The nation’s favourite root vegetable will don a kilt once again this year in celebration of Aldi’s ongoing partnership with Kiltwalk. Limited-edition ‘kilted’ Kevin the Carrot plush toy (£3.99) will be appearing in store from 6 December.
Last year, Aldi launched a giant kilted Kevin the Carrot and this year, for the first time, Kevin will be available in a smaller size, standing approximately 25cm tall, wearing his official Kiltwalk tartan kilt.
Aldi is Kiltwalk’s official ‘Supermarket Partner’ and in 2019 was responsible for fuelling over 20,000 Kiltwalkers across events in Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Dumfries. This year, Aldi has continued their partnership with the Kiltwalk, by supporting their virtual events.
Richard Holloway, Regional Managing Director for Scotland commented:“Kilted Kevin the Carrot proved to be hugely popular last Christmas and we wanted to make sure that he returned this year.
“It has been a real shame that Kiltwalk events haven’t been able to take place physically this year, but thousands of people have still taken part in virtual events raising money for causes close to their hearts, and we wanted to do our part to help.”
Aldi is donating £3,000 to Kiltwalk from the sale of the kilted Kevin. The small kilted plush has already sold out online and sales will be limited to two per customer in store.
Kiltwalk CEO, Paul Cooney, added: “Our Kiltwalkers usually love to meet ‘kilted’ Kevin the Carrot at our events but unfortunately that wasn’t possible this year, so I am sure they will be delighted to hear they can get their very own kilted Kevin for Christmas.
“It’s been a very different year for us all, but despite the pandemic, Kiltwalkers raised £2.5 million this year which was doubled by Sir Tom Hunter; a total of £5 million for 906 Scottish charities. We are very grateful for the continued support from Aldi especially in these challenging times.”
The partnership with Kiltwalk builds on Aldi’s commitment to supporting communities across Scotland. Since launching in 2016 the Aldi Scottish Sports Fund has supported 394 clubs across Scotland with funding of more than £190,000. Meanwhile, since July 2019 Aldi has helped over 200 charities provide over a million meals to vulnerable people across Scotland through its partnership with community engagement platform, Neighbourly.
Kevin enthusiasts across the UK can also now take home the latest plush toy range, featuring Pilot Kevin, Wingman Turkey, Harry the Hedgehog and even Grate Grandma and Grandad (all £3.99 each).
The range also sees the return of the whole family, Katie the Carrot (£3.99) and Chantenay, Jasper (pictured) and Baby (£3.99). For an even bigger helping of carrots this Christmas, shoppers can also get their hands on Giant Kevin (£19.99), a festive favourite complete with a Christmas party hat.
City police are looking forward to working with CashBack for Communities who will be funding their VOW project from April 2021.
The VOW Project is a funded initiative which aims to reduce offending and harm to people in Edinburgh. This is done by building positive relationships with those caught up in the cycle of offending and building a bespoke service for each person, to meet their individual needs.
The project is unique in that, in addition to plain clothes police officers, it makes use of inspirational peer mentors who have lived experience of the Criminal Justice System.
The team engage with and empower young people (aged 16-24 years) to break the cycle of re-offending and to pick up their shattered lives, by assisting them to make positive decisions and changes to their lives.
By having an open and frank conversation with the individual about their life, actions and choices, there is a much greater chance to break down barriers between the offender and the police and this greatly increases the possibility that the person will engage with the project and work towards reducing and hopefully ceasing their offending.
The peer mentors carry out initial interactions using their own life-experience and decide if the young persons are ready engage and to take the next step in moving away from their harm inducing behaviour.
Existing strengths, are gradually brought out, through the peer mentors building a rapport and a positive relationship with the young person in a safe environment. They are then assisted in making positive choices and together, a plan of action is established around support, resilience building, signposting to partners, training and in some cases employment.
The ultimate aim of the project is for the young person to be assisted in moving forward with their lives in a positive manner.
The VOW Project also deliver presentations within educational settings,to local youth groups, Care Experienced Young People and statutory and third sector partners, where they to talk about positive lifestyle choices and resilience.
Pictured: PC Graeme Buchan & Peer Mentor Kevin Neary
The biggest names in Scotland’s traditional music scene have come together to raise funds for the Eilidh Macleod Memorial Trust.
Eilidh who came from Barra tragically lost her life in the Manchester Arena bombing in May 2017 and the artists have produced the “Trad Music Lockdown Cookbook”, a collection of their favourite recipes.
Eilidh was only 14 years old when she lost her life in the Manchester bombing. She was a huge music fan and played the pipes in her local pipe band, and the Trust continues her musical journey by supporting music education for children and young people.
