Care Reform (Scotland) Act 2025

Part 1 — Health and social care information

Chapter 1 — Digital care record

Ministers to facilitate creation of records

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• (1) The Scottish Ministers must exercise their powers under this Part so that every person who receives health care or a social service in Scotland can have a digital integrated care record.

• (2) The purpose of a digital care record is to—

• (a) enable Scottish health and social care information to be shared securely and efficiently amongst providers of health care and social services so that people’s experiences of health care and social services are as safe and seamless as possible, and

• (b) ensure that people are, so far as practicable and consistent with data protection legislation, able to access their own Scottish health and social care information in a format accessible to them and exercise control over it.

• (3) For the avoidance of doubt—

• (a) fulfilling the duty imposed by subsection (1) is not the only purpose for which the Scottish Ministers may exercise their powers under this Part,

• (b) in order to fulfil that duty, the Scottish Ministers may also exercise other functions.

• (4) In this section—

• “health care” means a service for or in connection with the prevention, diagnosis or treatment of illness,

• “illness” is to be construed in accordance with section 108(1) of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978,

• “Scottish health and social care information” means information concerning, or connected with, the provision in Scotland of health care or a social service,

• “social service” has the same meaning as it has in Part 5 of the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 (see section 46(2) of that Act).

Chapter 2 — Information sharing schemes

Power to create schemes

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• (1) The Scottish Ministers may by regulations provide for a scheme that allows information to be shared in order that public health and social care services can be provided efficiently and effectively.

• (2) Regulations under subsection (1) may in particular—

• (a) require one person to supply information to another person,

• (b) specify the purposes for which, and circumstances in which, information shared under a scheme may be used,

• (c) create sanctions (civil or criminal) for those who fail to comply with the regulations’ requirements.

• (3) For the purposes of this section, a public health and social care service is a service provided in pursuance of—

• (a) a function conferred by virtue of an enactment listed in the schedule of the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014, or

• (b) a function that is exercisable by—

• (i) a health board constituted under section 2(1)(a) of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978, or

• (ii) a special health board constituted under section 2(1)(b) of that Act.

• (4) For the avoidance of doubt, regulations under subsection (1) may provide for information to be shared in order for it to be used not only directly in the performance of the functions mentioned in subsection (3) but also in the performance of any function that supports the efficient and effective provision of public health and social care services (for example, the Scottish Ministers’ functions under section 58 of the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001).

Chapter 3 — Information standards

Power to produce standards

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• (1) For the purposes of this Chapter, an information standard is a document, produced by the Scottish Ministers, setting out requirements in relation to the processing of Scottish health and social care information.

• (2) An information standard may set out requirements by reference to another document (including a document which is not in existence when the standard is produced).

• (3) For any requirement it sets out, an information standard must specify—

• (a) to whom the requirement applies (see section 4), and

• (b) the information in relation to the processing of which the requirement applies.

• (4) The Scottish Ministers must make any information standard they produce publicly available on the information-standards website.

Persons to whom standards may apply

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• (1) The persons to whom a requirement set out in an information standard may be made to apply are—

• (a) a local authority,

• (b) an integration joint board established by order under the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014,

• (c) a health board constituted under section 2(1)(a) of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 (“the NHS Act”),

• (d) a special health board constituted under section 2(1)(b) of the NHS Act,

• (e) the Common Services Agency for the Scottish Health Service,

• (f) Healthcare Improvement Scotland,

• (g) the Scottish Ministers,

• (h) a person providing services (whether directly or indirectly) pursuant to an agreement or other arrangement under any of the following provisions of the NHS Act—

• (i) section 2C (which relates to primary medical services),

• (ii) section 17C (which relates to personal medical or dental services),

• (iii) section 17J (which relates to general medical services),

• (iv) section 25 (which relates to general dental services),

• (v) section 26 (which relates to general ophthalmic services),

• (vi) section 27 (which relates to pharmaceutical services),

• (i) a person providing independent health care services as defined by section 10F of the NHS Act,

• (j) a person providing a care service as defined by section 47 of the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010,

• (k) a person providing social work services as defined by section 48 of that Act,

• (l) a person who—

• (i) provides a product or service to a person mentioned in any of paragraphs (a) to (k), and

• (ii) knows, or ought to know, that the product or service is (or is to be) used for, or in connection with, electronically processing Scottish health or social care information.

