Month: April 2024

Sight Scotland celebrates Fair Rail campaign success

Sight Scotland, and its sister charity Sight Scotland Veterans, are celebrating a Fair Rail Campaign victory after Transport Scotland announced free rail travel for companions of blind and partially sighted people.   

In its recently published Fair Fares Review, Transport Scotland says it plans to launch a pilot project to extend free rail travel for companions of Blind Persons Concessionary Travel cardholders. This policy change will have a profound impact on the lives of visually impaired individuals across Scotland, many of whom depend on public transport for mobility and independence.  

Craig Spalding, Chief Executive of Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans, commented: “We are delighted the Scottish Government has announced a pilot project which will see free rail travel for blind and partially sighted people and their companions. After over 2 years of campaigning, this is a great win for our Fair Rail campaign and another step towards accessible rail travel for all.  

“Through our Fair Rail Campaign, we have been able to amplify the voices of visually impaired individuals and highlight the barriers they face whilst travelling. For most people living with a visual impairment, public transport is the only means they have to make journeys around the country.

“Unfortunately for many travelling without a companion is just not an option, and the costs to pay fares is too much.

“This news will be transformative, both in terms of inclusivity and affordability, and we would like to commend Transport Scotland for actively listening to a segment of society that is regrettably overlooked far too often.” 

Joe Tottenham, a 92-year-old army veteran, who lost his sight due to macular degeneration, commented: “This is a great piece of news and I’m so proud to be part of the Fair Rail campaign led by Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans who have campaigned tirelessly on this issue.

“Knowing no matter where I’m going in Scotland that my companion can travel with me at no extra cost will change my life. As a blind person, having someone to help me get on and off the train is vital – I’d be lost without them. I hope all Blind Persons Concessionary Travel cardholders will take full advantage of the pilot scheme.” 

Graham Simpson MSP, Shadow Minister for Transport, who backed the campaign and led a debate in the Scottish Parliament on the Fair Rail Campaign, added: “This is good news.

“We have been campaigning for the companions of blind people to get free rail travel for some time, so this is a step in the right direction. The Scottish Government must now commit to ensuring there is a nationwide scheme as soon as possible.” 

The Fair Rail Campaign was launched over 2 years ago and called for a new national policy for free rail travel across Scotland for the companions of those with a National (Scotland) Concessionary Travel for Blind Persons card.

The call for a new national policy came as Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans were contacted by people with sight loss who were not only concerned about the rising costs of rail travel but were also confused by the different concessionary and companion schemes which were operated in different areas of Scotland.

The charities secured a debate in the Scottish Parliament on the issue and gave evidence to the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee. It was then considered in the Fair Fares Review. 

For more information please visit: https://sightscotland.org.uk/FairRail

Two in three Scots may be at risk of stress, charity warns

A mental health charity’s research has revealed more than two thirds of Scottish respondents are not meeting their needs and could be at risk of stress, which can lead to mental health challenges.

The Mental Health Toolkit, the training arm of independent mental health charity Suffolk Mind, has identified 12 emotional and physical needs – including Achievement, Emotional Connection, Sleep, Movement, Security, Attention, Control and Community – we should aim to meet to stay well.

The charity’s validated Emotional Needs Survey reveals that out of 2,367 Scottish respondents, 66% felt they were not meeting their Emotional Needs.

The survey also found that 66% are not feeling rested after sleep, 61% do not feel part of a community and 51% do not feel secure.

Wendy Sheppard, Corporate Relationships Manager at The Mental Health Toolkit, said: “When needs aren’t being met, we feel stress, nature’s way of alerting us that something is wrong.

“Our research shows more and more people in Scotland feel they are not meeting their needs which, as a result, could cause stress and mental ill-health.

“Many of the survey respondents were employed, and we know that our workplace can either support mental health or be a barrier to wellbeing.”

The Mental Health Toolkit provides workplace training through a suite of practical mental health courses for staff, managers, and leadership teams.

Officially launching in Scotland in April through a free breakfast event, The Mental Health Toolkit offers practical skills to support mental wellbeing at work.

The event, at Dalmahoy Hotel and Country Club in Kerknewton, near Edinburgh, takes place from 8.30am on Wednesday, April 3.

It will include networking with refreshments, an introduction to The Mental Health Toolkit and a Q&A session.

Wendy added: “Increasing knowledge and awareness of mental health and how to support colleagues is essential within any business or organisation.

“The Mental Health Toolkit gives people powerful tools to help recognise and meet their physical and emotional needs, as well as support those around them.

“We are excited to be officially launching our workplace wellbeing courses to businesses in Scotland, following success in our home county, Suffolk, and across the UK.”

For more information on The Mental Health Toolkit and to book your free place at the event, contact the team.

