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This is the Annual Report for Citizens Advice Scotland for the 2020-21 financial year.

CAS welcomes the Consumer Duty consultation paper. We believe that, in principle, Scottish public bodies should have an embedded duty to consider the impact that decisions related to policy, and adopted practice could, and does, have on those engaging in its services, particularly vulnerable consumers. Scotland’s Citizens Advice network regularly deals with clients who are impacted by a lack of regard to consumer outcomes or who fall victim to poor service design.

We believe that a consumer duty will strengthen consumer protection from unintended consequences resulting from public authority decision-making. It is essential that a consumer duty results in meaningful improvements in the consumer journey and achieves positive outcomes for public authority service users.

A new CAS report looks at how UC supported five groups who seek advice from CAB every day: people who are newly out of work; people who are looking for work; people who are in work; people who are unable to work due to caring responsibilities or a disability; and finally people with children.

Our research found real gaps in the support UC offered to these people. But our report also suggests fixes. Five policy changes would strengthen UC significantly, ensuring our social security system remains accessible and effective for everyone.

With the cost of living continuing to rise, we need to ask if UC is a strong enough safety net. Investing in social security is the right thing to do for our economic recovery.

Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) is supportive of the proposed approach to ending poverty and the need for food banks. The twin emphasis on prevention and response ensures the reasons for food bank use are tackled at source, rather than focusing only on how emergency support is delivered, and overall CAS would agree that moving towards a cash-first approach to food aid is a positive step. Measures which enable people to choose their own food can restore dignity in emergency food provision, enable people to buy food they enjoy and choose the items that will make the most difference to themselves and their families.

However, there are additional dimensions to the need for food banks that CAS would call for further consideration of. These include:

›     The role of advice services in food bank referrals

›     Availability of social security support for different types of people

›     Debt as a driving factor in food bank use

›     Fuel poverty as a driving factor in food bank use

›     Housing costs as a driving factor for food bank use

›     Potential barriers to a cash-first scheme

CAS has responded to the Scottish Legal Aid Board's consultation on civil legal aid financial eligibility assessment

This report examines the value of 'blue-green infrastructure' and how the use of nature-based drainage solutions can mitigate flooding risks as well as benefit communities. In doing so the report addresses the need for community engagement, effective communication and where blue-green solutions fit into Scotland's infrastructure vision. 

The research comprises of three key elements:

• Developing an understanding of how local authorities and housing associations meet the challenges of developing blue-green infrastructure, as part of creating positive living environments.
• Establishing how people understand the terms and concepts used in relation to the field and the water sector more broadly.
• Collaborative discussion of the main issues identified with other stakeholders in the sector.