Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018: progress report 2023 to 2024

5. Delivery of Social Security Benefits

The introduction, implementation and ongoing administration of Scottish social security is a priority of the Scottish Government. The following section will provide information about the introduction of new Scottish benefits within the reporting year as well as the ongoing delivery of existing Scottish benefits. Information about the decisions taken for the 2024-25 uprating of benefits is also included within this section.

5.1 Support for Carers

Carer Support Payment

Carer Support Payment is replacing Carer's Allowance in Scotland. Carer Support Payment provides income for unpaid carers in recognition of their role and its impact on their lives and ability to take on paid work. The benefit launched in the pilot areas of Dundee City, Perth and Kinross and Na h-Eileanan Siar (Western Isles) on 20 November 2023.

The process of transferring awards for carers already receiving Carer’s Allowance from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to Carer Support Payment from Social Security Scotland began in February 2024. This is taking place across the country, not just the pilot areas, and is expected to complete in spring 2025. Awards are transferred automatically with no need for carers to apply.

Statistics published on 14 May 2024 show that by 31 March 2024, 685 Carer Support Payment applications had been received and £291,635 had been paid to carers in the initial pilot areas.

Draft Amendment Regulations for Carer Support Payment were referred to the Scottish Commission on Social Security for formal scrutiny in February 2024 and the Commission published their scrutiny report on 22 March 2024. The regulations provide for the phased roll-out of Carer Support Payment to further local authorities across Scotland from June 2024, and for the benefit to be available nationally from November 2024. The regulations also include special ‘backdating’ rules to help ensure carers living in later phases of the roll out can access all of the support they are entitled to.

Carer Support Payment has been developed with carers and support organisations to work for the people that will use it. The benefit is available to many full-time students who are currently unable to get Carer’s Allowance – removing barriers to education and widening access to 1,500 more carers once the benefit is available nationally. Carer Support Payment has also been designed to signpost carers to wider services to help them to access all of the support they are entitled to in social security and beyond.

Carer’s Allowance is the most complex benefit that the Scottish Government have replaced to date in terms of the links that it has with wider support and benefits, including benefits provided by DWP. Our phased roll out approach for Carer Support Payment has been designed to ensure a safe and secure delivery that maintains these links with wider benefits and services so that carers can continue to get all of the support they are entitled to.

Once Carer Support Payment is available nationally and case transfer is complete, we will make further important changes, including providing new extra support for those caring for more than one person, and extended support for carers after the loss of the person they care for. We are continuing to engage with carers, support organisations and others to take feedback on experience of the benefit to inform continuous improvement.

Carer’s Allowance Supplement

Carers make an immense contribution to our society. That is why improving support for carers was one of our first priorities with our new social security powers. Carer's Allowance Supplement was the first payment made by Social Security Scotland and increases Carer's Allowance – the lowest value of all working-age benefits – by over 13% for carers in Scotland.

Eligible carers have received a payment every six months since 2018, which was £288.60 in 2024. Carer’s Allowance Supplement was uprated by 6.7% this year from the 2023 rate of £270.50. Payments are made automatically to carers living in Scotland and receiving either Carer Support Payment from Social Security Scotland, or Carer's Allowance from the DWP on certain qualifying dates, with no need to apply. By the end of 2024, carers continuously in receipt of Carer's Allowance Supplement will have received over £3,800 above the value of Carer's Allowance since its introduction. From launch in 2018 to the 2023-24 eligibility dates, over one million Carer's Allowance Supplement payments totalling £280.5 million had been issued. Statistics published in August 2024 show that expenditure for the 2023-24 period was £47.8 million, compared to £42.8 million in 2022-23.

Following our consultation on Carer Support Payment, which included seeking views on the future of Carer’s Allowance Supplement, we are now considering how to integrate the Supplement with more regular payments of Carer Support Payment once the process of transferring Carer’s Allowance to Carer Support Payment is complete.

Young Carer Grant

The first of its kind in the UK, Young Carer Grant supports young carers in Scotland with a payment of £383.75 which can be applied for annually, to access life opportunities which are the norm for many of their non-caring peers. Young Carer Grant was uprated by 6.7% from the 2023 payment of £359.65. Young Carer Grant is paid to 16 to 18 year olds who meet the eligibility criteria. It is not means-tested, and the young person does not need to be in education to qualify.

