Welcome to The Scottish Council Foundation

Welcome

Established in 1997, the Scottish Council Foundation quickly became Scotland’s leading think tank.

Politically independent, the SCF has provided Scotland consistently with original and thoughtful analysis on the key strategic challenges the country faces. Well-evidenced, challenging and practical, our work draws on experience from the UK, Europe and globally, to influence policy and practice in Scotland and across the UK.

Backed by a varied group of Principal Supporters and project partners, and drawing on the expertise and advice of our Board of Trustees and of partners, our team produces a challenging programme of projects and events to influence the thinking of Scotland’s policy-makers and practitioners.

If you would like to ensure that we can continue to make our distinctive contribution to policy debate and policy making in Scotland, please consider supporting us.

Annual Lecture 2008

Annual Lecture 2008
SCF are delighted to announce that Hamish McRae, associate editor at The Independent newspaper, will deliver this year's annual lecture at the University of Edinburgh's Playfair Library. For more information e-mail info@scottishcouncilfoundation.org.

Latest Publications

New! A Wellbeing Framework for Scotland A better way of measuring society's progress in the 21st Century Following on from ‘Working the System’, SCF’s major study into creating a system of wellbeing in Scotland, we have teamed up with Forward Scotland to devise a basket of subjective indicators which could be used as an alternative to GDP in measuring wellbeing.		New! Enhancing Public Involvement in Major NHS Service Change NHS Boards are required to involve patients and the public in designing, developing and delivering health care services, but when applied to major NHS service change the process becomes increasingly complex. This study offers ideas to make informing, engaging and involving the public in major NHS service change more effective.

New! Directed or Devolved? The Future of Public Service Reform in Scotland This state-of-the-art paper looks at how the current debate about the future of public service reform (PSR) is shaping up, what the issues are and the extent to which they mark a break or shift from the last 10 years.		Engaging the Public in Making Future Energy Choices for Scotland - Full Report Hard Choices for Science and Society This report contains the detailed findings from SCF's Future Energy Choices for Scotland Consensus Conference.

Financial Inclusion and Capability In Rural Scotland Can't Afford to Leave, Can't Afford to Stay This report presents the main findings of our study on financial inclusion and capability in rural Scotland.		Rethinking Representation 2 - MSPs’ experiences of the second term of the Scottish Parliament MSPs’ experiences of the second term of the Scottish Parliament Findings from the second phase of the study into the attitudes and behaviour of Scotland's new parliamentarians.

Transforming Public Services - The next phase of reform The next phase of reform Citizen perspectives on Transforming Public Services: the next phase of reform. Part of the dialogue on public service reform that took place across Scotland between June 2006 and February 2007.		Constructive Responses... to Scotland's Changing Population - Working Document ... to Scotland's Changing Population - Working Document This working document accompanies our recent summary report outlining some possible responses to demographic change in Scotland. It gives a fuller account of the issues and analysis behind the SCF’s proposals.

Latest edition >>

Search our site

Latest News and Events

What will the new EU migrants do next?

The 1st May 2008 marks four years since eight Central and East European countries joined the European Union. A recent ippr study indicates the supply of migrant workers from these countries is not set to last. SCF believes that we need to investigate a range of options that could give Scotland greater flexibility to attract the migrants we need. Sarah Kyambi, SCF's Policy Research Manager, was discussing these issues on BBC Radio Scotland Sunday Live

SCF Director profiled in New Start Magazine

SCF Director Andrew Harris was interviewed this month for the regeneration journal New Start. He focussed on the importance of ensuring access to markets and financial services for people in Scotland's poorer communities, and on the need to prioritise policies aimed at improving the nation's sense of wellbeing.

24th April 2008

Different Immigration Needs North and South

Immigration policy took centre stage two weeks ago with the publication of a House of Lords Select Committee report The Economic Impact of Immigration on Tuesday 1st April. SCF’s Sarah Kyambi was quoted in Saturday’s Independent noting the difference in how spatial pressures come to bear on the immigration debate.

18th April 2008

SCF Annual Lecture 27 May 2008

Hamish McRae will deliver this year’s SCF annual lecture, discussing “Scotland’s Place in an Ever More Global World Economy”. The event will take place in the Playfair Library at Edinburgh University from 5.00pm on Thusday 27 May 2008.

20th March 2008

SCF in the Sunday Herald

SCF Policy and Research Manager Sarah Kyambi contributed to a Sunday Herald debate in February on how best to address the current constitutional deadlock. Read what she had to say:

28th February 2008

SCF Policy and Research Manager on BBC Radio Scotland

SCF Policy and Research Manager Sarah Kyambi appeared on BBC Radio Scotland's Sunday Live in February, discussing proposed changes in citizenship policy. To listen again visit the BBC Scotland website.

25th February 2008

Rural watchdog calls for more backing for community-led personal finance solutions

The Commission for Rural Communities (CRC) is this week launching the ‘Quids In’ campaign to create greater awareness of the financial services needs of rural people. The report follows similar themes to 'Financial Inclusion and Capability In Rural Scotland' , published by the Scottish Council Foundation in November 2007.

30th November 1999

SCF comment on Scottish Labour Leader's St. Andrew's Day lecture

SCF Research Fellow Matt Jarratt on Wendy Alexander's St. Andrew's Day lecture on 'A New Agenda for Scotland'

3rd December 2007

New Public Engagement Report

SCF published a new report: Hard Choices for Science and Society - Engaging the Public in Making Future Energy Choices for Scotland.

23rd October 2007

more news...