Young Person's Guarantee: children's rights and wellbeing impact assessment (CRWIA)

Stage 2 - Key Questions

1. Which UNCRC Articles are relevant to the policy/measure? List all relevant Articles of the UNCRC and Optional Protocols.

The Young Person’s Guarantee (the Guarantee) recognises all four of the general principles which underpins the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)^[7]: non-discrimination; the best interests of the child; the right to life, survival and development; and the child’s right to have their views given due weight.

The Guarantee is relevant to the following Articles:

Article 2 - Non Discrimination - Children should not be discriminated against in the enjoyment of their rights. No child should be discriminated against because of the situation or status of their parent/carer(s).

• The Guarantee does not discriminate based on background or circumstance, and aims to support services that are accessible to all.
• Through an equality and human rights based approach, our aim is to ensure that young people from all socio-economic backgrounds and geographic locations are able to access the Guarantee.
• Employers will be asked to commit to creating an inclusive and fair workplace as part of the ‘five asks’ when becoming involved in the Guarantee. This will be linked to the organisation’s own diversity and equality policies.

Article 3 - Best interests of the child - Every decision and action taken relating to a child must be in their best interests. Governments must take all appropriate legislative and administrative measures to ensure that children have the protection and care necessary for their wellbeing - and that the institutions, services and facilities responsible for their care and protection conform with established standards.

• The Guarantee will ensure that the best interests of young people are integral to its ambitions by providing opportunities which can advance their access to the social and economic means to progress. Taking a person centred approach to the provision of support is a key aspect of the Guarantee.
• As part of the Guarantee we are providing support for mental health, health and safety, and financial wellbeing.

Article 4 - Protection of rights - Governments should undertake all appropriate legislative, administrative and other measures for the implementation of the rights recognised in the UNCRC. With regard to economic, social and cultural rights, States Parties shall undertake such measures to the maximum extent of the available resources.

• By law, the Scottish Government and public sector partners have a duty under the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2012^[8] to have due regard to:
  • Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other prohibited conduct;
  • Advance equality of opportunity between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not; and,
  • Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.
• We will protect the rights of young people by working collaboratively with a range of delivery partners to provide opportunities to maximise the potential of each young person who is accessing the Guarantee.
• We will have a focus on education and empowering young people to understand their employment rights.
• We have included Fair Work First within our Grant letters to partners who are supporting the delivery of the Guarantee.
• We have completed and published an Equalities Impact Assessment and Equalities Action Plan.

Article 5 - Parental guidance and a child’s evolving capacities - Governments must respect the rights, responsibilities and duties of parents and carers, as well as members of the extended family, to direct and guide the child in the exercise of their rights.

• Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) Regional Groups engage with parents through targeted social media, with some groups engaging with Parent Councils and having parent representation on a working group. DYW is seen as one of the key delivery routes for the Guarantee.

Article 6 - Life, survival and development - Every child has a right to life and to develop to their full potential

• The Guarantee will encourage young people to reach their full potential, promoting happiness and good wellbeing by providing the opportunity, depending on their circumstances, to study, take up an apprenticeship, job or work experience or participate in formal volunteering.

Article 12 - Respect for the views of the child - Every child has a right to express their views and have them given due weight in accordance with their age and maturity. Children should be provided with the opportunity to be heard, either directly or through a representative or appropriate body.

• Young people’s views will be at the heart of the Guarantee. Young people have been involved in the development of the Guarantee we are committed to ensure that they remain integral to the work of the Guarantee, for example through the Young People’s Panel. It is our priority to continue to work closely and meaningfully to seek the views of young people in the further development and implementation of the policy.

Article 18(1,2) - Parental responsibilities and state assistance – Parents, or legal guardians, have the primary responsibility for the upbringing and development of the child, and should always consider what is best for the child. Governments must provide appropriate assistance to parents and carers to help them.

• The Guarantee is aligned with the Parental Employment Support Fund (PESF) and we have invested an additional £2.35 million in the Fund to help support young parents.
• By aligning with the PESF, parents, including young parents, will have access to a range of support.

Article 23 - Children with disabilities - A disabled child has the right to enjoy a full and decent life in conditions which ensure dignity, promote self-reliance and facilitate the child’s active participation in the community. Governments must recognise the right of the disabled child to special care, and ensure the disabled child has effective access to education, training, health care, rehabilitation, preparation for employment, and recreational opportunities.

• We are working closely with the No-One Left Behind Disability Employment team to engage with Disabled People’s Organisations such as Glasgow Disability Alliance, Enable and Inclusion Scotland to gain young people’s input as the Guarantee is inclusive by design and focussed on how it will meet the needs of all young people.
• We have identified specific actions with the Equalities Action Plan.

Article 29 - Goals of education - Education must aim to develop every child’s personality, talents and abilities to their fullest potential. It must encourage the child’s respect for human rights, their origins and identity, for other cultures around the world, and for the natural environment.

