Auto-award of Early Learning and School Age Payments begins

Social Security Scotland began on 28 November 2022 to award Best Start Grant Early Learning Payment and School Age Payment automatically to eligible families in receipt of Scottish Child Payment¹. The change meant families meeting the age conditions for the two payments no longer had to apply for them separately².

The two payments sit within the Best Start Grant, which consists of three separate payments: Pregnancy and Baby Payment, Early Learning Payment and School Age Payment¹. Social Security Scotland, the executive agency of the Scottish Government responsible for delivering social security benefits in Scotland, began taking applications for Early Learning Payment on 29 April 2019 and for School Age Payment on 3 June 2019¹. The Scottish Child Payment itself was extended to eligible low-income families with children aged under 16 on 14 November 2022⁴.

The automatic award followed a separate change to Scottish Child Payment. On 14 November 2022 a feature called Straight-through Processing was introduced, allowing certain applications meeting a specific set of criteria to be passed automatically to the payment approval stage⁴.

The Best Start Grants are grants rather than loans: they do not have to be repaid and do not affect other benefits, and there are no rules on how the money is spent². The Pregnancy and Baby Payment replaced the Sure Start Maternity Grant for people living in Scotland, and the qualifying rules differ between the two². There is no equivalent of the Early Learning Payment or School Age Payment for people who do not live in Scotland².

Why it matters for households

Families in Scotland receiving Scottish Child Payment whose child met the age conditions for Early Learning Payment or School Age Payment had those payments issued without submitting a separate claim from 28 November 2022¹. The practical effect was that entitlement to the two Best Start Grant payments no longer depended on a family knowing about them and applying within a window.

The automatic award did not cover Pregnancy and Baby Payment, which continued to require an application¹. Families could still apply for Scottish Child Payment or for Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods separately if they wished, and applicants who chose to apply for both at once completed a single form⁴.

The Scottish Child Payment rate was increased from £27.15 to £28.20 in April 2026, in line with inflation, compared with initial payments of £10 per week made to eligible families in February 2021⁴. Scottish Child Payment does not count as earned income in the calculation of other UK or Scottish Government benefits the applicant or anyone in their household receives⁴.

What happens next

Social Security Scotland has not reported any further extension of automatic awarding beyond the two payments covered from 28 November 2022¹. The agency publishes Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods statistics quarterly, with the next edition covering up to the end of June 2025 due in August 2025¹, and Scottish Child Payment statistics quarterly, with the next edition covering up to 30 September 2026 due in November 2026⁴.