4.0 LINGUISTIC ACCESS AND THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT
The Scottish Government, elected in May 2007, set out its operating purpose, i.e. to focus the Scottish Government and public services on creating a more successful country, with opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable economic growth. To achieve this it highlighted five national objectives it wishes to achieve in order to create a better Scotland and these priorities apply to all the people of Scotland. To deliver on these priorities the Government is taking steps to ensure that all parts of Scotland's varied communities can benefit. Creating a Scotland where everybody can benefit from the work being taking forward, therefore, means that deaf people are able to access fairly and benefit fully from all the activities of Government. This may be when using health and other public services or by maximising their potential to contribute to all aspects of life in a modern successful Scotland.
The Disability Discrimination Act and the duties on the Scottish Government (see appendix 6) underpin much of the activity around linguistic access, as does the work of the Equality and Human Rights Commission. The Disability Discrimination Act offers a useful lever for policy change which affects the lives of deaf people including, Deaf BSL users. This link with disability does not disregard the view of Deaf BSL users who wish to be dealt with as a minority language group, but presents them with opportunities to positively influence policy and decision makers.
As the roadmap was being produced new working arrangements were being put in place between central and local government. The Concordat signed in November 2007 agreed on a new relationship between central and local government with substantial changes in the funding arrangements which have implications for a number of areas of linguistic access. The Working Group will need to consider how best to relate to the new structure.
Ministers have set out the following overarching purpose and five strategic objectives for Scottish Government:
Purpose
To focus Scottish Government and public services on creating a more successful country, with opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable economic growth.
Strategic Objectives
1) Wealthier and Fairer - Enable businesses and people to increase their wealth and more people to share fairly in that wealth.
2) Healthier - Help people to sustain and improve their health, especially in disadvantaged communities, ensuring better, local and faster access to health care.
3) Safer and Stronger - Help local communities to flourish, becoming stronger, safer place to live, offering improved opportunities and a better quality of life.
4) Smarter - Expand opportunities for Scots to succeed from nurture through to life long learning ensuring higher and more widely shared achievements.
5) Greener - Improve Scotland's natural and built environment and the sustainable use and enjoyment of it.
The Scottish Government has produced a national performance framework with a set of national outcomes which apply to all of the people of Scotland - for the full set see the Government Economic Strategy 13/11/2007 www.scotland.gov.uk/publications
Whilst all the outcomes apply to deaf people as citizens of Scotland there are some which are particularly relevant.
Below are the specific National Outcomes that relate to Equality work
- We have tackled the significant inequalities in Scottish society.
- We live our lives safe from crime, disorder and danger.
- We have strong, resilient and supportive communities where people take responsibility for their own actions and how they affect others.
- We have improved the life chances for children, young people and families at risk.
- Our young people are successful learners, confident individuals, effective contributors and responsible citizens.
- Our children have the best start in life and are ready to succeed.
The Scottish Government has stated it wants to be judged on the differences these outcomes make to the quality of services and the real differences they make to people's lives. The outcomes are critical for deaf people and offer the potential to address many of the most fundamental barriers to access that deaf people have faced over many years. At the same time the Scottish Government has signalled a significant change in delivery of services with the new concordat between central and local government and the members of the working group recognise the necessity of engaging more with local government. The success or not of achieving these national outcomes for them will be how deaf people will measure the Government's record on linguistic access.
The roadmap should go some way towards helping government better understand how to achieve these outcomes.
A Scotland in which deaf and deafblind people are included in all government approaches across all themes will require a step change in improving communication and information. Improving linguistic access for deaf children, for young people and for adults will enable deaf people to make a creative contribution to achieving the strategic aims of government and to the increasing success of Scotland but there is a considerable way to go before this will be achieved.
Up to this point the roadmap has provided general information and an overview of the context for linguistic access for deaf people. From this point onwards it groups issues under the Scottish Government's strategic objectives, to deliver the national outcomes, which relate to the responsibilities of individual Directorates. Each section contains a summary and it is hoped that this approach will be helpful to officials with a role to play in achieving the outcomes.