Artists contributing to the lockdown cookbook include Skerryvore (who secured a UK number one during lockdown with “Everyday Heroes”, which raised funds for the NHS), Tide Lines (who recently completed a sold out UK wide tour), The Vatersay Boys (members of the Barrowlands’ Hall of Fame) and multi award-winning Scottish supergroup Mànran.
With recipes from dozens of world class performers, covering “the pre-show”, “the support act”, “the headliner”, “the encore” and “the after party”, readers are guaranteed a fine dining experience and plenty of craic.
The “Trad Music Lockdown Cookbook” has already sold more than 500 copies in the first fortnight since release, and is available by contacting their Facebook page or by emailing donniemaroot@hotmail.co.uk
Commenting on the book’s release, organiser Donald Macleod commented: “This year has proven incredibly challenging for musicians and for charities and I am so grateful that they have come together for this cause, which hopefully hits the right note.
“Eilidh was an incredibly talented individual and I would urge everyone who is able to dig deep to raise funds for the Trust established in her name, which supports music education for children and young people.”
Marks & Spencer yesterday opened its largest M&S Food store in Scotland, in Straiton. The store’s 100-strong team welcomed customers, helping them get everything they need whilst enjoying the new M&S offer.
Located in Straiton Retail Park, the new 15,000 square foot store is home to a large greengrocer-style fresh market, offering an outstanding range of M&S Select Farms produce, lots of which is locally grown in Scotland, including Inverness-grown Rainbow and Baby Carrots, and Arbroath-grown sweet Strawberries. The store also offers a pick your own eggs station where customers can self-select any number of eggs, tailoring their box to their preference according to egg size, type and yolk colour.
The store will be led by Store Manager, Thomas Tierney, alongside his team of 100 colleagues. Now open, the M&S team will be working hard to offer the community the very best service, drawing on M&S’s 135 years of serving the British public.
To help celebrate the opening and relaunch of Sparks, M&S’s customer loyalty scheme, the team will be treating seven customers over seven days to their shopping, totally for free. One recipient will be chosen at random each day, and whatever is in your trolley will be complimentary!
M&S’s previous location in Straiton will close the day before, in line with the new opening, with colleagues moving across to the new store. The relocation to a larger site will provide customers with a bigger and better Food offer to enjoy.
Store Manager, Thomas Tierney, said yesterday:“We’re delighted to open our new store in Straiton today. The last few weeks have been spent putting the finishing touches in store and making sure all our measures are in place to support customers, so they can shop with confidence.
“It’s brilliant to now be open in time for the festive season – chatting with customers today it’s fantastic to see them get excited about our new Christmas products, as well as shop for all the essentials. Our new store also offers Click & Collect, which means customers can shop for the full Clothing & Home collections via M&S.com.
“I’d like to say a big thank you to the team, who have been amazing getting the store ready. We’re all so excited show the community all that Scotland’s largest Food store has to offer.”
Local customer, Lisa Whigham from Loanhead, was one of the first customers through the doors. She said:“I’ve been an avid shopper at M&S for years and I now feel spoilt for choice with all that my local M&S has to offer.
“The pick your own eggs station is particularly exciting – I love that I can now choose my perfect yolk for poached eggs, and know which ones are best for frying!”
M&S Straiton offers thousands of M&S’s quality and great value food products, from daily essentials and fresh produce, to dinner favourites and ready-to-go family meals.
The new Food store also has everything customers will need for a truly delicious Christmas meal, along with all the trimmings. Shoppers will be able to pick up M&S’s sweet and savoury showstoppers, from the Our Best Ever Mince Pies to the Scottish Salmon Pastrami.
M&S Straiton offers the full range of M&S Clothing & Home products via its Click & Collect service. Customers can opt for next day pick up if they order online by 10pm the night before on M&S.com and the store will also offer hassle free returns. With over a thousand free car parking spaces, the store is ideal for convenient Clothing & Home collection.
The store is located at Foodhall Unit 2B, Straiton Retail Park, Loanhead, Scotland EH20 9PW, and is open Monday – Friday, 8am – 9pm, Saturday 8am – 8pm and Sunday 9am – 7pm.
M&S Straiton will offer extended shopping hours which will gradually increase up until Christmas and from the 21st – 23rd December, the Food store will be open until midnight.
Edinburgh folk are being encouraged to have their say on the Council’s first food growing strategy.
The strategy aims to encourage people to get more involved in local food production, promote local and sustainable consumption and help improve issues such as biodiversity, health, food security and address poverty in the capital.
Supported by Edible Edinburgh, the Growing Locally consultation is looking for people’s views on food growing, from growing in gardens and allotments or as part of a community growing project.
