Letters: Scottish Apprenticeship Week

Dear Editor

This week marks Scottish Apprenticeship Week (6th-10th March), a fantastic opportunity to shine a light on the vital role apprenticeships play in supporting people, employers and the economy.

Modern Apprenticeships allow people from diverse backgrounds, no matter their background and abilities, to gain and develop skills for every business no matter its size or sector.

The rewards of getting young people who are disabled or care experienced into work are well worth it. They bring passion, skills, dedication and drive to the workplace.

Recruiting a Modern Apprentice enables employers to fill the skills gaps that exist within their current workforce, as apprentices begin to learn sector-specific skills from day one, developing specialist knowledge that will positively affect the bottom line.

However, as always, we can do more and support for businesses and other employers is key as it is they who clearly make the vital difference.

As we mark Scottish Apprenticeship Week, we would urge Scotland’s employers to look beyond the label and take on a Modern Apprentice who may have an additional need, taking advantage of the excellent skills offered by many of these young people.

Yours faithfully 

The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition:

Kenny Graham, Falkland House School

Lynn Bell, LOVE Learning

Stephen McGhee, Spark of Genius

Niall Kelly, Young Foundations

42 Charlotte Square

Edinburgh EH2 4HQ

Tel: 0131 603 8996

Letters: Awareness of ovarian cancer symptoms is devastatingly low

Dear Editor,

Persistent bloating. Abdominal Pain. Feeling full quickly. Needing to wee more often.

The level of awareness of ovarian cancer symptoms is devastatingly low, and not knowing what to look out for could lead to a delayed diagnosis of the deadliest gynaecological cancer.

Did you know these symptoms? I didn’t before I was diagnosed with stage III ovarian cancer.

I write to you today as we need to increase widespread awareness of the symptoms of ovarian cancer to help improve early diagnosis rates. Right now, just 1 in 5 (20%) women can name persistent bloating as a symptom of ovarian cancer1, with only one in three (34%) contacting their GP if they experience it2.

If I’d have known the symptoms, I would have seen my GP a lot earlier.

I began to experience pain in my abdomen, similar to period pain, the summer before my diagnosis – along with needing to wee more often and changes to my bowel habits – but I just dismissed it due to my age.

I never had ovarian cancer in my mind. 

It was initially suspected as IBS, but a CT scan and ultrasound later confirmed the cancer, which had spread.

My experience has shown me that so much more needs to be done to raise awareness of ovarian cancer and its symptoms in order to save lives. If diagnosed at the earliest stages 9 in 10 women will survive3, but currently two thirds of women are diagnosed late, when the cancer is harder to treat4.

That’s why this Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month (March), together with Target Ovarian Cancer, I want everyone to know the potential significance of the symptoms: bloating, abdominal pain, feeling full quickly and needing to wee more often.

Editor, share the symptoms with readers this month. Help to stop this disease devastating lives.

Find out more by visiting https://targetovariancancer.org.uk/get-involved/ovarian-cancer-awareness-month or read my full story here.

With best wishes,

Helen Hills

Letters: Government must reconsider proposed mental health budget cuts

Dear Editor

As a coalition of organisations that support vulnerable children and young people, many of whom have mental health problems, we share the concerns of many over a proposed £38 million cut to mental health spending in today’s final vote on the Scottish Budget (Tuesday 21st February).

It should be noted that we were already experiencing a mental health emergency in Scotland, even before Covid-19 and the cost-of-living crisis took hold. These have worsened an already devastating situation for many children and young people, resulting in a perfect storm of challenges.

It therefore beggars belief that, in the face of a mental health tsunami, the Scottish Government is set to cut the mental health budget. Combined with this, an already tight budget will have to stretch even further to keep pace with soaring inflation.

With the resultant personal cost to those concerned and their families, as well as to the economy overall, we need to invest more, not less, in our mental health services. The situation we are currently in could potentially lead to a lost generation of vulnerable children and young people who are missing out on the support they vitally need.

To address this, we must ensure our mental health services are protected and would urge the Scottish Government to reconsider these cuts and commit to increasing investment, ensuring that our children and young people receive the high-quality care they need when they need it.

Yours faithfully

The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition:

Kenny Graham, Falkland House School

Lynn Bell, LOVE Learning

Stephen McGhee, Spark of Genius

Niall Kelly, Young Foundations

4 Queen Street, Edinburgh EH2 1JE

Remember to use up stamps without a barcode – not valid after 31 January

After 31 January, ‘everyday’ stamps without a barcode will no longer be valid. So, if you can find your old ones, this is your last chance to use them.

Or, if you prefer, you can swap them.

For more info visit http://RoyalMail.com/barcodedstamps

Letters: Urgent need for autism commissioner

Dear Editor

As a group of organisations who support vulnerable children and young people, many with autism and a learning disability, we would add our support to concerns relating to a delay in a Scottish Government commitment to establish a commissioner to promote and protect the rights of autistic people.

Currently too many of those with autism and learning disabilities are struggling to get the support needed, with their human rights breached, and a commissioner is vital to help them fight their corner.

However, with a delay in public consultation on this until late 2023, there is a real concern that the delivery of a commissioner is simply not being prioritised.

While not by any means a panacea, a commissioner for autism and learning disability would be the first of its kind in the world, established in law to champion the human rights of autistic people and people with a learning disability.  

It would be a powerful voice, improving access to services and advocating on people’s behalf when they cannot. A commissioner would also close the current gap between what the law says and what actually happens, delivering improvements. Importantly people would also have recourse when the system falls short and fails to deliver for them.  

Many of those with autism and learning disabilities feel invisible, and such a role can help people live good lives with choice and control, free from discrimination. We would urge the Scottish Government to develop a sense of urgency on this vital matter.

Yours faithfully

The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition:

Kenny Graham, Falkland House School

Lynn Black, LOVE Learning

Stephen McGhee, Spark of Genius

Niall Kelly, Young Foundations

4 Queen Street

Edinburgh EH2 1JE

Tel: 0131 603 8996

Santa Claus delivers first ever Christmas message to the world!

Santa Claus has delivered his first ever global Christmas address from his Post Office in Finnish Lapland.

His first official Christmas message details the festive wishes he receives in the letters that are written by many children and adults all over the world – this year’s top Christmas wishes were health, happiness and love.

Santa Claus’ first Christmas message was informed by letters written by the young and the young at heart, mostly between the ages of 8 and 25. In addition to the three main themes, many letters also asked the age-old question, “Santa, are you real?”

Santa Claus’ Christmas Eve message is available to view online at Santa Claus’ Main Post Office website here

Letter: Swap the salt and reduce your risk of stroke 

Dear Editor 

In Scotland, more than five million adults have been diagnosed with high blood pressure. And for every ten people diagnosed with high blood pressure, seven remain undiagnosed and untreated. 

That’s extremely worrying to our charity as high blood pressure is the biggest single risk factor for a stroke. 

Please consider making a New Year’s Resolution to lower your blood pressure, even by a small amount, to help stay healthy in 2023. 

One way to do this is to reduce your sodium intake. Most sodium is in the salt we eat and that’s why we’re proud to support Season with Sense, a public health campaign which aims to drive down consumer sodium intake.

Find out more at www.seasonwithsense.com

By making small changes to our diet – such as cutting the amount or type of salt we use – we can greatly reduce our risk of serious health conditions such as stroke. 

We know it can be hard to cut out salt completely, so it’s good to know there are alternatives to regular table, sea and rock salts, such as LoSalt® – which has two thirds less sodium (66%), without any taste compromise.  

When you’re out shopping, look out for the special tubs of LoSalt® on sale in supermarkets. For every tub sold, a 20p donation will be made to the Stroke Association to help fund the vital work we do to support stroke survivors and carers. Last year, the promotional tubs raised a staggering £30,000, all of which helped towards rebuilding lives.  

The tubs will also have information on the FAST test. Face, Arms, Speech, are the most common signs that someone is having a stroke. Time tells you that Stroke is a medical emergency and you must phone 999 straight away. By Acting FAST you could save someone’s life or reduce the likelihood of serious disability. 

Please note that if you take certain types of medication that affect potassium levels, LoSalt® and other reduced sodium salt alternatives may not be suitable for you. This may include people receiving medication for diabetes, heart or kidney disorders. Check with your GP for advice. 

John Watson

Associate Director Scotland, The Stroke Association 

Royal National Institute of Blind People: A letter from Santa

Dear Editor,

With the winter nights drawing in, there’s no doubt that Christmas is fast approaching. In the North Pole, Santa and his elves are busy getting ready to give every child a magical Christmas.

Santa is once again expecting to receive millions of letters from children around the world with endless lists of what they’d like to receive in their stockings when the big day arrives.

To ensure children living with a vision impairment in the UK get a reply from Santa, he has teamed up with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to make his letters available in accessible formats, including audio and large print.

This year, Santa’s friends at card company Hallmark have also helped him write replies in braille so every child with a vision impairment can read their letter independently.

Last year, the elves sent more than 1,400 letters from Santa to blind and partially sighted children across the UK, helping them experience the same magic of Christmas as sighted children.

If you know a child who has a vision impairment and who would love to receive a letter from Santa, please send their Christmas letter to: Santa Claus, RNIB, Northminster House, Northminster, Peterborough, PE1 1YN. 

Santa can receive letters through his email address. Email santa@rnib.org.uk by Tuesday 20 December for an email response with a large print attachment. 

Letters can also be requested through RNIB’s website at www.rnib.org.uk/santa. Postal letters and website requests need to be sent by Friday 2 December.

On behalf of Santa, his elves and all at RNIB, we wish you a Merry Christmas!

Michael Owen

Letters: Childline on Bullying

Dear Editor, 

This week marks Anti-Bullying Week, an annual event in Scotland and across the UK that aims to raise awareness of bullying of children and young people. This year’s theme is ‘Listen Up! (Respect our Rights)’ and we would like to highlight the ways in which bullying can be prevented and how to respond to it. 

From April 2021 to March 2022, Childline delivered 374 counselling sessions to children and young people in Scotland about bullying. 331 of these counselling sessions were about bullying in-person, an 39% increase compared to the year before when there was the national covid lockdown. 

The top three concerns where a child spoke to Childline about in-person bullying included, insults, taunts, name-calling; bullying about difference and violence. For online bullying, the top three concerns included nasty comments, threats, and intimidation. 

If you’re a parent or carer, it can be tough to know what to do if you think your child is being bullied. Talking to them and reminding them to come to you with anything that might be making them feel anxious or sad is important. You can also show them how to report or block a message that they’ve received from someone online that upsets or worries them. 

It’s best not to take their device away from them if they’ve had a negative experience online, as this may make them feel like whatever has happened is their fault. Instead, suggest they take some time away to do something else they enjoy. 

And as always, parents can call the NSPCC Helpline for advice and support on 0808 800 5000. Children and young people can contact Childline on 0800 1111 or www.childline.org.uk to speak to one of our counsellors.

There are several resources for coping with bullying on the Childline web site that parents can support their children to have a look at. We also have a message board where young people can seek support and advice from other young people for managing bullying.

Adeniyi Alade

Head of Childline Scotland 

Letters: Support charity ribbon appeal and fight meningitis

Dear Editor

Support charity ribbon appeal and fight meningitis

Charity Meningitis Now has launched its 2022 Ribbon Appeal, which gives everyone an opportunity to remember loved ones this Christmas. We’d like to invite your readers to dedicate their own ribbon.

Each year the charity helps people to honour those they have lost with a ribbon inscribed with their family member or friend’s name. These are placed on our Tree of Remembrance at our Christmas Concert in Gloucester Cathedral. A permanent tribute is also made in our Book of Remembrance.

To dedicate a ribbon visit our website at www.MeningitisNow.org/ribbon before 25 November. Ribbons can be placed by anyone left bereaved, regardless of the circumstances or cause of their loss, and all donations received in exchange for a ribbon will help Meningitis Now save lives and rebuild futures, through research, awareness and support.

It’s only through the generosity of individuals that we’re able to offer our lifesaving and life-changing services, and your support really does make a difference

I hope your readers will be able to help us again this year as we continue the fight against meningitis and look to beat this devastating disease within a generation.

If anyone would like to know more about our fight against meningitis and our Ribbon Appeal, or get tickets for our Christmas Concert on Friday 2 December, please visit our website at www.MeningitisNow.org.

Yours faithfully

Leah Wynn

Fundraising Manager, Meningitis Now, Fern House, Bath Road, Stroud,
Gloucestershire GL5 3TJ.