Muscular Dystrophy UK (MDUK) is calling for everyone in and around Edinburgh to take part in Kiltwalk on 17 September 2023 to support those in Scotland who have a muscle-wasting condition as well as family, friends and colleagues who might be affected.
The sooner people are able to sign up, the sooner you can start fundraising! Rare Disease Day is Tuesday 28th February, and is a day to raise awareness of conditions like Muscular Dystrophy where there are 110,000 children and adults affected which means they life is limited. We’d love if you did something special this Rare Disease Day and register to walk for muscles.
To register for Kiltwalk and get your FREE place please go to:
Jodie Whitham, MDUK’s Regional Development Manager said: “We rely on the generosity of our supporters, local businesses, and communities every year. Last year we raised more than £6000 from Kiltwalk and hope 2023 can be even bigger.”
For further information and to request your free t-shirt and fundraising pack contact Jodie on j.whitham@musculardustrophyuk or call on 07771 374839.
The UK Commission on Covid Commemoration is now considering all responses and final recommendations will be put to Government in Spring
Almost 5,000 people from across the UK took part in the consultation process
The UK Commission on Covid Commemoration is now considering all responses
Final recommendations to be put to Government in Spring
Thousands of people have given their views on how they want the COVID-19 pandemic to be remembered across the UK.
Last October, the UK Commission on Covid Commemoration launched a public consultation giving people across the UK the opportunity to say how they think the pandemic should be remembered, with possible suggestions including the adoption of a Remembrance Sunday-style symbol, dedicated memorials and reflective spaces.
During the consultation period, which ran until 5 December last year, almost 5,000 individuals from across the UK gave their views.
The Commission is considering these responses alongside the findings from the various consultation events held with groups and organisations across the UK. The Commission is now turning its focus to agreeing a final report to present to the UK Government in Spring.
The Commission on Covid Commemoration is also looking at issues such as how the pandemic should be taught to future generations and whether a commemorative website should be created to provide details of local memorials and commemorative spaces.
The Chair of the UK Commission on Covid Commemoration, Nicky Morgan, said: “It has been a privilege to see so many people coming forward with suggestions for how they think the COVID-19 pandemic should be commemorated and remembered across the UK. I am grateful to everyone who participated.
The pandemic was one of the most significant moments of our lifetime and will be remembered across the world for years to come, both because of the people we lost and because of the great sacrifices made by so many people to keep our country running.
We have heard a lot of different views expressed in the consultation and it is tremendously important that we take them all into account as we work on our recommendations for the government. It is vital that we get this process right and I am determined to make sure that we do.
The Minister for the Cabinet Office, Jeremy Quin, said: “The Commission’s work on how the public wants to commemorate the pandemic is vitally important.
“I am grateful to all those who have taken the time to express their views and the Government is looking forward to receiving the final report from the Commission.”
This year will see a major investment, anticipated to be in the region of £3 million, in one of Scotland’s premier visitor destinations. The Scotch Whisky Experience is a five-star attraction operating from the top of Edinburgh’s busy Royal Mile.
The Experience has been educating and enthusing visitors about Scotch whisky for over 30 years already welcoming more than 8.5 million visitors from around the globe, in addition the Amber Restaurant and Whisky Bar accommodate corporate events and private dinners.
The Scotch Whisky Experience brings the joys of Scotland’s whisky heritage to a worldwide audience. The substantial investment of £3 million will enhance the visitor experience, with work already underway, this will reflect the premium nature of Scotch whisky.
With tour options to suit both whisky lovers and those with a passing interest, the new tour experience will include technology not yet seen at a visitor experience in the UK.
Susan Morrison, Chief Executive of The Scotch Whisky Experience, said: “We’ll be creating a theatrical and magical experience to tell the story of Scotch whisky production, blended with technologies which we believe have never before been used in a visitor experience.
“Our team have been nurturing this vision since well before the pandemic, and excitement is building. We can’t tell you more yet, but we promise that what we have in store will be breathtaking and truly unique.”
