Social security advocacy service standards: consultation

Section 4: Impact Assessments Summary

As we have been assessing options for the policy, we have been gathering impacts and developing the following summary impact assessments on which we are now consulting:

The Equality Impact Assessment (summary at Annex E).

An Equality Impact Assessment involves assessing the impact of a new or revised policies, practices or services against the requirements of the public sector equality duty. The duty requires all Scottish Public Authorities to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations. It covers people in respect of all aspects of equality. It helps to ensure the needs of people are taken into account during the development and implementation of a new policy or service or when a change is made to a current policy or service.

The Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment (summary at Annex F).

The Scottish Government want to make Scotland the best place in the world for a child to grow up. Recognising, respecting and promoting the rights of children and young people is essential to achieving this. We are taking steps to ensure that children experience their rights, as determined by the United Nations Convention on Rights of the Child. A Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment helps ensure that our policies, measures and legislation protect and promote the wellbeing of children and young people.

The Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (summary at Annex G).

A Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment is used to analyse the cost and benefits to businesses and the third sector of any proposed legislation or regulation, with the goal of using evidence to identify the proposal that best achieves policy objectives while minimising cots and burdens as much as possible.

The Islands Screening Assessment (summary at Annex H)

The Islands (Scotland) Act 2018 provides for a new duty on the Scottish Ministers and other relevant public bodies that they must have regard to island communities in exercising their functions and in the development of legislation.