The Promise: Six Years On, Four Years to Deliver
5 February 2026
Six years ago, Scotland made a promise: to transform how Scotland cares for its Care Experienced children, young people, adults and families. Built on the power of collaboration at every level, The Promise is a commitment to ensure every child and young person in Scotland grows up loved, safe and respected, able to realise their full potential and truly thrive.
To keep this promise, all the conclusions of the Independent Care Review must be implemented, in full, by 2030.
MCR Pathways has embodied the values of The Promise since 2007 through our award-winning, relationship-based mentoring programme. At the heart of our work is the Trusted Adult. Last year, volunteer mentors supported 5,390 young people to spark potential and awaken ambition across Scotland.
Looking ahead, we cannot stand still. Increased investment in mentoring across schools, communities, and post-school education and workplaces is essential to ensure more Care Experienced young people benefit from the support of a trusted adult.
Beyond investment, we also urge decision-makers to strengthen the Children (Care, Care Experience and Services Planning) (Scotland) Bill in Stage 2 to fully deliver and support the Care Experienced community in Scotland.
Read on to learn more about The Promise and how MCR Pathways is helping to keep it.
The Role of the Trusted Adult in keeping the Promise
MCR Pathways is proud to provide mentoring support to the Care Experienced Community through the power of a trusted adult. Our mentoring programme is delivered in schools, colleges and community settings in 20 Local Authorities across Scotland; giving young people access to the trusted adult mentor that can help them build confidence and self-belief while supporting them to achieve what they need to continue on their chosen pathway to success.
Within the Care Review, the power of mentoring was highlighted as a benefit to the Care Experienced Community. This was especially recognised for Care Experienced Young People in education by supporting their attainment, and schools were encouraged to offer, and be supportive of, mentoring wherever possible to a ‘wide variety’ of young people. This is further endorsed in the Promise Plan 24-30, through their education routemap, showing mentoring as a tool to support the Care Experienced Community in sustaining post-school destinations.
Our latest Annual Report has shown that Care Experienced young people who were mentored through the MCR Pathways Programme are 3 times more likely to obtain higher qualifications than their non-mentored Care Experienced peers.
Relationship-based mentoring with a trusted adult is a model that works; both for young people at an individual and societal level. Providing a Care Experienced young person with a trusted adult who is there to listen, support and encourage them to be the best version of themselves.
Amplifying and listening to the voices of Care Experienced young people
The Promise has continued to prioritise that Care Experienced young people’s voices must be meaningfully heard, listened to and respected as experts in their own lives, upholding Article 12 of the UNCRC. At MCR Pathways, it is vital that the young people supported on our programme are the heart of everything we do and have the opportunities to influence decisions that affect their lives.
Since the evolution of our Policy and Public Affairs work, we have extended policy engagement to ensure work with and for Care Experienced young people addresses the current gaps and inequities that exist for them. Engagement has included work and collaboration with young people across the programme, with both young people currently in school and school leavers on MCR Pathways’ Young National Advisory Board (YNAB).
The YNAB is made up of young people who have previously been mentored on the programme and want to be involved in the future of MCR Pathways. This ensures their experiences and voices are at the forefront of our influencing and engagement work through meaningful engagement.
“The Promise set out a powerful, optimistic vision of what the care system could look like. However, the reality for many care-experienced young people tells us that we still have a long way to go. The voice of lived experience must be translated into meaningful, consistent change across every part of the system. We are halfway through The Promise, but nowhere near halfway through its delivery.”
Susanne Richards, Trustee, MCR Pathways Board
Systematic change will only be successful if it is driven by lived experience. We will always hold lived experience and the young person’s voice at the heart of our practice. By doing this, MCR Pathways remains an effective intervention pillar for young people, while advocating for their rights and amplifying their voices to create real, lasting change.
Amplifying and listening to the voices of Care Experienced young people
Child poverty remains a significant challenge in Scotland, with Care Experienced young people identified as a group at increased risk. Evidence highlights early intervention and sustained support through transitions to adulthood as critical in breaking cycles of poverty.
MCR Pathways is committed to helping young people break cycles of poverty through the power of a trusted adult. This is why we have made the decision to expand the reach of our programme beyond schools. Having a trusted adult follow a young person into post-school education or training will give that young person that extra support to give them the confidence to sustain these destinations, creating the path to a brighter future.
Neither child poverty nor addressing the gaps faced by the Care Experienced Community in our society can be addressed in silos. Cultivating strong, cross-sector partnerships is a crucial strategic priority to ensure we can collectively campaign for systemic change while influencing key policy areas that affect young people in Scotland.
Empowering our colleagues and mentors to keep The Promise
MCR Pathways volunteer mentors across Scotland are vital in delivering The Promise to Care Experienced young people on the programme who benefit from the support and consistency of a trusted adult. To nurture the mentor relationship, MCR Pathways supports volunteer mentors throughout their mentor journey, beginning with a thorough recruitment process that ensures mentors are skilled and confident before being matched. It is also imperative that mentors also gain fulfillment from their volunteering. In our recent Annual Report, mentors described the many mutual benefits they find in the personal relationship with their mentee.
85% of mentors have gained a greater understanding of the challenges young people face today.
78% of mentors have developed their active listening skills further since mentoring a young person.
Mentors continue to be supported for the duration of their commitment, with access to an online Mentor Hub, personalised staff check-ins, and ongoing additional training to raise awareness and enhance skills to meet the needs of the young people they support. However, as stated in The Promise, further work and commitment is needed to enhance the ecosystem that supports Scotland’s Care Experienced community to have enough paid and unpaid skilled, confident and well-supported individuals.
At MCR Pathways, we are also committed to equity and proudly operate an Interview Guarantee Scheme for any candidate who is, or has ever been, in foster care, residential care, kinship care, or looked after at home. We do this because traditional recruitment processes can sometimes overlook the diverse talents of those with Care Experience; this scheme ensures that skills are recognised and lived experiences are valued. This scheme is entirely optional and candidates are invited to indicate their preference during the application process.