The Scotch Whisky Experience was first created when 19 individual Scotch whisky companies jointly invested in showcasing the industry to international visitors. The Scotch Whisky Experience remains a key partner for the industry. Representing a significant proportion of the Scotch whisky distillers companies, the experience has new distillers joining all the time as more and more distilleries are built all across Scotland.
The Scotch whisky industry is a very considerable player in both Scotland and the UK representing £5.5 billion in gross value added (GVA) to the economy with 11,000 people directly employed in Scotland, 7,000 of those jobs in rural areas. In 2021, Scotch Whisky accounted for a remarkable 22% of all UK food & drink exports.
Education is a key ingredient in the success of Scotch whisky with its unique and complex heritage. The product of the distillation of water, barley and yeast it encompasses a huge range of possible expressions based on differences of age, source of ingredients, region, type of maturation and the production process itself.
The industry offer includes many varieties of single malts, product of just one distillery, and a huge range of blended whiskies made by the highly-skilled Master Blenders. The Scotch Whisky Experience’s new investment is destined to bring even more visitors into this extraordinary world of Scotland’s whisky heritage.
Work commenced in early January and will be completed by Summer 2023. Any disruptive work will be undertaken outside opening hours and will not impact on tour experiences, Amber restaurant or private events.
A quarter of a million Baby Boxes have been delivered to expectant parents – providing them with more than £400 worth of essential items for their newborn.
The milestone was reached ahead of the popular scheme’s sixth anniversary in the summer.
Children’s Minister Clare Haughey said: “The Baby Box is part of our commitment to ensure every child has the best start in life, and I am heartened that so many families have benefitted from this fantastic scheme.
“Clearly household budgets remain under extreme pressure from the cost of living crisis, so it is reassuring to know that all expectant parents in Scotland, regardless of their circumstances, have access to essential items needed for the first six months of their newborn’s life.
“The Baby Box also contains items to support positive parenting, benefitting infants as well as parents.”
One Parent Families Scotland Chief Executive Satwat Rehman said: “With rising costs, single parent households are under increasing pressure to meet the costs of looking after their children.
“Having just one income, with costs associated with a newborn, is very difficult and the essentials contained within the Baby Box go a long way to easing that for single parents. We have seen first-hand how much difference this has made to the families we work with.”
Road safety campaign highlights the dangers of driving tired
A powerful campaign by The Scottish Government and Road Safety Scotland goes live today, reminding drivers about the dangers of driver fatigue.
It follows an increase in serious incidents on the A9 trunk road in 2022, with 12 fatal collisions and 18 fatalities reported. Of this total, 13 deaths occurred on the Perth to Inverness section of the road during the second half of the year1.
Fatigue is a contributory factor in collisions which kill or seriously injure around 50 people every year in Scotland2 and as many as 25 per cent of all fatal and serious incidents on the A9 between Perth to Inverness3.
Many of the counter measures used by drivers to combat tiredness (opening a window, turning up the radio or pinching themselves) have been shown to be ineffective. Instead, the campaign urges driver to take regular breaks, stop to rest and have a coffee, and plan ahead to avoid driving tired.
Minister for Transport Jenny Gilruth, said: “Driver fatigue is a serious issue that causes too many serious and fatal road collisions each year. Drivers often experience early signs of feeling tired such as yawning, eyes drooping and head-nodding, and should stop for a rest as soon as it’s safe to do so.
“We’re reminding people to plan their journeys well in advance, ensure they are well-rested before setting out and take regular breaks. It’s simple yet powerful advice which can help save lives on Scotland’s roads.”
Sleep-related collisions are around 50 per cent more likely to result in death or serious injury as they tend to be high-speed impacts.
Michael McDonnell, Director of Road Safety Scotland and a member of the A9 Safety Group, said: “Sadly we have seen a rise in serious and fatal collisions on the A9 trunk road in the last year and many of them involve an element of driver fatigue – something that can be prevented. A tired driver is a danger not only to themselves but to everyone on the road.
