proportion was at its lowest in year 1 (2018/19) at 74% and peaked in year 4 (2021/22) at 87%. It should be noted that the proportion of unknowns was higher in the first few years of the programme but has since improved. In the most recent quarter, 1,616 (75%) people reported claiming benefits. This continues a quarterly decrease since October – December 2022.

Length of Time Unemployed

People who have been out of the labour market for a longer period of time may find it more difficult to find employment. Most people (36%; 21,970) joining FSS have been unemployed for 24 months or more. A similar proportion have been unemployed for less than 6 months (18%; 11,154), between 6 – 12 months (17%; 10,073) and 12 – 24 months (15%; 9,266). This information is unknown for the remaining participants (13%; 7,840). In the most recent quarter, 666 people (31%) reported being unemployed for 24 months or more.

Deprivation

There has been 21,267 people (35%) joining FSS who lived in one of the 15% most deprived areas. The highest proportion, 38%, was in year 1 (2018/19) and the lowest proportion, 33%, in year 3 (2020/21) and year 5 (2022/23). In the most recent quarter, 726 people (34%) lived in one of the 15% most deprived areas. Geographic information was unavailable for 1% of participants.

Urban/Rural

People living in rural areas may be more limited for job opportunities compared to those living in urban areas. There has been 5,125 people (8%) joining FSS who live in a rural area, while 54,356 people (90%) live in an urban area. This has remained consistent across years with the highest proportion (91%) in years 1 (2018/19) and 4 (2021/22) and the lowest proportion (88%) in year 3 (2020/21). In the most recent quarter, 189 people (9%) reported living in a rural area. Geographic information was unavailable for 1% of participants.

See supplementary Background and Methodology Report for more detail on impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the precise definition of characteristics reported here.

Figure 9: Most people starting on Fair Start Scotland are male, white and live in an urban area

Equality Characteristics of People Starting on Fair Start Scotland, Apr 2018 to Dec 2023

Long-Term Health Condition

Overall, 61% (36,596) of people joining FSS reported a LTHC, 34% (20,573) reported no LTHC, with 5% (3,137) unknown. In the most recent quarter, 1,179 people (55%) reported a LTHC.

Many LTHC can impact upon a person’s ability to gain and maintain employment without additional support and participants can report more than one LTHC. The most commonly reported LTHC by participants joining FSS was a mental health condition (33%; 19,702), followed by a long-term illness, disease or condition (17%; 10,258).

Figure 10: Mental health condition is the most reported long-term health condition for people starting on Fair Start Scotland

LTHC Reported by People Starting on Fair Start Scotland, Apr 2018 to Dec 2023

Parents

Annual data on parents was first published in May 2021. Quarterly parent data for year 4 was published for the first time in the previous publication whilst quarterly parent data covering year 5 onwards was published from August 2022.

Cumulative totals should be interpreted with caution and comparison of data between years is not advised due to the way the collection has developed over time. Please see supplementary Background and Methodology Report for more details.

Of people joining FSS for the first time 13,202 were parents, while there has been 14,490 total parent starts on the service since its launch in April 2018, including re-joins.

In the latest quarter, of the 693 parent starts on FSS there were 587 people who were parents accessing FSS support for the first time. These 587 parents represented 27% of all 2,156 people accessing FSS support for the first time in this quarter. This is similar to the previous quarter.

Parents and families from certain groups are at higher risk of being affected by child poverty (see supplementary Background and Methodology Report). Of the 587 parents accessing support for the first time this quarter:

• 44% were disabled (38% overall),
• 30% were lone parents (43% overall),
• 2% were mothers aged under 25 (3% overall),
• 22% were parents with three or more children (18% overall),
• 38% had a child aged under 12 months (27% overall), and,
• 20% were from a minority ethnic background (12% overall).

How many FSS early leavers have there been?

Someone is defined as having left FSS early (an ‘early leaver’) if they leave FSS before the end of the pre-employment support period and without having sustained employment for at least 3 months. The pre-employment support period usually lasts for up to 12 months but can last up to 18 months in some cases, though this has only applied to a small number of people to date.

There have been 31,617 early leavers from the 66,440 FSS starts (including 6,134 re-joins). As time passes, there is a more complete picture of the proportion of starts that stay on FSS or leave early.

Where we have a complete picture, based on participants with a start date one year ago or longer, 28,327 (52%) of starts have left early. This rate is based on a cohort of 54,046 starting between the period April 2018 and December 2022 (including 3,899 re-joins).

The percentage of early leavers was higher for those reporting a disability, particularly for those who have a LTHC that limits daily activities a lot (59%); compared with those with a LTHC that did not limit daily activities at all (47%). Younger participants (16 to 24) were also more likely to leave early (55%) compared to the older participants (51%) (50 years and over). There is little difference between male and female participants or between white and minority ethnic participants.

