Improving national data on Personal Assistants

A strategic objective of the national Personal Assistant Programme Board is to source data on the Personal Assistant workforce in Scotland.

Self Directed Support Scotland leads on work to source improved data via the national PA Workforce survey, which has been conducted in 2022 and 2023 – you can access reports from these surveys below. A third survey is planned to commence in 2025.

Unlike other parts of the social care workforce in Scotland, data on Personal Assistants has been scarce. The insights gained from the two workforce surveys has given, for the first time, robust national data on the PA workforce in Scotland, including:

  • the demographics of the PA workforce
  • the geographical spread of PAs across Scotland
  • PAs’ working conditions, including their employment status, working hours and rates of pay
  • characteristics of the workforce that affect their role, eg. their own health and whether they also provide unpaid care
  • what other employment sectors people move into the PA role from, and how long they stay in the role
  • what attracts people to work as a PA, as well as the challenges their role brings.

The insights from this data underpin other actions of the PA Programme Board, shaping work to improve recruitment, training and wellbeing of PAs in particular.

Keep an eye on this page, or sign up to our newsletter, for updates on further work to improve Personal Assistant data.

Self Directed Support Scotland
Related project(s):

Share this:

Related News

An illustration with a pie chart and bar chart and an elderly woman in a wheelchair with her PA
7 August 2024

Report published on data around Personal Assistants

The Scottish Government have published a report looking into sources of data on Personal Assistants. Developing the Personal Assistant workforce has been a focus of the national Personal Assistant Programme…

The Personal Assistant Workforce Survey 2023 report
15 February 2024

Latest Personal Assistant workforce survey findings published 

  The findings of the second Personal Assistant workforce survey have been published, giving an insight into the PA workforce in Scotland, what motivates and challenges them. Almost 800 PAs…

4 April 2023

Scottish Personal Assistant Workforce Survey 2023

Calling all Personal Assistants! We need your help to understand more about the Personal Assistant workforce in Scotland. The Scottish Personal Assistant Workforce Survey was carried out for the first…