Setting the Table Guidance: Fairer Scotland Duty Assessment

Stage 3 – assessment and improvement

Having considered the data and evidence you have gathered, the assessment and improvement stage is where you look in more detail at improvements to the proposal, plan or decision. It's essential that policy team leaders are involved at this stage to ensure opportunities to develop a better proposal are considered. Analysts should also be involved, as this is key for meeting the 'due regard' test. The outcomes of the assessment and improvement phase, with any options emerging for consideration, should be clearly set out by the appropriate officer(s) in Stage 4.

Through the update to Setting the Table, members of the multi-partner working group routinely reviewed existing advice and considered if external support was needed to update the guidance to the required standard. As a result of this process it was identified that:

• an expert with professional knowledge on allergies and young children was required to revise guidance on, ‘Meeting the needs of all children’. A paediatrician with relevant expertise was subsequently appointed to lead a sub-group of the multi-partner working group to update the guidance in this area.
• a qualified dietician and/or registered nutritionist was required to produce two weeks of nutritionally analysed sample menus and recipes for children aged 1 to 5 years as part of the updated guidance document. A procurement exercise was undertaken and a registered nutritionist was appointed to produce the sample menus and recipes.

Regular assessments from the multi-partner working group allowed improvement opportunities to be identified and implemented within the updated guidance document; ensuring that ELC practitioners can provide all children, including those from low socio-economic backgrounds, continue to have access to healthy and nutritious meals, snacks and drinks as part of their ELC day. Regarding funded ELC, the update to Setting the Table does not include any changes to existing policy. As part of the Scottish Government’s expansion to 1,140 funded hours of ELC, providers of funded ELC are required to deliver a free meal as part of the ELC day (in line with Quality Criteria 10 of the National Standard).

A small package of support has been put in place to meet the needs of the sector in respect of the implementation of the updated guidance. This includes a Scottish Government led webinar addressing key elements of the updated guidance, and offering advice on the questions the sector might have following the publication. As the guidance is already in place across the sector and is only receiving an update, monitoring and review will be proportionate.

The Scottish Government intends to use existing communication channels and established sector governance structures to evaluate the performance of the implementation of the updated guidance document. Funded ELC settings will continue to be responsible for developing independent food policies for the provision of a free healthy and nutritious meal for all eligible children aged 0-5 as part of their ELC day. The Scottish Government is exploring a range of options for sourcing further data and feedback on the provision of a free healthy and nutritious meal as part of the funded ELC day.