“If you feel tired while behind the wheel, opening your window or turning up the music isn’t enough. Stop for a rest and a coffee before you get back on the road to help keep you and others safe.”
A two second micro-sleep at 30 mph can result in complete transition from one lane to the next and you will be unable to notice or react to a child stepping out on the road5.
The new multi-media marketing campaign will run on multiple channels including TV, digital, outdoor, radio, PR and social media.
The thought-provoking advertising, features a striking close-up of a tired driver’s eye, with the road ahead reflected in it. After a long blink, the road reappears in the eye, however the car drifts towards the centre of the road as the eye droops further and finally remains closed, resulting in a head-on collision with another car and devastating consequences.
Fundraising campaign launched for landmark artwork that will inspire the world withSouth Georgia’s remarkable recovery and fund vital whale research
An international fundraising campaign has begun, giving people across the globe an opportunity to sponsor part of the world’s most remote permanent art installation which will raise awareness of the whale’s story on South Georgia, and fund vital research into future threats such as climate change.
The campaign, run by conservation charity the South Georgia Heritage Trust (SGHT), follows their international competition seeking an artist to create an installation telling the incredible story of South Georgia’s remarkable environmental recovery. Now, people worldwide are invited to sponsor a key component of the artwork in a bid to spread this message of hope.
In November 2020 Scottish artist Michael Visocchi was announced winner of SGHT’s competition with Commensalis: The Spirit Tables of South Georgia. The artwork commemorates the loss, but also celebrates the recovery, of whales in the Southern Ocean.
From the early 1900s to the 1960s South Georgia was the epicentre of the whaling industry but more recently has become a beacon of hope as an ecosystem in recovery.
Michael Visocchi’s sculpture changes the narrative on South Georgia from whaling to whales – creating a focal point for everyone who cares about nature and supporting vital research to protect the future of whales in the Southern Ocean.
At the heart of his artwork are the Spirit Tablesrepresenting the different whale species that were hunted and processed at Grytviken, an abandoned whaling station on the island, but which are now recovering thanks to a change in humanity’s attitude to nature and the decades-long, research-led conservation activities and environmental management of this precious ecosystem.
The tables are punctuated by an estimated 17,000 stainless steel rivets in various mesmerizing patterns inspired by the natural histories of each species, with each rivet symbolising a live whale or the spirit of a live whale.
The artist’s design will allow light to bounce off each one, illuminating the space and conveying a feeling of hope that is reflected in the growing numbers of whales in the waters around South Georgia.
The fundraising campaign will give people the opportunity to sponsor these gleaming rivets to light a beacon of hope for whales, conservation and ecological restoration everywhere.
Different levels of support are available to allow as many people as possible to support what’s been dubbed the world’s most remote permanent art installation:
£33 to sponsor a small rivet because the returning humpback whales’ beautiful and complex songs last up to 33 minutes – we’re so thankful to hear these melodies again in the bays of South Georgia.
£90 for a medium rivet because the fin whale has an average lifespan of 90 years – to see these long living giants returning to the island after being the most persecuted species during the whaling era is incredibly inspiring.
£199 to support a large rivet because the world’s largest whale, the blue whale, can weigh up to a staggering 199 tons – that’s equivalent to 398 Grand Pianos!
Sponsors will be allocated their very own rivet(s) in the artwork and sent a digital certificate confirming their support of Commensalis. The rivet(s) will be an integral part of the artwork, giving people a rare opportunity to leave a legacy and have a permanent presence on South Georgia.
Alison Neil, CEO of the South Georgia Heritage Trust said: ‘Tragically, from 1905 to 1965 whales were hunted to near extinction at South Georgia. Thankfully, they are now slowly returning to the island’s waters thanks to ongoing conservation efforts.