• The Guarantee will ensure that every young person has the opportunity to access to a job, education, training or skills training opportunity. The Guarantee seeks to support those in education to progress into further learning, training or employment. It aims to raise education attainment by increasing the number of young people engaged in learning and skills development and increasing the number of young people achieving qualifications.

Article 32 - Child labour - Governments must protect children from economic exploitation, and any work that is likely to be harmful to their health or interfere with their education.

• As the Guarantee is aimed at 16-24 year olds, it will not conflict with this article.
• The Guarantee is aligned to the Fair Work principles with grants including fair work first principles.
• We have published research on precarious work and are working with partners to implement the report’s recommendations.
• We are encouraging delivery partners to consider health and safety matters as part of employability, volunteering, training and employment opportunities.

Children and young people also have a set of rights in the digital world by way of the UNCRC’s General comment No. 25 (2021) on children’s rights in relation to the digital environment^[9]. The Guarantee recognises the following four principles that provide a lens through which the implementation of all other rights under the Convention should be viewed. They serve as a guide for determining the measures needed to guarantee the realisation of children’s rights in relation to the digital environment:

• Non-discrimination - The right to non-discrimination requires that States parties ensure that all children have equal and effective access to the digital environment in ways that are meaningful for them.
• Best interests of the child - States parties should ensure that, in all actions regarding the provision, regulation, design, management and use of the digital environment, the best interests of every child is a primary consideration
• Right to life, survival and development - States parties should take all appropriate measures to protect children from risks to their right to life, survival and development.
• Respect for the views of a child - States parties should promote awareness of, and access to, digital means for children to express their views and offer training and support for children to participate on an equal basis with adults, anonymously where needed, so that they can be effective advocates for their rights, individually and as a group. States should also involve all children, listen to their needs and give due weight to their views.

The Guarantee is working in partnership with local authorities to align employability support with the Connecting Scotland programme^[10], helping young people grasp their potential. Furthermore, the Guarantee will work with and be meaningfully engaged with trusted organisations, such as Young Scot, who represent young people and can inform the outputs of this work, including on digital rights. We are working with equality groups to ensure that the Guarantee’s website is accessible for young people.

2. What impact will the policy/measure will have on children’s rights?

The Guarantee will affect the rights of children and young people as the Scottish Government and public sector partners have a duty under the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2012^[11] to have due regard to:

• Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other prohibited conduct;
• Advance equality of opportunity between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not; and,
• Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

The Scottish Government and certain public bodies also have a legal responsibility to pay due regard to how they can reduce inequalities of outcome caused by socio-economic disadvantage when making strategic decisions.

More broadly, we anticipate that the Guarantee will contribute towards the wider objectives of the Government discussed below. As such, we are currently developing our Evaluation and Measurement framework to allow us to monitor these throughout its delivery.

As part of the Guarantee we are providing additional funding for the continued implementation of the Developing the Young Workforce, the Scottish Government’s internationally recognised youth employment strategy. In order to provide support to young people in school, we have invested in Developing the Young Workforce school coordinators who have been introduced into every secondary school in Scotland. School coordinators will create and implement a structure for employer engagement which reflects the school’s demographic, regional and local Developing the Young Workforce plans and maintain a robust network of partners within the local business community. By paying close attention to local and national employment data and fostering good relationships, school coordinators identify opportunities for collaborative working focused on better outcomes for young people. We are also providing significant funding to create additional opportunities in colleges.

The Programme for Government 2020-2021 sets out the plans for a stronger, more resilient, more sustainable economy, with a focus on creating new, good, green jobs and apprenticeships^[12].

The Guarantee will ensure that the best interests of young people are integral to its ambitions. Providing opportunities for young people can advance their access to the social and economic means to progress their best interests. We will protect the rights of young people by working collaboratively with a range of delivery partners to provide opportunities to maximise the potential of each young person who is accessing the Guarantee. We will ensure that their right to life, survival and development is upheld by providing a range of economic opportunities that will support their development through life.

The Guarantee builds upon our substantial existing investment in education, employability and skills programmes and support that are available to young people by providing additional opportunities and enhancing support. This will contribute towards the following outcomes which relate to children and young people:

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals:

• SDG4: Quality Education
• SDG5: Gender Equality
• SDG8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG10: Reduced Inequalities

National Performance Framework:

• Tackle poverty by providing opportunities which are meaningful and sustainable with quality jobs and fair work for everyone.
• Advancing equality and inclusion whilst working to eliminate discrimination, for example, reducing the pay gap and promoting gender balance.
• Reduce underemployment and improve the skill profile of the population.
• Promote young people being well educated, skilled and able to contribute to society whilst ensuring their views are heard.
• Enable young people to reach their full potential, promoting happiness and good wellbeing.
• Reduce the proportion of employees earning less than the Living Wage.
• Reducing precarious work and encouraging sensible use of zero hour contracts.

