MORE must be done to ensure children, families and care-experienced people across Argyll and Bute feel the benefits of Scotland’s promise to transform the care system, according to a new report.
MSPs representing Argyll and Bute are being urged to see first-hand where progress is being made locally – and where further change is still needed – following the publication of the latest assessment by the Oversight Board for the promise.
The promise was made in 2020 following Scotland’s Independent Care Review and states that all children and young people should grow up “loved, safe and respected” so they can realise their full potential.
Six years on, the Oversight Board has warned that too much of the commitment made to children, families and care-experienced adults across Scotland remains evident in policies and plans rather than being consistently reflected in people’s everyday lives.
Its fourth report warns there is now a “real but narrowing opportunity” to deliver the changes promised.
As part of the report’s publication, the board is calling on MSPs representing Argyll and Bute to visit services and communities to see where improvements are being delivered and where more work is required.
The report found evidence of stretched teams, limited capacity and resources which do not always match the level of need.
A shortage of suitable care is highlighted as an immediate example of the consequences when capacity cannot meet demand.
However, the Oversight Board also reports progress since its previous assessment at the beginning of 2025.
New legislation has been passed, services and approaches have developed and examples have been identified of children and families receiving the type of support envisaged when the promise was made.
Effective partnerships and longer-term funding were among the approaches found to be making a difference, along with giving workers greater flexibility to build and maintain relationships with the children and families they support.
A major focus of the latest report is children who experience formal care while continuing to live at home.
They account for around one in five children experiencing formal care in Scotland, with 2,411 recorded nationally as of July 2025.
The board identified examples of strong relationships, committed staff and improvements in this area, but warned that support remains inconsistent.
It said: “The evidence leaves a clear concern: children experiencing care at home cannot yet rely consistently on support identified as necessary, being available when it is needed and sustained for as long as required.”
The promise followed the Independent Care Review, which listened to the experiences of more than 5,500 people, more than half of whom had experience of care.
The Oversight Board has now set out 10 actions it wants to see taken to accelerate progress.
Among them is a call for the Scottish Government and local authorities – including Argyll and Bute Council – to establish what workforce is required to deliver the promise.
It also wants government and councils to ensure children living at home with significant identified needs can access the practical and specialist support, advocacy and trusted relationships they require.
David Anderson, chair of the Oversight Board, said changes to legislation, funding and services were important, but ultimately success had to be measured by whether children’s lives were actually improving.
He said: “There is no more important responsibility than securing the futures and wellbeing of Scotland’s children.
“We have seen that progress has been made, people are working hard and they care. The changes we have seen to plans, legislation, funding, structures and implementation all matter and can represent real progress.
“But the promise ultimately has to be judged by whether those changes improve people’s lives. Activity is not the same as action and Scotland must show whether support is reaching people, whether barriers are reducing and whether experience is changing.”
Mr Anderson said that if keeping the promise was compared with building a home, Scotland had laid the foundations and erected some of the walls, but “after six years the country should be much further forward”.
He added: “A house is not a home because the plans exist – it becomes one when there is food in the cupboards, heat in the radiators and people who know they are safe, loved and belong.
“That is what delivery looks like in real life, and it is what Scotland must make happen.”