Young Carer Grant official statistics show that by the end of March 2024, Social Security Scotland had received 19,095 applications. 12,305 payments had been made with around £4 million invested since the launch of Young Carer Grant in 2019.

Between April 2023 and March 2024, 3,865 payments were issued, with a total value of £1.4 million. Our Young Carer Grant Interim Evaluation published in August 2021, showed that Young Carer Grant had made a positive impact on carers' mental wellbeing, mainly by reducing stress and increasing confidence. It was viewed as broadly positive by applicants, recipients and stakeholders. The issues highlighted in the evaluation have been considered when reviewing benefit promotion activity and the application process. More broadly, the findings are being considered in developing future Young Carer Grant policy and improvements to the Carer Support Payment, which will complement existing and planned interventions to support carers both through social security and at a wider government level.

More details about the Young Carer Grant can be found at Young Carer Grant - mygov.scot.

5.2 Funeral Support Payment

Social Security Scotland began taking applications for the Funeral Support Payment in September 2019. This is a one-off payment for eligible people on a low income, to help towards the costs of a funeral. The payment is made up of three parts comprising: burial or cremation costs (including some document and medical costs); a flat rate payment for other expenses; and some transport costs.

The Scottish Government substantially widened eligibility for Funeral Support Payment compared to the UK Government’s funeral payment when it launched.

This year Social Security Scotland paid out almost £13.3m, supporting 6,670 individual clients. The average Funeral Support Payment award issued in 2023-24 was £1,974.

Social Security Scotland continuously promote Funeral Support Payment across a range of channels and work with funeral directors and stakeholders to increase their awareness of the payment so they can support people who might need help to pay for funeral costs. The payment, and the dedicated Bereavement Service, were promoted during Grief Awareness Week and Baby Loss Awareness Week.

During the winter months Social Security Scotland issued a media release and ran an accompanying digital campaign to help further increase awareness of the payment. Alongside this activity, they also shared refreshed Funeral Support Payment stakeholder resources, including factsheets - which are available in a different community language languages, British Sign Language and Easy Read - posters, leaflets and social media posts with relevant stakeholders as part the campaign to promote take-up.

5.3 Winter Heating Benefits

Winter Heating Payment

In February 2023 we introduced our new Winter Heating Payment, delivering on the Programme for Government commitment (2021-22) to replace the UK Government's Cold Weather Payment in Scotland. Winter Heating Payment provides a stable, reliable payment to those in receipt of certain low income benefits each winter, and by removing the reliance on weather conditions, we can ensure that every person identified as requiring additional support receives it.

Our new benefit targets those households who also have additional need for heat, including those with young children, disabled people, and older people, providing stable, reliable support every winter.

Following feedback from the consultation on Winter Heating Payment (previously known as Low Income Winter Heating Assistance) and user research, we brought forward the payment date from February. Payments started in mid-December 2023, reflecting our commitment to improve payment timing post-launch.

In winter 2023/24 Winter Heating Payment provided almost 418,000 payments to low income households with a value of £55.05, a total investment of £23 million.

In recognition of the pressure on household budgets, Winter Heating Payment was uprated by 10.1% from £50 to £55.05 for winter 2023/24, and by a further 6.7% for winter 2024/25 to £58.75.

Forecasts indicate we will invest £24.4 million this coming winter (2024-25) for Winter Heating Payment, nearly tripling the £8.5 million provided on average by the DWP in each of the last seven years prior to its introduction. For the vast majority of people our payment provides more support than they have received on average previously through the DWP benefit.

Child Winter Heating Payment

Child Winter Heating Payment, formerly named Child Winter Heating Assistance, is paid automatically to families with children and young people up to the age of 19 in receipt of a relevant qualifying benefit to help mitigate the additional heating costs that the households of the most severely disabled children and young people face in the winter months.

The qualifying benefits are the highest rate of the care component of Disability Living Allowance for children, the highest rate of the care component of Child Disability Payment, the enhanced daily living component of Adult Disability Payment or the enhanced daily living component of Personal Independence Payment.

To be eligible, the young person or child must be entitled to a qualifying benefit on any single day during the qualifying week. In 2023, the qualifying week was Monday 18 September to Sunday 24 September.

As of 31 March 2024, 30,400 Child Winter Heating Payments had been made for eligible children or young people in receipt of a qualifying benefit in the qualifying week for winter 2022-23, totalling £7.2 million.

