Meeting of the Parliament 23 November 2023
I thank Pam Duncan-Glancy for the spotlight that her bill has shone on transitions to adulthood for disabled people and for setting out her personal experience in her contribution today. I also pay tribute to those who have worked with her on developing the bill.
I express my appreciation to the convener, Sue Webber, and all the members of the Education, Children and Young People Committee for their thorough consideration of the bill and for their comprehensive report.
Like everyone here, I whole-heartedly share Pam Duncan-Glancy’s ambitions to improve the experiences of and outcomes for disabled young people as they make the transition to young adult life. Becoming an adult is an extremely important time in any young person’s life. It can be exciting, but it can also be daunting. It can be a time of hope, but it can also be a time of uncertainty.
There are already examples of good practice across Scotland. For example, the committee heard about the benefits of transitions co-ordinators, the experiences that young people are having at Buchanan high school, which the committee visited, and the work of the Association for Real Change Scottish Transitions Forum and the Enable Works stepping up programme, which are both funded by the Scottish Government.
However, we absolutely recognise that, at the moment, too many disabled young people are not getting the support that they need. I have followed closely the stage 1 evidence on the bill and have heard young people, their families and practitioners share experiences that fall well short of what they need and have the right to expect.
The Scottish Government is deeply committed to improving transitions for disabled young people, so that they can all have a positive and supported experience. We recognise the challenges that were raised in the committee’s evidence in relation to disabled young people’s experiences of their transition to adulthood, and we are resolutely determined to do more.
We have already given non-statutory effect to two of the bill’s main provisions. That has been done through the joint ministerial leadership for transitions by me and the Minister for Equalities, Migration and Refugees, and through the commitment to introduce Scotland’s first national transitions to adulthood strategy.
In response to Pam Duncan-Glancy’s question, I am pleased to confirm that we will aim to publish the strategy by the end of next year. That is an integral part of our work to improve transitions for disabled young people. On 28 September 2023, we published our statement of intent on the strategy. That sets out the proposed scope of, and vision and priorities for, the strategy, which are based on what we have heard through research and stakeholder engagement to date. Accompanying the published statement of intent is an online survey that will be open until the end of November 2023. The survey provides a vital opportunity for us to hear directly from more people with lived experience, and we are keen to capture the widest possible feedback.