Dance adaptation of Hamish Henderson’s poetry at the Pomegranates Festival

ELEGIES – Saturday 27 April, 7.30pm 
Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street

Hamish Henderson (1919-2002), was a soldier-poet and scholar-folk revivalist. Elegies is his first-hand account from the North African desert military campaign for which he won the Somerset Maugham Award.

His dedication of the book: “for our own and the others” sets the story within our own common bonds, fragility and humanity, in the setting of the ‘deadlands’ of Cyrenaica (modern-day Libya). The Elegies also reveal the shared helplessness of those loved ones at home waiting, praying – and dancing.

This production is led by a duo of dancers and choreographers Helen Gould and George Adams who together with dancers Nicola Thomson, Edwin Wen and Aimee Williamson embody and represent the characters from the ten elegies set both in the desert and the dance hall by using ceilidh, jive, swing and lindy hop – the popular social dance culture of the 1940s. 

Through their movement directorship Gould and Adams weave into the dance, the reading of the Elegies for the Dead in Cyrenaica by spoken word artists Morag Anderson and Stephen Watt; and specially composed and newly arranged trad music and song by Cera Impala. 

Wendy Timmons and Iliyana Nedkova, Elegies co-curators and producers from Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland said: “Elegies is a dance poem of serious reflection – a lament for all lives lost not only in WWII but in our world of conflicts, oppression and inequality.

“We were delighted by the positive reaction we received when it was first performed on Remembrance Day last year, and very proud of everyone who has worked with us on this revised adaptation as part of this year’s Pomegranates Festival.”

Elegies was originally commissioned for the Scottish International Storytelling Festival 2023, then extended and revised for Pomegranates Festival 2024. 

Trad Dance Session

There will be a post-performance lindy hop social dance session, led and accompanied by Pomegranates 2024 resident musicians from the Castle Rock Jazz Band, in the main atrium at the Scottish Storytellling Centre. All welcome. Tickets are Pay What You Can £5, £10 or £15 and available through the Scottish Storytelling Centre Box Office here

Barratt Developments donations support local communities

Three vital causes supporting families and individuals in Edinburgh and the Lothians have been named the first recipients of this year’s Barratt Developments Community Fund.

Barratt Developments, which includes Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes, currently donates £1,500 per month to local charities in its divisions as part of the homebuilder’s pledge to improve the quality of life of those living in the areas in which it operates.

The homebuilder kicked off 2024 by donating £3,000 to its new East of Scotland main charity partner, Cash for Kids. 

The charity aims to improve the lives of disadvantaged children and young people living locally who are affected by poverty, illness, neglect or have additional needs. The cause also works with grassroots organisations that aim to make a difference to young lives, directly supporting families who often have nowhere else to go.

Cash for Kids replaces St Columba’s Hospice Care as the East Scotland division’s main charity partner, having raised a whopping £247,909 in the last two years through fundraising, including a Pentland Hills walk, charity dinners and office events.

Victoria Hendry, Charity Manager at Cash for Kids, said: “We were absolutely thrilled to receive the Barratt Community Fund for this first quarter of the year. This £3,000 will make such a difference in our local community, specifically to families really struggling with the cost of living.

“We are receiving hundreds, if not thousands, of requests for support with real basics such as food, toiletries and nappies, so these funds will go a long way in supporting us with helping these families who are living on our doorstep.

“To also be chosen as Barratt East Scotland’s new main charity partner was really just the cherry on top. I was delighted to get the phone call and we are excited to build some brilliant fundraising plans across the next two years and help even more local children.”

In February, a further £1,500 was given to Capital Carers, which supports carers in the North West of Edinburgh. 

The organisation’s highly trained staff provide one-to-one support as well as a range of services which enable individuals to support the person they care for and assist them in carrying out their caring responsibilities, while ensuring that they also look after themselves.

Lauren Alexander, Young Carers Support Worker at Capital Carers, said: “A huge thanks to Barratt for this generous donation, it will enable us to provide respite trips for young carers and young adult carers which we would otherwise not have been able to do.

“All of our carers love interaction with animals, and this therapeutic approach can really benefit those with challenging situations. Horses are a big favourite, but it is an expensive activity. The money will allow us to take several groups horse riding, alpaca trekking, a trip to the zoo and going out to eat.

“The funding has already allowed us to take young carers on active respite trips, to Laser Tag, swimming and escape rooms, and meals out where all carers can relax together, make new friends, reconnect with old ones and have that important peer support.”

Finally, in March, Barratt Developments donated £1,500 to Midlothian Foodbank. 

The charity, which is supported by The Trussell Trust, provides three days’ nutritionally balanced emergency food and support to local people in need in the Midlothian area.

Ian Purves, from Midlothian Foodbank, said: “Thank you to Barratt for their generous donation to Midlothian Foodbank.

