Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) – proposed register changes: consultation analysis

1. Executive Summary

In December 2021, the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) launched their Future Proofing Programme (FPP) which aims to make sure the regulatory system is clear, transparent and raises the standards of practice in the sector. A key part of the programme is to review and build a sustainable 'Register for the Future' which will be easier to understand for all.

On the back of the FPP launch, SSSC also launched a public consultation 'A Register for the Future' which detailed proposals to streamline and improve registration. The consultation ran for 12 weeks from 20 December 2021 until 14 March 2022 and asked for views on the proposed changes to the register. Most respondents agreed with the proposed changes to the SSSC Register.

The proposed changes included:

• Streamlining the register by reducing the number of register parts from 23 to 4;
• Changing the time period from application to registration from 6 months to 3, and;
• Changing the Public Facing Register (PFR) by including more information.

Although the SSSC previously consulted, the Scottish Government launched a public consultation on 4 October 2023 to seek views on the some of the proposals initially outlined in SSSC's wider consultation. The consultation ran until 2 January 2024 in which 69 responses were received. There was also one late submission which was accepted and included within the analysis work. While the majority of responses were positive and in favour of the proposed changes, the consultation also helped identify some important points and areas of concern. These are set out in more detail in this document.

The Scottish Government would like to thank everyone who took the time to provide a written response to the consultation.