“We want to tell this remarkable story of recovery to inspire people around the world that there’s always opportunity for environmental turnaround. South Georgia is the evidence that we have the power to change other under-pressure ecosystems.
“Art is a really powerful way of conveying a complex message and getting people interested and involved in conservation. By launching this campaign we hope to get people excited about Michael’s beautiful artwork and also the power of collective action to bring about change in our environment. We think sponsoring a rivet on the Spirit Tables embodies what this project is all about.’
Artist Michael Visocchi, who was selected from over 150 artists to take on this project, has just arrived at South Georgia to visit the site at Grytviken where the whaling station was and where his artwork will be.
He is with childhood schoolfriend Stewart Garden from WSP, an engineering firm which is generously supporting SGHT with the complex task of transporting and installing the artwork to ensure it is resilient to South Georgia’s extreme climate and remains in place for generations to come.
Michael Visocchi said: ‘I’m so very thrilled to be back on South Georgia. The sights and colours and sounds have never really left my mind since my first visit. It’s good to be back.
“The majesty of the landscape and wildlife here continues to catch me off guard and it’s all helping me put the final touches to the concept for Commensalis. And to be here with my old best friend is something I never could have imagined.’
Commensalis will encourage the environmental management of South Georgia by raising funds for whale research. 10% of every rivet sponsorship will directly fund research, helping to anticipate and manage threats to South Georgia’s whales like rising sea temperatures and the impact on the marine ecosystem.
By deepening knowledge and informing environmental management at South Georgia, SGHT will set whales on their road to recovery.
SGHT aims to work with all who wish to preserve the island’s natural and historical heritage for future generations – to redress past damage to its environment, to protect its wildlife now and in the future, and to preserve the human heritage of the island which so clearly shows the best and worst of humanity.
It also runs the South Georgia Museum on behalf of the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands.
The island is famed for its iconic wildlife, including humpback whales, southern elephant seals, vast colonies of king penguins and an array of seabirds, and for its links with world-famous explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton who is buried on the island.
Each year about 10-15,000 people visit South Georgia to admire the island’s stunning scenery and burgeoning wildlife, and to learn about its fascinating heritage. Commensalis will be a new addition for visitors when it is installed.
To find out more about South Georgia and the work of the South Georgia Heritage Trust, visit https://sght.org, and to find out more about the South Georgia Museum, visit https://sgmuseum.gs
New stories of an old city retold in poetry competition
A three year collections project, Auld Reekie Retold, comes to a close tomorrow (Sunday 19 February) at the City Art Centre.
To mark the event, staff at Museums & Galleries Edinburgh have announced the results of a poetry competition hosted with the Scottish Poetry Library and Hannah Lavery, the Edinburgh Makar.
Poems had to be inspired in some way by objects in the current exhibition at the City Art Centre. Entries covered the full range of objects exhibited, from small pottery items made at the Buchans factory in Portobello to a blue dress sold by Jenners in the 1980s.
The judging panel was made up of representatives from Museums & Galleries Edinburgh and Scottish Poetry Library, with the final selection made by Hannah Lavery.
Nico Tyack, Auld Reekie Retold project manager said: “The poems were of a really high standard, and had us laughing, smiling and even crying but they all moved us and showed us the amazing power of objects.
“We all see the same objects in an exhibition, but what they mean to us varies in so many ways. It was humbling to see the collections interpreted in such creative ways.”
Culture and Communities Convener, Cllr Val Walker, said: “The poems are a moving and beautiful closure to the Auld Reekie Retold exhibition and project.
“Auld Reekie Retold was all about celebrating the shared public ownership of the collections, so what better way to tell new stories about the city than letting the people of Edinburgh do the talking?”
The winning entries were:
Under-18 Jiffy Washing Machine by Archer Thomson Adams
Over-18 First place, It is your turn, by Lynda McDonald Second place, Mind?, by Alison Findlay
Highly commended The Impermanent Collection by Iain Macfarlane and The Ballant o’ Hugh McKail’s Guid Beuk by Sam Phipps.
