Social Security Scotland - Advertising spend: FOI release

Information requested

Request for information 1:

Please can you disclose how much has been spent on advertising in the time periods;

• Between February 2025 and February 2026
• Between February 2024 and January 2025

Response

Request for information 1:

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance Social Security Scotland does not have some of the information you have requested. This is because our advertising expenditure is recorded on a financial year basis.

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that Social Security Scotland does not have some of the information you have requested.

We have interpreted “advertising spend” to include all aspects of advertising activity, including research, creative development, audience testing, production, evaluation and media buying.

2024–25 (1 April 2024 – 31 March 2025): £373,000

2025–26 (1 April 2025 – 31 January 2026, year-to-date): £601,000

The Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018 includes a statutory obligation for Scottish Ministers to promote benefit take-up. Communicating effectively about available payments is a key principle of the Scottish Government’s Benefit Take-Up Strategy.

Advertising and wider communications activity are used to increase awareness and understanding of benefits among eligible people, which supports overall benefit take-up. While take-up is influenced by a range of factors, advertising is one of the tools that helps ensure people know what they may be entitled to and how to apply.

Over the past year, advertising has focused on new payments including Pension Age Disability Payment and Pension Age Winter Heating Payment, as well as the promotion of payments which contribute to the Scottish Government’s key priority of tackling child poverty, such as Scottish Child Payment.

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.