Child Winter Heating Payment is uprated annually and in 2023-24 this was uprated by 10.1% to £235.70. For winter 2024-25 it will be uprated by a further 6.7% to £251.50. Further information on uprating and how we set rates is included within the uprating section of this report.

The Child Winter Heating Assistance: Evaluation Report published in August 2022 will continue to inform future policy developments.

Pension Age Winter Heating Payment

Pension Age Winter Heating Payment was due to be introduced and delivered by Social Security Scotland in winter 2024/2025, replacing the UK Government’s Winter Fuel Payment.

The UK Government announced in July 2024 its decision to move away from a universal Winter Fuel Payment and to restrict entitlement to those in receipt of Pension Credit and other means-tested benefits from this winter. The UK Government’s approach reduces the Block-Grant Adjustment associated with devolution of the UK’s Winter Fuel Payment by an estimated £150 million in 2024-25, over 80% of the cost of the Scottish Government’s new replacement benefit, Pension Age Winter Heating Payment. Following careful consideration of the options available for Scotland, the Scottish Government had to make the difficult decision to replicate this decision in Scotland.

The timing of the UK Government announcement has meant it is not practicable for the Scottish Government to deliver Pension Age Winter Heating Payment in winter 2024/25 through Social Security Scotland. The Department for Work and Pensions will therefore make Pension Age Winter Heating Payments this winter to eligible pensioners in Scotland.

5.4 Five Family Payments

Our five family payments are making a difference for low-income families, both in and out of work, with support of more than £829 million provided by the end of March 2024. The five family payments are Scottish Child Payment, Best Start Foods and the three Best Start Grants.

The policy evaluations published of each of the payments have shown they are having a positive impact on child poverty, preventing respondents from going into debt or having to cut down on other essential household spending, such as for food and bills. The evaluations report that Best Start Grant is easing financial strain on low-income families at key transitional stages for children and that the Scottish Child Payment provides much needed money, including for essentials like food, family day trips, and medical items for families with disabled children.

The evaluation of Best Start Foods showed it helps guarantee that people can afford essential foods even when money is tight and has freed up money for other costs such as household bills.

The Scottish Government is currently undertaking a further evaluation of the other five family payments, which will be published in Summer 2025. We continue to promote each of the five family payments across a range of online and offline channels, including working in partnership with stakeholders and local communities. All activity is based on robust insight and evaluated appropriately, including feedback from stakeholders and clients, to make sure key messages and the channels utilised reach and resonate with families, encouraging them to check eligibility and apply. This includes television digital and print advertising.

Looking ahead, we intend to use new Childhood Assistance powers, subject to Parliamentary approval, to modify the legislative footing on which Scottish Child Payment is based. This will allow the Scottish Government to make regulations for Scottish Child Payment as a standalone payment, in line with other forms of assistance delivered by Social Security Scotland. Whilst we envisage Scottish Child Payment eligibility maintaining a close link to reserved benefits, this new approach will allow us additional flexibility. This flexibility will offer scope to improve the alignment of the five family payments.

Scottish Child Payment

Scottish Child Payment is central to the Scottish Government's mission to eradicate child poverty as set out in our tackling child poverty delivery plans, and has been hailed as a "game-changer" by anti-poverty stakeholders. Introduced as part of the first child poverty delivery plan, the payment was the first form of assistance to be introduced as a top up to an existing reserved benefit.

Scottish Child Payment was uprated from £25 to £26.70 per week from April 2024, in line with inflation. The payment could keep 60,000 children out of relative poverty in 2024-25, reducing child poverty levels by six percentage points, according to the most recent Scottish Government modelling published in February 2024.

Around 5 million individual payments have been made since the launch of Scottish Child Payment with a total value of £678 million by 31 March 2024. Around 329,000 children were receiving Scottish Child Payment as of the end of March 2024, with £429 million issued to clients between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024. In 2023-24 the Scottish Fiscal Commission assumed a take-up rate of 92% for under 6s and 80% for children 6 and over.

Best Start Grant

We continue to deliver Best Start Grant, providing financial support to eligible parents and carers at three key transition points in their children's early years:

• The Pregnancy and Baby Payment helps with expenses associated with pregnancy or with having a new child.
• The Early Learning Payment helps with the costs of early learning around the time a child might start nursery.
• The School Age Payment helps with the costs of preparing for school.

