Questions to address moving forward
At this time, we are doing our best to aid in rebuilding a community that struggled through 2020 to 2023, and is still struggling. To do this, we need to find policy development opportunities where we can influence on behalf of the community. We are aware that many LGBTI+ people have become further alienated and isolated in this time, and so we want to ensure that policy is developed with that in mind.
It will take a while for the world’s dust to settle after the pandemic. We are sure that the impacts which Covid-19 wrought are yet to be fully understood. As further research and long-term studies emerge, we expect that more will be learnt and discovered about the levels of harm caused to our community throughout this period.
These are the questions that the Equality Network will be considering in our new and developing work on kinship. They are also questions we would like policy and decision makers to consider moving forward:
- How can chosen family be better integrated into policy and social support planning?
- What kind of physical spaces would best facilitate LGBTI+ support networks?
- How is the cost of living crisis affecting our families, support networks, and kinship structures?
- How might practical and pragmatic support for diverse families be provided?
- What lessons about virtual space provision in the pandemic can be taken forward into consideration for future service provision?
- How do we ensure that nobody is left out when developing both in-person and virtual spaces?
- What alienates some LGBTI+ people from their local community, and how can that alienation be addressed? This includes older people, disabled people, people with complex needs, and bisexual people (a group often neglected).
- How can mental health provision be further built into community support networks without placing the onus on an already overburdened community?
- How can we support the families of those seeking gender affirming care in Scotland, in order that they might better support their loved one?
- How can specific organisations that provide support to LGBTI+ people be better supported? For example, could local Pride organisers be equipped to offer more year-round tools to strengthen communities?
- What further research could be undertaken to investigate more fully some of the findings in this report?
We would very much welcome comments, and ideas on future work.
If you would like to share, please email rebecca@equality-network.org