Developing the Young Workforce:

• The Scottish Government is committed to supporting all young people to achieve their potential and we have a strong track record of tackling youth unemployment through Developing the Young Workforce (DYW).
• We are committed to continuing to strengthen the partnerships within the education and skills system post Covid-19, in order to sustain and build on our current progress, as we outlined in the Programme for Government 2019.
• We are continuing to build on the success of our Employer-Led DYW programme to support the implementation of the Young Person’s Guarantee.
• £8.2 million has been allocated for the implementation of DYW School Coordinators in every Secondary School in Scotland. Through engagement with partners, the School Coordinator role will aim to create increased opportunities for, and participation in, work-based learning for pupils, particularly the senior phase, and support their access to education, work and training.
• The implementation of DYW School Coordinators will also strengthen collaborative working across delivery partners and de-clutter a complicated economic landscape to match labour market demand to the necessary employability skills required from employers, aligning to the Young Person’s Guarantee.

The Learner Journey Review (15-24):

• We will make it easier for young people to understand their learning and career choices at the earliest stage and provide long-term person-centred support for the young people who need this most.
• Deliver the best value to the learner, wider society and the economy where all learners are on the right route to the right job, through the right course via the right information.
• We will ensure learners in schools, colleges and universities receive a joined-up approach to careers, information, advice and guidance.

The Scotland’s Careers Strategy - Moving Forward:

• We will work in tandem with the strategy, ensuring career education, information, advice and guidance services provided to young people in Scotland help to address future skills demands and deliver inclusive growth.
• As part of their ongoing review, we will consult with Skills Development Scotland (SDS) to consider how best a career advice service could operate from early years right through until a young person enters employment.

There is also work focused on supporting employers to work towards the equality ambitions of the Guarantee. We will consider how delivery of these policies can better support young people through the Guarantee. These include:

• Disability Employment Action Plan
• Economic Recovery Implementation Plan
• Fair Work Action Plan
• Future Skills Action Plan
• Gender Pay Gap Action Plan
• Race Equality Action Plan
• Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan
• The Promise
• The Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan

To summarise, the Guarantee has the potential to have a positive impact on children’s rights as it will help to deliver a fairer and more inclusive Scotland where every young person has the opportunity to succeed. The Guarantee does not discriminate based on background or circumstance, and aims to support services that are accessible to all. Ultimately, the Guarantee complies with UNCRC requirements.

3. Will there be different impacts on different groups of children and young people?

The Guarantee reinforces the 2020-2021 Programme for Government’s commitment to ensure equality of access for all young people^[13]. Through an equality and human rights based approach, our aim is to ensure that young people from all socio-economic backgrounds and geographic locations are able to access the Guarantee. There is no process to sign up for the Guarantee or for young people to be mandated to participate in the Guarantee. The aim is for all young people to be able to access an opportunity to participate in education, training, apprenticeship, formal volunteering or employment and that additional support, based on their need, will be provided for those who require it in order to access, participate, sustain and progress within that opportunity. We will carefully monitor the Guarantee to ensure equity of access for all young people.

The Guarantee will take into consideration how to tackle digital exclusion, which is central to the Programme for Government’s commitment to promoting equality. We are working in partnership with local authorities to align employability support with the Connecting Scotland programme^[14], helping young people grasp their potential. This is especially important as digital capability and connectivity is a vital part to participating with the Guarantee, particularly during time of COVID-19 related restrictions.

The Guarantee will work with third sector partners such as Inspiring Scotland and the Young Person’s Consortium, who deliver the existing Our Future Now^[15] and Discovering Your Potential^[16] programmes, to support young people with additional barriers and ensure they have the opportunity to thrive regardless of their individual circumstances. We have provided an additional funding boost to both programmes which is being used to support around 1,300 vulnerable 16-17 year olds.

Inspiring Scotland (who deliver Our Future Now) received additional funding of £500,702 on top of their core grant of £1.9 million. The Young Person’s Consortium, which includes Barnardo’s, Action for Children, and The Princes Trust, deliver Discovering Your Potential and received an extra £486,000 on top of their core grant of £1m.

The Guarantee’s Activity Plan^[17] highlights a commitment to involving young people in its design and delivery, ensuring those working to implement and deliver the Guarantee are working collaboratively with young people.

Through local partnerships, priority will be given to those most at risk with multiple barriers to help support their engagement, participation and progression. The Guarantee will also support progress towards existing equality commitments, including the Race Equality Framework & Action Plan, Disability Employment Action Plan and Gender Pay Gap Action Plan.

For further information on how we intend to place equalities at the centre of the Guarantee, our Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) and Equality Action Plan sets out a series of key equality activities we intend to complete.

