Three Years of SNAP2: Progress, Partnership, and the Next Steps for Human Rights in Scotland
25 March 2026
Three years into Scotland’s Second National Action Plan for Human Rights (SNAP2), we’re proud to reflect on a year marked by progress, partnership, and growing momentum. From expanding lived‑experience leadership to launching Scotland’s first Human Rights Tracker, SNAP2 is continuing to strengthen the foundations needed to realise human rights for everyone in Scotland.
This year, the SNAP2 Leadership Panel welcomed new members with diverse lived experience. Their insight helps make sure the work reflects the realities people face every day, while long‑standing members provide continuity and expertise. Together, the Panel continues to guide SNAP2 with a strong, people‑centred approach.
SNAP2’s first completed action, Action 28, was delivered by the Alliance on behalf of the Health and Human Rights Partnership. This partnership brought together Public Health Scotland, the Alliance, and Strathclyde University in collaboration. The Preliminary Mapping Exercise applied the PANEL principles and agreed definitions of healthcare and priority populations. The exercise identified strong use of person‑centred language and examples of positive practice but also highlighted gaps in accountability, legality, and empowerment. Findings, published on 9 September, include a rights‑based decision‑making flowchart now being piloted in multiple settings. Health and human rights: Rights-based decision-making in healthcare settings – Publications – Public Health Scotland
Work has continued to embed human rights in the Race Equality Framework 2030 and to support creation of the new independent Anti‑Racism Observatory for Scotland (Action 4). The Scottish Government’s Anti‑Racism Delivery Plan (20 March 2026) sets out a system‑wide approach to strengthening leadership, accountability, evidence, capability, culture, and capacity. The newly established Anti Racism Observatory for Scotland will provide independent scrutiny and ensure lived experience informs policy and system design. Anti-racism delivery plan 2026-2030 – gov.scot
The review of Scotland’s Health and Social Care Standards (Action 30) is underway following recommendations from the Independent Review of Inspection, Scrutiny and Regulation. The review is assessing how rights‑based approaches and independent living principles can be better reflected and applied. Engagement through the co‑design programme has gathered diverse perspectives from users, regulators, and stakeholders.
A major milestone this year was the launch of the first phase of Scotland’s Human Rights Tracker (Action 45) on 12 March 2026. The platform consolidates more than 500 UN treaty body recommendations across devolved areas and allows users to search by theme, issue, or affected group. Future phases will introduce a methodology for reporting actions and impacts, beginning with ICESCR, followed by a review of scope, functionality, and long‑term ownership. Human Rights Tracker – Home
Capability‑building efforts (Action 53) continue to strengthen preparation for the proposed Human Rights Bill. The Capability Building Working Group meets regularly and collaborates with NHS Education for Scotland, the Improvement Service, and third‑sector organisations. Further input at the Group’s upcoming meeting will help shape long‑term capability‑building plans.
In 2025, the Leadership Panel undertook a targeted review of its LGBTQIA+ actions, resulting in updated commitments agreed in October 2025. These commitments focus on improving public awareness of LGBTQIA+ rights, monitoring and challenging rights violations and harmful narratives, and ensuring gender identity healthcare is equitable, accessible, timely, and high‑quality. Engagement with stakeholders and lived experience was central to this work, and we thank them for their valued contribution.
The Panel continued engagement with the Scottish Government and international partners, including the Minister for Equalities and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. The Co‑Chairs also participated in the inaugural meeting of the Global Network on National Human Rights Action Planning at the University of Liverpool, showcasing Scotland’s approach internationally.
Overall, SNAP2 has made meaningful progress over the past year, driven by collaboration, lived experience, and a shared commitment to dignity, equality, and human rights for everyone in Scotland. With new tools, stronger partnerships, and a growing focus on accountability, the work is well‑placed to continue building a fairer Scotland.
Nick Bland, Charlie McMillan and Hussein Patwa
SNAP2 Leadership Panel Co-chairs
SNAP at Scotland’s Annual Human Rights Conference
05 February 2026
SNAP was pleased to be represented at Scotland’s Annual Human Rights Conference, hosted by the Human Rights Consortium for Scotland. This year’s theme, “Our Rights, Your Move”, brought together civil society organisations, public sector leaders, academics, and human rights activists and defenders to explore how rights can be more effectively realised in practice across Scotland.
Members of the SNAP leadership panel, alongside SNAP2 Co-Chairs Hussain Patwa and Nick Bland, hosted a workshop exploring how Scotland’s public sector can further strengthen its human rights practice in line with Scotland’s Second National Action Plan for Human Rights (SNAP2). Chaired by Nick and Hussain, the session focused on mainstreaming human rights across policies, services, and everyday decision-making. Contributions from Craig Morris (Care Inspectorate), Claire Thirwall (Public Health Scotland), and Gordon Paterson (NHS Education for Scotland) shared practical insights into embedding human rights within their organisations, followed by reflections on the opportunities and challenges of advancing SNAP2 across the public sector.