Between launching on 10 December 2018 and 31 March 2024, Best Start Grant has provided over £98 million to those families who need it most. As reported in the Best Start Grant and Foods statistics for 2023-24 there were 64,000 Best Start Grant payments made in Scotland. This provided £22.5 million of support to families in Scotland.

To make it easier for people to access the support they are entitled to, we now award Best Start Grant Early Learning Payment and School Age Payment automatically to eligible families who receive Scottish Child Payment, without the need to apply. As a result, over 51,000 payments were made to families between 28 November 2022 and 31 March 2024 without the need for them to apply. The latest estimates of take-up rates of Scottish benefits indicate the significant impact of automation with take-up of School Age Payment having risen from 77% in 2021-22 to 97% in 2022-23.

Best Start Foods

While Best Start Foods is not under the 2018 Act, it is delivered by Social Security Scotland alongside the other five family payments.

Best Start Foods aims to tackle the impacts of child poverty by improving access to healthy foods and milk for eligible families on a low income. Between launching on 12 August 2019 and 31 March 2024, more than 174,000 applications had been authorised for Best Start Foods. In total, over £53 million has been provided to eligible families.

As reported in the Best Start Grant and Foods statistics, in the 2023-24 financial year over 43,000 people were paid Best Start Foods. In total, £12.6 million in vital support was paid out.

We have widened eligibility for Best Start Foods by removing the income thresholds for all qualifying benefits from February 2024, supporting thousands more pregnant people and children. This aligns eligibility more closely with Best Start Grant and Scottish Child Payment, meaning more people will be eligible for all of our five family payments.

5.5 Disability Benefits

Child Disability Payment

Child Disability Payment, a payment designed to help mitigate the additional costs of caring for a disabled or terminally ill child or young person, was fully rolled out across Scotland in November 2021.

Child Disability Payment replaced Disability Living Allowance for children in Scotland which was previously delivered by the DWP. We have now completed transferring all Disability Living Allowance for Children awards of children and young people in Scotland to Child Disability Payment.

From the date Child Disability Payment was launched until 31 March 2024, the total value of payments issued was over £621 million. As of 31 March 2024, 80,915 children and young people were receiving Child Disability Payment.

Legislation was passed in 2023 to further improve the journey from Child Disability Payment to Adult Disability Payment. The main change, was to enable payment cycles to be maintained, meaning that young people will receive their Adult Disability Payment on the same day that their Child Disability Payment was previously paid. This reduces the risk of gaps in payment or overpayments. Such payment protections are not available for people moving between Child Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment, the UK Government equivalent benefits.

These changes more closely aligned age criteria rules for all Child Disability Payment recipients. Following the successful transfer of the Disability Living Allowance awards of over 47,000 children and young people to Child Disability Payment, those nearing 19 have had the time they needed to apply for Adult Disability Payment.

As described in the Evaluation Strategy for devolved disability benefits (2021), a series of evaluations, drawing on the experiences of individuals, staff and stakeholders, are planned to help us identify next steps. We have undertaken work to evaluate the Child Disability Payment to Adult Disability Payment journey, and this was published last month.

Adult Disability Payment

Social Security Scotland began taking applications for Adult Disability Payment in 2022.

Adult Disability Payment is a payment made to those aged 16 to state pension age to help with the additional costs of being disabled or having a long-term health condition. Eligibility is based on the impact that an individual's symptoms have on their daily life, rather than relating to any particular disability or health condition. We ensure that accessing Adult Disability Payment is as straightforward as possible and we always start from a position of trust.

In 2023-24, the total value of Adult Disability Payments issued was £879 million. Of this, £486 million was to new applicants and £393 million was to people who had their award transferred from the DWP.

Edel Harris OBE has been appointed by Scottish Ministers to Chair the Independent Review of Adult Disability Payment, and is being informed by an advisory group that she has appointed. The Review will report in July 2025.

We have taken a compassionate and human rights based approach to all disability assistance. We are helping to provide long-term financial security through the introduction of indefinite awards for severely disabled clients whose needs are highly unlikely to change. Our fast-track process for people with a terminal illness relies on the judgement of clinicians rather than a fixed period of life expectancy.

We updated guidance for applicants and clients, as well as application forms, to ensure people know what documents (supporting information) to provide with their application, and to provide this information early on in their application process.

