Evaluation of the Adaptation Scotland Programme

Conclusions and recommendations

Evidence across the contribution claims suggests the Programme has made substantial progress towards some of its intended outcomes. The strongest and most consistent evidence relate to the following short- and medium-term outcomes as set out in the Theory of Change:

• Building networks
• Increasing knowledge and confidence
• Improving access to relevant adaptation tools and resources
• Facilitating greater collaboration across sectors and regions.

The evaluation found more limited evidence further along the causal pathway in terms of the Programme’s contribution to:

• Effective adaptation action
• The views of vulnerable groups being acted upon
• Increased awareness of, and engagement with, adaptation policy, to bring a wider range of perspectives into policy development.

Recommendations for the delivery of the Programme in the current contract period are to:

• Capture and disseminate Programme learning to inform key design and delivery principles (e.g. through workshops involving programme management staff, Board members and key delivery partners).
• Develop messaging around the Programme’s offer to groups not currently engaged or under-engaged (e.g. more targeted ‘getting started’ resources, short video formats).
• Strengthen support for organisations already moving from planning to implementation (e.g. engaging organisations at a more mature stage in adaptation to co-produce guidance, develop case studies to support other organisations reaching this stage).
• Target senior decision makers to help overcome barriers to implementation within organisations (e.g. engaging leaders already championing adaptation to explore opportunities and barriers, piloting targeted engagement with senior leaders across key sectors, and develop leadership-focused briefing materials).

Recommendations for the future design and delivery of the Programme beyond 2027 are to:

• Support progression from adaptation awareness to implementation by developing differentiated support pathways according to adaptation maturity (from introductory support through to adaptation action).
• Sharpen the strategic focus around Scotland’s adaptation priorities by considering a smaller number of strategic priorities linked to SNAP3 outcomes, clarifying priority audiences and focus resources on areas where national coordination and capacity building are least likely to emerge without intervention.
• Strengthen and scale support for place-based adaptation and cross-sector collaboration by developing shared national learning and exploring scalable approaches for engaging communities, businesses and national public bodies within regional structures.
• Strengthen the Programme’s role as national adaptation convenor and capacity building service, through enhancing the role of the Board in co-design, broadening opportunities for external stakeholders to inform strategic priorities and expanding engagement with senior leaders.
• Increase focus on helping to shape adaptation policy, by strengthening mechanisms for bringing in regional and community perspectives, providing clearer feedback loops to show stakeholder input informs policy and decision-making, and develop stronger links between delivery activities and national policy development (e.g. through networks, training and events).
• Shift focus from activity- and output-focused to outcomes-focused monitoring, capturing key measures such as organisational progress over time, capacity, confidence, network engagement, adaptation action and contribution to policy development.