Day: March 1, 2023

Scotland’s pioneering rewilding project announces Tayvallich Estate fundraising success

  • Highlands Rewilding has raised the required funds to buy Tayvallich Estate to expand its nature-recovery efforts
  • Project is using milestone to extend its crowdfunding and fundraising campaign for a further two months to fully test investor sentiment

Today (1st March), Scotland’s leading rewilding project, Highlands Rewilding, has announced that it has acquired the funds needed to buy the 3,500-acre Tayvallich Estate in Argyll. The estate joins the project’s two existing rewilding sites, Bunloit in Inverness and Beldorney in Aberdeenshire.

It was revealed in December last year that Founder and CEO of Highlands Rewilding, Dr Jeremy Leggett, a former Greenpeace Director, had made an exclusive offer to buy the estate for £10.5m, with an agreement that funds needed to be raised before the end of February.

Today’s news of the funds raised also comes as the Highlands Rewilding project team extend its crowdfund and fundraising campaign for a further two months until the end of April. This decision was agreed to fully test investor sentiment on the back of its strengthened business case of adding another estate to its portfolio and leading the charge in turning Scotland’s biodiversity future around.

Highlands Rewilding are seeking capital in three ways. The first is equity from citizen rewilders, via crowdfunding. The second is equity from all-important financial institutions. The third is the rest. This includes equity from investors of the kind who invested £7.6 million in the company’s start-phase round, including 50 Founding Funders: affluent rewilding enthusiasts, family offices, foundations, trusts and forward-looking companies.

Dr Jeremy Leggett, CEO and Founder of Highlands Rewilding, said: “The team is looking forward to the many aspects of work we will be able to do on Tayvallich. The rich tapestry of habitats onshore and offshore will provide fertile ground for our data acquisition and processing, and natural-capital verification science.

“The many activities we will be able to pursue with the local community will give us the chance to create an exemplar of community-company synergy and enshrine public integrity principles with ethical private interests.”

Already, the project’s crowdfund has attracted over 500 citizen rewilder investors, 40% of whom live in Scotland, who have boosted funds raised by over £800,000. While no upper limit has been set on the extension of the crowdfund and founding-funder type investment until the end of April, additional funds will allow the Highlands Rewilding team to scale nature recovery and community prosperity even more.

Dr Jeremy Leggett continued: “While we have tried and failed to attract the first major investments from investment funds, pension funds, and insurance companies, we know the appetite is there with many telling us that the project has made amazing progress, that they know there will be growth in the nature recovery market, and to revisit our conversions in six to twelve months’ time.

“Fund managers have told us that our mass ownership works well for them, because of the element of social licence it brings. Stated another way, the more that citizen rewilders invest at the £50 to £100 level, the more the financial institutions are likely to invest at the £50 million to £100 million level.

“This is something we’re committed to doing and when we revisit the approaches we have made this time around, we will be presenting a stronger case than ever before thanks to the success of this campaign. We will also live in hope that the Scottish Government can make the high integrity policy route to rewarding biodiversity uplift clearer by then.”

The Green Finance Institute estimates that nearly £100 billion will be needed in the UK over the next ten years to support nature-recovery targets and stop biodiversity decline by 2030. Scotland’s share of that is some £20 billion.

Dr Jeremy Leggett said: “We embarked on our campaign with trepidation, well aware of the cost-of-living crisis but it has gone better than we dared hope. I think the results we have seen gives a feel for how people long to see biodiversity collapse and climate meltdown turned around.

“At Highlands Rewilding, we dream of playing a lead role in the great diversion of investment from ruin to restoration. It’s a dream we’re slowly making a reality as we approach three years in business. Our hard work and plight to restore our nation’s biodiversity uplift is just beginning.”

Highlands Rewilding intends to close the purchase of Tayvallich Estate by the end of March. The details of the investment will be made public in due course.

