Continued Petitions

PE2141, lodged by Luis Robertson, calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to support the neurodiverse community by providing funding for psychoeducation. The petition calls on the Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to improve the support that is available to the neurodiverse community by providing fully funded psychoeducation and sensory aids that allow for greater community integration pre- and post-diagnosis.We last considered the petition on 21 May 2025, when we agreed to write to the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government states that it does not currently have any plans to use existing frameworks to subsidise or distribute sensory aids. The response that we received points to a number of established funding frameworks that can be used by existing providers of either psychoeducation or sensory aids to deliver those products and services. The Government illustrates that with a project run by Home-Start Caithness, which used part of its funding to provide sensory aids for autistic parents for use during childbirth.Additionally, the Government states that health boards and local authorities can choose to invest in services that integrate the provision of sensory aids with psychoeducation services delivered by neurodivergent individuals, should that be considered to meet the needs of their service users.Do members have any comments or suggestions for action?10:15

I am sympathetic to the aims of the petition, but, ultimately, as you have highlighted, the committee has no choice but to close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders, on the basis that, primarily, the Scottish Government does not plan to subsidise or distribute sensory aids. Furthermore, the Scottish Government has indicated that existing funding frameworks can be, and have been, used by existing providers of psychoeducation and sensory aids to deliver those services. Finally, local authorities and health boards may additionally choose to fund relevant services based on user needs and, in addition, based on their available budgets, which is a critical point in all this.

In the circumstances, are members content with that?Members indicated agreement.