FRESH START’s painting and decorating service has gone through some recent changes and we would like to launch our new Fresh Rooms service!
Fresh Rooms replaces the formerly named Hit Squad painting and decorating service and we are also delighted to welcome our new Volunteer Coordinator, Caitlin to the team. Caitlin has hit the ground running, has a great connection with service users and is pictured here, taking part in her first practical Fresh Rooms session!
Fresh Rooms offers painting and decorating support to people moving on from homelessness when they move into their new tenancy. Tenants are given the choice of what colour they would like their new home painted and a volunteer lead team come along and work their magic.
If you are working with someone that can benefit from this service, or would like to volunteer, either as an individual or as a corporate volunteering day please get in touch
Retail trade union Usdaw has a delegation of members, reps and officials attending the annual conference of the Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC) in Dundee, which started on Monday and concludes tomorrow.
Moving the composite motion about childcare, Elaine Dennis – Usdaw delegate said: “In recent years working parents across Scotland have come under huge strain due to the growing lack of affordable, flexible and accessible childcare.
“Undoubtedly, the cost of living crisis has intensified this problem, with women often bearing the brunt. Childcare is not just an equality issue and a trade union issue, it’s key to economic growth and essential to tackling child poverty.
“Despite childcare being so crucial to working families and women’s equality.
“The current system is failing parents who are struggling to find good quality affordable childcare, failing childcare workers, who are often underpaid, and underappreciated, and failing children across Scotland, who are missing out on vital opportunities with one in four living in poverty.
“Most Usdaw members work in lower paid sectors like retail and warehousing; the majority are women, so childcare is a huge issue for our members. The costs of childcare and nursery fees are simply unaffordable for many parents in lower paid jobs and even where free hours are available, the system is complicated and difficult to navigate. Many families don’t know what they are entitled to and many more are left with huge gaps in provision.
“Balancing work with childcare in a sector like retail is not easy and women are often the primary carer. It is so often invisible to employers and managers, yet it shapes working lives.
“We know from supporting many of our women members with children, the effort they put in to making themselves available for work is enormous. It often means getting up very early or going to bed very late and regularly arriving at work on very little sleep.
“It means putting a lot of effort into scheduling childcare around work, creating a complicated patchwork of support. Working out when grandparents, neighbours or older siblings are available to look after young children in the morning, evening or for a few hours after school. This is why good wraparound childcare provisions are so important to working parents.
“We know that many parents work ‘opposite shifts’, with families barely able to spend a minute of quality time together. Workplace policies help and unions do a great job negotiating flexible working agreements that make a real difference to women’s working lives, but women working in part-time, low hours and low paid jobs, who are worried about holding onto them, are often too afraid to ask their employer for help.
“A successful childcare system should enable parents to work the jobs and the hours that they choose to. Instead, it is a barrier to work for those in lower paid jobs.
“It prevents women from progressing, trapping families in poverty and ingraining inequality. We desperately need a childcare system that supports working parents and grandparents, valuing these dedicated workers and supporting families in Scotland.”
We’re looking for three Project Coordinators to join our young people’s service!
You’ll work as part of a team supporting children, young people and their families in the transition from primary to secondary school in Edinburgh or East Lothian.
It’s never too early to get your child active for life by starting them young – and now’s the perfect time to unlock your kid’s sporting potential with Edinburgh Leisure’s ‘Come and Try Week’ coaching taster sessions, running from 29April – 4 May.
For 3-5 years let your child release their inner Pavel Karnejenko and Lottie Smith and help them develop motor skills, balance, and agility with the gymnastics tasters. And for those that have been inspired by the likes of Paralympian swimmer Scott Quin, who is also a swim coach at Edinburgh Leisure, there are swimming taster sessions. There will also be multi-sport, and basketball taster classes on offer too.
For Primary 1s – 7s, there’s basketball and athletics, where kids can show their athletic prowess in running, jumping, and throwing.
Each taster session last from 30-60 minutes and booking online is essential. With multiple sports across multiple venues across the city, there is something for all the family wherever they are at or on the map. From £3.00 a class, this is the perfect opportunity to try something new. Spaces are limited and subject to availability.
As the biggest provider of sports coaching facilities across Edinburgh, led by qualified and experienced coaches in a fun environment, Edinburgh Leisure’s coaching programme will help your child develop new skills, improve their agility, and grow confidence.
Argyll & Bute finally agrees to keep rates at 2023-24 levels
A council tax freeze will be delivered in all of Scotland’s local authorities after Argyll & Bute became the final council to accept Scottish Government funding to keep rates at last year’s levels.
As a result, council taxpayers in all but one of Scotland’s council areas will not pay any more for their bills than they did in 2023-24. Households in Inverclyde will receive a planned one-off rebate in May to reverse the impact of their 8.2% increase in council tax.
Deputy First Minister Shona Robison said: “We know many households continue to struggle with the impact of rising prices, and this council tax freeze – funded by the Scottish Government – is just one of many ways that we’re offering support.