We are working with stakeholders, as part of the Guarantee’s implementation group, to develop a Measurement and Evaluation plan which will underpin our understanding of how the Guarantee is working in practice for young people and the impact it is making. Our commitment to producing a Measurement and Evaluation plan is set out in the Activity Plan.

4. If a negative impact is assessed for any area of rights or any group of children and young people, what options have you considered to modify the proposal, or mitigate the impact?

As the Guarantee is aimed at 16-24 year olds, it is possible that the Guarantee could negatively impact the children of parents who are not eligible to access the opportunities the Guarantee presents i.e. those aged 25 and above. The Scottish Government is mitigating this potential negative impact with various other employability and skills programmes and support such as No One Left Behind^[18] which is open to all ages. Fair Start Scotland^[19], National transitions Training Fund and the Parental Employment Support Fund^[20] is targeted at parents further away from the labour market. All of these programmes are aligned to the Guarantee and also all support the child poverty delivery plan.

As discussed in section 3 above, we are currently developing a Measurement and Evaluation Framework which will allow us to monitor the progress and impact on young people and we are working with partners to examine the ways we can improve data sharing. The measurement and evaluation framework will allow local partners to measure progress and target support (particularly to young intersectional people, young Black people, young people of colour, young disabled people, young women, and minority groups).

5. How will the policy/measure contribute to the wellbeing of children and young people in Scotland?

The Guarantee will support public bodies in Scotland to meet their duties to safeguard, support and promote the wellbeing of children across the country by making an impact across many of the children’s wellbeing indicators^[21]. In particular, the Guarantee will help promote the following: Achieving, Healthy, Respected, Responsible and Included.

Achieving - Being supported and guided in their learning and in the development of their skills, confidence and self-esteem at home, at school and in the community.

• Keeping young people connected in a way they feel valued and productive is at the heart of this Guarantee and will contribute to their sense of achievement.
• The Guarantee will be enduring and sustainable - young people in Scotland will be able to access and sustain valuable opportunities for years to come.
• The Guarantee will support alignment of our education provision and long term economic goals.

Healthy - Having the highest attainable standards of physical and mental health,

access to suitable healthcare, and support in learning to make healthy and safe

choices.

• The opportunity to access fair work that is healthy and promotes the physical and mental wellbeing of young people is a central part of the Guarantee.
• Additional funding has been provided to delivery partners to ensure the young people can access mental wellbeing support.
• As part of the EQIA, we have committed to exploring how employers and delivery partners will be supported to help young people sustain employment, particularly in relation to mental health or trauma related issues.
• We are working with employer groups and trade unions to promote mentally healthy workplaces. Building on a range of local and national services, we want mental health and wellbeing to be meaningfully discussed, promoted and supported, and for stigma and discrimination to be addressed.
• The Guarantee will provide ‘real’, meaningful experience focused on building skills to enhance future employment prospects.

Respected - Having the opportunity, along with carers, to be heard and involved in

decisions which affect them.

• It is important that young people involved in the Guarantee are engaged in decisions in an active and meaningful way.
• Young Scot are establishing a Young Person’s Guarantee Youth Leadership Panel, combining a diverse group of young people from across Scotland to help shape the Guarantee.
• Young people will be at the front and centre of the design, delivery and governance to ensure inclusion is embedded throughout the system. Trusted organisations who represent them will also be meaningfully engaged with to inform the outputs of this work.
• The Young Person’s Journey work stream will be looking to equip young people with the skills to be active participants in the delivery of the Guarantee in their local areas.

Responsible - Having opportunities and encouragement to play active and responsible roles in their schools and communities and, where necessary, having appropriate guidance and supervision and being involved in decisions that affect them.

• Young people are contributing towards of the implementation and governance arrangements for the Guarantee.
• The Guarantee will be led by both employers and young people themselves.

Included - Having help to overcome social, educational, physical and economic

inequalities and being accepted as part of the community in which they live and learn.

• Employers will be asked to commit to creating an inclusive and fair workplace as part of the ‘five asks’ when becoming involved in the Guarantee. This will be linked to the organisation’s own diversity and equality policies.
• Fair Work First including payment of the living wage will be promoted and is included within grant relationships.
• A place-based approach will also be taken to ensure that young people living in rural and island communities can participate.
• Encourage Fair Work practices, including Payment of the Living Wage to help tackle poverty, among employers.

The importance of delivering the Guarantee is crucial considering the immediate and adverse impacts of COVID-19 on young people’s prospects. It is widely acknowledged amongst delivery partners that the impacts of the pandemic will vary across different parts of the economy and there is evidence to suggest that it is exacerbating the inequalities that have existed across the labour market for some time. It has been those on low incomes and insecure contracts which have been more prevalent among young people.

