Documentation regarding Fostering a Positive, Inclusive and Safe School Environment guidance: FOI release

Information requested

You asked for the following information regarding the Fostering a Positive, Inclusive and Safe School Environment guidance published on 17 June 2025:

1. Copies of any research, evidence reviews, or impact assessments used to inform the content of the guidance.

2. Internal briefings or correspondence discussing the robustness or limitations of the evidence base.

Response

1. Copies of any research, evidence reviews, or impact assessments used to inform the content of the guidance.

Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to you. I enclose a copy of some of the information you requested.

Some of the information you have requested for feedback is otherwise publicly available. Links are provided below. Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the websites listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

• Behaviour in Scottish schools: research report 2023 - gov.scot
• Relationships and behaviour in schools: national action plan 2024 to 2027 - gov.scot
• NASUWT’s Behaviour in Schools Survey, September 2023
• EIS Violence & Aggression Branch Survey Report, November 2023
• Head Teacher Taskforce on Exclusion minutes: June 2023 - gov.scot
• Relationships and Behaviour Summit - Approaches to relationships and behaviour in schools: 25 October 2023 - gov.scot
• Relationships and Behaviour Summit 3: November 2023
• Children, classrooms and challenging behaviour: do the rights of the many outweigh the rights of the few, Queen’s University, Belfast

I have attached additional documents that informed the development of the guidance at Annex B. This includes:

• Slides delivered by ASPEP to the Consequences Subgroup on 19 January (enclosure 1). Some information within the slides is exempt under section 38(1)(b) and section 30(c) of FOISA. Further information is provided at Annex A.
• NASUWT Briefing on Restorative Conversations, 7 April 2025 (enclosure 2).
• Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland (AHDS) Conference, November 2024 (enclosure 3).

Please note that the responses in the NASUWT Briefing on Restorative Conversations (enclosure 2) and from the Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland (AHDS) Conference (enclosure 3) reflect individual views and experiences rather than formal evidence. While these contributions may not always be supported by evidence, they have value in highlighting perceived challenges and themes. Where respondents raised broader concerns or recurring issues, these have informed ongoing policy development and our engagement with local authorities, who are responsible for the delivery of education.

The Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) and Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (CRWIA), are currently being finalised and are due to be published within 12 weeks of the date of your request. This information is therefore exempt from release under section 27(1) of FOISA, as it is intended for future publication. The reasons why this exemption applies are explained in the Annex to this letter.

2. Internal briefings or correspondence discussing the robustness or limitations of the evidence base.

In relation to the second part of your request, while our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. We do not hold any internal briefings or correspondence discussing the robustness or limitations of the evidence base for the guidance. The reasons why we do not hold this information are explained in Annex A to this letter. No such documents were created or held during the development of the guidance. As such, I hereby provide you with formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.

FOI 202500471338 - Information Released - Annex A

File type

PDF

File size

96.3 kB

FOI 202500471338 - Information Released - Annex B

File type

PDF

File size

2.3 MB