EnlightenScot

13/04/2026

Join us on Tuesday 28th April at 1pm for an online discussion on the role apprenticeships can play in improving the Scottish economy.

To RSVP, email [email protected]

https://www.enlighten.scot/event/online-discussion-apprenticeships-and-economic-growth/

01/04/2026

31/03/2026

"Despite a succession of strategic frameworks explicitly aimed at promoting person-led and community-centred health, the work of care remains peripheral in society and vulnerable to mission failure within healthcare reform. When operational pressure intensifies, care and prevention are squeezed in favour of interventions that generate immediate, measurable output. Recovery becomes the dominant priority, while the conditions required for sustaining health remain largely unchanged."

Tim Jackson from CUSP has written a new Working Paper on recentring care to guide health system reform as a contribution to our hashtag forum.

Read the policy summary here: https://www.enlighten.scot/nhs2048/prosperity-as-health-recentring-care-to-guide-health-system-reform-tim-jackson/
And the full working paper here:https://cusp.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/WP45—Prosperity-as-Health.pdf

04/03/2026

New for from Nigel Kirkpatrick, Medical Director at Newmedica, on why improving NHS productivity requires smarter service design.

Using ophthalmology as an example, he highlights how clearer pathways and better use of capacity can reduce delays and improve outcomes.

Read in full here: https://www.enlighten.scot/nhs2048/efficiency-by-design-making-the-nhs-more-productive-for-patients-nigel-kirkpatrick/

03/03/2026

The Commission on School Reform said the place of knowledge has been 'devalued' in the current curriculum

02/03/2026

The Commission on School Reform, the education arm of Enlighten, has published its manifesto ahead of the Scottish Parliament election.

The manifesto calls for a return to a knowledge-based curriculum and sets out proposals to strengthen academic standards, close the attainment gap and improve support for pupils with additional needs.

It responds to sustained concerns about Scotland’s educational performance and argues that a broader, more ambitious programme of change is required.

Commission Chair Keir Bloomer said:
“Curriculum for Excellence was sound in theory, but it has been poor in implementation and practice and is now harming the long-term prospects of a generation of children.”

Read the full manifesto here: https://www.enlighten.scot/publication/commission-on-school-reform-manifesto-2026/

29/01/2026

"The foundations of mathematical success are not laid in senior-phase revision classes but in the daily experiences of our youngest learners. One approach with real promise is maths journalling – a structured, intentional way for pupils to capture, reflect on and explain their mathematical thinking."

Kirsten Fenton Holly Drummond write for the blog about the importance of improving maths attainment in Scotland and that "if we want to improve attainment, close equity gaps and develop confident, capable mathematicians the work must begin in our primary classrooms.". Read their blog in full here: https://www.enlighten.scot/maths-journalling-a-scottish-solution-for-confident-capable-mathematicians/

08/01/2026

The report suggested the current funding system means Scottish students are finding admissions processes to elite universities 'more competitive'.

08/01/2026

We've published a new report today from Huw Morris and Des Mcnulty which calls for a radical rethink of the purpose and functioning of Scotland’s tertiary education sector.

Read the full report here: enlighten.scot/publication/where-next-for-scotlands-universities-and-colleges/

05/01/2026

"Each of our regional economies plays its own respective, and relative, role contributing through its own core characteristics to the national picture, one that is continuously evolving. By building upon the strengths of each region, Scotland’s economy can finally tackle the three structural deficits which we first identified in SCDI (now Prosper)’s 2015 Blueprint; “From Fragile to Agile”, namely; poor productivity, low levels of innovation and an anaemic performance of internationalisation."

Read Ross Martin's article for our blog on the importance of regional economies: https://www.enlighten.scot/scotlands-regional-economies/

22/12/2025

The Commission on School Reform described the data as ‘deeply concerning’.