Participants with a conviction were more likely to leave early (60%) than those not reporting a conviction (51%). Those participants who lived in one of the 15% most deprived areas were more likely to leave early (55%) compared to those who lived in one of the 85% least deprived areas (51%). Participants unemployed for 24 months or more also have higher rates of leaving early (57%) compared to those unemployed less than 6 months (44%), 6 – 12 months (46%) and 12 – 24 months (52%).

Figure 11: FSS starts reporting a conviction, living in one of the 15% most deprived areas or are unemployed 24 months or more are most likely to leave FSS early

Proportion of Starts on Fair Start Scotland leaving early, April 2018 to December 2022 (Disability is classified as those with a LTHC that limits daily activities while Not Disabled is classified as those with a LTHC that does not limit daily activities or those with no LTHC)

How many FSS starts entered and sustained employment?

Overall, there has been 23,824 job starts in total from the 66,440 FSS starts, including the 6,134 re-joins to the service, since the launch of FSS. Of these job starts, so far 16,664 have sustained employment for at least 3 months (13 weeks), 12,890 at least 6 months (26 weeks), and 8,825 at least 12 months (52 weeks), as of December 2023.

When considering job outcomes, to properly assess how participants have progressed, it is more appropriate to calculate this for cohorts of participants where enough time has passed in pre-employment support and for outcomes to be achieved.

For example, pre-employment support lasts 12 months so for a participant to complete this support and also sustain employment for 12 months, a total of at least 24 months is required from their start date. Calculating 12 month job outcomes for participants where this time has not passed will under estimate outcomes for this measure. The following table summarises time periods and denominators for each outcome type.

Table 1: Outcome type by respective service start time period and number of participants covered in each outcome

Outcome	Time Required to Pass	Time period of starting on service	Participants	Re-joins
Job Starts	12 month support	April 2018 to December 2022	54,046	3,899
3 month job outcome	12 month support + 3 months	April 2018 to September 2022	51,094	3,463
6 month job outcome	12 month support + 6 months	April 2018 to June 2022	48,228	3,017
12 month job outcome	12 month support + 12 months	April 2018 to December 2021	41,850	1,864

For those starts where enough time has passed in pre-employment support and for outcomes to be achieved, job outcomes show 37% (20,121 of 54,046) have entered employment, 27% have sustained employment for 3 months (13,942 out of 51,094), 22% have sustained employment for 6 months (10,763 out of 48,228) and 18% have sustained employment for 12 months (7,362 out of 41,850). 

However, when starts enter employment, there tends to be a high level of sustainment. Of those starts entering employment, 74% sustained employment for 3 months (13,942 out of 18,941 job starts up to September 2022 – 12 months support plus 3 months job outcome). Of the starts sustaining employment for 3 months, 82% went on to continue sustainment to 6 months (10,763 out of 13,116 job starts up to June 2022 – 12 months support plus 6 months job outcome). And of the starts sustaining employment for 6 months, 78% went on to reach at least 12 months employment (7,362 out of 9,384 job starts up to December 2021 – 12 months support plus 12 months job outcome).

Sex

There are no sex differences in job starts (37%) but female participants are more likely to sustain employment with differences increasing over longer sustainment periods. For example, 29% of female starts sustain employment for 3 months compared with 27% of male starts, while 20% of female starts sustain employment for 12 months compared to 16% for male starts.

Age

Younger participants are more likely to enter employment compared to the oldest participants, however, there is little difference in job sustainment at 12 months. The youngest age group (16 to 24) accounts for the lowest proportion of FSS starts but have the highest job starts (42%). For starts in the oldest age group (50 years and over), 33% enter employment. However, at 12 month job sustainment, all age groups have similar levels of sustainment (range: 17-18%).

Long-Term Health Condition and Disability

The extent to which a LTHC limits daily activities is a more important factor in terms of entering and sustaining employment than simply having or not having a LTHC. For FSS starts with no LTHC, 40% entered employment. However, this is higher for those with a LTHC that does not limit daily activities at all (45%). In comparison, for starts with a LTHC that limits daily activities a lot, 25% enter employment. This general trend is also maintained for sustained outcomes, where 13% of starts with a LTHC that limits daily activities a lot sustain employment for 12 months compared with 21% for starts with a LTHC that does not limit daily activities at all. However, the gap between these groups is narrower for longer sustainment periods compared to shorter periods.

Ethnicity

FSS starts from minority ethnic backgrounds have slightly higher job starts and outcome sustainment compared to white participants, with differences ranging between 2-3 percentage points. For example, 40% of starts from a minority ethnic background enter employment compared to 37% of starts who are white, while 19% of starts from a minority ethnic background sustain employment for 12 months compared to 17% of starts who are white.

