Committee
Social Justice and Social Security Committee 21 March 2024
21 Mar 2024 · S6 · Social Justice and Social Security Committee
Item of business
Extra Costs of Disability
Chirsty McFadyen
Watch on SPTV
I will conclude by saying that data on spending from the living costs and food survey shows that disabled households in Scotland spend slightly more in essential categories such as health and energy but less on transport. However, we have seen from the diaries that disabled households could be rationing essential spending due to financial difficulty. The LCFS data is far from perfect. Small sample sizes are a problem at the Scotland level, particularly when we start to look at severe disability in urban versus rural households. We have put some more information on sample sizes in the appendices. Importantly, the spending data does not capture what households need but cannot afford. The diary entries show that the six participants’ incomes are not providing consistent adequate levels of income for additional costs associated with having a disability or health condition. Although the diaries do not represent all disabled households in Scotland, other studies have shown similar findings on a wider scale. For example, in 2023, Scope looked at the difference in material deprivation levels between disabled and non-disabled households and found that disabled people’s incomes, including disability benefits, provided a lower standard of living when compared to those of non-disabled households on the same income across the UK. The impacts of the cost of living crisis and deepening levels of poverty among disabled people have been evidenced in various pieces of qualitative and quantitative research. In particular, people with disabilities in the UK have been affected by rising energy and food prices and are more vulnerable to increases in those essential costs, as they make up a higher proportion of their budgets than they do for non-disabled people. Recent qualitative research commissioned by the Trussell Trust found near consensus that disability payment levels were too low to cover the extra costs associated with physical and mental health conditions. For some of the participants in the diary exercise, the lack of support from the social care system, including personal assistance, was a recurring challenge. Therefore, there are wider implications for social care support that meets the needs of people with a disability or health condition in Scotland. Getting the right social care support in place could reduce the additional costs that disabled people face. Some of the interviews also highlight the importance of having the right housing that better meets people’s needs, which is also a crucial issue. Going forward, policy makers will need to think carefully about how to measure the additional costs of disability and the adequacy of benefits and other public services, to ensure an evidence-driven approach. We do not believe that there is an existing source of quantitative data that can provide robust enough evidence on the additional costs of disability in Scotland. Even if that was the case, the personal nature of disabilities means that costs are likely to differ markedly between different people. An effective, evidence-based policy to meet additional costs of disability will need to recognise that point rather than assume a one-size-fits-all approach. We are happy to take questions.
In the same item of business
The Convener
SNP
Our next agenda item is a presentation on the additional costs of disability in Scotland. The committee commissioned a piece of research on the topic in Marc...
Chirsty McFadyen (University of Strathclyde)
Thank you very much for having us. I will start and then pass over to Laura Robertson to talk about some of our work. For context, I should say that I have ...
Dr Laura Robertson (The Poverty Alliance)
I will give the committee a bit of context about the diaries. As Chirsty McFadyen mentioned, the diaries looked specifically at needs that were not being met...
Chirsty McFadyen
I will talk a bit more about how we have broken down the data. First, on additional spending for those with more severe disabilities, we see similar results ...
Dr Robertson
I will talk the committee through two of the case studies from participants. I will touch on some of the consequences for their day-to-day lives while they s...
Chirsty McFadyen
I will conclude by saying that data on spending from the living costs and food survey shows that disabled households in Scotland spend slightly more in essen...
The Convener
SNP
I apologise, because I introduced you as Christy when your name is actually Chirsty. My humble apologies to you, Chirsty. The research that you have given ...
Chirsty McFadyen
One of the main things that I spoke about is the point that, if we want an evidence-driven policy approach, we need more evidence. Some surveys in Scotland, ...
The Convener
SNP
Dr Robertson, would you like to comment on that?
Dr Robertson
We already referenced other qualitative research from the Glasgow Disability Alliance. Inclusion Scotland also published research last year on the impacts of...
The Convener
SNP
That is helpful. I will open questions up to committee members.
Marie McNair
SNP
Thanks for your time this morning. In your conclusion, you have recommended that careful consideration be given to “how to measure additional costs of disab...
Chirsty McFadyen
Yes, definitely. We have done some work on learning disabilities at the Fraser of Allander Institute, and some of the work that we have done on data has been...
Marie McNair
SNP
That would be great. Thank you.
Jeremy Balfour
Con
It is helpful to read this report in the light of the other report that the Fraser of Allander Institute did recently on disability and employment. The repor...
Chirsty McFadyen
That comes back to the commitment to evidence-based policy making. We have done a short-term study, but more work could be done to understand the issue bette...
Dr Robertson
From the Poverty Alliance’s perspective, outside this research that we have been doing, we would call for an increase in incomes for people with a disability...
Jeremy Balfour
Con
I suppose that that is the issue that I am trying to work out, Dr Robertson. Personally, I probably fall into income group 5, but if you increase adult disab...
Dr Robertson
Yes. The example that was discussed in the previous evidence session was the Scottish child payment and the learning from that. That is a passported benefit ...
John Mason
SNP
I was struck by figure 1 on page 4 of our briefing, which showed that transport costs, in particular, were quite starkly different, which follows on from Jer...
Chirsty McFadyen
I think that it is a combination of things. The first thing that stands out to me is that we have UK-level evidence that disabled people travel less than non...
John Mason
SNP
So, the message is that we need a much more in-depth and bigger survey. I think that we are all agreed on that. Who should do that? Is it best for the Govern...
Jeremy Balfour
Con
The Fraser of Allander Institute. Laughter.
Chirsty McFadyen
It is difficult to say. What I always come back to is that, as long as something is well resourced, that is what is important. If a survey is well designed a...
John Mason
SNP
You said that there is a split between whether people’s activities are affected a lot or a little. Is that too basic? Do we need to go into a lot more detail...
Chirsty McFadyen
Based on the data that we have, we should not be splitting things any further, because it is already very difficult to understand. Jeremy Balfour mentioned s...
John Mason
SNP
Did you want to come in, Dr Robertson? Most of my questions were aimed at Ms McFadyen.
Dr Robertson
No. Chirsty is the expert on the questions that you asked.
The Convener
SNP
Chirsty, I believe that Jeremy Balfour was offering up your services again for further research. I now invite Bob Doris to come in.
Bob Doris
SNP
Thank you, convener, and thank you, Mr Balfour, for the namecheck. In the earlier session, I suggested an imaginary extra £10 million. It has doubled in the ...