Under-18s will no longer be sent to young offender institutions

The Scottish Government is ending the placement of 16 and 17-year-olds in young offender institutions.

The announcement is one of a number of changes introduced with the delivery plan for The Promise – an initiative to improve the lives of people in and around the care system in Scotland.

The Government is also introducing a national allowance for foster and kinship carers and providing a £200 grant each year for 16 to 25-year-olds with care experience.

Ministers want to see a shift away from crisis interventions to early interventions in order to help families.

Other changes include redesigns of the Children’s Hearings system and the governance of the care system.

The Promise was first published in 2020 and its implementation plan was released on Wednesday.

Ahead of the announcement, minister for children Clare Haughey visited a forest school in Edinburgh.

In the secluded area, children referred from local primary schools learn how to play and experience the outdoors.

Ms Haughey told the PA news agency: “We’ve announced the whole family wellbeing fund, which is a fund of at least £500 million over the course of this parliamentary term, £50 million over the upcoming year, which will help us to shift the focus from crisis intervention to early intervention and prevention, which will help families be supported and stay together.

“We’ve all had to face huge challenges over the last two years and obviously focuses have been on the health agenda and on keeping people safe and well.

“We’re determined and committed to fulfilling The Promise by 2030 and the implementation plan being launched today will help us to do that.”

She said the Scottish Government is “looking very closely” at the Welsh Government’s pilot scheme of a £1,600 a month basic income for those who leave care.

Earlier this month, Scotland’s chief inspector of prisons led calls for no-one under the age of 18 to be sent to jail.

Wendy Sinclair-Gieben said the results of a survey of 16 and 17-year-olds at HMP YOI Polmont were “shocking”.