National Islands Plan: Fairer Scotland Duty

Specific Measures that Help Address Disadvantage

Cost-of-Living Supports

The Islands Cost Crisis Emergency Fund provides tailored support to tackle the high cost-of-living pressures (e.g., food vouchers, school breakfast supports) that hit low-income and materially deprived households hardest.

Affordable Housing Action

Linked plans (e.g., Rural and Islands Housing Action Plan) aim to increase affordable housing supply in island and rural communities, helping low-income and low-wealth households stay in their communities without being priced out.

Social Security and Take-Up

Targeted actions to reduce barriers to social security take-up recognises that geographic isolation and connectivity challenges can prevent islanders, especially disadvantaged groups, from accessing support they are entitled to.

Child Poverty Actions

The Plan supports local implementation of the Child Poverty (Scotland) Act and local partnerships to reduce poverty’s root causes, with island-specific actions acknowledging in-work poverty and local cost pressures.