Scotland's wellbeing economy monitor: July 2025

1. Purpose of the Monitor and this update

The Wellbeing Economy Monitor^[1] (WEM) was developed to establish a comprehensive baseline for tracking progress towards the development of a wellbeing economy in Scotland. This initiative is grounded in the monitoring of a broad range of wellbeing outcomes as outlined in the National Performance Framework (NPF)^[2].

The monitor places an emphasis on areas where the economy and economic policy play a significant role in contributing to these outcomes, including those factors that are likely to influence future wellbeing.

Following the recent statutory review of the National Outcomes, the Scottish Government is in the process of reforming the NPF to support the development of a more strategic framework for Scotland. At this stage, no immediate changes are being made to the NPF and the current 11 National Outcomes remain in effect. As a result, the WEM continues to align with the existing NPF outcomes. Any future updates to the NPF may be reflected in subsequent revisions of the WEM.

The monitor is also designed to complement the indicators that have been selected to measure the success of the National Strategy for Economic Transformation^[3] (NSET). These indicators focus on the critical areas where NSET aims to make substantial and impactful changes. This latest update to the monitor incorporates more recent data, where such data is available, ensuring that the information remains current and relevant.

Changes since the last update

The local wellbeing economy monitor^[4], which is part of the local wellbeing economy toolkit, has been combined with the national wellbeing economy monitor. This gives a unified tool that facilitates the monitoring of the development of a wellbeing economy in Scotland at both national and local levels. By combining these two monitors, stakeholders can gain a more holistic view of progress and identify areas that require further focus or intervention.

This document presents a detailed overview of data as of June 2025, offering insights across key dimensions of wellbeing – including health, education, income and environmental sustainability. It’s purpose is to provide a clear and comprehensive picture of how economic policies and initiatives are influencing the overall wellbeing of the population. By regularly reviewing this data, policymakers, researchers and the public can better assess the effectiveness of current strategies and make informed decisions to improve wellbeing for all.