SCoSS Charter Sub-Committee Meeting
Date: 18 February 2026
Time: 11:30
Venue: Virtual (Microsoft Teams)
Minutes
Present—
- Dr Mark Simpson (Chair)
- Dr Marilyn Howard (Member)
- Ed Pybus (Member)
Apologies: None
In attendance (SCoSS Secretariat)—
- Andrew Strong (Head of Policy and Scrutiny, SCoSS Secretariat);
- Christopher Galloway (Analysis and Participation Support Officer, SCoSS Secretariat);
- Keith Rae (Senior Policy & Engagement Officer, SCoSS Secretariat);
- Lisa Kinnear (Governance and Engagement Officer, SCoSS Secretariat)
In attendance for agenda item 3 –
- Carole Kelly (Senior Consultation Analyst, The Lines Between);
- Alastair Graham (Research Manager, The Lines Between)
In attendance for agenda item 4 –
- Iain Davidson (Organisational Strategy Manager, Social Security Scotland);
- Will McKinnon (Principal Research Officer, Social Security Scotland)
Apologies: None
1. Welcome and declaration of interests
The Chair, Mark, welcomed the Members to the second meeting of the SCoSS Charter research sub-committee in 2026. No interests were declared.
2. Matters arising from previous meeting
Members agreed the January Charter sub-committee meeting minutes, which will be presented at the next Board meeting for approval before being published on the SCoSS website.
Ed noted that his meeting with David Wallace of Social Security Scotland had been postponed and is now expected to take place on 4 March.
3. Charter research contracts update
Carole Kelly and Alastair Graham from The Lines Between joined the meeting for this item.
The Lines Between provided an update of the projects to date, sharing initial reflections. All literature searches and evidence gathering have been completed, and all materials within scope have now been coded. The work has moved into the writing and drafting stage.
The Lines Between confirmed they will finalise the draft reports, ensure all relevant literature is included, and set out the key recommendations before sharing draft reports with SCoSS in the coming weeks.
4. Social Security Scotland – future engagement
Iain Davidson and Will McKinnon from Social Security Scotland joined the meeting for this item.
Attendees discussed how the sub-committee can make the most of its relationship with Social Security Scotland on charter research and explore future ways of working.
Iain and Will also provided updates on Social Security Scotland’s response to the accepted recommendations in SCoSS’s report on the experiences of people with communication needs when accessing the Scottish social security system.
Action: Members were invited to share any further points of discussion ahead of the meetings with Social Security Scotland.
5. Any other business
Members agreed that the date of the sub-committee’s next meeting in March would be confirmed by email in the coming days. The Secretariat will identify available dates and contact Members to agree.
Next meeting: 13 March at 11.00am – 12.30pm (subsequently agreed)
Meeting closed at: 13:18