• (2) The Scottish Ministers may by regulations modify this section so as to change, or clarify, the list of persons to whom an information standard may be made to apply.

Duty to comply with standards

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• (1) A person to whom a requirement set out in an information standard applies must comply with it.

• (2) The Scottish Ministers may by regulations provide for a civil sanction to be imposed on a person who breaches the duty under subsection (1).

Withdrawal of standards

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• (1) The Scottish Ministers may withdraw an information standard at any time by giving notice on the information-standards website that it is withdrawn.

• (2) When an information standard is withdrawn—

• (a) the duty under section 3(4) to make it publicly available ceases to apply, and

• (b) the duty under section 5(1) to comply with it ceases to apply.

Interpretation of Chapter 3

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• (1) In this Chapter—

• “information-standards website” means the website maintained by, or on behalf of, the Scottish Ministers with an internet domain name specified by the Scottish Ministers by regulations,

• “processing” includes doing any of the things referred to in paragraphs (a) to (f) of section 3(4) of the Data Protection Act 2018,

• “Scottish health and social care information” has the meaning given in section 1(4).

• (2) By regulations, the Scottish Ministers—

• (a) must amend the definition of “information-standards website” so that it specifies an internet domain name, and

• (b) may subsequently amend that definition so as to change the internet domain name it specifies.

Part 2 — Reforms connected to delivery and regulation of care

Chapter 1 — Modifications to other enactments

Carers

Rights to breaks for carers

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• (1) The Carers (Scotland) Act 2016 is modified by subsections (2) to (11).

• (2) After section 8(2) (adult carers: identification of outcomes and needs for support) insert—

(3) A responsible local authority must identify, as a personal outcome that is relevant to an adult carer, the outcome that the adult carer is able to take sufficient breaks. (4) Where an adult carer is not able to take sufficient breaks, a responsible local authority must identify the need for support to enable the adult carer to take sufficient breaks.

.

• (3) In section 9(1) (content of adult carer support plan)—

• (a) after paragraph (h) insert—

(ha) if the adult carer’s identified needs include the need for support to enable the adult carer to take sufficient breaks by virtue of section 8(4), information about the support which the responsible local authority provides or intends to provide to the adult carer to meet that need,

,

• (b) in paragraph (j), after “criteria” insert “(except in the case of an identified need as mentioned in paragraph (ha))”,

• (c) paragraph (k) is repealed.

• (4) After section 14(2) (young carers: identification of outcomes and needs for support) insert—

(3) A responsible authority must identify, as a personal outcome that is relevant to a young carer, the outcome that the young carer is able to take sufficient breaks. (4) Where a young carer is not able to take sufficient breaks, a responsible authority must identify the need for support to enable the young carer to take sufficient breaks.

.

• (5) In section 15(1) (content of young carer statement)—

• (a) after paragraph (i) insert—

(ia) if the young carer’s identified needs include the need for support to enable the young carer to take sufficient breaks by virtue of section 14(4), information about the support which the responsible local authority provides or intends to provide to the young carer to meet that need,

,

• (b) in paragraph (k), after “criteria” insert “(except in the case of an identified need as mentioned in paragraph (ia))”,

• (c) paragraph (l) is repealed.

• (6) In section 21 (duty to set local eligibility criteria)—

• (a) in subsection (2), for “identified” substitute “relevant”,

• (b) after subsection (4) insert—

(5) In subsection (2), “relevant needs” means identified needs other than any need for support to enable carers to take sufficient breaks that is identified by virtue of section 8(4) or 14(4).

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• (7) In section 23 (national eligibility criteria)—

• (a) in subsection (2), for “identified” substitute “relevant”,

• (b) in subsection (3)(c), for “24(3)” substitute “24(2) and (4)”,

• (c) after subsection (4) insert—

(5) In subsection (2), “relevant needs” means identified needs other than any need for support to enable carers to take sufficient breaks that is identified by virtue of section 8(4) or 14(4).