We have progressed work to improve the understanding of clients and professionals regarding supporting information for disability assistance. We seek one piece of supporting information from a professional, if possible. Requesting relevant supporting information from professionals on an applicant’s behalf, may extend the time it takes us to process applications. We have therefore encouraged applicants to provide relevant supporting information if they have it, avoiding the need for us to contact professionals and helping speed up processing. We have done this through a number of channels including media, social media, engagement with third sector organisations supporting applicants, and face to face advice.

We have also taken steps to make it faster and easier for GPs and other professionals to provide supporting information. This includes:

• working with NHS boards to develop and highlight more efficient processes for their staff to use when providing supporting information.
• using a range of channels including media, social media and GP newsletters to reach GPs and other professionals to ensure they are aware of the importance of providing supporting information as well as the easiest way to do so.

Our work with GPs has improved how quickly they respond to our requests, contributing to lower processing times overall.

People are able to apply for disability assistance in the way that best suits them: either online, by post, over the phone or face-to-face. Of applications received in 2023-24, 67% were made online, 21% were made via phone and 12% were made through a paper form.

Pension Age Disability Payment

Pension Age Disability Payment is a payment designed to provide assistance to help

mitigate additional care costs incurred by disabled people over State Pension age. It is awarded to .help with extra costs if a person has a disability severe enough that they need someone to help look after them.

Pension Age Disability Payment will replace Attendance Allowance for people over the state pension age in Scotland, and we will make a number of changes that will provide disabled people with a different experience when accessing the support they are entitled to.

Social Security Scotland will offer a multi-channel approach including online, telephone, paper-based and face-to-face applications.

Individuals will be able to request a third party representative with ease to support them early on in their engagement with Social Security Scotland.

Taking a human rights-based approach, Social Security Scotland’s person-centred decision making process ensures everyone is treated with dignity, fairness and respect.

Supporting information from a professional may be sought where it is needed to support the decision-making process. We will continue to support clients by gathering supporting information, where it is required, if an individual does not have this to hand.

Legislation to introduce Pension Age Disability Payment was passed in June 2024, and the pilot is due to start in October 2024.

Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance

We announced Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance in March 2024. This new benefit will replace Disability Living Allowance for adults in Scotland and will only be available to adults with a Disability Living Allowance award that transfers to Social Security Scotland from the Department for Work and Pensions. This includes two groups:

• People who were born on or before 8 April 1948 and received a commitment from the DWP on the introduction of Personal Independence Payment in 2013, that they could continue to receive Disability Living Allowance for as long as they were eligible to do so.
• People who were born after 8 April 1948 who have not yet had their Disability Living Allowance award transitioned to Personal Independence Payment or Adult Disability Payment.

Once in receipt of Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance, people born after 8 April 1948 will be able to apply for Adult Disability Payment if they wish but will not be required to do so. We believe people should be able to make an informed choice as to whether Adult Disability Payment is best for them.

To facilitate a safe and secure transfer, Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance eligibility criteria will largely mirror that of Disability Living Allowance for adults, except where there are clear differences in the Scottish system, for example our more generous terminal illness rules.

We expect to introduce Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance and begin case transfer in Spring 2025.

Case Transfer

As of 30 April 2024, we have safely and securely transferred the disability benefit awards of more than 207,000 people from the Department for Work and Pensions to Social Security Scotland, amounting to over £870 million in payments since October 2021. Our priority is to ensure the safe and secure transfer of disability and carer benefit awards for more than 700,000 people living in Scotland.

The case transfer process from Disability Living Allowance for Children to Child Disability Payment for eligible children and young people in Scotland has been completed, with over 47,000 awards transferred in total. Disability Living Allowance for adults and Personal Independence Payment case transfer to Adult Disability Payment began 29 August 2022 and has so far been completed for over 159,000 eligible adults in Scotland.

As of the 31 March 2024, over £390 million was paid to those who had transferred to Child Disability Payment. Since Adult Disability Payment launched in March 2022 until 30 April 2024, £482.7 million was paid to people who had their award transferred from the Department for Work and Pensions.

We remain on track to complete case transfer for all relevant disability and carer benefits by the end of 2025.

5.6 Social Security (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill

The Social Security (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill, introduced to Parliament on 31 October 2023, will make the Scottish social security system more efficient and effective, contributing to our mission to tackle poverty and protect people from harm. The Bill will enhance the Scottish system of social security in line with the social security principles, set out on the face of the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 and voted for unanimously by the Scottish Parliament.