“The donation will help people in our area struggling with the cost of living and support them with emergency food parcels, food vouchers for families in school holidays, or a hot meal at one of our two weekly lunches. 

“They also have access to an advisor from Citizens Advice who is present during one of our lunches. All this helps to reach our aim of ensuring that no one in Midlothian goes to bed hungry.”

Alison Condie, Managing Director at Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes East Scotland, said: “We’re proud to be supporting causes which are carrying out such essential work in communities throughout Edinburgh and the Lothians.

“From foodbanks through to care, cost of living has placed a significant strain on the services that charities can provide. We hope that our donations can help to alleviate some of this pressure and allow causes to continue supporting families and individuals in the communities in which we build.”

For more information on Barratt Developments in the East of Scotland, visit:

https://bar.homes/east-scotland

Mental health charity launches new not-for-profit coffee shop in Broughton Street

Where there is coffee, there is hope. Introducing Hopetown Coffee – Edinburgh’s new not-for-profit safe space café raising awareness of mental illness and mental health across Scotland.

National mental health charity Change Mental Health has opened its first not-for-profit mental health coffee shop, Hopetown Coffee, on Edinburgh’s thriving Broughton Street.

The new enterprise arm of the charity, which is Edinburgh’s first coffee shop raising awareness of mental illness and mental health, provides the highest quality coffee and food after partnering with local suppliers. It allows people to purchase their daily coffee and cake knowing that their money is going directly to helping people affected by poor mental health.

Nick Ward, CEO at Change Mental Health, said: “Hopetown Coffee is everything that Change Mental Health is about: providing hope and support in communities in a non-stigmatising way.

“When creating Hopetown Coffee, we wanted to shift the dial on what a not-for-profit coffee shop should be like. We won’t compromise on quality of coffee, food or ambiance and every single penny made will be reinvested back into helping people across Scotland who are needing support with their mental health.”

Customers will enjoy great coffee, locally sourced food and a welcoming service and environment – feeling good knowing that that they have contributed to a worthy cause. By enjoying a coffee with Hopetown Coffee, customers can look after both their own and other’s mental health.

The new coffee shop will raise awareness of Change Mental Health and the work that it does supporting over 7,000 people across Scotland every year.

As well as changing attitudes and fighting stigma around mental illness, the charity will reinvest profits from Hopetown Coffee back into providing mental health services to more people across Scotland.

Hopetown Coffee believes in supporting local businesses and works with local suppliers such as Santu Coffee and Brose Oats to provide great, high quality artisan coffee with an emphasis on sustainability.

This new venture ensures that it’s a tempting place to visit no matter what drink is ordered, with milk alternatives and a diverse range of other tasty offerings.

The coffee shop also offers a ‘one on us’ policy where customers can purchase a coffee for someone that might be having a difficult time with their mental health, as well as a loyalty scheme and lots of information about mental illness and mental health.

Change Mental Health provides mental health support on the same street, at their drop-in community hub called the Stafford Centre, and works across Scotland to improve the quality of life for those affected by mental illness.

Gardyloo!

The Real Mary King’s Close offers new immersive holiday to live like a 17th century local

Live like a local in 17th century Edinburgh with a stay that sees technology taken away, a visit from the Plague Doctor, and a bucket for a toilet

History lovers now have the chance to live like a 17th century Edinburgh local with a new week-long experience staying in the underground streets of The Real Mary King’s Close that are frozen in time.

You would have to be a ‘fool’ to stay on this immersive experience, as guests see their phones taken from them on arrival, as well as having to use a bucket as toilet, and avoid waste being thrown on them from other guests as they shout ‘Gardyloo!’

The new immersive experience from The Real Mary King’s Close is all about offering an authentic experience as visitors learn what it is like to be a former resident of the close. Edinburgh experienced the worst outbreak of the plague due to the crowded living conditions and over the week-long experience guests can expect visits from the Plague Doctor in their terrifying outfit designed to protect them, including a long cloak and beak-like mask.

As well as visits from the Plague Doctor, guests will live in cramped conditions sharing a bucket for a toilet, however there is no room service in this experience as guests will have to throw their waste out with a shout of ‘Gardyloo!’ so other guests know what is about to wash the streets.

Paul Nixon, General Manager at The Real Mary King’s Close, said: “As one of the UK’s top-rated experiences on TripAdvisor we are always looking for new ways for guests to immerse themselves in 17th century Edinburgh. What better way to learn what it was like to live on these streets nearly 400 years ago than to actually live on these streets?

“That is why we are set to offer a new week-long experience where guests can stay on the Close and learn what it was really like to live here day-to-day, from having no phones to using a bucket as a toilet, this is set to be an experience like no other, you’d be a fool to miss it!”