This short film shows the poets reading their winning entries, with images of the objects that inspired them.
£568 million for Agenda for Change (AfC) pay deal in 2023/24
Healthcare staff across Scotland have been offered the largest pay package in the history of the NHS, with a £568 million increase in investment.
160,000 NHS Agenda for Change staff – including nurses, midwives, paramedics, allied health professionals, porters and others – will be offered an average 6.5% increase in pay in 2023/24.
This pay offer includes the commitment to deliver the most progressive package of terms and conditions reform in decades.
The offer also includes the commitment to modernising Agenda for Change, which was introduced nearly 20 years ago, to support workforce recruitment, sustainability and retention.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “We have engaged extensively with trade union representatives over recent weeks, leaving no stone unturned to reach an offer which responds to the key concerns of staff. Our healthcare staff have shown how dedicated and hardworking they are time and again and I cannot thank them enough for their commitment, particularly over the last few challenging years.
“Over the two years of this £1 billion of increased investment in NHS Agenda for Change, a newly qualified nurse would see their pay increase by 15.8%, and experienced nurses at the top of band 5 would see their pay improve by over £4,700.
“This ensures that Scotland’s NHS Agenda for Change staff are, by far and away, the best paid anywhere in the UK. In fact, for NHS England to catch-up with Scotland the UK Government would need to offer increases in 2023/24 of over 14% at the top of band 5, over 13% at the top of band 6, and over 12% at the top of band 7.
“We have taken difficult decisions to find this money within the health budget because we know that our staff are the very backbone of the NHS and we are committed to supporting them, particularly during a cost of living crisis. I am grateful for the continued efforts around the table and that the trade unions will now put this to their members.”
POLICE in Edinburgh are appealing for information after a car was deliberately set on fire in the Craigleith area.
The incident happened around 5.35pm on Monday, 13 February 2023, on Queensferry Road, close to the junction with South Groathill Avenue. A Volvo XC40 was significantly damaged.
DC Fiona Murray said: “We are keen to speak to two men seen in the area at the time. “The first is described as late teens to early twenties, slim build, wearing dark jogging bottoms, a grey hooded jumper and dark coloured trainers.
“The second is described as late teens to early twenties, slim build, wearing a dark coloured tracksuit and dark trainers.
“Officers have been carrying out enquiries and are keen to speak to anyone who may have been within the area at the time and saw anyone acting suspiciously before or after.
“The road was busy with traffic at the time and a passing dash cam footage may assist with our investigation.”
If you have any relevant information then please contact Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 2803 of Monday, 13 February, 2023, or make a call to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
New multi-media works by the celebrated Barbadian-Scottish artist, Alberta Whittle, will be revealed this spring in a free exhibition at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art (Modern One) in Edinburgh. Alberta Whittle: create dangerously will open on 1 April 2023 and will run until 7 January 2024.
Experience the ambition and breadth of Alberta’s career to date and come away feeling her call to ‘invest in love’. At the heart of Alberta Whittle: create dangerously is the artist’s generous spirit which promotes compassion and collective care as means of resisting racism and anti-Blackness.
Through powerful and poetic storytelling, Alberta confronts the violence of colonialism, the legacies of the Transatlantic trade in enslaved people, and impact of the climate crisis. Alberta pulls apart the belief that ’racism and police brutality is [just] an English problem or an American problem’.
Instead, she underlines Scotland’s complicity in the structures of white supremacy. Often deeply personal, weaving stories of family and belonging, Alberta offers a message of hope, asking us to imagine a world outside of these damaging systems and ways of thinking.
Taking over the ground floor of Modern One, this will be the largest exploration of the artist’s works to date. The exhibition will offer a survey of Alberta’s expansive practice, featuring sculptures and installations, digital collages, drawings and watercolours, and new works made especially for the show.
These include a group of new paintings, a striking addition to the artist’s ongoing series of digital collages and a wall-based multi-part relief sculpture, designed to be interacted with by visitors.
