Scottish Human Rights Commission

The Scottish Human Rights Commission has published a statement on the Equality and Human Rights Commission's Statutory Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations, which comes into force on 5 August 2026.

The EHRC's Code of Practice explains how the Equality Act 2010 applies to services, public functions, and associations, and provides guidance for public services including the NHS, prisons, and education in Scotland.

The statement sets out the steps Scottish public authorities should take to ensure their approach is consistent with human rights law, including engaging with those affected by policy and practice, and collecting data to monitor how the Code of Practice is operating in practice.

Read the full statement:
https://ow.ly/qbPQ50Zw4o0

🌍The rule of law impacts all of us.

⚖️For the seventh year running, we are shining a light on the rule of law situation in Scotland.

🔍Our on-the-ground insights reveal key rule of law trends and challenges. Among the key findings were:
· Public trust and support for human rights are under pressure, amid growing polarisation, disinformation and opposition to human rights frameworks.
· Challenges persist in law-making processes, including consultation fatigue, limited participation, and concerns about the use of secondary legislation that limits parliamentary scrutiny.
· Access to justice remains a significant challenge, with ongoing concerns about legal aid, complaints mechanisms and effective redress for rights violations

We also make recommendations on how national and regional authorities can strengthen the rule of law, including:
· Rebuild trust through meaningful public participation.
· Embed human rights in law-making and scrutiny.
· Improve access to justice and redress.

Explore the Scotland report here: https://ow.ly/jG1K50ZvMnz

This is one of the country reports compiled in a major, new report from European Network of National Human Rights Institutions on the European rule of law landscape, featuring insights from National Human Rights Institutions ( ) across the Council of Europe region.

🌍Explore the regional trends: https://ow.ly/EMYI50ZvMny

📚See the full regional report with all country findings here: https://ow.ly/MRmB50ZvMnA

We have written to the Cabinet Secretary for Justice, Neil Gray, raising serious human rights concerns in Scottish prisons and secure care settings.

Our letter is informed by the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) report, which was published in July.

The report's findings echo the conclusions of Review, Recommend, Repeat, our spotlight report from 2024, which found that 83 per cent of recommendations made by international human rights bodies to Scotland over ten years had seen little or no meaningful progress.
We're calling on the Scottish Government to put an end to unacceptable delays and take the action needed to make rights real for people in places of detention.

https://ow.ly/xh4q50ZuA3X

Civil and political rights are the rights that protect our freedoms and ability to participate in society.

Swipe to find out more ➡️

Follow us for more clear, accessible explanations of human rights 💡

Our Chair, Professor O’Hagan, was invited to speak at Argyll and Bute Citizens Advice Bureau’s AGM today.

Drawing on our work on economic, social and cultural rights in the Highlands and Islands, she highlighted the impact of public service cuts on rural communities and the vital role CABs play in protecting human rights.

Thank you to Argyll and Bute Citizens Advice Bureau, for having us and for putting human rights at the heart of your work.

Human rights treaties are more than just pieces of paper, they turn shared values into State obligations.

➡️ Swipe through to learn more about how we use as Scotland’s independent human rights watchdog use them to protect and promote the rights of people in Scotland.

Visit our website to find out more:
https://ow.ly/x82b50ZolPn

📣 Scottish Human Rights Commission are hosting a free, online capacity building workshop for Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to provide guidance on informing the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).

The UPR is a key opportunity for CSOs to raise human rights issues they are concerned about directly with the United Nations Human Rights Council.

In this webinar, we'll be joined by Nicoletta Zappile from UPR Info and we will be covering:

🔸 the role of CSOs in the UPR process and the impact they can have
🔸 technical guidance for the submission of stakeholder's reports to the UPR
🔸 examples of best practice

Find out more and sign up: https://ow.ly/XpoF50ZiBoq

We are hosting a free, online capacity building workshop for Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to provide guidance on informing the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).

The UPR is a key opportunity for CSOs to raise human rights issues they are concerned about directly with the United Nations Human Rights Council.

In this webinar, we'll be joined by Nicoletta Zappile from UPR Info and we will be covering:

• the role of CSOs in the UPR process and the impact they can have
• technical guidance for the submission of stakeholder's reports to the UPR
• examples of best practice

Find out more and sign up:
https://ow.ly/XpoF50ZiBoq

Yesterday, our Chair Professor Angela O'Hagan gave a statement on poverty to the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Watch it on our website:
https://ow.ly/a86z50Zhzc1