Seafood strategy: child rights and wellbeing impact assessment

Child Rights and Wellbeing Screening Sheet for the Strategy for Seafood

1. Brief Summary

Name the policy, and describe its overall aims. Which National Outcomes does this policy/measure contribute to?

The Strategy for Seafood affirms the importance of the seafood sector and sets out how we are supporting industry to contribute to achieving our blue economy aspirations. The outcomes, which are adapted from those in the Blue Economy Vision, cover economic, environment and social dimensions and hence link to almost all of the National Performance Outcomes (see diagram on page 4 of the Strategy).

2. What aspects of the policy/measure will affect children and young people up to the age of 18?

The Articles of the UNCRC and the child wellbeing indicators under the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 apply to all children and young people up to the age of 18, including non-citizen and undocumented children and young people.

The strategy covers the whole of the seafood supply chain across Scotland, from catching and production to consumption. In 2019 (the most recent figures available), there were an estimated 14,092 people directly employed in the seafood sector, many in remote coastal and island communities.

The sector is important for particular parts of the population, which includes children or their members of their family.

• The work-force of the seafood industries and local communities who rely on them.
• The general public (in Scotland, the UK and more widely) who are consumers of seafood products caught and processed in Scotland.
• The general public of Scotland, especially coastal communities and users of the coast, in the UK and more widely who are affected by climate change, and will benefit from measures to improve the environmental sustainability of the seafood industry and related environmental improvements.

3. What likely impact – direct or indirect – will the policy/measure have on children and young people?

'Direct' impact refers to policies/measures where children and young people are directly affected by the proposed changes, e.g. in early years, education, child protection or looked after children (children in care).

'Indirect' impact refers to policies/measures that are not directly aimed at children but will have an impact on them. Examples include: welfare reforms, parental leave, housing supply, or local transport schemes.

The strategy sets out how we are supporting industry to contribute to achieving our Blue Economy aspirations by drawing together and bringing cohesion to the wide range of ongoing and planned Scottish Government activities intended to provide support in this area, and for which the relevant impact assessments have been completed as required. The Strategy also makes some high level recommendations that are intended as prompts for future exploration. We cannot therefore determine the impact of any future activities at this stage. However, our intention is for these recommendations to be reviewed with the sector and any specific options identified for implementation – we will consider fully at that stage the potential impacts on the various groups affected, including children and young people, and prepare any further assessments required.

4. Which groups of children and young people will be affected?

Under the UNCRC, 'children' can refer to: individual children, groups of children, or children in general. Some groups of children will relate to the groups with protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010: disability, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation. 'Groups' can also refer to children by age band or setting, or those who are eligible for special protection or assistance: e.g. preschool children, children in hospital, children in rural areas, looked after children, young people who offend, victims of abuse or exploitation, child migrants, or children living in poverty.

See Question 3 - we cannot determine the likely impact at this stage.

5. Is a Children's Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment required?

Please state if a CRWIA will be carried out or not. Please explain your reasons.

We did not deem it proportionate to carry out a CRWIA at this point as the strategy recommendations would need to be reviewed and refined before it would be possible to determine their specific impacts. At that point we would consider whether a full CRWIA might be required.

6. Sign & Date

Policy Lead Signature & Date of Sign Off: Vikki Halliday

22/09/22

Deputy Director Signature & Date of Sign Off: Malcolm Pentland

5/10/22