The consultation is looking to find out:
Ways in which the purchase of local and sustainable food could be increased, to help to reduce the city’s carbon emissions as well as supporting the Edinburgh’s green recovery from covid-19.
Feedback on ways in which local food growing could help to reduce food poverty and improve health and wellbeing.
How the Council and others in the city can help support people to become more involved in local growing.
Edible Edinburgh chair, Councillor George Gordon, said: “The Growing Locally strategy aims to reduce carbon emissions, support local food growing businesses, increase land availability for food growing, reduce inequalities and increase awareness and choice around healthy and sustainable food.
“We are calling for citizens to contribute to the consultation as to how they feel local food growing can help respond to these challenges, as well as help create a vibrant and thriving sustainable food economy in Edinburgh for everyone.”
Brenda Black, Director of Edinburgh Community Food and member of Edible Edinburgh said: “The Growing Locally strategy aims to help promote better food relationships within our communities by connecting people through well-being, through encouraging local growing and consumption of healthy and sustainable food. This consultation provides the opportunity to hear your views on how we can help tackle these issues together as a city.“
The draft food growing strategy was first approved for consultation by Council Committee in February 2020, but the online consultation was delayed due to the outbreak of covid-19.
The consultation will run until 18 January 2021 and will be supported through a series of online events published on the Edible Edinburgh website.
Fresh Start Annual General Meeting 8th December 2.15pm, via Zoom
We will be hosting the Annual General Meeting of Fresh Start (Scotland) Ltd this year via Zoom web link on Tuesday, 8th December at 2.15pm. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic and current restrictions in place, we are unable to hold the meeting face to face and instead, ask that you join us virtually.
The formal business of the AGM consists of a presentation from the Convenor, Lindsay Wallace, on the activities of Fresh Start over the past year, together with a presentation of the Report and Accounts for 2019/20.
This will be followed by a short presentation from Biddy Kelly, Managing Director, and video showing what has taken place over the past year. The event will be finished by 3pm.
We would kindly ask that any questions are submitted prior to the event if possible but may be asked on the day either via the chat function on Zoom or afterwards via email.
To join us via Zoom, please click on the link below:
Select ‘Join a Meeting’ and enter this code: 862 2570 1177
When prompted, enter this password: 594344
It is a great opportunity to catch up on all the latest from Fresh Start and see some friendly faces and would love to you join in.
If you would like to view the Company’s accounts prior to the meeting, please click here or email us to be sent a copy.
If you can attend, please let us know, by telephoning admin on 0131 476 7741 or by replying to this email by Friday 4th December. If we do not hear from you, we will assume that you cannot attend.
More employers across Edinburgh and the Lothians can now tap into funding to provide upskilling and reskilling opportunities for their staff through the Edinburgh College Flexible Workforce Development Fund.
For the first time, the fund will now be available for both levy payers and SMEs, across the private, public and third sectors.
Of this, an extra £4 million will be available to support SMEs through Edinburgh College – opening up new training and upskilling opportunities for SMEs.
Edinburgh College Principal Audrey Cumberford said: “The announcement of this additional money by Scottish Government for the Flexible Workforce Development Fund is welcomed news for the college sector, and for SMEs across our region and the entire country.
“Since the inception of the Flexible Workforce Development Fund, Edinburgh College has delivered first-class bespoke training and upskilling to organisations across a wide range of sectors which has led to incredible results and the establishment of long-term training and other business support partnerships.
“We are delighted that we can now extend this work to small and medium-sized businesses and we look forward to working with some of the most innovative and exciting firms Scotland has to offer, to provide bespoke training programmes to suit their needs, at a time when workforce training and development is crucial as the nation recovers from the current economic downturn.”
Business, Fair Work and Skills Minister Jamie Hepburn said: “Opportunities for training are essential for both employers and employees, and in August we doubled funding for our Flexible Workforce Development Fund to £20 million for 2020/21 to ensure businesses across Scotland can continue to invest in their workforce.
“As this fund adapts and responds to the impacts of the pandemic, we will also see the introduction of additional delivery partners including the Open University in Scotland and private training providers for employers who require more specialist training.
“By strengthening and upskilling the existing workforce, in partnership with colleges, we can retain jobs and support employers as they pivot and adapt to a new and very different working environment as a result of the pandemic.”
Andrew McRae, FSB’s Scotland policy chair, said: “This new funding could help many Scottish smaller businesses, and their staff teams, navigate the current crisis and ensure they’re prepared to take advantage of the recovery when it comes.
“FSB has been making the case to open up this cash pot to local firms, and we’d encourage all sorts of smaller operators to investigate how to access this support to build their business and develop their employees.”
