Embed Animal Welfare into the Scottish Curriculum
What we’re campaigning for and how you can help.
What we’re campaigning for
We want animal welfare to be formally embedded within Scotland’s education curriculum as part of the national education reform programme.
Why we’re campaigning
Incorporating animal welfare education fosters empathy, ethical awareness, and a strong sense of social responsibility in children and young people. It directly supports national priorities, including:
- Responsible citizenship
- Mental health and wellbeing
- Sustainability and environmental stewardship
- Violence prevention and early intervention
Research from the Scottish SPCA and the University of Edinburgh shows clear benefits of animal welfare education, including:
- Greater understanding of animal needs and sentience
- Improved emotional intelligence and recognition of both human and animal emotions
- Increased cognitive and behavioural empathy towards animals
- Proven reductions in the risk of animal harm among high-risk children through early educational interventions
- Animal welfare education is more than a single subject — it is a proven, evidence-based driver of social change.
How we will do this
Animal welfare education should be co-designed as part of Scotland’s new national education framework, in partnership with Education Scotland, teachers, children and young people.
Lucy’s Story
Learning Kindness Towards Animals
My name’s Lucy, and I’ll never forget the day the Scottish SPCA came to my school. We learned about how animals feel, happiness, fear, pain, just like we do. I didn’t expect it to change how I saw the world, but it did.
Before, I’d never thought much about the rabbits in the garden centre, or the dogs left in cars on hot days. But that day, something clicked. I started noticing more. I started caring more.
The Scottish SPCA’s Animal Guardians programme works with children like me who might be struggling at home or at school. It helps us build empathy and confidence through learning about animals.
I also learned about rabbits, how they’re social, how they need space, company, and the right diet. Too many are bought on impulse and end up abandoned when families realise how much care they need.
Why animal welfare in education matters
Education changes that. It stops cruelty before it starts. It teaches respect for life and gives young people the tools to act with compassion.
If every child in Scotland learned what we did, fewer animals would need rescuing. Fewer would suffer in silence. And maybe, when we grow up, kindness would be something we all practise instinctively, not something that has to be taught.
That’s why animal welfare education belongs in every school. Because empathy, once learned, lasts a lifetime.
What we’re asking candidates and political parties to do
We invite you to meet with us, hear the evidence behind our proposals, and explore how you can place animal welfare at the centre of your commitments. These are practical, achievable steps that will:
- Reduce animal abuse
- Strengthen enforcement
- Make Scotland safer and fairer for animals and people alike
What we’re asking Scotland to do
Use your voice for Scotland’s animals.
We are asking for Scotland’s support. You can do this by learning more about the issues we’re tackling, showing and sharing your support on social media, and adding your voice to the call for change.
Every conversation matters. Every show of support helps us make the case that animal welfare is not a luxury — it is essential to Scotland’s wellbeing.
Animals count in Scotland — Let’s make them count for something.
Support us from £5 a month
Every £1 helps us rescue, protect and advocate for Scotland’s animals.
