Disabled People's Cabinet Forum: report

7. Recommendations and Next Steps

The first Disabled People’s Cabinet Forum was a foundational engagement designed to build relationships, deepen Ministerial understanding of lived experience, and surface systemic issues affecting disabled people across Scotland. It created the conditions for more informed policymaking by enabling Ministers to hear directly from disabled people at an early stage. The insights now provide a clear evidence base to shape future action, support accountability, and guide the next phase of the Disability Equality Plan and the upcoming Executive Team Forum.

Strengthen policy and system development

• Apply Forum insights to current and future work on social care (including the Independent Living Fund), mental health and wellbeing, transport, digital inclusion, and financial security (social security, anti‑poverty initiatives, and employment).
• Embed disability competence and lived‑experience evidence in policy teams through targeted training, internal briefings, and cross‑government learning sessions.
• Accelerate cross‑portfolio collaboration, recognising that systemic challenges cannot be solved within single policy silos.

Strengthen governance and accountability

• Use the Executive Team Forum to test system‑wide implications, agree ownership, and ensure organisational accountability for follow‑through.
• Circulate this report to relevant policy teams and require reflection of the issues raised in their workplans, with clear actions and timelines.
• Position the Forum as a core accountability mechanism, evidencing how Ministerial and senior‑leader engagement translates into visible progress.

Maintain momentum and prepare for future events

• Target further evidence and co‑design where responsibilities are split or practice varies across Scotland, ensuring solutions are developed with DPOs and lived‑experience leaders.
• Strengthen future Forums by applying lessons from this inaugural event—improving accessibility assurance, timing, facilitation planning, and co‑production processes.
• Standardise inclusive design so accessibility and lived‑experience leadership are business‑as‑usual for all significant Scottish Government engagements with disabled people.
• The Forum will reconvene periodically to maintain momentum and oversight, with timing informed by evaluation and engagement with DPOs.