The Flexible Workforce Development Fund helps businesses continue to invest in their workforce, and business support and is available for all of Scotland’s employers who are subject to the UK Government’s Apprenticeship Levy.
In August, the Scottish Government announced immediate investment in jobs to provide the foundations for a strong economic recovery from coronavirus (COVID-19).
As part of this, the fund, which is now in its fourth year, was doubled to £20m for 2020/21.
Public health advice is NOT to alter Christmas term date
Christmas and New Year school holiday dates will remain as planned.
The timing of school holidays, which vary around Scotland, was raised with Ministers in the Education Recovery Group, given many schools break up very close to Christmas and the potential for increased social interaction in households following the limited relaxation of rules between 23-27 December.
Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills John Swinney said: “Being in school is in the best interests of children and our priority remains to ensure schools are safe, and open. I want to thank school leaders, teachers and school staff for their outstanding commitment to education that has enabled children and young people to learn safely in school since August.
“The advice I have received from public health officials, and the COVID-19 Sub-group on Education and Children’s Issues, is not to alter Christmas and New Year holiday dates.
“We also know vulnerable children may be at greater risk if they are out of school for an extended period, and I am mindful of the impact an extension to school holidays would have for working parents. For these reasons I do not see a clear rationale for changing term dates and disrupting children’s education.”
Teachers union EIS says the decision will anger many teachers – and some have turned their anger on their own trade union.
One said: “This is the most horrific insult to everything teachers have been doing this year! @EIS are you actually going to stand up for us and do anything about this? If not now, then what exactly is your purpose?
Another added: “What?!! Are you completely ignoring the fact most people return a week after everyone has been allowed to mix indoors? This is the most alarming part: how many pupils and teachers are going to have to isolate in January! When are you going to actually stand up for us!
A third said: “This is an absolute disgrace. I am so angry at the Scottish Government. It is a complete insult to all school staff who are exhausted and on their knees after a very difficult term in very uncertain times. EIS have to start doing something NOW!!
The EIS website is currently down.
Read the advice from COVID-19 Sub-group on Education and Children’s Issues.
More details about the COVID-19 Sub-group on Education and Children’s Issues, including a list of members, can be found here.
Parcels lobbed over fences, forged signatures and packages chewed almost beyond recognition by foxes were just some of the Christmas delivery disasters endured by online shoppers – as new Which? research reveals two in three had at least one issue with their deliveries last year.
The consumer champion surveyed more than 2,000 people about their experience with deliveries during Christmas last year and around two-thirds (69%) said they had at least one problem.
Among the delivery problems experienced by survey respondents were parcels damaged after being thrown over fences, a clothes delivery tossed in the food waste bin and a parcel left out in rain, where it was chewed up by foxes.
One respondent also told Which? that their signature was forged by a courier to suggest they had personally accepted the delivery, when in fact it had been left on their doorstep even though they were inside waiting for it to arrive.
Nearly one in five (18%) told Which? their delivery arrived late last year, while one in ten (11%) said they did not receive their delivery in time for Christmas. These included a grandfather who had to buy extra gifts for his grandson because the toy robot he had ordered failed to arrive on time.
Almost a quarter (23%) who shopped online last Christmas said at least one delivery did not arrive at all – leaving them to face the inconvenience of having to apply for a refund or buy the product again.
One respondent said a laptop they had ordered never arrived but had apparently been signed for the month before.
Many consumers have been forced to rely on online retailers and deliveries this year due to the pandemic and demand is expected to be higher than ever during the festive season. In a separate survey, Which? asked more than 13,000 members about their experience with major couriers between March and August.
The consumer champion asked members how satisfied they were with couriers that delivered the most recent item they had ordered. They rated firms in a range of categories including length of time between ordering and delivery, delivery time slot offered, communication received by the delivery company, social distancing measures by the delivery driver and where the parcel was left.
UPS was consistently the worst courier for keeping customers satisfied across key categories.
One in four UPS customers said they were unhappy with the delivery slots offered (23%) and how the company communicated with customers (24%), and one in 10 (11%) said they were not pleased with where the delivery driver left their order.
One UPS customer told Which? they received a smashed computer after it was delivered upside down by UPS, despite a clear “this way up” label on the box.
A UPS spokesperson said: “At UPS, we deliver an average of 20 million parcels per day around the world and pride ourselves on our service quality and reliability. As a matter of company policy, we do not comment on third party research.
“The safe handling and delivery of all parcels in our care is our absolute priority. We take any damage to goods very seriously, and deeply regret any upset and inconvenience caused to this individual.