Convictions

Having a conviction is one of the biggest barriers to entering and sustaining employment for FSS participants. For job starts, 30% of starts reporting a conviction enter employment compared to 38% of starts not reporting a conviction. Only 10% of starts reporting a conviction maintain employment for 12 months compared to 19% for those starts not reporting a conviction.

Benefit Claimants

While most FSS participants reported claiming a benefit (79%), 34% of these starts entered employment compared to 57% of starts not claiming a benefit. While the gap narrows at longer sustainment outcomes, it still remains wide. For example, 15% of starts claiming a benefit sustain employment for 12 months compared to 32% for those not claiming a benefit.

Length of Time Unemployed

Length of time unemployed is an important factor for entering and sustaining employment. Those out of employment for a longer period are less likely to enter and sustain employment. For example, 57% of FSS starts unemployed for less than 6 months entered employment compared to 23% for starts unemployed for 24 months or more. For starts unemployed less than 6 months, 28% sustained employment for 12 months compared to 11% for those starts unemployed for 24 months or more.

Deprivation

FSS starts living in the 85% least deprived areas have higher job starts and outcome sustainment compared to those living in the 15% most deprived areas, with a 3 percentage point difference across all outcome measures. For example, 38% of those living in one of the 85% least deprived areas entered employment compared to 35% for those living in one of the 15% most deprived areas. For 12 month sustained employment, this was 19% and 16%, respectively. 

Urban/Rural

There is almost no difference in outcomes between those living in an urban or rural setting with those observed for all participants.

How many parent starts on FSS entered and sustained employment?

For the 14,490 FSS starts that were parents, job outcomes are only reported where enough time has passed in pre-employment support (12 months) and for outcomes to be achieved, as is the case for all participants. The following table summarises this for each outcome type.

Table 2: Outcome type and respective service start time period and number of parents covered in each outcome

Outcome	Time Required to Pass	Time period of starting on service	Parents Included	Parent Re-joins
Job Starts	12 month support	April 2018 to December 2022	11,255	854
3 month job outcome	12 month support + 3 months	April 2018 to September 2022	10,441	763
6 month job outcome	12 month support + 6 months	April 2018 to June 2022	9,693	662
12 month job outcome	12 month support + 12 months	April 2018 to December 2021	8,052	418

For those parent starts where enough time has passed in pre-employment support and for outcomes to be achieved, job outcomes show 38% (4,247 of 11,255) have entered employment, 28% have sustained employment for 3 months (2,951 out of 10,441), 23% have sustained employment for 6 months (2,253 out of 9,693) and 19% have sustained for 12 months (1,492 out of 8,052). These proportions are comparable to those observed for all participants.

Priority Family Groups

Disabled Parents

The proportion of disabled parents entering employment is the same as disabled participants who are not parents (both 32%) but lower than both parents who are not disabled (41%) and participants who are not a parent nor disabled (42%), highlighting the challenge for participants who are disabled regardless of parental status.

Job sustainment was also consistently lower for disabled parents compared to parents who are not disabled. For example, 15% of disabled parents sustained employment for 12 months compared to 20% for parents who are not disabled.

Lone Parents

The proportion of lone parents entering employment is lower (32%) than for all parents (38%). This is consistent across sustained employment. For example, 16% of lone parents sustained employment for 12 months compared to 19% for all parents.

Mothers under 25

The proportion of mothers under 25 entering employment is lower (35%) than for all parents (38%). This remains the case for sustained employment. For example, 12% of mothers under 25 sustained employment for 12 months compared to 19% for all parents. While job starts are higher for mothers under 25 than disabled and lone parents and 3 month job outcomes are similar, this group note a higher drop-off for longer sustainment periods compared to the other mentioned groups.

Parents with three or more children

The proportion of parents with three or more children entering employment is closer (37%) to all parents (38%) than previously mentioned groups. This remains the case for sustained employment. For example, 18% of parents with three or more children sustained employment for 12 months compared to 19% for all parents.

Youngest child under 12 months

The proportion of parents with a youngest child under 12 months entering employment is the same as parents with three or more children at 36%. Parents with a youngest child under 12 months have lower sustainment rates compared to all parents. For example, 15% of parents with a youngest child under 12 months sustained employment for 12 months compared to 19% for all parents.

Parents from a minority ethnic background

The proportion of parents from a minority ethnic background entering employment is one percentage point higher (39%) than all parents (38%). This generally remains the case for sustained employment except for 12 month sustainment where 18% of parents from a minority ethnic background sustain employment compared to 19% for all parents.

The Scottish Government has identified a number of ‘priority family groups’ at risk of child poverty. Further information can be found here: Tackling child poverty priority families overview (opens in a new window). Please also see supplementary Background and Methodology Report for further details on definitions and data comparisons.