We are working closely with various equality groups such as Glasgow Disability Alliance, Young Scot, Close the Gap, Barnardos, Enable and Intercultural Youth Scotland (IYS) to ensure the Guarantee is inclusive by design and focussed on how it will meet the needs of all young people.

It is important that all young people benefit from the opportunities on offer from a Guarantee which embeds an equality and human rights approach into its delivery.

6. How will the policy/measure give better or further effect to the implementation of the UNCRC in Scotland?

This assessment will inform the Ministerial expectation on Scottish Ministers’ to report to Parliament on children’s rights under the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014^[22]. The Guarantee has considered each of the eight wellbeing indicators and has identified the potential to promote: Achieving, Healthy, Respected, Responsible and Included, thus identifying that the Guarantee complies with the Articles of the UNCRC.

The Guarantee will promote the implementation of the UNCRC by improving children and young people’s rights in Scotland as per the Articles listed at section 1 above. This includes promoting the implementation of the UNCRC through regular consultation with children and young people on how the Guarantee’s implementation will affect them. Young people’s views will be at the heart of the activity plans which sets out clearly, the range of means by which the views of young people will be obtained.

A focus on education and empowering young people to understand their employment rights will ensure that their views are heard and they have the means to act on their views. This information will be obtained through focus groups and collaboration with delivery partners representing young people.

7. What evidence have you used to inform your assessment? What does it tell you?

Although the Guarantee supports young people aged 16-24, for the purposes of the CRWIA, the main affected age group includes those young people aged 16-18 years of age.

According to the latest Monthly Participation Snapshot for 16 and 17 year olds supplied by SDS^[23]:

• 85.4% are participating in education;
• 7.5 % are in participating in employment;
• 2.7% are participating in training or other development;
• 3.1% are unemployed; and
• 1.2% are unconfirmed.

This is the most recent Participation Measure Snapshot data for May 2021. This data allows Local Authorities and other delivery partners to plan the provision of services and support to ensure that resources are being targeted to support young people to ensure that no one is left behind. Local Authorities and SDS have access to local participation measure data for those aged 18, however, this information is only published annually.

The research below presents a challenging picture for young people attempting to enter or re-enter the labour market. Examples of evidence include:

Labour Market Monthly Briefing: June 2021

According to the Labour Market Monthly Briefing and the ONS Labour Force Survey for the period February 2021 to April 2021, the unemployment rate for 16-24 year olds in Scotland was 9.1%, compared with 3.6% for 25-34 year olds and 3.5% for 35-49 year olds.

More robust but less timely data from the ONS Annual Population Survey shows the employment rate of 16-24 year olds has fallen by 6.0 percentage points over the year to Jan 2020 - Dec 2020, the largest fall of any age group. Similarly, the unemployment rate of 16-24 year olds for the same period rose by 5.2 percentage points, the greatest rise of any age group.

Furlough Take-up

Young people have been much more likely to be placed on furlough than other age groups. Latest provisional HMRC Job Retention Scheme statistics for the UK show that as of 30 April 2021, the take-up rate of furlough (percentage of eligible jobs on the scheme) was 25.8% for under 18’s and 15.6% for 18-24 year olds. This compares with 11.7% for all age groups.

HMRC PAYE Employees

The latest HMRC PAYE employee data shows that employees aged under 18 were far more likely to have fallen out of work between February 2020 and May 2021 than any other age group. Employee levels for under 18’s in the UK fell by 28.6% over this period. The second most impacted age group were employees aged 18-24 – falling by 7.4% over the same period.

Although under 18’s and 18-24 year olds together accounted for 13.5% of employees in February 2020, they made up 69.0% of lost employee jobs over the period between February 2020 and May 2021.

Developing the Young Workforce Strategy

In order to provide further support to young people, Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) school coordinators have been introduced in to every secondary school in Scotland. The main role of a school coordinator is to support senior leaders in the school to embed the Developing the Young Workforce Strategy and other employer offers within the curriculum. They will create and implement a structure for employer engagement which reflects the school’s demographic, regional and local DYW plans and maintain a robust network of partners within the local business community. In doing so they support school leadership teams in fulfilling national priorities around employability and enterprise, Career Education Standard and Work Placement Standard. By paying close attention to local and national employment data and fostering good relationships, school coordinators identify opportunities for collaborative working focused on better outcomes for young people.

The Guarantee included the recommendation that our lead skills agency Skills Development Scotland should be asked to consider how best a career advice service could operate from early years right through until a young person enters employment.

Careers Strategy: Moving Forward

Careers Strategy: Moving Forward^[24] was published in February 2020, sets out our vision for a world-class, professionally-led, aligned and flexible system of Career Information, Advice and Guidance (CIAG) services which deliver for every citizen, regardless of where they live in Scotland, their age or circumstance.

