Minister's Foreword
Introduction by Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong
Learning
This Government has, as one of its core values, a commitment
to equality of opportunity for everyone. We want people to have
the opportunities and support they need to reach their goals.
That is why we have devoted so much of our time, energy and
resources to education and lifelong learning, recognising that
it is a key factor in improving prospects, employability and
personal fulfilment.
We have a particular concern for is young people who are
sometimes on the margins because of physical or learning
disabilities or mental health problems or because of the
disaffection and alienation which can spring from low
attainment and lack of confidence. Those young people are in
danger of slipping out of our society and we need to help them
re-engage to become full participants in the new inclusive
Scotland.
To address the problems of this group of young people my
predecessor, Brian Wilson, asked a number of experienced
practitioners in this area to look at what we currently do, and
to see if we could do better. The Committee, chaired by Robert
Beattie, has in a remarkably short time covered a lot of ground
and has talked, and more importantly listened, to an impressive
number of young people and their parents/carers, and those who
provide services for them.
The key recommendation in the report is that the principle
of Inclusiveness should underpin all post-school guidance,
education and training. I welcome that recommendation which
reflects the approach of the Scottish Executive to the most
vulnerable young people.
I will now be considering the proposals and recommendations
in the report. They seek to address the wide range of needs
among young people and could potentially have a major impact on
a number of agencies and organisations in the public and
private sector. There will be a series of dissemination
seminars in the autumn. In addition, we would welcome your
views and comments. It is my intention then to publish an
Action Plan setting out how we plan to encourage and support
young people to participate in post-school learning and realise
their potential.
I believe that the Beattie Committee report will help us to
move ahead in tackling disadvantage and disaffection among
young people. I am grateful to Robert Beattie and his Committee
for the care and thought that they have given to their
work.
Henry McLeish
Foreword
Chairman
I am delighted to present this report on behalf of the
Beattie Committee. It has been hard work but the amount of
support I have received from every member of the Committee has
been outstanding. The Committee has also received great
co-operation from parents, carers and many organisations across
Scotland and beyond. Most importantly, the young people
themselves were willing to give their honest views of how the
system is currently failing them and the sort of help they
need. My grateful thanks to all of them!
In particular, I want to record my personal thanks and that
of the Committee, to Patricia Russell and Julie-Anne Jamieson
of the Scottish Executive, for professionalism and endless hard
work in support of our endeavours.
When the Committee started work in April 1998 it seemed a
daunting task. As we continued to investigate what needed to be
done, the task became more daunting! However, we then listened
to some of the young people affected by disadvantage and
developed a firm resolve that something had to be done. This
was tackling an area of work for real young people - not just
statistics in official reports.
During our work we realised that the route for many of these
young people was not a straight line from school to education,
training and subsequently to work. By the very nature of their
problems they live uncertain lives. This often forces them to
attempt to be involved in any one of these for a short period
of time before moving to another and back again. I am
delighted, therefore, that we were asked to cover the full
range of education, training and guidance.
There are many organisations in Scotland working hard to
support these young people who need help. Unfortunately, from
the young person's perspective the support often is not
reaching them and that is why the Beattie Committee was formed
- to look at current provision, assess needs and make
recommendations on how provision might be adjusted to best fit
these needs.
If we are to meet the needs of these vulnerable young people
then we must have "joined up thinking and action" on how we
help them. This means putting the needs of each young person
before organisational considerations. We have called this
approach "Inclusiveness" and we believe firmly that it is only
in this way we can help these young people
to realise their full potential.
When I was appointed Chairman of the Committee, I promised
that our recommendations would be practical, pragmatic and
affordable. As you read this report, I believe you will agree
that the Committee has fulfilled that promise.
Robert B Beattie MBE FRSA
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