« Previous | Contents | Next »
Listen
Ministerial Foreword
Our vision is that all children in Scotland should be safe, nurtured and healthy. They should have the opportunity to reach their full potential in education and grow to become active responsible citizens.
However, there is a group of children who have not been able to benefit fully from the opportunities available. These are children affected by substance misusing parents. Across Scotland there are an estimated 40,000-60,000 children affected by parental drug use. An estimated 80,000-100,000 children are affected by parental alcohol misuse.
Children living in these circumstances often show incredible resilience, and succeed against the odds. But far too many fail at school, act as parental carers at an unacceptably young age, have physical and mental health problems, get drawn into antisocial behaviour and crime, and have little prospect of a productive and fulfilling life. Too many children brought up in substance misusing families become addicts themselves, and the cycle continues.
We recognise that parents with substance misuse problems need help. The Scottish Executive has increased the availability and range of treatment and rehabilitation across Scotland. But our priority, and the priority of every local agency, must be to protect and safeguard children.
There are parents with substance misusing problems who are capable of caring for their children. However, our view is that serious and chaotic drug abuse is incompatible with effective parenting. Sadly, serious drug addiction can be so powerful that it takes priority over the most basic parental responsibilities. It can and does expose children to behaviour that can put them in real danger and can have long-lasting consequences. For very young children this can have such a devastating impact that, by the time they go to school, the prospect of fully repairing the damage is limited.
We must improve how we identify children at risk from parental substance misuse. We must make sure they are safe. Local services need to work better together to protect affected children and to promote their future development and well-being. That is why we are publishing "Hidden Harm - Next Steps".
This document sets out what the Executive is doing with its local partners - in education, health, social work, police and criminal justice - to bring about the improvements needed. It also identifies further action to be taken.
However, this is only the first step in a wider process of improving the ways in which we protect and care for this particularly vulnerable group of children and young people. This is a difficult and sensitive area, where difficult decisions must be made in the best interests of the child.
Over the coming months we will examine what more needs to be done to ensure that we have the right operational and legal framework in place, that local service providers are absolutely clear about their responsibilities, and that these children and young people do not have their lives seriously or irreparably damaged by the substance misuse of their parents or carers.
Cathy Jamieson MSP
Minister for Justice
Peter Peacock MSP
Minister for Education and Young People
Andy Kerr MSP
Minister for Health and Community Care
« Previous | Contents | Next »