Find out more about the Highlands Rewilding and the crowdfund: 

https://www.highlandsrewilding.co.uk/crowdfund 

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

No Smoking Day lunch at PCHP

Its #NoSmokingDay next week! Pilton Community Health Project would love to hear your stories of quitting, trying to quit, successfully quitting …. call us on 0131 551 1571 or email Dawn on dawnanderson@pchp.org.uk to book in for lunch with us and @ASHScotland @QYWLothian @NHS_Lothian …

Thank you vouchers too!

Positive steps for school leavers

Record number in work, training or further studies

A record high number of young people were in work, training or further study after leaving school last year.

The latest Attainment and Initial Leaver Destinations statistics show 95.7% of those finishing school in the last academic year (2021-22) were progressing their studies or careers within three months of the end of the school year, up from 95.5% the year before. The proportion who were unemployed fell to 3.9% – the lowest since 2009-10.

The gap between school leavers from the most and least deprived areas progressing after school narrowed to a record low of 4.4 percentage points. This gap has reduced by two-thirds compared to 2009-10.

Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “This highlights the achievements of Scotland’s learners – making the transition from school can be a daunting time, so it’s great to see a record number of young people progressing in their studies or careers after leaving school.

“These statistics also demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach to learning through Curriculum for Excellence, which is clearly helping to prepare young people for their futures during a crucial stage of their lives.

“Closing the deprivation gap remains a top priority for us and these statistics show we are continuing to make progress, with the gap between school leavers from the most and least deprived areas in work, training or further study down to a record low.”

Sharon McIntyre, Head of CIAG Operations at Skills Development Scotland (SDS), said: “This is the highest positive destination rate since consistent records began in 2009-10 and it is very encouraging to see that the results continue to move in such a positive direction.

“The progress is testament to the hard work, determination and commitment of Scotland’s young people and of the SDS careers advisers working in partnership with teachers to support pupils throughout their time at school and beyond.” 

Summary Statistics for Attainment and Initial Leaver Destinations 2021-22

Woman with sight loss to take part in Portobello story-telling event

Anne Dignan, an Edinburgh woman who is blind, will take part in a story-telling session in Portobello on Saturday, March 11th.

‘Tales of Gallus Women’ will feature six women telling anecdotes, chronicles and yarns ranging from the far north of Scotland to the shores of East Lothian – “Tales of real life, fantasy, intrigue and witchcraft,” says Anne (68).

“I’ve always loved telling stories to the children I taught at school before I had to take early medical retirement due to my sight loss,” says Anne. “I missed reading books, and being able to tell and to listen to stories again meant so much to me.”

A former primary-school teacher, Anne (68) joined a local group called the Burgh Blatherers three years ago after a friend told her about them.

“Through the Burgh Blatherers, I discovered the art of traditional oral story-telling,” she goes on. “This art has been going for centuries where stories, customs and traditions were handed down from generation to generation, as well as being a form of social interaction amongst people who couldn’t read or write.

“The Burgh Blatherers share a very keen interest in ensuring the skill of story-telling continues to enjoy its relatively recent revival over the last 20 or so years. There will be six of us taking part on Saturday evening. All are acclaimed storytellers in their own right, most with many professional years of experience – Rona Barbour, Beverley Casebow, Linda Portula, Elaine Robertson, Emilie Barr and myself.”

Anne, herself, has won one of the story-telling movement’s most prestigious awards, the Tall Tales Oscars. “I was up against several professional contenders who all had many, many years of experience. I am highly delighted, and proud of the award.

Her own tale this Saturday will be the true story of woman born into a Gaelic-speaking community on Skye in 1821. “My story is self-penned and extensively researched,” she enthuses. “It’s about Mairi Mohr Nan Oran, or ‘Great Mary of the Stories’ as she became famously known by her native Gaelic-speaking community. Her real name was Mairi MacPherson (nee MacDonald).

“She was instrumental in rallying people to effect a change in the legislation affecting crofters, the Crofters Holdings Act, which secured land tenure for crofters who had who had undergone the ravages of the later Highland Clearances. She wrote many songs and poems railing against landlords and persons of authority.