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• (8) In section 24 (duty to provide support)—

• (a) in subsection (1)(a), for the words from “section” to “caring” substitute “this section in order to enable the carer to take a break”,

• (b) in subsection (2), for “eligible needs” substitute “relevant needs that meet the local eligibility criteria”,

• (c) subsection (3) is repealed,

• (d) in subsection (4)—

• (i) in paragraph (a), for “the carer’s eligible needs” substitute “any relevant needs of the carer that meet the local eligibility criteria”,

• (ii) in paragraph (b), for “the carer’s other identified needs” substitute “any relevant needs of the carer that do not meet the local eligibility criteria”,

• (e) after subsection (4) insert—

(4A) The responsible local authority must also provide support to the carer to meet any need for support to enable the carer to take sufficient breaks that is identified by virtue of section 8(4) or 14(4).

,

• (f) in subsection (5)—

• (i) in the opening words, for “Subsection (4)(a) applies” substitute “Subsections (4)(a) and (4A) apply”,

• (ii) in paragraph (a), for “eligible needs” substitute “identified needs in question”,

• (iii) in paragraph (b), for “eligible needs” substitute “identified needs in question”,

• (g) in subsection (6), for the words from “the”, in the first place where it occurs, to the end substitute ““relevant needs”, in relation to a carer, means the carer’s identified needs other than any need for support to enable the carer to take sufficient breaks that is identified by virtue of section 8(4) or 14(4)”.

• (9) In section 25 (provision of support to carers: breaks from caring)—

• (a) subsection (1) is repealed,

• (b) for subsection (2) substitute—

(2) The Scottish Ministers must by regulations make further provision in connection with the support to be provided to a carer under section 24(4A). (2A) Regulations under subsection (2) may in particular make provision about— (a) the meaning of any reference to sufficient breaks in this Act, which must take account of a carer’s need to have time for rest and leisure, (b) standards or criteria in relation to the sufficiency of such breaks (including the nature, frequency or duration of breaks), (c) forms of support that may enable a carer to take such breaks, (d) where the support is the provision of care for the cared-for person, the role of the cared-for person in relation to how the care is provided.

,

• (c) in subsection (3), for “by virtue of subsection (1)” substitute “under section 24(4A)”,

• (d) in subsection (4)—

• (i) for “by virtue of subsection (1)” substitute “under section 24(4A)”,

• (ii) the words “from caring” are repealed,

• (e) in subsection (5), for “as a break from caring” substitute “to enable a carer to take a break”.

• (10) In section 31 (duty to prepare local carer strategy)—

• (a) after subsection (2)(h) insert—

(ha) plans to promote a variety of providers of support to relevant carers and to promote the variety of support provided,

,

• (b) after subsection (2) insert—

(2A) In subsection (2), references to support to relevant carers include references to support to enable carers to take a break.

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• (11) After section 41(2) (interpretation) insert—

(3) In this Act references to a carer taking a break (however expressed) are references to the carer taking a break, either with or without the cared-for person, which entails— (a) taking a break from providing any form of care to the cared-for person, or (b) taking a break from the carer’s normal routine of providing care to the cared-for person by (either or both)— (i) limiting the nature, extent, intensity, or duration of the care provided, (ii) changing the circumstances (including the location) in which the care is provided.

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• (12) The Social Care (Self-directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013 is modified by subsection (13).

• (13) In section 7(1) (choice of options: adult carers and young carers), after “24(4)” insert “or (4A)”.

• (14) The Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 is modified by subsection (15).

• (15) In section 87 (charges that may be made for services and accommodation)—

• (a) in subsection (1), after “24(4)” insert “or (4A)”,

• (b) in subsection (1A)(a), after “24(4)” insert “or (4A)”.

Adult carer support plan

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• (1) The Carers (Scotland) Act 2016 is modified as follows.

• (2) After section 6(5) (duty to prepare adult carer support plan) insert—

(5A) The Scottish Ministers must by regulations prescribe timescales for the preparation of adult carer support plans.

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• (3) Section 7 is repealed.

• (4) In section 41(1) (interpretation), the definition of “terminally ill” is repealed.