Bringing Hope, Building Futures: Tackling child poverty delivery plan 2026-2031 – annex 2: Analysis of consultation and engagement

5. Holistic and whole family support

The third theme considered in the call for evidence was “Delivering holistic and whole family support to improve outcomes and wellbeing and enable families to better engage with other services that directly increase their incomes”. This includes action focused on preventing families from falling into poverty and wider community-based support. This chapter presents an analysis of comments made on this theme across the call for evidence questions, focusing on Question 3, Question 4, and Question 5, i.e. what is working well, what could be done differently or what new approaches could be considered.

Overall, respondents supported the inclusion of this theme and emphasised a range of factors they perceived as contributing to this issue. This includes physical health, mental health, wellbeing, barriers to support, and peer support and mentoring. Respondents emphasised the need for whole family support and holistic service provision to support people out of poverty, and to prevent child poverty in the first place.

Question 3. What is working well and what actions should Scottish Government and partners either continue to do or to do more of?

Question 4. Are there policies, actions or approaches that the Scottish Government and/or partners should either stop or do differently?

Question 5. Are there new policies, actions or approaches that Scottish Government should consider implementing?

Physical health, mental health and wellbeing

The most frequently mentioned theme in relation to holistic and whole family support was the need to consider health and wellbeing. This was mentioned by several respondents at Question 6, some respondents at Question 2, Question 4 and Question 5, and a few respondents at other questions. Comments relating to mental health were most common.

The importance of health and wellbeing in relation to child poverty was emphasised by some respondents. Points raised included the value of improving family wellbeing, the need for physical and mental health to be included in the delivery plan, and the provision of wraparound and coordinated support, such as healthcare alongside housing and education. For example, there was a call for wellbeing hubs that incorporate mental health support alongside other poverty-related support, such as housing and employability, and another suggestion to use healthcare settings, such as GP clinics, to signpost people to other support services. The interaction between health and employment - another strategic theme in helping people out of poverty - was also mentioned, as poor physical and mental health can negatively impact people’s ability to work.

Some respondents highlighted how poverty can lead to stress, trauma, anxiety, and social isolation, leading to poor mental health. One source detailed that poverty in young people can also lead to them feeling sad, lonely, hopeless, and facing self-esteem challenges (see Chapter 8). It was noted that people in poverty have higher rates of mental health conditions and suicide. These respondents called for improved provision of accessible mental health support for those in poverty to improve parent and carer mental health, and support child mental health, including the need to improve access to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS).

A range of suggestions was made on how mental health provision could be incorporated into the plan. One respondent suggested that the impacts of mental health be a strategic theme, another proposed that it could be a cross-cutting strategic theme, while a further respondent suggested that it be explicitly mentioned in Theme 3 (Delivering holistic and whole family support). A few expressed concerns about a lack of data and research available to support targeted mental health interventions, or that clearly demonstrates a link between poor mental health and child poverty. Suggestions to take a trauma-informed approach to tackling child poverty were also made, such as using trauma-informed support in employment services and the need to tackle intergenerational trauma.

The interaction between physical health challenges and reducing poverty and child poverty was described by some respondents. Some of the challenges which respondents felt needed to be addressed to improve physical health included: investing in and improving access to and the quality of healthcare; increasing access to nutritious food, including mentions of free school meals (see Chapter 6); increasing children’s physical activity levels; improving health in pregnancy; and reducing substance misuse. As with mental health, it was stressed that addressing physical health challenges was linked to other themes, including social security, employment, education, transport, housing and childcare.

Other singular comments included:

• Examples of programmes and initiatives aiming to address health in relation to poverty, which were found to have positive impacts. For example, the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults which respondents felt had supported beneficiaries.
• A call to expand funds to support families to attend healthcare appointments.
• That legislation specifies that the delivery plan must set out measures in relation to physical and mental health. This respondent recommended that the plan sets out how measures to reduce child poverty link to improvements in health inequalities for children and parents.

Whole family support

Delivering holistic and whole family support was commented on by some respondents at Question 1, Question 3 and Question 6, and a few at Question 4 and Question 5. The following analysis specifically addresses the provision of support to the whole family, while the next section in this chapter presents comments about holistic, coordinated service provision to reduce child poverty.

These respondents made positive comments about providing support to the whole family. This included that a whole family approach, rather than a focus solely on children and young people, could: help to break cycles of poverty; support families from falling deeper into poverty; enable families to access the right support when they need it; take an intergenerational approach; enable better connection with support services; and improve family outcomes and wellbeing.

