Scottish Parliament – Feb. 5, 2025 – 2

S6M-16330.3: As an amendment to motion S6M-16330 in the name of Jenny Gilruth (Addressing Child Poverty Through Education), leave out from ", which is" to end and insert ";

commends Scotland’s teachers and schools for their work;

notes that the poverty-related attainment gap has not improved in P1 and is the widest it has ever been at Higher level;

further notes that the Scottish Government’s failure to plan for the school workforce has meant that teachers are often overworked and children are unsupported;

expresses its disappointment at what it sees as the Scottish National Party’s broken promise of rolling out free school meals to all P6 and P7 pupils;

believes that education should set young people on the path to opportunities for their future and can help lift people out of poverty;

understands that 'Scotland’s colleges play a particularly important role in supporting learners from more deprived communities to access learning', as described by Audit Scotland, but that the 'financial health of the sector has deteriorated since 2021-22';

welcomes that 100,000 people in Scotland have already received a pay rise thanks to the UK Labour administration’s New Deal for Working People;

acknowledges recent analysis by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation on the extent of child poverty in Scotland, which observed deficiencies in the key data used to calculate poverty rates and found that 'we will need to go further to reach the 2030-31 targets', and calls on the Scottish Government to work with the UK Department for Work and Pensions to ensure that accurate data is available for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and other organisations to accurately assess the extent of child poverty in Scotland and the impact of policy interventions on it."

Original motion(S6M-16330): That the Parliament notes the critical contribution made by education in eradicating child poverty, which is a national mission and the single greatest priority for the Scottish Government;

notes recent analysis by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which highlights that Scotland will see a reduction in child poverty levels in the years ahead due to Scotland-specific policies, such as the Scottish Child Payment;

further notes that the Scottish Government has committed to making further progress, and agrees that there is a collective responsibility for every local authority, and educational organisation and body in Scotland, to work together with the Scottish Government to address child poverty;

commends Scotland’s teachers and schools for their work to close the poverty-related attainment gap, and recognises that progress has been made, and that this programme will require more funding certainty over the longer term;

welcomes the further investment in tackling child poverty through education in the draft Scottish Budget for 2025-26, including within schools through the expansion of free school meals, the uprating of the school clothing grant, continued funding for the Scottish Attainment Challenge and investment in Bright Start Breakfasts, as well as the around £1 billion investment in funded early learning and childcare and the £3.5 million investment in new skills pathways for colleges, and agrees that all MSPs across the Parliament have a responsibility to promote the interests of children and young people and to work together to share ideas and innovation to address child poverty through education.