Alberta Whittle: create dangerously will mark the return of two major works to Scotland, which gained critical acclaim at the 59th Venice Biennale, 2022.
Alberta’s extraordinary tapestry, Entanglement is more than blood (2022) created in collaboration with Dovecot Studios, and her thought-provoking film, Lagareh – The Last Born (2022) co-commissioned and produced with the support of Forma – both commissioned by Scotland + Venice as part of her new body of work deep dive (pause) uncoiling memory presented at the 2022 Venice Biennale.
Entanglement is more than blood is a large-scale tapestry on a gate-like structure. Characteristic of Alberta’s art, it is imbued with rich symbolism, including water, snakes, diamonds, hands, and shells.
Acting as a portal, the tapestry explores the meaning of family, kinship and ancestral histories, themes that will echo throughout the exhibition. The imagery in the tapestry is also seen in Lagareh – The Last Born. Centring the collective strength of contemporary Black womxn, this 43-minute film is anchored in ideas of abolition, rebellion, grief, and love.
Shot on location in Scotland, London, and Barbados, and featuring footage from Sierra Leone and Venice, Alberta has woven together contrasting stories of individual acts of resistance against racist violence with gentle moments of intimacy. Lagareh – The Last Born will play continuously throughout the day, and for visitors who wish to see it from the beginning, screening start times will be made available in the gallery and on the National Galleries of Scotland website.
Step inside a sound installation and listen to the voice of poet Kamau Brathwaite (1930-2020), a much-loved and hugely influential figure in Caribbean literature. Dealing with the themes of grief and loss, Alberta made this in personal tribute to Brathwaite, who was a close friend of her family as well as a collaborator.
Titled A portal for breathing love into the Elders or an Adoration for kith-folk who we long for (2021), this installation is comprised of objects of significance to the artist.
There will be a room dedicated to addressing the themes of rest and care, and connection and belonging in Alberta’s practice, where you can slow down and pause. Inside this room, visitors will find a beautiful bespoke quilt hanging on the wall, crafted by a group of women from North Edinburgh.
Inspired by Alberta’s practice and use of textiles and fabrics in her work, the quilt is being caringly made by a sewing group run by Project Esperanza, a charity dedicated to supporting women of African heritage, as well as women from other culturally diverse backgrounds. Facilitated by textile artist Francia Boakye, this quilt draws upon the makers’ lived experiences, weaving together their stories and their journeys as migrants to Scotland.
Alberta Whittle said: ‘This is an exhibition about hope. It is about the hope we can nurture within ourselves, but also the hope that we can have difficult conversations about the harm caused by colonialism, the Transatlantic trade in enslaved people, and the climate crisis.
“The exhibition presents an opportunity for self-reflection, and to think about the types of power we hold in the world and how we can use it compassionately.’
Lucy Askew, chief curator of Modern and Contemporary art at the National Galleries of Scotland, said: ‘We are incredibly happy to reveal more details about Alberta Whittle: create dangerously. This hugely important exhibition, devoted to the work of one of the leading artists working in Scotland today, is underpinned by Alberta’s deep generosity and warmth.
“Alberta speaks of fundamental truths about the violence and injustices of our past – ‘the burden of proof’ – and the legacy of systemic racism which permeates through our society today, asking us to confront this with her. With compassion and care, she holds and guides us, encouraging us to pause, to breathe, and to think differently.’
Jenny Waldman, director of Art Fund, said: ‘The screening tour of Alberta Whittle’s eloquent and multi-layered film, Lagareh – The Last Born, has brought it to audiences across Scotland; continuing to include and empower viewers as it did at the Venice Biennale last year.
“And now, Alberta Whittle: create dangerously at National Galleries of Scotland is enabling as many people as possible to view and enjoy this important work in the context of the artist’s major solo show.
“It is thanks to our members and supporters that Art Fund can help share the best of contemporary art, like this, across the country.”