The recommendations in Sandy Begbie’s No-One Left Behind: Initial Report sets out our commitment to ensuring that no young person is left behind. On CIAG it states:

• SDS should continue to take forward the implementation plan developed by the group previously.
• SDS should consider how best a career service could operate from early years through until a young person enters employment. This includes looking at the provision of career advice to young people in higher and further education.

Following the recommendation, Skills Development Scotland are leading on a collaborative, system-wide review to bring together the views and experiences of young people, parents, employers, teachers as well as experts from across the system. Recommendations are due to be made by the end of the year.

To fully support young people, the majority of in-school services are delivered face-to-face, with at least one dedicated member of careers staff working in every state secondary school in Scotland. Informed career advice plays a significant part in helping learners to understand the link between the skills they develop across the curriculum and how these are used in the world of work. Earlier careers advice helps young people make important decisions about subjects, pathways, future learning and future job opportunities. The Review will only strengthen the approach and support to young people.

The provision of effective CIAG services is one of many tools which contributes to addressing a range of societal and economic issues, such as youth participation, skills gaps, unemployment and underemployment, inequality of attainment and occupational segregation. With the potential impact of COVID-19 on young people it will become increasingly important that good quality careers advice and guidance can be accessed to help young people in their journeys towards work. There is a strong foundation from which to build with the recent HM Chief Inspector report showing there has been clear improvement in the quality of services delivered by SDS. Significant strengths were evident across all aspects of service delivery and partnership working leading to improved outcomes for young people leaving school.”

Scotland's Labour Market: People, Places, and Regions - Statistics from the Annual Population Survey 2019

The evidence from this survey represents more rich but less timely data from the Annual Population Survey and shows that as a percentage of all employees by age band, young people were least likely to be securely employed, for example on a permanent contract.

Underemployment (where someone wants to work more hours) is also a much bigger issue for younger people, with the underemployment rate of employed 16-24 year olds in 2019 at 16.6% in Scotland compared with 7.1% for the employed 16+ population.

The Guarantee is clear that opportunities provided must encompass Fair Work, and be meaningful, sustainable with zero hour contracts being used sensibly. The Scottish Govenrment has recently published research on young people’s experiences of precarious and flexible work^[25]. We are currently taking forward a number of the report’s recommendations for example:

• Through the school curriculum, where learning about the world of work and employment rights are a key part of career education for young people in their senior phase at school. This was introduced through the DYW Programme;
• Supporting the STUC’s “Union into Schools” programme, which involves union representatives visiting schools to raise awareness and understanding amongst young people about the importance of citizen’s and workers’ rights and the role played by trade unions in the modern workplace; and
• The Young Person’s Guarantee website has been updated to signpost young people who want to change their current contract status out of precarious and flexible work, to guidance which will support them to do this

Sector shutdowns during the coronavirus crisis: which workers are most exposed?

This publication from the Institute of Fiscal Studies evidences that there has been a disproportionate and adverse impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on younger workers in the UK. Employees aged under 25 were about two and a half times more likely to work in a sector that is now shut down as other employees. As such, the Guarantee aims to be enduring and sustainable, and not just a short-term response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The long-term aim is to ensure that young people in Scotland are supported to make that connection to work and access valuable opportunities, such as training and further learning, that support them to gain and sustain employment.

Scotland’s Wellbeing: national outcomes for disabled people

The Guarantee understands the barriers that these young people face. This is why they have actively addressed the fact that fewer disabled young adults felt that they are engaged with and listened to than non-disabled adults as discussed in the above publication. We are working closely with the No-One Left Behind Disability Employment team to engage with Disabled People’s Organisations such as Glasgow Disability Alliance, Enable and Inclusion Scotland to gain young people’s input as the Guarantee is inclusive by design and focussed on how it will meet the needs of all young people.

Scotland's Labour Market: People, Places, and Regions - Statistics from the Annual Population Survey 2019

In 2019, the employment rate for those classed as disabled under the Equality Act 2010 was 49.0%, which was is significantly lower than the employment rate for non-disabled people (81.6%) and an employment rate gap of 32.6 percentage points.

The evidence also shows that in 2019, the disability employment gap across 16-24 year olds was:

• Men - 22.3 percentage points
• Women – 16.1 percentage points
• All – 18.8 percentage points

It is widely acknowledged that disabled people and those with additional support needs often have lower levels of qualifications and poorer employment outcomes than the general population and therefore an inclusive approach that take account of the needs of these groups will be incorporated as part of the implementation process. The Guarantee will uphold and promote the rights of disabled young people to have effective access to education, training, health care, rehabilitation, preparation for employment, and recreational opportunities.

Close The Gap - Disproportionate Disruption and The Gender Penalty

There are a number of structural barriers in place concerning women’s employment and opportunities available to them (including occupational segregation, lack of flexible working, caring responsibilities, discrimination, and increased likelihood of working in insecure employment adversely affected by the outbreak of COVID-19).