As Hussain highlighted during the wider panel discussion, SNAP only matters for rights holders if it leads to tangible change, clear accountability when things go wrong, and meaningful participation that shapes outcomes, not just conversations. He reinforced the PANEL principles as central to this work — participation as influence, accountability as consequences, and empowerment as proper resourcing — and emphasised that co-production should challenge traditional power dynamics between the state and communities. Public sector colleagues were encouraged to reflect on how SNAP represents a shift away from “business as usual” engagement, towards a more transformative approach to realising human rights in Scotland.
Everyday Essentials: Reflections from the Rights Holder Co-Chair of the SNAP2 Leadership Panel
10 December 2025
Serving as the rights holder co-chair for the Scottish National Action Plan on Human Rights (SNAP2) has given me a close-up view of something that often goes unnoticed: the quiet architecture that holds everyday dignity in place. This year, the theme for UN Human Rights Day, “Everyday Essentials”, feels like a timely companion to that work.
Much of human rights practice happens far from headlines. It unfolds in kitchens where a family debates the rising cost of energy. It hums in care homes where people deserve not only support but respect. It shapes classrooms where children carry hopes that should never be dimmed by discrimination. These small settings form the daily terrain of human rights. They are where rights either breathe or falter.
In SNAP2, my role has been to bring lived realities into the centre of decision making. Rights holders are not side notes, to be used and discarded as a greater agenda drives forward. We are evidence, compass and accountability at once. When policymakers, civil society and public bodies gather around our shared table, the voices of people most affected by injustice serve as both anchor and spark. They remind us why implementation matters just as much as ambition.
“Everyday Essentials” challenges us to recognise that rights are not abstract protections that activate only during crisis. They are the conditions that let a person live without fear of being ignored, harmed or excluded. They include safe housing, accessible services, financial security, fair treatment and the feeling that one’s life is valued. As rights-holder co-chair, I have seen how Scotland can move closer to making these essentials real. Progress grows when we treat people as partners, when we listen without defensiveness and when we shape policy around lived experience and truth. Human rights are ultimately a daily practice, and SNAP2 is one way Scotland is learning to practice them with greater care and courage. The last few months have seen new life spring into the panel, bringing forth new ideas and a zest for progress. My role is not to command, but to guide, mentor, encourage and yes, where needed, disrupt constructively. Rights holders are the embers that keep the dream of equity and equality alive, but it will take all actors, working together with transparency and humility to fan the flames that will carve out a society where rights are more than words on a page or a siren’s call.
SNAP2 Co-Chairs meeting with Marie-Eve Boyer-Friedrich, OHCHR
25 November 2025
The SNAP Co-Chairs met with Marie-Eve Boyer-Friedrich of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to discuss Scotland’s National Action Plan for Human Rights (SNAP) and explore good practice.
This meeting aimed to strengthen connections between the SNAP Leadership Panel and global best practices, ensuring that SNAP is aligned with international human rights standards and delivers meaningful, collaborative action for Scotland.
SNAP Co-Chair Charlie McMillan commented – ‘It was great to meet with Marie-Eve and discuss the successes and challenges of implementing SNAP2. It’s so important that the United Nations know and understand Scotland’s commitment to Human Rights, and Marie-Eve had a number of ideas on how we can further develop our national action plan for human rights’.
Refocusing for Impact: Leadership Panel’s Renewed Commitment to LGBTQIA+ Rights in 2025
27 October 2025
Throughout 2025, Scotland’s Second National Action Plan for Human Rights (SNAP2) Leadership Panel has undertaken a focused review of its actions relating to LGBTQIA+ issues. This review was a deliberate effort to ensure that the Panel’s work remains responsive, inclusive, and aligned with the evolving needs of LGBTQIA+ communities across Scotland.
At the October 2025 meeting, the Panel reached a pivotal decision: to amend and refocus its actions to better address current challenges. This marks a significant moment in the Panel’s journey, demonstrating a commitment to continuous improvement and meaningful engagement.
The actions now read as follows:
Action 18a – Put into place proactive measures to increase positive public awareness regarding the human rights of LGBTQIA+ people. Monitor and challenge violations, negative public awareness, and negative media coverage of those rights.
Action 18b – Put in place measures to expand and increase the provision of gender identity healthcare across Scotland, to ensure it is equitable, easily accessible, timely and high quality, and ensure that gender identity healthcare is informed by the needs of service users, enables transgender and non-binary people’s full participation and supports their ability to live freely and independently.
The decision reflects feedback from stakeholders, lived experiences shared by current and former panel members, and a broader understanding of the systemic barriers that persist. By refining its approach, the Panel aims to strengthen its impact and uphold the principles of dignity, equality, and respect for all.
As the Panel moves forward, this renewed focus will ensure that LGBTQIA+ rights remain central to Scotland’s human rights agenda.