“The service described does not appear to meet the high standards we expect from all our staff and we would therefore like the opportunity to investigate the matter internally.”
When it came to how quickly couriers delivered orders, Amazon was the best with nine in 10 (92%) people satisfied with the length of time between ordering and delivery.
For communication with customers, Amazon (85%) also finished joint top with DPD (86%), with the highest proportion of satisfied customers in this category. DPD was also the best delivery firm for delivery slots, with more than eight in 10 (82%) happy with the slots offered for their most recent delivery.
Royal Mail had the most satisfied customers in the category for where deliveries were left, with more than nine in 10 (93%) happy with where the driver left their most recent delivery. All delivery firms performed well when it came to maintaining social distancing guidelines.
With Christmas just weeks away, more people than ever will be shopping online and relying on delivery firms to get their gifts – so it is important for consumers to know their rights if a delivery arrives damaged, late or not at all.
Customers are entitled to a replacement, repair or refund if a delivery arrives faulty. Customers can also get a refund from their retailer if they paid extra for a special delivery that then arrived late.
If a delivery fails to arrive, customers should immediately contact the retailer, which should either help track down their order or send a replacement.
Adam French, Which? Consumer Rights Expert, said:“Christmas is when we really want parcels to arrive on time – but unfortunately it’s also peak time for late, damaged or missing deliveries and we have heard stories of shockingly bad service from the big courier firms.
“With more people than ever expected to shop online this Christmas, it is worth getting your orders in as soon as possible. It’s also important to remember that retailers are responsible for ensuring orders arrive in a reasonable timeframe, so don’t be afraid to make a complaint if you are having problems.”
Six essential consumer rights tips if your delivery hasn’t gone to plan:
If your order is late, missing or has turned up damaged we recommend that you complain to the retailer – even if you think it’s down to poor service from the courier, because your contract is with the retailer.
If you paid extra for special delivery and your order arrived later than agreed you can claim back the extra delivery cost as the service wasn’t delivered.
Be aware if you give permission for your delivery to be left in a specified safe place or received by a nominated neighbour and something goes wrong, you will still be considered to have received the delivery. Think very carefully about those options when you’re making a purchase.
If your order arrives damaged or faulty, you have a right to refuse it and get a refund, repair or replacement. Understand your next steps if your goods arrive damaged in the post.
Your delivery must be made without undue delay and within 30 days from the point of purchase unless you and the retailer agree otherwise, this is stipulated by the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
You can also cancel (within 14 days of receipt of goods) an order for most items ‘bought at a distance’ – for example, online, over the phone or a mail order catalogue.
The Can Do Collective – a connected community of enterprise support organisations and leaders on a mission to build a world-leading entrepreneurial, innovative and creative society – has announced it has opened applications and nominations as it seeks to elect a new convener.
Elected every two years, a new Can Do Collective convener will take up the role in February 2021 and will drive momentum for the Can Do Movement across Scotland, building on its reputation as a beacon globally in entrepreneurial eco-systems and supporting the growth of this powerful community of inspiring entrepreneurial leaders who in turn deliver impact for Scotland.
The Can Do Collective are seeking a convener who demonstrates a supportive, flexible and strong sense of leadership, community and collaboration, and above all, an ability to bring people on the exciting and inspiring journey ahead for the Can Do Collective and for Scotland.
Rachael Brown, current Can Do Collective Convener and CEO, The Future Economy Company explains: “Two years ago I took on the role of convener, knowing we had a big journey ahead of us. In that time, the world around us has changed, and more than ever we need strong, entrepreneurial, fast leadership.
“The Collective is testimony that a collective approach to impact and activity is possible and exactly what we need in a time of challenge. As we go forward, I would hope that Scotland continues to be a beacon for entrepreneurial spirit.
“It’s been an absolute privilege to be in the role of convener for the Can Do Collective over the past two years. This is a role that is hugely important, and The Can Do Collective is a powerful economic and societal asset for Scotland. I have every confidence that we will find the right person who will continue to drive the Collective forward.”
The Can Do Collective is funded by The Scottish Government and supported by a dedicated team within independent charity Entrepreneurial Scotland Foundation. Made up of over 60 public, private and social enterprise support organisations from across all corners of Scotland, The Collective community represents 16 industry sectors.
Founded upon a shared belief that Scotland has always been a ‘Can Do’ nation, the aim of the community today is to work together to enable entrepreneurs of all kinds to flourish, and to prove there is greater power and success in working collaboratively.
The application process for the role of convener is open to all partners of the Can Do Collective. The closing date for applications is TOMORROW Friday 4th December, and the new convener will begin their role in February 2021.