The principles particularly relevant to the Bill are:

• ‘opportunities are to be sought to continuously improve the Scottish social security system in ways which put the needs of those who require assistance first’, and
• ‘the Scottish social security system is to be efficient and deliver value for money’.

The Bill will improve the experience of people using Scotland’s social security system and ensure that it continues to deliver value for money. In particular, it will introduce new rights for people, save money by increasing efficiency, improve the scrutiny of social security and take powers to improve existing benefits. It will also enable the Scottish Government to: deliver a payment for people with care experience, as part of keeping ‘The Promise’ and; recover relevant forms of Scottish assistance from awards of compensation in situations where people have received payments as a result of third party negligence.

The Bill represents an essential collective investment in a system from which we may all need help, expected in time to generate savings of around £3.5 million each year.

The Bill passed Stage 1 following Parliament’s unanimous agreement to the general principles of the Bill and the associated financial resolution. Contributors to the Stage 1 debate emphasised the importance of working together to make improvements to the social security system. The two new forms of assistance created by the Bill – Childhood Assistance and Care Experience Assistance – were welcomed by all parties.

5.7 Up-rating of social security benefits

Scottish Ministers are legally required, under the terms of sections 86A and 86B of the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018, to consider the impact of inflation when deciding the level at which certain forms of Scottish assistance are to be up-rated at the start of each financial year.

The Scottish Government’s current policy position is to use the annual rate of September Consumer Prices Index (CPI) as the measure of inflation to up-rate devolved social security assistance, but can use a different rate when appropriate. In January 2024, the Scottish Government published a multi-criteria decision analysis considering various approaches to measure inflation, concluding that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) remains the most accurate measure of inflation available for up-rating.

In April 2023, in recognition of the challenging economic conditions that the people in Scotland continued to face, Scottish Ministers decided to up-rate all devolved social security assistance by 10.1%, including those payments where annual up-rating is not a legal requirement.

Similarly, following publication of a report on the impact of inflation in fulfilment of section 86A, outlining the Scottish Government’s approach to up-rating for 2024-25, fourteen devolved benefits were increased by 6.7% - the September 2023 CPI - at a cost of around £370 million in April 2024.

5.8 Information Sharing Regulations to Safeguard Vulnerable Clients

The primary focus of Social Security Scotland is to ensure people receive the assistance they are entitled to. In carrying out that role, Social Security Scotland engage with some of the most vulnerable people in Scotland which may lead to instances where it becomes apparent that a person may be at risk of harm.

The Social Security Information-sharing (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2024 came into force on 16 January 2024 following a public consultation which concluded in June 2022 which provided almost unanimous support for Social Security Scotland to introduce measures to protect vulnerable clients by enabling Social Security Scotland to make suspected risk of harm referrals to local authorities and the Office of the Public Guardian. This is in addition to any cases where an immediate threat or endangerment to life is identified, which are treated differently and are reported immediately to Police Scotland.

These regulations created a specific legal gateway to allow Social Security Scotland to make referrals to the relevant local authority, in respect of suspected risks of physical, mental, emotional harm or concerns of financial abuse. Local authority health and social care services have the powers to assess risks and co-ordinate multi agency approaches which involve NHS services, police, schools and Scottish courts to ensure people are properly supported. The regulations additionally allowed concerns of financial or property abuse, where a person has a Power of Attorney, Legal Guardian or appropriate order, to be referred to the Office of the Public Guardian in order that the matter can be investigated.

5.9 Appointees

The Social Security Administration and Tribunal Membership (Scotland) Act 2020 made amendments to the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018, setting out circumstances in which Scottish Ministers may appoint a person to act on behalf of children; adults regarded as lacking capacity to manage their own benefits; and the deceased. These appointments apply to all forms of assistance and top-ups paid under the 2018 Act.

Work continues towards the commencement of the remaining appointee provisions in the 2020 Act, which are being implemented as a prioritised programme of change. The Scottish Government is managing these changes collectively, and in consultation with Social Security Scotland, the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service, and external stakeholders.

5.10 Fraud and Error

As Social Security Scotland continues to evolve and is delivering more benefits than ever before, we remain focused on developing our ability to actively manage the risks we face. As some of the benefits we have delivered involve the transfer of data from the Department for Work and Pensions, we continue to build a picture of inherited fraud and error risk. We are also focused on further development of our debt management strategy and fraud and error controls of existing benefits.