Social Security Experience Panels - Seldom Heard research programme: wave 2 report

Background and methodology

Background

The Scottish Government is responsible for some of the benefits previously delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions. As part of the work to prepare for this change, the Scottish Government set up the Social Security Experience Panels. Panel members are people from across Scotland who have experience of at least one of the benefits coming to Scotland. Over 2,400 people registered as Experience Panels members when it launched in 2017.

Scottish Government researchers work with panel members to bring the voices of those with lived experience into the design of the social security system in Scotland. However, there are groups of people with lived experience that are less likely to be represented on the panels. The “Seldom Heard Voices” research programme was set up to address this gap. It ensures that groups who need to be treated with particular sensitivity and those who are marginalised or dispersed, also have a voice in designing Scotland’s social security services.

There are four strands identified as “Seldom Heard” in this research programme. They are: Mobile Populations; Vulnerable Groups; End of Life; and Carers and Care Experienced. For each strand, two waves of fieldwork were undertaken^[1]. Additionally, fieldwork with a fifth strand, Survivors of Abuse, was undertaken in the second wave of fieldwork. The fieldwork was commissioned by the Scottish Government to the research companies and organisations shown in Table 1. The analysis was carried out by Scottish Government researchers.

The findings of the first wave of the ‘Seldom Heard Voices’ research programme and the findings of the two waves of the Mobile Populations strand have already been published. The publications can be found on the Experience Panels publication website.

This is the report of the findings for the second wave of the Vulnerable Groups; End of Life; Carers and Care Experienced; and Survivors of Abuse strands. This report also includes in Annex B suggestions provided by the research companies concerning engagement and recruitment with the seldom heard groups they worked with.

Methodology

The main aim of this research programme was to engage with Seldom Heard groups to better understand their experiences and views of benefits. Data were collected using qualitative interviews and an online survey with the Carers and Care experienced strand. There were a total of 67 interview participants and 24 survey respondents.

All the data collection was compliant with Social Research Association Ethical Guidelines, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). To ensure the research was ethically comprehensive, the following key mechanisms were applied: voluntary participation, informed consent, confidentiality and anonymity. Personal and sensitive data of participants was safeguarded and concealed. The data transferred to Scottish Government researchers for analysis were fully anonymised.

The research explored the experiences and views of participants about the following themes:

• Getting information about benefits
• Applying for benefits
• Interacting with government agencies, support and advocacy organisations
• Views on the future of the social security system in Scotland

Most participants were recruited through several stakeholder organisations. This

targeted recruitment mainly included engagement with advocacy and support organisations that work around the needs of these specific groups. Hence,

caution should be taken when interpreting the findings as they are not representative of all the population of these groups Seldom Heard groups. Those who do not access or are not linked to support organisations may have different experiences.

Interviews

All contractors used semi-structured interviews as the research method to elicit data.^[3] Most fieldwork was conducted by phone or video call between October 2020 and December 2021.^[4] A total of 67 interview participants took part in the research (see Table 2). A full breakdown of the number of participants by seldom heard groups is shown in Annex C. A gift voucher was offered to each interview participant as a thank you for taking part.^[5]

Quotations from the interviews are used to illustrate the findings discussed in the report. Edits to improve readability were made as appropriate. Those who took part in an interview are referred to as interview participants or participants throughout the report.

Online survey with Carers and Care Experienced groups

As part of the fieldwork with the carers and care experienced strand, an online survey ran between March and April of 2021. A total of 24 respondents completed the survey. Most of the respondents were single parents (58 per cent) and kinship/foster carers and adoptive parents (42 per cent). See Table 3 for more details.

Results shown in the report exclude any respondents who were either filtered out of

the question or who left the response blank. Results presented in tables are intended to show proportions between different answer options. The number of

respondents answering a question is shown in the title of the table as (n).

Quotations are taken from comments left by respondents in open-text questions.

Minor edits to spelling and grammar were made as appropriate. We refer to those who completed the survey as respondents or survey respondents throughout the report.

Demographics

Information provided by interview participants and survey respondents was collated to present their demographic characteristics. The following demographic information is included to give context to the findings of this report. A full breakdown is provided in Annex D.

Most participants and respondents were based on Glasgow (26 per cent). Participants and respondents were also based on Fife (14 per cent), Edinburgh (10 per cent), North Lanarkshire (8 per cent) and Aberdeenshire (6 per cent). The majority were white (74 per cent). Over half (56 per cent) said they had a disability, long-term condition or infirmity.

More women than men took part in this research: slightly over two-thirds (67 per cent) were female. The majority were aged between 25 and 54 years old (79 per cent). Over half (53 per cent) cared for an adult or child with long term health condition, or an adult who needs support due to old age.

About the report

The report covers a wide range of themes explored during the second wave of fieldwork with Vulnerable Groups; End of Life; Carers and Care Experienced; and Survivors of Abuse strands. It is divided into three thematic chapters.

The first chapter includes the general experiences of seldom heard groups focusing on the various communication channels participants and respondents used for information and application processes, the support they had with navigating the benefit system and the impact of the pandemic on accessing it. The final section of this chapter includes the views of some participants of the benefits being devolved to Scotland.

The second chapter explores the main barriers and challenges participants and respondents faced when accessing the benefit system. Those include the difficulties they find with accessing information, their views of and experiences with the application forms, the challenges they faced when accessing benefits online and the barriers they experienced with collating information and evidence for their applications. This chapter also includes their negative experiences with health assessments, their views of the benefit system and the challenges they experienced with waiting times and benefit changes.

The third chapter explores the enablers and views on improvement participants and respondents have of the benefit system. Those include the need for various channels of communication, streamlined information and empathetic benefit staff. The chapter also gathers views on waiting times, simplification of processes, and assessments and renewals. It also includes views on providing a flexible benefit system and wider support. Finally, the third chapter gather positive experiences with third sector support.

A fourth chapter summarises in a chart the barriers and suggested improvements with key actions The Scottish Government and Social Security Scotland will undertake (or has already undertaken) to address them.

Finally, Annex B shows suggestions and insights provided by the research companies related with engagement and recruitment with the seldom heard groups they worked with. Annex E provides main challenges and views of improvement for specific groups of participants: prisoners, survivors of abuse, and bereaved people.

The data analysed in the report presents a range of views from seldom heard groups who participated in the research. Most data used in the report is qualitative and as such, findings are not always quantified; however, they provide a sense of how many people have highlighted key themes emerged from analysis of the interviews.