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New law on single-use plastics

A new policy to restrict the availability of single-use plastic, such as plastic straws, plastic plates, and plastic cutlery, will be in place from June 2022. When the regulations come into force on 1 June 2022, the following items will be banned unless an exemption applies: single-use expanded polystyrene beverage cups including their covers and […]

Personal Assistant pay uplift

On 5 October 2021, the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care announced a package of measures to support winter and system pressures in health and social care. This included a commitment to provide up to £48 million of Scottish Government funding to support a pay uplift for Adult Social Care workers. This funding is […]

End of year message 2021

2021 has seen a significant shift in future planning and consultation, in a time of crisis overshadowed by the ongoing pandemic. I am immensely grateful to and proud of the efforts that our members and representatives of the Independent Living Movement made in contributing to a solution-focused approach to strategic issues such as the administration […]

Your views on self-employed PAs

Earlier this year, we asked our members and their networks to share their experiences as self-employed Personal Assistants (PAs) or those who contract them or work alongside them. The survey was completed by 39 respondents including PA employers, self-employed PAs, self-employed contractors, other support workers and other key stakeholders (independent support and local authority staff […]

Self-isolation for social care staff

Donna Bell, Director, Mental Wellbeing and Social Care, Scottish Government, has issued a letter outlining the current self-isolation policy for social care staff. With the increasing number of COVID-19 cases here in Scotland, and with the appearance of the Omicron variant, the First Minister has outlined enhanced measures with regard to self-isolation for the general […]

Development of the 12th Standard for Good SDS – discussion sessions

Discussion Sessions for SDS Scotland Members This is your invitation to the discussion about the 12th Standard for Good SDS. This is described as: ‘Standard 12. Funding Availability, Budget Calculation and Flexibility of Spend For people to be able to live as they wish and enjoy their human rights, flexibility is afforded as to how, […]

AGM 2021: Taking Charge

On Tuesday 30 November 2021, 50 representatives of our membership came together to have their say on the future work and governance of SDSS. They also heard from a range of speakers and participated in our interactive workshops. With a theme of ‘Taking charge: Maximising SDSS Membership for positive change’, the AGM was held online […]

Partnership working and peer research in social care

For the International Day of Disabled Persons, Hannah Tweed, the ALLIANCE, reflects on partnership working and peer research. In 2018, the ALLIANCE and Self Directed Support Scotland (SDSS) began discussing the possibility of a joint research project, to provide evidence about people’s experiences of social care. By early 2019 we had started work on My […]

Supporting the role of Personal Assistants

SDSS and the Scottish Personal Assistant Employers Network (SPAEN) are working with the Scottish Government to understand how we can develop and support Personal Assistants (PAs) in Scotland. We’re looking for existing PAs and PA employers to share their knowledge, experience, and ideas to ensure that we get this right for everyone. Please join us […]

Christmas calendar countdown!

Get into the festive spirit with Your Options Understood (Y.O.U) Christmas is nearly here and to celebrate the festive season with a difference this year, Y.O.U has designed a digital comical Christmas countdown Advent Calendar. The Calendar is inclusive for all with festive music, subtitles and voice overs as required. Behind each window you will […]