“She taught herself to speak and write English so she could help Gaelic-speaking emigrés who, like her, lived in slum conditions whilst they sought work in Glasgow. Her poems and stories were created when she was imprisoned.

“To this day, she has left an indelible mark and even Gaelic choirs are still named after her in the islands.”

* ‘Tales of Gallus Women’ will take place in Bellfield Community Hub in Portobello on Saturday, March 11th, from 6.30 to 8.30pm.

Tickets are from £8.00 – £10.00 available on the door or from Eventbrite – https://www.eventbrite.com/e/472783838187.

Light refreshments will be provided during the interval. Gallus men are very welcome, too!

Community Improvement District creation rallying cry in Edinburgh

  • Fresh investment could be unlocked in communities across the city by embracing new way of working.
  • Supporters urge interested groups to come forward.

Communities in Edinburgh are being urged to embrace a new way in which people can unite to unlock investment and build a better future.

Regeneration experts and the Scottish Government are keen to see the expansion of Community Improvement Districts to deliver on residents’ ambitions for the region.

The model builds on the well-established Business Improvement District model, credited with levering millions of pounds worth of investment in towns and cities nationally.

But, rather than just involving businesses, the Community Improvement District brings in any interested organisation or group to decide on the area’s priorities and take action.

That’s made financially possible by monies raised through a levy paid by business owners in the area, which is levered to attract greater investment.

It’s a way of making communities better places in which to live, work and visit which supporters believe could not only help the continued recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, but also the local response to the climate emergency and cost of living crisis.

The Community Improvement District drive is being spearheaded by Scotland’s Improvement Districts (SIDs), an arm of Scotland’s Towns Partnership (STP).

It is supported by Tom Arthur MSP, Scotland’s Community Wealth Minister. He said: “I support this drive to create more Business and Community Improvement Districts to build on significant successes so far.

“With greater community involvement they can attract more investment through greater collaboration with local people, supporting business growth and protecting jobs.

“This will help us deliver the entrepreneurship ambitions set out in the Town Centre Action Plan and the National Strategy for Economic Transformation by creating enterprising communities. We all have a role to play in ensuring our towns enable more people to benefit directly from the wealth generated by local communities.”

To create a Community Improvement District, a group would need to take ownership of the drive locally and secure majority support to collect a legally-binding levy payment through a ballot of businesses who would be levy-payers.

Help and advice is available from SIDs’ expert team on the legal and practical steps which should be followed at every stage of the process.

Phil Prentice, SIDs’ national programme director, said: “The Community Improvement District model holds huge potential in achieving positive change for places across Edinburgh.

“It’s a way of embracing the uniqueness of communities and encouraging true collaboration to help achieve residents’ ambitions. It gives them the means by which to decide how they invest in the area’s future.

“This really is an exciting development which our team is keen to discuss with any potentially interested community group.”

The Community Improvement District model has been piloted in Possilpark, Glasgow, where businesses and local groups have joined forces with social landlord ng homes and others to create Remaking Saracen.

It has set out ambitions to regenerate the area by securing investment to improve the district’s look, boost business and tackle anti-social behaviour.

Work so far has included not only a series of community events and shop local initiatives, but shopfront improvement and street cleaning. It is hoped this will be the foundation of achieving greater ambitions for the area’s future.

To find out more about how to set up an improvement district, go to:

www.improvementdistricts.scot or email info@improvementdistricts.scot

UN body backs campaigners’ calls to review unfair planning appeal rights in Scotland

A top UN body has backed calls from environmental and community campaigners to review planning appeal rights across Scotland. This intervention follows repeated calls for equal rights of appeal which have been ignored by the Scottish Government.

In August 2022, the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland, Planning Democracy, Friends of the Earth Scotland and RSPB Scotland submitted a formal complaint to the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee (ACCC), a UN body tasked with upholding environmental rights. The complaint has now been accepted by the committee, and they have now written to the government who must respond by 21 July 2023.