The Guarantee aims to support young women in obtaining and sustaining opportunities, and delivery partners will be expected to provide support and opportunities in a way that eliminates unlawful discrimination. Certain policy adaptations, made as a result of the EQIA, will support this aim. For instance, development of the Journey Map^[26] (a key activity of the Guarantee) will incorporate the experiences of young women in order to better understand the barriers they face, including discrimination.

#PowerToTheBump and The life chances of young people in Scotland: an evidence review for the First Minister's Independent Advisor on Poverty and Inequality

These publications evidence that young mothers are significantly more likely to experience workplace discrimination, and are more likely to have fewer qualifications and lower incomes. It also describes how young mothers are significantly more likely to experience pregnancy and maternity discrimination, with six times as many under 25 year olds than average reporting being dismissed from their jobs after they tell their employer they are pregnant.

The Guarantee will support employers to provide flexible working, which will be particularly crucial for young mothers with caring responsibilities and by engaging with young parents and families (and trusted organisations who represent them) when implementing the Guarantee.

Parental Employment Support Fund (PESF)

The Guarantee is aligned with the PESF. To support young parents, we have invested an additional £2.35 million in the PESF for those most at-risk of poverty, to mitigate against any disproportional impacts of COVID-19 on young parents. This fund aims to help unemployed parents and those facing in-work poverty find work, boost skill sets and get advice on money. The fund will also provide support for parents who face barriers to progressing their careers, including help to gain qualifications, improving skills or work experience; money advice, and motivational support.

By aligning with the PESF, parents, including young parents, will have access to a range of support which will contribute towards advancing the rights and wellbeing of children.

Equality Outcomes – LGBT Evidence Review and Sexual Orientation in Scotland 2017 – A Summary of the Evidence Base:

Discrimination faced by transgender people is identified as a significant challenge which can lead to difficulty in gaining and retaining employment. As a result, many transgender people are unemployed, under-employed or self-employed. According to a 2011 survey^[27], employment was identified as being the second top area of concern for the transgender community, with around a third of respondents selecting it as their priority. Difficulty in gaining and retaining employment was considered the most important challenge that transgender people face, with two-thirds of respondents identifying it as the most important challenge.

Available evidence regarding Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI+) people more broadly can be contradictory but there is evidence of increased unemployment rates, and workplace discrimination and harassment. For example, according to the Scottish Survey Core Questions 2015 data, Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Other (LBGO) adults were more likely to be unemployed in 2015 than heterosexual adults^[28]. LBGO adults were also less likely to be employed. Only 53% were in employment compared to 57% of heterosexual adults.

Scottish Surveys Core Questions 2018, A Fairer Scotland for All – Race Equality Action Plan 2017-21, EHRC (2009), The Living Standards Outlook 2021, Women’s Budget Group, Taking Stock – Race Equality in Scotland and Young Women Lead 2019/2020:

The surveys and reports above conclude that minority ethnic groups in Scotland are more likely to live in the most deprived areas and are twice as likely to be unemployed as people from white communities. Moreover, previous economic recessions and the economic impact of COVID-19 has disproportionately affected minority ethnic employment, with minority ethnic women more at risk of job disruption and precarious employment.

Structural racism and discrimination are reported to be a significant barrier to minority ethnic groups when seeking opportunities. For example, 52% of the young women employees surveyed by the Young Women Lead reported that they felt disadvantaged at work due to their ethnic, religious or cultural background.

Advancing equality and inclusion, and working to eliminate discrimination is central to the Guarantee to ensure that no one is left behind. We will work with those delivering the Guarantee to take action that will support particular groups better access a range of opportunities – this includes but is not limited to: young black people, young people of colour, young disabled people, young women, young LGBTI+ people, and young people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The importance of intersectionality across characteristics will also need to be considered.

The Fair Work Convention

The Guarantee commits to work to prevent unlawful discrimination against all young people. For instance, employers will be supported to adopt and embed fair and inclusive workplace practices to eliminate discrimination. Employers will also commit to “creating an inclusive and fair workplace” as part of the ‘five asks’ when becoming involved in the Guarantee. Through the framework for Employer Recruitment Incentives, the Workplace Equality Fund and the Guarantee’s website which will contain access to advice, employers will be supported to adopt and embed fair and inclusive workplace practices (as per the Fair Work Convention) to eliminate discrimination. Access to training for delivery partners will also be promoted. We will work with delivery partners to ensure that financial wellbeing and mental health is included within the training opportunities and support provided.

The Promise

As part of our monitoring and evaluation process, we will capture impacts on care experienced young people to ensure that implementation of the Guarantee can support advancing equality of opportunity. In line with our commitment to The Promise, we will engage with specialist organisations and young people themselves to ensure that the Guarantee can support care experienced young people and address any barriers which may prevent them for access, participating and sustaining their opportunities through the Guarantee.