“Council tax is already lower in Scotland than elsewhere in the UK, and over two million households will now benefit from this freeze.
“We deeply value the role local authorities play in Scotland’s communities, which is why – in the face of a profoundly challenging financial situation – we have made available record funding of more than £14 billion to councils in 2024-25, a real-terms increase of 2.5% compared with the previous year.”
Jeremy Hunt will visit New York today, followed by a two-day trip to Washington D.C. for the IMF Spring Meetings.
Chancellor in New York seeking to strengthen ties between the British and US economies.
Hunt will amplify UK leadership on international issues at IMF Springs, including support for Ukraine and condemnation of the Iranian regime’s attack on Israel.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will today embark on a three-day trip to the U.S., visiting New York before heading to Washington D.C. to attend the annual International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meetings.
The Chancellor will be in New York looking to build upon the rock-solid economic relationship between the UK and US – one which mirrors the strength of the geopolitical alliance between the two and is based on shared values on the world stage.
Mr Hunt will meet with a range of executives from the likes of Bloomberg, Comcast and Blackrock setting out the case for Britain’s financial services and creative industries. Both sectors are important for a UK economy that is bouncing back, with Britain boasting the largest film and TV industry in Europe while also being the largest net exporter of financial services globally.
Jeremy Hunt, Chancellor of the Exchequer, said:“At times of instability across the globe, we are reminded that we are stronger when we stand together. The US is our most important strategic ally and we are both at the forefront of keeping the world safe.
“Our economic relationship sees $1 trillion invested in one another’s countries and I will be looking to deepen it further during my time in New York.”
The Chancellor will then head to Washington D.C. on Wednesday for the IMF’s Spring Meetings, at which he is expected to highlight the professionalism and bravery of Royal Air Force aircraft in intercepting a number of Iranian attack drones fired at Israel.
Additional RAF planes have been deployed to the region and the UK continues to work urgently with regional partners to stabilise the situation. Britain’s position continues to be for an immediate humanitarian pause in Gaza leading to a sustainable ceasefire without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life, as the fastest way to get hostages out and aid in.
Amid global instability, Mr Hunt will stress the need to stick to a plan for the British economy that has already seen real progress being made – with inflation down from its peak of 11.1% to 3.4%, rising wages consistently outstripping that inflation, and official statistics showing growth across the economy in 2024 thus far.
Such progress helped to deliver record cuts to National Insurance for 29 million working people at the start of April – with the average worker earning £35,000 starting to see the benefits of an over £900 per year saving in their payslips this month – as part of a long-term ambition to end the unfair double tax on work.
The Chancellor will also underline the UK’s unwavering support for Ukraine and how Britain is keeping up pressure on Russia via its sanctions regime – the largest and most severe package ever imposed on any major economy, with over 2,000 individuals and entities now sanctioned. This follows an announcement last week in which Britain acted in conjunction with the U.S. to significantly extend the scope of sanctions on imports of Russian metals by bringing the world’s two largest metal exchanges into the scope of the existing ban.
Mr Hunt will meet with G7 and G20 partners, as well as chairing a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. During his meetings, the Chancellor will promote collaboration on issues including artificial intelligence, global economic security and supply chain resilience. British support for developing countries is also on his agenda, including driving reform of the international financial system so it can support all countries in addressing global challenges.
On his attendance of the IMF Spring Meetings, Jeremy Hunt, Chancellor of the Exchequer, said:“The UK’s resilient economy is on the up, and it is from this improving position that we can be the best partner possible to our friends around the world – including standing steadfast with Ukraine in its fight against President Putin and standing up for Israel’s security.”
The Chancellor last visited the U.S. in October last year, speaking to executives from tech giants including Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft as he travelled to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. The U.S. is Britain’s largest single trading partner, worth 17.7% of total UK trade – with this totalling £315.1 billion in the four quarters to the end of Q3 2023.
We’re thrilled to announce that we’re extending the application deadline for the Community Shed Manager position!
This part-time opportunity (21 hours/week) is your chance to play a pivotal role in nurturing the NEA Community Shed’s development and growth.
As the Community Shed Manager, you’ll be at the heart of our vibrant community, fostering positive connections, and ensuring sustainability.
With our venue expansion on the horizon, this is a great time to get involved and be a part of our team. Bring your passion for making and mending, your creative problem-solving skills, and your excellent interpersonal skills.
To find out more about the role, please visit our website at
As we’ve extended the closing date for this post, previous applicants need not apply. For more information, please email garden@northedinburgharts.co.uk
Come and share your experiences of accessing healthcare as a woman in Scotland!
Discussion topics will include: periods, pregnancy, maternity and motherhood, menopause, mental health, patient experience and more.
This free reminiscence group is open to 60+ and all participants will receive a £15 gift card for their contributions.
Join us on Thursday 18th April at 11am for reminiscence and refreshments at the Wee Hub Lounge (first floor of Ocean Terminal Shopping Centre), right beside The Wee Hub brought to you by The Living Memory Association.
