Let’s Be Heard: Sharing Respondents' Pandemic Experiences, Impacts, and Lessons to be Learned in Scotland

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Foreword

The Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry is Scotland’s biggest-ever public inquiry. It is tasked with establishing the facts, and learning the lessons from, the devolved strategic response to the pandemic in Scotland.

Everyone in Scotland was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and many of us have experiences that we want to share with the Inquiry. Let’s Be Heard provides a means for people affected by decisions made in Scotland to do that. 

Ian Duddy

Since 22 May 2023, we have been collecting your experiences of the pandemic and the lessons you believe should be learned. The Let’s Be Heard team has been travelling across the country to raise awareness of the project and help start conversations in your communities.

Some of you have been happy to share your name, others have preferred to submit to us anonymously. Either way, we are very grateful to everyone who has contributed so far. All your experiences are read by Inquiry colleagues and will help inform the Inquiry’s investigations, reports and recommendations.

The report published today is a summary of the information we have gathered over the past six months. It is not a final report but sets out what we have learned to date. This interim report also highlights those communities and groups who we would like to hear more from. We want to ensure that the Inquiry also hears from minority and disadvantaged groups and from people living right across Scotland, including in rural and island communities. 

I hope you find this interim report an interesting read and continue to engage with Let’s Be Heard. The Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry is your inquiry and we want to hear from you.

Many thanks,

Ian Duddy
Chief Executive and Secretary, Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry