September 2020 – Page 23 – The NEN

Celebrate Harvest with a One Planet Picnic

Scotland offers some fantastic local and sustainable food choices and this harvest season, Keep Scotland Beautiful is urging you to celebrate it by hosting a One Planet Picnic.

Open to everyone, from schools, businesses, communities and families the initiative, which is in its 8th year, aims to support people from all over Scotland to discover the great tastes of our seasonal food and local harvests.

This year, as we have faced unprecedented circumstances, many of us have discovered amazing local food on our doorsteps, from small egg producers, to local online food markets and milk delivery firms. Many of us have relied on local food systems and rediscovered our love of baking bread and taking time to plan our meals and cook from scratch again.

Whether you prefer sweet seasonal fruit or locally sourced fish, hosting a One Planet Picnic allows you to celebrate the local food and recipes you love with others – online or in person in small groups.

One Planet Picnic helps to raise awareness of the sustainable, local and seasonal food choices that everyone can make, as well as reducing food waste, food miles and food packaging. A One Planet Picnic is good for you, and good for the planet.

Eve Keepax, Education and Learning Officer, at Keep Scotland Beautiful, said, “Last year more than 17,000 people were registered to take part in a One Planet Picnic and as we emerge from lockdown restrictions we would love to invite people to get involved this year.

“Why not organise a picnic with a small group of friends and make the most of our stunning scenery or a local park, or host an online picnic with work colleagues or family. A picnic is a great way to come together, it’s environmentally friendly and there is even a prize draw to enter just by registering your picnic with us.”

Picnic at www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org/oneplanetpicnic and access a range of resources including recipes, invitations and posters.

You will also be entered into a prize draw to win a baking starter pack and baking book donated by the Association of Glasgow Bakers

Heart Research UK Healthy tip – Reducing your sugar intake

Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by Dr Helen Flaherty, Head of Health Promotion at Heart Research UK

Reducing your sugar intake

Around 63% of adults in the UK are either overweight or obese. Excess weight gain occurs when you consume more calories (energy) than you need. Maintaining a healthy weight can reduce your risk of heart disease. Sugar provides energy and consuming too much can lead to weight gain.

In this Healthy Tip, we provide some tips for lowering your intake of sugary foods and drinks to help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight.

Check food labels

When checking food labels be aware that added sugar can be listed in a variety of ways, such as sucrose, glucose, maltose, fructose, dextrose, honey, syrup, molasses, treacle or fruit juice concentrates. The food label may also provide information on
how much sugar is contained.

High in sugar – Foods that are high in sugar contain 22.5g or more of total sugars per 100g

Low in sugar – Foods that are low in sugar contain 5g or less of total sugars per 100g

Save sugary foods and drinks for an occasional sweet treat

We all like to have a treat from time to time, but if we consume sugary foods and drinks too often, it can be a risk to our health. Sugar is added to many commonly consumed food and drink products, such as cakes, biscuits, puddings, sweets, chocolate, soft drinks and sweetened yoghurts. Try to limit the amount of these foods and drinks in your diet by eating them less often and in smaller portions.

Reduce sugar in your drinks

If you usually add sugar to hot drinks, why not cut back gradually on the amount of sugar you add, until you can cut it out altogether. Alternatively, you could opt for an artificial sweetener, however this will not help you to adjust your taste preference for less sugary drinks. Try swapping sugary soft drinks for water, sugar-free or reduced-sugar drinks. Unsweetened fruit juices and smoothies also contain sugar so try to limit your intake to no more than 150ml a day.

Reduce your sugar intake at breakfast time

Frosted, chocolate or honey-covered breakfast cereals tend to be high in sugar. Try replacing these with unsweetened wholegrain breakfast cereals. For added sweetness, you could top your breakfast cereal with fruit, such as sliced bananas or berries and this will also contribute to your 5 a day.

Switch to low-sugar desserts

For a low-sugar dessert try adding fruit to a low-fat and low-sugar yoghurt. If using tinned fruit, choose tins in juice rather than
syrup. If you cannot resist a sugary pudding, eating a smaller portion is a better option as it will contain less sugar than a regular-sized portion.

What about the sugars contained in fruit?

Fruit contains naturally occurring sugars as well as fibre, vitamins, minerals and water. In this combination fruit is generally regarded as being good for our health. Eating at least 5 portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day is recommended as part of a healthy balanced diet.

Are honey and brown sugar healthy options?

Although they are often marketed as healthier options, brown sugar and honey are not better for you than white sugar. These products are simply different forms of sugar and they are all high in calories. Brown sugar is the same as white sugar, with a small amount of molasses added in to give it a brown colour and a different flavour. Although honey is a natural product, it has a low nutritional value and it is also high in calories. Therefore, you should try to reduce your intake of honey and brown sugar as well as other types of sugar and syrups.

Further information

If you would like further information on weight management, you can get advice and support from the NHS: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-weight/start-the-nhs-weight-loss-plan/

You can find more healthy tips, recipes and advice at heartresearch.org.uk.

Emergency funding for culture

Creative Scotland has published details of the Independent Cinema Recovery and Resilience Fund, the first of five emergency funds to be delivered over the coming weeks.

The Independent Cinema Recovery and Resilience Fund is a £3.5million fund from the Scottish Government. The aim of the Fund is to help secure the survival of Scotland’s independent cinemas, enabling them to re-establish and adjust their business models in response to Covid-19.

The fund addresses the critical financial need faced by Scotland’s independent cinemas to enable them to return to full-time operation, significantly reducing the risk of wide-spread redundancies and closure of vital community assets.

Guidelines for applying to the Fund have now been published ahead opening for applications on Monday 14 September.

Sambrooke Scott, Head of Audience Development at Screen Scotland said: “We very much welcome the First Minister’s recent announcement of £31.5m in emergency funding for culture in Scotland and are pleased, as part of that, to be able to quickly offer £3.5m of that funding to support Scotland’s independent cinemas.

“These cinemas not only present a broad range of high-quality creative programming to a varied audience, but they also serve as community hubs in geographically diverse parts of Scotland, including some of our more remote places.

“This fund will offer a vital lifeline to those independent cinemas which have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, helping them to return to full-time operation and protect jobs.”

The Independent Cinema Recovery and Resilience Fund is the first of five new emergency funds to be delivered by Creative Scotland over the coming weeks as follows:

The £15m Culture Organisations and Venues Recovery Fund will support organisations that provide opportunities for cultural engagement and who have been unable to trade due to the impact of Covid-19. It includes both organisations who provide opportunities for audience engagement (such as galleries, performing arts spaces, commercial theatres, comedy clubs and nightclubs) as well as those that enable and deliver cultural activity (such as production facilities, music and dance companies). Eligibility criteria and guidelines for applying are currently in development and will be published on Thursday 10 September. The fund will open for applications on Thursday 17 September and awards will be made by the first week in November.
The £5m Creative Freelancer Hardship Fund will address the current financial hardship being felt by creative freelancers who normally work in the culture sector, but whose work has been impacted by Covid-19. We are currently working to appoint partners to ensure a wide spread of coverage of this fund and we anticipate opening for applications from early October.
The £5m Sustaining Creative Practice Fund will support artists to continue developing new creative work that will make a significant contribution to Scotland’s recovery from COVID-19. This includes £1.5 million for the Culture Collective programme, mentioned in the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government, supporting organisations employing freelance artists to work in and with communities across Scotland. The remaining £3.5m will be added to Creative Scotland’s existing open fund which is open for applications from individuals now.
The £3m Youth Arts Fund will ensure creative opportunities for children and young people continue to exist across Scotland despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The fund will include targeted and open funding to youth music and wider youth arts organisations, a scheme to devolve grants locally to artists who work with young people and small grants delivered directly to young people to support them fulfil their creative ambitions.

Details of all funds will be published on the Creative Scotland website and publicised through media and social media communications.

Congested city bypass must be priority, says Briggs

Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, has said that the development of Edinburgh City Bypass must be a priority in the Scottish Government new national infrastructure investment plan, due to be published this month.

This week at the Scottish Parliament the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said that the Scottish Government would “set out the framework for £32 billion of infrastructure investment over the next five years.”

In May 2018, Miles Briggs MSP held a Members debate in the Scottish Parliament where the then Transport secretary Humza Yousaf that the Edinburgh City Bypass was a priority for the Scottish Government (link).

In June 2018 the now Transport Secretary Michael Matheson declined to give a timetable for when Edinburgh City Bypass would be developed to address overcapacity issues.

Two years since the promise of a review into the strategic importance of the A720 Edinburgh City Bypass and there has still been no progress made.

Edinburgh City’s bypass over congestion is an issue that Miles has campaigned on since his election in 2016.

Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, said: “Lothian residents and businesses are increasingly concerned that SNP Ministers are not demonstrating the urgency required to avoid the bypass becoming gridlocked in future as usage will continue to grow and grow.

“Overcapacity issues on the bypass must be a national transport priority for this government and they must bring forward detailed new plans to improve this key trunk road.

“SNP Ministers have been delaying the development of this much needed infrastructure for residents and commuters in Edinburgh and the Lothians.

“The development of Edinburgh City Bypass must be part of the new national infrastructure investment plan.”

Community optometrists to support eye care services

Help for those with sight-threatening conditions.

Patients with chronic eye conditions will be now be able to be assessed by community optometrists as part of a new plan supported by £3 million in funding.

Due to changes in hospital services because of COVID-19 – including health, safety and physical distancing measures – there has been limited capacity to see all patients with chronic and sight-threatening conditions.

Under the new plan, the skills of community optometrists will be utilised to support hospital eye services, ensuring more patients can be seen for their appointments.

Community optometrists are qualified to undertake this care – and the new initiative will help patients as well as supporting the existing optometry workforce.

The Programme for Government contains a commitment to accelerate the reform of NHS eye care services.

This includes funding to support an additional 50 optometrists to train as independent prescribing optometrists, who can safely treat more patients within the community.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “As we steadily re-mobilise, we are implementing new ways of working to enable our highly skilled workforce across the whole NHS to deliver care in a safe and timely manner.

“I’m pleased that as we continue to see positive results in dealing with the virus, hospital patients with eye conditions will now be able to be reviewed by community optometrists.

“Community optometrists have worked very hard during the pandemic to embrace new ways of working, and these clinicians will now also play a key role in this initiative.

“This plan utilises the capacity within community optometry – their expertise, staffing and readily equipped practices can support the NHS both during the COVID-19 pandemic recovery, and beyond.”

Director of Royal National Institute of Blind Scotland James Adams said: “We welcome any move that ensures people receive timely eye-care examinations and treatment. It remains as crucial as ever that eye problems are diagnosed as quickly as possible so that people don’t lose sight unnecessarily.

“As with all our health sector staff, optometrists have worked incredibly hard to maintain their vital service in very challenging conditions. RNIB Scotland has worked closely with them to assure the public that it is safe, and important, to attend appointments.”

More detail on Health Board mobilisation plans can be read online.

MacDonald welcomes youth guarantee

SNP MSP Gordon MacDonald has welcomed a new £60million Youth Guarantee announced in the Programme for Government, which guarantees everyone in Edinburgh aged 16-24, a job, a place in education or a place in training.

The new partnership between the Scottish Government and Scotland’s employers is backed by £60 million of government investment, which will be broken down as follows:

£30 million through local authorities to help local partnerships to deliver employability support for young people
£10 million to create additional opportunities in colleges
£10 million additional funding for Developing the Young Workforce, the Scottish Government’s internationally recognised Youth Employment Strategy
£10 million to support pathways to apprenticeships

This autumn, the Scottish Government will also launch the National Transition Training Fund, which is backed by initial funding of £25 million and will help up to 10,000 people of all ages retrain for jobs in growth sectors.

SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, Gordon MacDonald,said: “Governments have rightly taken unprecedented steps to protect workers and businesses through this pandemic, but it’s vital that young people are not left behind.

“This SNP government is absolutely determined that youth unemployment will not become the legacy of the Coronavirus pandemic.

“The new £60 million Youth Guarantee, announced in the First Minister’s Programme for Government, will guarantee every young person in Edinburgh aged 16-24 a job, a place in training, or a place in education.

“This is backed by additional funding for employers to recruit and retain apprentices, and the new Job Start Payment to help with the costs associated with starting a new job.

“I urge all employers who are able, to work with the Scottish Government to create more opportunities that recognise the valuable contribution our young people have to make in growing our economy.

“These steps to support for those most adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic are most welcome, and the SNP will continue to work to ensure every young person in our capital is given the opportunity to succeed”

No more cuts to jobs and services

Invite to a meeting

The North Edinburgh and East Edinburgh Save Our Services campaigns are calling an online meeting on Thursday 10th September at 6.30pm. The meeting will discuss how to mobilise opposition to the latest round of cuts in jobs and services.

Register at

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0oceirrD0uGt0TO6s_SIKPshqmgVQVCeC4

It is time to end the cycle of cuts to vital local services in our city. Austerity, outsourcing and privatisation has been pushed down from Westminster via Holyrood and implemented by the City Council for too long. But we need a powerful campaign if we are to be successful.

Since 2012/13, Edinburgh City Council budget cuts have amounted to £320 million. Prior to Covid19 the estimate was that there would be further cuts of £87.3 million by 2023.

These cuts have had a terrible effect on essential services. The most vulnerable, who have also been hit by cuts in social security benefits, have suffered most. Edinburgh has the lowest expenditure per capita on local services in Scotland.

The City Council’s press releases fail to reflect the reality of life for many of Edinburgh’s citizens. Wrapped in the language of ‘savings’, ‘inclusion’, ‘progress’, ‘just recovery’ and ‘sustainability’, they accept that there is no alternative to an ideology that supports a relentless increase in inequality.

Covid19 has added to an already bleak picture with increases in unemployment, child poverty and mental distress. The pandemic has shone a harsh light on the gaps in local services and underlined the importance of key workers and health, social care, housing and education.

Edinburgh Council argues that falling revenues and increased costs as a result of Covid19 now mean that further cuts are required. The Edinburgh Integration Joint Board, through which the Council and the NHS administer integrated health and social care, has already agreed cuts of £8 million.

We understand that proposals for cuts will go the Finance Committee on 24^th September and be considered at the full Council meeting on 15^th October.

These cuts affect individuals, groups and organisations across the city. They will further erode essential services and add to the numbers of unemployed.

The annual cuts in jobs and services that have taken place over the last decade have not gone unopposed. On occasion we’ve been able to deflect specific measures. But each year the screw has tightened.

It is not true that there is no money to fund these services. The Westminster government is choosing to direct it to the big corporations. For example, eleven billion pounds have gone to the private sector for a track and trace system in England that doesn’t work. £600m was handed to Tesco in rate relief (that went straight to their shareholders) while the company is enjoying a sales bonanza.

This meeting can be a first step in building a mass campaign for social justice, push back the cuts and fight for public services.

If our elected politicians wish to truly represent us, then they should join the campaign. If not, they should step aside. Let’s save and rebuild services, save jobs and fight for social justice and an environmentally sustainable future.

Strikes to start as Burton’s “takes the biscuit again” with pay offer

Production of some of Britain’s favourite biscuits will be halted over the next month as workers at Burton’s Biscuits Co in Edinburgh launch strike action over a “derisory” pay offer.

GMB members at the Sighthill manufacturing plant, voted by an overwhelming majority of 91 per cent for industrial action after management refused to increase a 1.6 per cent offer for the next year.

An indefinite work to rule and overtime ban will start on Tuesday 8 September from 14.00 hours before a series of twenty-four hour strikes throughout September. Action will take place on the following dates:

06.00 hours on Wednesday 9 September to 05.59 hours on Thursday 10 September.
06.00 hours on Wednesday 16 September to 05.59 hours on Thursday 17 September.
06.00 hours on Wednesday 23 September to 05.59 hours on Thursday 24 September.

The biscuit manufacturer, which produces staple household brands like Jammie Dodgers and Wagon Wheels, is owned by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan which hold net assets worth a staggering $204.7 billion.

GMB Scotland Organiser Benny Rankin said: “Burton’s stubborn stance on this year’s pay offer is an insult to staff that have worked throughout the lockdown at management’s insistence.

“In March staff were told they were part of the key worker response and despite serious health and safety concerns over working practices, our members did what needed to be done for this business.

“Burton’s derisory pay offer hold’s a mirror up to this management – they clearly do not value the contribution of their staff and have no interest in recognising and rewarding them properly.

“And after previous concerns over management’s ability to adhere to the COVID guidelines on workplace safety, Burton’s are taking the biscuit again over their workers’ pay and conditions.

“Their refusal to meaningfully engage with a workforce that deserve so much better means we have been left with little choice but to strike for a decent pay offer.”

Eight tips to stay on track and achieve fitness goals

Writing down goals, talking to friends and family and getting enough sleep are all ways Brits can help themselves keep to their fitness goals.

The team from Trimtone, the natural clinically-proven appetite suppressant have offered eight tips to help keep Brits on track to achieve their fitness goals

Being realistic and focussing on smaller goals will make the harder long-term goals seem more achievable.

Gaining support from friends and family will also help keep accountability, as well as having people there to celebrate the successes.

A spokesperson for Trimtone said: “Achieving goals is difficult, and it’s very easy to give up after a few weeks or reward yourself and slip into bad habits again.

“Having a great support system and reminding yourself why you’re doing it will help keep you on track.”

These are Trimtone’s tips to help reach your fitness goals:

1. Write it down

Keep a regular checklist of everything you want to do, and everything you complete at the end of the day. This could be the exercises you want to do, or the foods you eat on a day. If your goal is “I want to run a marathon” write it down, then plan how you’re going to get there.

2. Keep it fresh

If you do the same thing every day it’s going to get boring, and that’s when you’re likely to slip back into your old habits. If you don’t like the exercises you’ve been doing, try something else. If you don’t like running, why not try Zumba or a HIIT class – there are so many different ways to exercise, try as many as you can until you find one you love.

3. Set small goals

Small goals, perhaps weekly or monthly, help everything seem more manageable meaning you’ll be able to keep your motivation up. It will give you a reason to celebrate the small victories and help you realise you’re one step closer to your bigger goal.

4. Eat real foods

Whatever your goal, make sure the food you eat is fresh, whole and includes minimally processed ingredients. Never starve yourself either as restrictive eating slows down your metabolism and deprivation only leads to cravings and future binges.

5. Reward yourself

Celebrate your successes by treating yourself to something you enjoy, but it’s important to celebrate in moderation. Everyone needs a “cheat meal” or two, but make sure it stays to just one meal, instead of a slippery slope back to old habits. You could always treat yourself to some new clothes, or an evening catching up with a friend.

6. Talk about it

If you talk about your goals to friends and family, it means that there’s other people to both support you – and hold you to account. Why not find a friend who also wants to reach the same goal as you, and do it together?

7. Be realistic

Unfortunately, thing don’t happen overnight and being realistic with your goals mean that they’re easier to achieve. If you set unrealistic goals, you’re more likely to lose motivation and give up halfway through. Changing lifetime habits isn’t easy, so start off slowly and makes small, gradual changes.

8. Get your beauty sleep

Sleep is restorative, meaning it’s important your body gets plenty of it to recover from the day and set you up for a new one. Shut off your phone about an hour before you hit the hay, experiment with relaxing essentials oils, or try out a few soothing yoga poses to ease you into bed.

Charity has safely and seamlessly continued to school all 20,000 of its pupils

With the re-opening of schools, many children are facing two significant challenges. Firstly, the need to adapt to a new physical and social environment, to ensure their complete safety and protection against the continued threat of Coronavirus. Secondly many children have been out of full-time education for months, and now need to play catch up as they enter the next academic year.

However, some educational focused organisations have not put their pupils through the challenge of playing catch up; ensuring safe, continued and full-time education for their children throughout the last few months.

Once such organisation is the charity World Villages for Children. Their focus is on educating the world’s poorest children; ensuring they have the necessary skills to get out of, and remain out of poverty.

With education being the only means for thousands of the charity’s children to permanently escape their lives of poverty; it was absolutely crucial that the schools remained capable of continuing to educate the children and keep them safe.

During the last few months, the charity has achieved a remarkable feat by ensuring that over 20,000 of its children in over 13 schools have continued to have a full-time education in a 100% safe environment.

Not a single child or staff member during this time has been affected by Covid nor taken ill and this is completely down to the environment that has been created within the schools. As a result, all the children from the ages of 11-18 have been able to carry on with their full-time studies and recreational activities safely.

Measures that World Villages for Children have supported at the Sisters of Mary schools include:

The use of efficient technology and proficient co-ordination to ensure that all 20,000 children have continued their lessons via conference call with their teachers
Utilising the skills of the most senior students as ‘student teachers’ to not only boost their skills but also keep the younger year groups on track with the curriculum
Running exams as usual with the help of exam texts set by the teachers remotely and marked by them remotely
The few teachers who have come back into the schools (mainly in the Philippines) have been temperature checked daily to check the state of their health
Regular temperature testing of children within the school
Family grouping of the children at school and comprehensive mask use over the last five months so children have had a chance to get used to the process

If you are interested to find out more, the Head of the U.K. World Villages for Children, Nicola Lawson is able to discuss with you:

Why it is crucial that the charity keeps its schools open – as this is the children’s only means of getting themselves educated and out of poverty
How they have continued to run all 13 schools with zero risk during this crisis
How they will continue to ensure the children’s education is not disrupted moving forwards (should we have another significant global outbreak)
How they have minimised disruption to the children’s social and physical interactions
How the pupils themselves have rallied together within the schools to make hundreds of face masks for their community members at large