The complaint sets out why planning appeal rights in Scotland are not ‘fair’ and therefore in breach of the Aarhus Convention’s access to justice requirements. It points to a ruling by the ACCC in Northern Ireland concluding that a lack of equal rights was in breach of the Convention. Campaigners believe that the same applies to Scotland.

Currently, only applicants (usually developers) enjoy statutory appeal rights if their planning permission is refused. Members of the public do not enjoy equivalent rights to appeal if a development is approved, even if the development will negatively impact their health and environment, or if the decision-making process was flawed. The only option available to affected communities is to go to court via a judicial review in the Court of Session, which the Convention’s governing bodies have already ruled as ‘prohibitively expensive’.

The complaint to the UN follows over a decade of civil society campaigning and the passage of two planning bills, neither of which addressed the issue. An amendment proposing to add equal rights of appeal to the 2019 Planning (Scotland) Act was voted down by Conservative and SNP MSPs.

Campaigners are now calling for legislative reforms to finally achieve equal rights for communities.

Benji Brown, Policy & Advocacy Officer at the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland, said: ‘Under Scotland’s rigged planning system, developers have the upper hand. They can request a full merits review on decisions they dislike, while members of the public do not have the same appeal rights.

“If people want to speak out in defence of their environment or their community, their only option is to go to court – an action that is unaffordable for most. This situation is blatantly unfair, and in violation of the Aarhus Convention.

“The UK government’s cynical attempt to stall our complaint has failed, and we welcome the Committee’s recognition that the issue must be urgently investigated. There can be no more delays – it’s time for Scotland to deliver equal rights for all.’

Clare Symonds, Chair of Planning Democracy, said: ‘Planning Democracy have campaigned for years for an equal right of appeal, and we are pleased that the Compliance Committee has agreed to take our case further.

“The lack of equal rights of appeal is a cause of much anger and frustration for communities, who experience discrimination in planning decisions. For years, the system has been blatantly unfair – it really is time for Scotland to resolve this longstanding injustice.’

Mary Church, Head of Campaigns at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “It’s an absolute scandal that communities and NGOs can’t appeal against developments that harm the environment, while developers can wage a war of attrition through appeals and repeat applications if their proposal gets knocked back.

“This lack of equal rights undermines the planning system and leads to decisions that are bad for people and planet. The Scottish Government shouldn’t wait for the UN to rap its knuckles again, but should take action to level the playing field as part of its agenda to enshrine human rights in Scots Law.”

Aedan Smith, Head of Policy and Advocacy at RSPB Scotland, said: “Planning appeal rights in Scotland are archaic and wholly unfit for purpose given the imperative need to tackle the nature and climate emergency.

“Scotland’s appeal rights date back to a time when landowners could do almost anything they wanted with their land, no matter the impact on neighbours, communities or the environment. 

“It is essential this outdated and fundamentally unfair system is reviewed to ensure that individuals, environmental organisations and communities at least have a comparable right to developers and can access a mechanism to have the most harmful decisions reconsidered.”

LifeCare: Would you like to join our board?

We are looking for new trustees to help LifeCare in its great work supporting local older people

LifeCare is at an exciting stage in its development and we are looking for Trustees who will passionately inform our services bringing new skills and experience to help lead the organisation.  

We are particularly (but not exclusively) interested in individuals with experience in the following fields:

  • Health and Social Care
  • Finance
  • Fundraising
  • Marketing and Digital Innovation 
  • Hospitality

Most of all, we are looking for people with lived experience of care, or as an unpaid carer, to help strengthen our capacity to better embed the voice of the people who use our services at Board level. 

Can you help us?  We are looking for people who share our values, that are passionate and committed about supporting local older people, who can be creative in building our profile and work closely with our team and stakeholders to deliver outstanding person-centred services to our clients.  

The Board usually meets in the evenings (either in-person or via Zoom).  The role is non-remunerated however reasonable expenses will be reimbursed and training / ongoing support will be provided.  If you have any questions or would like a quick chat to find out more, please contact our chair  beverleyfrancis@lifecare-edinburgh.org.uk.  

