Fair Start Scotland was a voluntary employment support service provided in Scotland that was designed to help people who face challenges in finding and sustaining work.
Referrals to the programme ran between April 2018 and March 2024, with referrals ceasing in March 2024 and the programme succeeded by the No One Left Behind initiative.
Despite this, the service is still ongoing and providing support to remaining participants before it reaches its natural conclusion in 2026.
The Wise Group, alongside its partners Enable and The Lennox Partnership, delivered the programme across Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, East and West Dunbartonshire.
In February 2025, The Wise Group commissioned the Fraser of Allander Institute to undertake an evaluation of the specific part of the programme delivered by them.
Between 2018 and 2024, 5,171 people enrolled in the programme.
This included individuals with more complex barriers to employment, including high proportions of participants with disabilities and long-term health conditions.
Key achievements of the programme included:
- 39% started a job – above the national average of 37%.
- Among participants with disabilities1, 40% started a job, compared to 32% nationally.
- 31% of participants with disabilities achieved sustained employment for 13 weeks -outperforming the national average of 23%.
- 63% of all job starters sustained employment for 26 weeks; 46% sustained employment for a full year.
Authors
Ben is an Economist Fellow at the Fraser of Allander Institute working across a number of projects areas. He has a Masters in Economics from the University of Edinburgh, and a degree in Economics from the University of Strathclyde.
His main areas of focus are economic policy, social care and criminal justice in Scotland. Ben also co-edits the quarter Economic Commentary and has experience in business survey design and dissemination.