No One Left Behind and Fair Start Scotland

This section considers No One Left Behind and FSS together to give an indication of total demand for Scottish Government funded employability support over time. Both are distinct approaches to employability support, varying over time in support offered and groups targeted. It is also possible that people have accessed both No One Left Behind and FSS. It is not recommended to make direct comparisons between No One Left Behind and FSS.

There have been 104,763 starts on either No One Left Behind or FSS between April 2018 and June 2023. In the most recent quarter, April – June 2023, there were 6,412 starts across No One Left Behind and FSS, a 27% decrease on the previous quarter and an 11% decrease on the same quarter in the previous year.

Key differences between these programmes are shown in Table 3 in the Background Information. These are likely to impact the demographics and outcomes of participants.

Figure 1: Starts on employability services in Scotland decreased this quarter

Starts on No One Left Behind and Fair Start Scotland, by Quarter, April 2018 to June 2023