Scotland’s new Programme for Government sets a positive direction on tackling child poverty, Whole Family Support, and the use of community-based alternatives to secure care and custody. The challenge is now to translate these commitments into the support that children, young people and families need.
The Programme for Government is right to retain tackling child poverty as a defining priority, and the measures already announced – including increasing the Scottish Child Payment to £40 a week for each eligible child under one from 2027-28 – will make a difference. But Scotland can go further. Action must reach families with children of all ages through adequate incomes, reduced costs and Whole Family Support. We know from families that relationship-based support must sit alongside sufficient financial support to respond sustainably to the pressures they are facing.
The commitments to an integrated Whole Family Support programme and greater recognition of Intensive Whole Family Support offer a significant opportunity. Early intervention can mean intensive: some families need sustained, relationship-based support capable of responding to interconnected challenges. When provided at the right time and intensity, Whole Family Support can keep families together where safe and offer decision-makers a credible alternative to secure care and custody.
The commitment to prevention, reduced use of remand and robust community-based alternatives to custody is an important step. The challenge now is ensuring that credible, sufficiently intensive community-based provision is consistently available across Scotland so that courts and decision-makers can use it with confidence. Our experience supporting young people tells us that effective alternatives must address the circumstances surrounding offending – including relationships, family life, housing, poverty, health and access to positive opportunities. Our ambition is that developmentally appropriate, relationship-based support is consistently extended to young people aged 18-25, particularly as they navigate the transition between children’s and adult services.
The focus on understanding the causes of school absence is also important. This work should include greater transparency around flexible learning arrangements and part-time timetables. Our education research found that part-time timetables and flexible learning can benefit some children and young people but can also become informal exclusions when appropriate support is not provided. Future work should include consistent recording, regular review and stronger accountability to ensure these arrangements uphold every child’s right to education, alongside Whole Family Support addressing challenges beyond the education setting.
We welcome the proposed partnership agreement with the third sector and the move towards multi-year funding. Delivering the Programme for Government’s ambitions will require sustainable commissioning, national availability and recognition of the third sector as an essential partner. Families must experience this ambition in practice by receiving the right support, in the right place, for as long as they need it.
We look forward to working constructively with the Scottish Government and partners to turn these commitments into meaningful, lasting change for children, young people and families across Scotland.
Louise Hunter
CEO, includem