The Young Person’s Guarantee EQIA and Equality Action Plan

The Scottish Government has completed its Equality Impact Assessment for the Young Person’s Guarantee and has published an Equality Action Plan to sit alongside the Guarantee’s Activity Plan. The Implementation Group which is advising the Scottish Government on the Guarantee has established an Equality sub group to support the delivery of the Equality Action Plan.

The evidence highlights the necessity of the Guarantee to promote the rights and wellbeing of children not only through directly impacting young people accessing the supports available through the Guarantee; but by acting as a means of economic/financial support, it will also support young parents, particularly young mothers, to provide the best opportunities for their children.

We have made a significant commitment to engage with analysts and equality groups to develop a strong evidence base that highlights the barriers groups with protected characteristics (age, disability, sex, pregnancy and maternity, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, minority ethnic, religion/belief) face when accessing opportunities. As such, the evidence gathered in this section has informed that the policy relating to the Guarantee should have advancing equality of opportunity at its core, to not only challenge inequalities faced by those with protected characteristics but to also improve their outcomes through the Guarantee.

8. Have you consulted with relevant stakeholders?

The Guarantee is built on principles of collaboration and as part of its development, consultations have taken place with the Princes Trust, Barnardos, Action for Children, Young Scot, the Poverty and Inequality Commission, Carers Scotland, Enable.

To aid the implementation of the Guarantee, an Implementation Group made up of 28 partners from the public, third, and private sectors has been established. The Group is comprised of organisations such as Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA), Universities Scotland, Colleges Scotland, STUC, Young Scot, IYS and Close the Gap.

The Group meet once per month and meetings are chaired by Sandy Begbie. The Group considers how best to progress the recommendations from Sandy’s initial report^[29] and the operational implications of putting them into action. The Group has supported the development of an Activity Plan which sets out the initial high-level activities which are required to successfully implement the Guarantee.

Other inputs to the Guarantee include:

• Sandy Begbie’s report, ‘Young Person Guarantee - No-one Left Behind: initial report’. This was published on 2 September 2020.
• The Guarantee has a dedicated website^[30] that acts as the first point of contact for all information on the Guarantee. The website brings together information for young people and employers about how to get involved.
• Sandy has met with a range of Scottish and UK Government Ministers and gathered their feedback as part of his work. This includes feedback on the importance the creation of local jobs, opportunities for more remote working, and a combination of policy responses and the alignment of the education system.
• On 5 October 2020, IYS led on a consultation^[31] to obtain the views of on how to ensure that the Guarantee is inclusive of young people young people of colour and from BAME backgrounds. This findings of this consultation have informed Phase 1 of the Activity Plan.
• On 03 October 2020, Young Scot gathered 31 young people to co-design what the Young Person’s Guarantee ‘Journey Map’ should look like.

9. Have you involved children and young people in the development of the policy/measure?

The initial report recommended involving young people in co-designing the Guarantee. The Scottish Government has worked closely with young people and the organisations that represent their views ahead of the implementation of the Guarantee.

In early October, young volunteers from many different backgrounds and experiences took part in the Young Scot Hive #YSHive digital jam session for the Scottish Government^[32]. Young Scot worked in partnership with IYS, Prince’s Trust Scotland, Barnardo’s Scotland, Close the Gap and Enable Works who supported young people to take part. During the session, the young people co-designed the ‘Journey Map’. This map details the steps that can support young people into work, further education, apprenticeships, training and volunteering opportunities. This is helping to ensure the Guarantee is inclusive by design as well as focused on meeting the needs of young people.

To ensure the Guarantee continues to meet the needs of those it is designed to support, Young Scot have established a Young Person’s Guarantee Youth Leadership Panel. This panel is made up of 16-24-year-olds from a wide range of backgrounds. They will be involved conversations, exploration and co-design of the Guarantee. They will collaborate with the Scottish Government, Developing the Young Workforce, Skills Development Scotland and other organisations to explore the governance for the Guarantee to ensure it continues to meet the evolving needs of Scotland’s young people.

Linked to this work, the Scottish Government also commissioned IYS, a prominent organisation working with and representing the views of young people of colour and from BAME backgrounds to write a report that presented the barriers from young people from a minority ethnic background faced in accessing opportunities.

IYS were invited to contribute from their expertise knowledge in implementing the Guarantee. On 5 October 2020, they conducted a consultation session with member of IYS Anti-Racist & Pro-Black Youth Ambassadors, a youth led platform to support young Black and young People of Colour Scots in activism and gaining access to decision making. The consultation was attended by young Black and young People of Colour.

While young people have been involved in the development of the Guarantee we are committed to ensure that they remain integral to the work of the Guarantee. It is our priority to continue to work closely and meaningfully to seek the views of young people in the further development and implementation of the policy. Consideration is being given to including young people in the Governance process as a direct way of involving them.