To apply please send a CV and covering letter expressing your interest to beverleyfrancis@lifecare-edinburgh.org.uk.  Please contact us if you would prefer to submit an application in another format.

Closing date 31st March 2023

Webpage: https://www.lifecare-edinburgh.org.uk/2023/02/27/join-lifecares-board-of-trustees/

184,000 getting £25 Scottish Child Payment

£155 million in payments since introduction in February 2021

There were 184,000 children and young people getting £25 per week in Scottish Child Payment by the end of 2022, latest statistics show. 

The figure includes 78,000 who have received it since the payment was extended to include children aged between six and 16 in November. 

Social Security Scotland had provided decisions to just over half the people who applied on the extension of the payment by the end of 2022.

Decisions for the majority of people who applied or added additional children to their award between 14 November and 31 December 2022 have now been issued and this will be reported on in the next round of statistics.

Scottish Child Payment was announced in the summer of 2019, with the first payments being made in February 2021.

Since then it has risen from £10 per week per child to £25 per week per child – a 150% increase in value.

It means that the amount paid out to children totals £155 million until the end of last year.

Ahead of extending Scottish Child Payment to under-16s, local authorities also made more than 1.1 million Bridging Payments across 2021 and 2022 to the families of school age children worth a total of £169.3 million.

Social Justice Secretary Shona Robison said: ““These figures demonstrate our commitment to tackling child poverty and the significant financial support we have made available to meet that aim.

“This is just a snapshot of all the work being done since Scottish Child Payment was extended and increased until the end of 2022.

“We’ve since processed tens of thousands more applications.

“This represents remarkable progress in the delivery of the most ambitious child poverty reduction measure in the UK.

“That increased payment of £1,300 per child per year is now benefitting families across Scotland.

“We want to make sure that everyone gets the help available to them. Parents or carers who are on universal credit, tax credits or other benefits and who have children under 16 should check through Social Security Scotland if they are eligible.”

Reading is Caring: New support for people living with dementia

Scottish Book Trust, the national charity working to change lives with reading and writing, has launched a series of free workshops, available online and in local libraries, designed to help those who support and care for people living with dementia.

The charity runs Reading is Caring, a programme which provides personalised training on creating shared, sensory reading experiences to those caring for someone living with dementia – whether that’s a partner, relative, friend or professional carer. Reading is Caring is designed to ease daily challenges by creating special moments of connection, sparking positive memories and relieving stress.

A Reading is Caring participant, caring for her mother who lives with dementia, said: ‘Reading is Caring was fantastic. The stories bring mum into the here and now. She laughs, she’s interested and engaged. I get a glimpse of her personality again, which is lovely for both of us.’

Now in its third year, Reading is Caring has been proven to provide a consistent, connective activity for family, friends, and professional carers to use at every stage of the dementia journey.

People in Edinburgh and the Lothians who support someone living with dementia can attend a two-part workshop series online, or head along to one of the drop-in sessions at Craigmillar Library and Musselburgh Library.

These free workshops provide the knowledge and tools needed to share reading with someone living with dementia. Scottish Book Trust provide personal support throughout and after the training to help tailor the experience to the unique needs of each person, removing barriers to participation at every stage of their dementia journey.

Musselburgh Library workshops:

  • Monday 27 February: 3–4pm
  • Monday 6 March: 3–4pm
  • Monday 13 March: 3–4pm
  • Monday 20 March: 3–4pm
  • Monday 27 March: 3–4pm
  • Monday 3 April: 3–4pm

Craigmillar Library workshops:

  • Thursday 2 March: 10.30–11.30am
  • Thursday 9 March: 10.30–11.30am
  • Thursday 16 March: 10.30–11.30am
  • Thursday 23 March: 10.30–11.30am
  • Thursday 30 March: 10.30–11.30am
  • Thursday 6 April: 10.30–11.30am

Online workshops take place regularly and can be found on Scottish Book Trust’s website.