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THE PURPOSE OF GOVERNMENT
The Scottish budget document, published in November 2007, defines a central purpose of focusing Government and public services on creating a more successful country, with opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable economic growth. Sustainable economic growth does not just mean building up a rich economy - it will also mean building up a rich and responsible society.
The new Government Economic Strategy is central to the delivery of our overall Purpose. The delivery of the Government's Purpose will be supported by five strategic objectives - to make Scotland wealthier & fairer, smarter, healthier, safer & stronger and greener. These, in turn, are supported by fifteen national outcomes which describe in more detail what the government wants to achieve over a ten year period. Reform of the Children's Hearings system will contribute to all five strategic objectives and most, if not all, of the national outcomes. 1
Within the Government Economic Strategy five strategic priorities have been identified as being critical to economic growth. These are learning, skills & wellbeing; a supportive business environment; infrastructure development and place; effective government; and equity. The contribution of the Children's Hearings system is most readily identifiable through the learning, skills and wellbeing strand, and it will make a major contribution to achieving equity.
The Government Economic Strategy sets out targets for improving solidarity and cohesion. These are: to increase overall income and the proportion of income earned by the three lowest income deciles as a group by 2017; and to narrow the gap in participation between Scotland's best and worst performing regions by 2017. We believe that the interventions provided by the Children's Hearings system, to provide support and assistance to vulnerable children and families and improve their life chances, will contribute to achieving these objectives. It is self-evidently right that we should work with these families and children to reduce their vulnerability, but in doing so, we also increase their capacity to contribute to our ambitions for our country and our communities.
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