Some respondents highlighted the importance of providing practical, financial and emotional support to families. The need for sustained long-term funding and resourcing to deliver this was raised, as was the value of community-based local support, collaborative and partnership approaches, and taking an evidence-led approach. More about these approaches is detailed in Chapter 7.

Examples of whole family approaches that were felt to have worked well were highlighted by some respondents, with comments also being made on existing and upcoming work being undertaken in this area. Some respondents specifically mentioned the Whole Family Wellbeing Funding (WFWF) programme, which included positive comments on its use and benefits, along with calls to continue it. A few respondents cited The Promise, noting that a whole family approach is a key part of keeping The Promise.

A range of other singular comments included:

• Highlighting the importance of families trusting services.
• A call for this strategic theme to consider the early years (see Chapter 6).
• A call to increase whole family support services.
• The view that whole family support works better in bigger towns and cities, as support delivery can be more challenging in areas that are geographically widespread, with small populations, and fewer resources.
• That this theme overlaps with Theme 4 (Supporting children and young people) in its whole family support approach, as well as Theme 2 (Cost of living and income maximisation) relating to school supports.
• Individually tailoring support along with whole family services within community and education settings, to align with the GIRFEC approach.

Holistic support

It was suggested that whole family approaches should encompass support across a range of areas. Some respondents emphasised the need for person-centred, accessible, wrap-around, flexible, and holistic support for families. It was wanted for this support to address multiple, complex, and interacting factors that contribute to and are caused by poverty, including employment, housing, childcare, cost of living, social security, and physical and mental health (see Chapter 2). A few respondents cited the Holistic whole family support route map and the national principles for whole family support delivery as a good framework for wraparound family support.

A frequent suggestion was for service integration that enables a range of services to be provided in one place. For example, centralised hubs with multiple forms of support in one location, or that connect people in poverty to other appropriate forms of support. A few respondents advocated for including holistic support in the strategic themes, noting it is essential for a proactive, preventative and long-term approach to tackling child poverty, as opposed to a solely crisis, reactive response. To support such a holistic approach, a small number of respondents suggested the need for community-based support, increased and more long-term funding, increased understanding of child poverty factors, co-designing services with service users, and adopting a partnership approach, all of which are detailed further in Chapter 7. One respondent suggested taking a relational approach.

Attendees at one engagement event called for more joined-up, multidisciplinary services to enable a whole family approach. There were also multiple calls for a clear definition of what a whole family approach would involve, which would be agreed and adopted across services. One respondent suggested that whole family approaches could be a statutory obligation placed on public services but noted it would have to be adequately resourced.

Barriers

Barriers to child poverty reduction, including systemic and structural barriers to support service provision and access, were mentioned by some respondents. A range of singular comments highlighted challenges with accessing service provision. This included that support is fragmented, negative experiences leading to people not reaching out for help, stigma (see Chapter 7), long waiting lists, geographical variation in the availability of support services, lack of awareness of support, bureaucratic delays, accessibility barriers (e.g. language, health literacy), inconsistent service provision, overwhelmed services, and crisis rather than preventative responses. Respondents repeatedly called for funding and preventative approaches to help overcome these barriers (see Chapter 7). Barriers relating to specific priority family groups are detailed in Chapter 10.

Peer support and mentoring

A few respondents at multiple questions, along with attendees at engagement events, cited the value of peer support or mentoring. Respondents highlighted existing interventions that use a mentor or peer support approach to assist families, particularly young people, as they believed these had a positive impact in helping people move out of poverty. Long-term, consistent engagement that fosters trust was highlighted as crucial for adopting this approach, while the use of mentors with lived experience of poverty was also thought to help build trust. Mentoring or peer support interventions were noted to include the building of confidence and life skills, and supporting people into education or employment, particularly for young people.

Other approaches

A few singular comments included:

• Build parents’ confidence in positively supporting their children. This respondent requested that this be included as a theme within the delivery plan.
• Early identification of holistic support needs within schools, to promote empowerment and decrease marginalisation.
• Direct support for children through tangible items given to children, rather than parents/carers, such as clothing, food and educational materials. This was noted specifically for families in poverty with no recourse to public funds.
• Increasing understanding of and sensitivity around the lived experiences of families living in poverty. This could be through collaboration and communication with advisory agencies that work with people living in poverty, as well as training for professionals such as those in healthcare settings.
• The importance of trusted adults within services accessed by children and young people was also emphasised.