Lived Experience Boards

In order to ensure that the Scottish Human Rights Bill is informed by the experiences of ordinary people, particularly those who have experience of their rights being threatened, the Scottish Government funded the Consortium to facilitate a Lived Experience Board, which met from February 2022-September 2023, to discuss specific aspects of the Bill.

All the reports from the Lived Experience Board meetings are available below.

Block 1 (February-March 2022)

The group discussed some of the benefits of human rights incorporation for people in Scotland, and existing barriers to human rights.

• Click here to read the long-form report on Session 1 & 2
• Click here to read the short-form report on Session 1 & 2
• Click here to read the Easy Read report on Session 1 & 2
• Click here to read long-form report on Session 3 about the consultation
• Click here to read the Easy Read report on Session 3 on the consultation
• Click here to listen to report on Session 1 & 2
• Click here to listen to report on Session 3 on the consultation

Block 2 (May 2022)

The group discussed access to justice; what it looks like, the current barriers, and how to improve it in the new Human Rights Bill.

• Click here to read the long-form report
• Click here to read the short-form report
• Click here to listen to the short-form report in audio format
• Click here to read the EasyRead version

Block 3 (June 2022)

The group discussed accountability, the right to be listened to, and the rights of women, Black and Minority Ethnic people, migrants, and disabled people.

• Click here to read the long-form report
• Click here to read the short-form report
• Click here to listen to the short-form report in audio format
• Click here to read the EasyRead version

The Cost of Living Crisis (October 2022)

The group discussed the impact of the cost of living crisis on human rights in Scotland.

• Click here to read the report
• Click here to read the EasyRead version
• Click here to listen to the report in audio format

Block 4 (November-December 2022)

The group discussed the implementation of the new Human Rights Bill, and what good implementation of law and policy looks like in real life.

• Click here to read the long-form report
• Click here to read the short-form report
• Click here to listen to the short-form report in audio format

Block 5 (August-September 2023)

The group discussed the Human Rights Bill consultation, which ran from June-October 2023.

• Click here to read the long-form report
• Click here to read the short-form report
• Click here to listen to the short-form report in audio format
• Click here to read the EasyRead version

Other boards

The Scottish Government also worked with two other Lived Experience Boards. The Scottish Commission for People with Learning Disabilities has been working with adults with learning disabilities to share their experiences and advice, and Together (Scottish Alliance for Children’s Rights) has been holding meetings with children and young people, who have been named the Rights Detectives. Read their reports below:

• The Right to be Heard! The Learning Disability Lived Experience Board on the new HumanRights Bill for Scotland
• The Right to be Heard! The Learning Disability Lived Experience Board on the new Human Rights Bill for Scotland: EasyRead version
• The Rights Detectives: Mission Update
• The Rights Detectives: Mission Update, Child-Friendly version
• The Rights Detectives: Mission Update #002
• The Rights Detectives: Mission Update #002, Child-Friendly version
• The Rights Detectives: Mission Update #003
• The Rights Detectives: Mission Update #003, Child-Friendly version