Meeting of the Parliament 27 March 2025
I will not just now, if Mr Mason does not mind. He has asked some interesting and important questions about the bill, and I will come back to them.
I have suggested to ministers that they should look at alternative models of funding, such as public trust models, partnerships between the public and private sectors—which I know some ministers are keen to look at in other areas of policy development, including infrastructure funding—and models that are used by Rethink Ireland and Inspire Scotland.
The Parliament often debates and measures outcomes, so, on that basis, let me repeat the evidence that was collected by the Outward Bound Trust across eight countries, including the UK. It found that, for every £1 that is invested in outward bound programmes, there is a return of between £5 and £15 in societal value. For me, that is a very powerful finding that shows that such funding represents an important long-term investment.
I turn to the vital importance of ASN provision. I give huge credit to Pam Duncan-Glancy and several of our outdoor centres for the work that they have done to ensure that young people with special needs are properly catered for, because if the bill does not deliver for them, it will not deliver its intentions. The current provision is better than it has been in the past, but there is still an awful lot of work to do. I will address many of those concerns in my closing speech.
A related point is the infrastructure of some centres, which will be an issue whether or not the bill passes. Broadly speaking, there are enough bed spaces, and we have a brand-new centre in Aberdeenshire, but the sector needs greater demand in order to boost its income.
It has been asserted that it is difficult to define residential outdoor education and to align it with the curriculum. I struggle with that view because—to pick up Martin Whitfield’s point—I cannot think of anything that better aligns with the curriculum for excellence than experiences that demonstrably prove that youngsters become successful learners, confident individuals, effective contributors and responsible citizens as a result.
I respect the opinions of representatives of the teaching unions and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, and I will come back to deal with many of their concerns, as well as those that Mr Greer raised, quite rightly, at the committee during the stage 1 process.
The bill is not about party politics. It is about what is in the best interests of our young people in the post-Covid age when so many indicators tell us that they face more challenges than ever before. I introduced the bill after many years of personal experience of watching and working with young people and teachers in the outdoor environment and after very lengthy examination of the evidence, for which I owe my staff and the bill team so much. I have spent most of my parliamentary career immersed in the world of education. If it is abundantly clear, over a long period of time and on a universal basis, that there is one aspect of the educational experience that returns the best results and outcomes, why on earth would we not make it happen?
I move,
That the Parliament agrees to the general principles of the Schools (Residential Outdoor Education) (Scotland) Bill.