Section 4 – Assessment of impact

Does your assessment identify any unique impacts on island communities?

The evidence reviewed has found that there will be no significantly different effects for island and rural communities.

It is hoped that the establishment of the National Social Work Agency will have positive outcomes for rural and island communities. For instance, the NSWA will collect workforce data as part of its national planning approach. The recruitment and retention challenges felt by island communities will be noted and potential solutions devised as part of workforce planning tailored to these. In this sense, the impact on island communities should be positive and offer greater support than is available at present.

Moreover, the NSWA will set national standards that improve social work continuous professional learning and good practice; while still allowing flexibility for local needs.

The development of the NSWA will be subject to further co-design, user research, and consultation, prior to introducing new policies. That process will be informed by further engagement with island and rural communities. Once the NSWA becomes operational, monitoring of indicators and parameters across the sector will continue. This continuous review should help confirm our assessment that the NSWA will have a positive impact across Scotland, including for island and rural communities.

Does your assessment identify any potential barriers or wider impacts?

We have not identified any potential barriers or wider impacts.

Are there mitigations already in place for these impacts raised?

No impacts are raised.