³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

The National Care Home Contract is negotiated annually between Scotland Excel, COSLA (Convention of Scottish Local Authorities), Scottish Care and CCPS (Coalition of Care and Support Providers in Scotland). The Scottish Government is not a contractual party to this agreement.

Decisions on future local government finance settlements will be the subject of negotiations with COSLA on behalf of all 32 local authorities and announced as part of the outcome of future Scottish Budgets and/or Spending Reviews.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The SPS awarded the pre-construction services contract for the HMP Highland project to Balfour Beatty in September 2021.

The SPS are working with Balfour Beatty to further develop the design of HMP Highland, prior to the award of a stage two contract that will deliver the construction element of the project.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the current number of specialist teaching staff vacancies. The results of the most recent teacher vacancy survey, undertaken in September 2019, are available here:

The number of teachers by subject is shown in Table 3.

The 2016 to 2019 vacancy surveys were jointly administered by the Scottish Government and COSLA. The surveys were suspended in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic. Vacancies are now advertised on “myjobscotland” which allows for easier continual monitoring by local authorities in line with their responsibilities for teacher employment.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02365 on 3 September 2021. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02365 on 3 September 2021. Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) is the Scottish Government's approach to supporting children and young people. One of the core components of this is a named person who is a clear point of contact for children, young people and parents to go to for initial support and advice. The named person can also help to connect families to relevant services offered by the NHS, local authorities and third sector or community groups.

Another core component of GIRFEC is a single, shared approach to planning for children and young people’s wellbeing where support across services is needed. A personalised child’s plan will be available when a child needs a range of extra support planned, delivered and co-ordinated. The child's plan is managed by a 'lead professional': someone with the right skills and experience to make sure the plan is managed properly. Depending on the situation and the child's needs, the lead professional may also be their named person.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02365 on 3 September 2021. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The information requested is not held centrally. However, the Scottish Government is committed to developing and implementing a national specification for neurodevelopmental services which outlines service standards that all Boards should follow, to ensure access to this support is effective and consistent across Scotland. The national specification for neurodevelopmental services will be published shortly and will provide a basis to enhance evidence and data collection in relation to neurodevelopmental assessments and pathways for children and young people.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

‘ Tender evaluation for the pre-construction services award (PCSA) element of the HMP Highland project is underway and SPS anticipates the initial contract award will be made during September 2021.’

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

‘An initial ‘Expression of Interest’ stage was undertaken by SPS for the HMP Highland project with four expressions of interest received. Following evaluation and a high standard of response, all four contractors were invited to tender and four bids were received in June 2021.

Tender evaluation is underway and SPS anticipates the initial contract award will be made in September 2021.’

The Scottish Government jointly chairs the Teacher Workforce Planning Advisory Group. This group assesses the required level of initial teacher education places using information from a range of sources. One such source is the teacher workforce planning model which projects future demand for student teachers based on factors including the age profile of the teaching workforce, rates of wastage and returners, and projected pupil numbers. These projections operate at the school sector level rather than individual subject level. Information on the Teacher Workforce Planning Advisory Group and the workforce planning model is available on the Scottish Government website at: