Liz Smith MSP is currently putting forward a Private Bill in the Scottish Parliament, which if passed would make a 5 day Residential an entitlement for all Scottish children of school age (either in Primary or Secondary school). This means that if it became law, the Scottish Government would fund a residential for every child in Scotland. Think about that for a moment...
On the 26th of March this year, the bill passed a vote in Parliament, meaning it now goes to Stage 2 Scrutiny. This was a significant milestone in the passage of the bill, and the Scottish Government will now engage with Liz and other stakeholders to negotiate the next stages.
Liz's opening remarks in the debate are below.
And the moment the vote was passed is below. This is a huge opportunity for Residential Outdoor Education in Scotland!
You can track the progress of the bill on the Scottish Parliament Website here, and a broader video explaining the bill is below.
For now, there is not a need to write to your MSP's, but this will change as the bill progresses through Stage 2
Please also see this older video outlining the aims of the bill. Liz does say the bill would legislate for Secondary children only, this has since been changed and it would be available to Primary and Secondary children.