More information on the immersive stays will be available on Monday 1st April until 12:00, on : https://www.realmarykingsclose.com/

Dulux announce new Scratch & Sniff paint range

This Easter, Dulux is sweetening up the paint game by introducing a Scratch & Sniff paint collection inspired by food and drink favourites.

With salivating shades such as Chocolate Sprinkles, Hazelnut Truffle, Cookie Dough, and Caramel Cream, it only takes two hours for the paint to dry and the scent to appear.

With Dulux’s revolutionary ‘Scratch & Sniff’ collection, you can experience these delectable scents before even cracking open a paint can by picking up one of the paint cards to help decide whether you’d like your home to smell sweet like honey or like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. So, whether you’re redecorating your kitchen, bedroom, or even your bathroom, now every room can be a sensory spectacle.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1774700779112223145

Marianne Shillingford, Creative Director at Dulux, explains: “It was a no-brainer with so many of our colours being inspired by popular foods and flavours – probably down to us choosing colour names in the lead up to lunch!

“Our goal is to push the boundaries and create products that not only beautify homes but also enhance the overall sensory experience. With our ‘Scratch & Sniff’ collection, we’re bringing a whole new level of indulgence to interior design. It’s like giving your walls a delicious makeover, some may think it’s too good to be true!”

So, this Easter, why not treat yourself to a little sensory indulgence? Transform your home with Dulux sweet-scented paints and fill every room with the irresistible smells of the chocolate occasion. 

Followers of the Dulux Instagram, TikTok and X channels will be the first to see Scratch & Sniff collection in action, launching on 1st April 2024.

For more colour and decorating information, visit the Dulux Website.

New Hate Crime laws come into force

Greater protection for victims and communities?

New measures to tackle the harm caused by hatred and prejudice come into force today (1 April 2024). The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act will ‘provide greater protection for victims and communities’.

It introduces new offences for threatening or abusive behaviour which is intended to stir up hatred based on prejudice towards characteristics including age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, transgender identity and variations in sex characteristics. These extra provisions will add to the long-standing stirring up racial hatred offences, which have been in place UK-wide since 1986.

The new laws were developed following Lord Bracadale’s Independent Review of Hate Crime Legislation which concluded that new specific offences relating to stirring up hatred were needed. The legislation, which was passed by a majority of MSPs in the Scottish Parliament in 2021, was also subject to extensive consultation and engagement throughout, including with communities affected by hate crime.

Minister for Victims and Community Safety Siobhian Brown said: “Nobody in our society should live in fear and we are committed to building safer communities that live free from hatred and prejudice.

“We know that the impact on those on the receiving end of physical, verbal or online attacks can be traumatic and life-changing. This legislation is an essential element of our wider approach to tackling that harm.

“Protections for freedom of expression are built into the legislation passed by Parliament and these new offences have a higher threshold for criminality than the long-standing offence of stirring up racial hatred, which has been in place since 1986.”

The Scottish Conservatives oppose the legislation: “Unfortunately, this is not an April Fool. Today, Humza Yousaf’s dangerous Hate Crime Act has come into force. This SNP law will have a chilling effect on free speech.

“We were the only party to oppose it every step of the way.”

The Scottish Government’s Hate Crime Strategy and Delivery Plan sets out Ministers’ strategic priorities for tackling hate crime in Scotland.

TUC: It’s time to apply the lessons of the minimum wage

Sunday 1st April marked the 25th anniversary of the UK getting a minimum wage (writes TUC General Secretary PAUL NOWAK).

Nowadays when we think of the national minimum wage (NMW), we think of what is roundly accepted as one of the great policy successes of our time. But we shouldn’t kid ourselves that there was unanimity about the need to raise wages.  

Britain was full of employers and employers’ organisations predicting the minimum wage would cause mass unemployment and economic ruin.

The CBI warned a NMW “could result in rising prices, business closures and unemployment”. That it would “undermine flexibility and was a poor way to tackle poverty”. They wanted all new employees to be exempted from the minimum wage for the first six months! 1

They were wrong!

The minimum wage started off at £3.60. With no loss of jobs, and no economic meltdown. And in recent years, it’s gone up substantially. And it’s done so with no negative impact on jobs.

History proved all those doomsday warnings emphatically wrong. And I think there are lessons there for all of us. So here’s three: 

First: the NMW was a bold policy and we need to be equally bold for its future. 

The TUC is clear, we now need to set the bar higher. That means ministers should set a bolder Low Pay Commission remit:

  • A target of 75 per cent of median pay. 
  • Getting us faster towards a £15 an hour minimum wage for all. 
  • Raising the pay of millions 
  • Making the minimum wage a real Living Wage. 

Second: sometimes we have to face down those whose instinctive reaction is to say no to measures that improve the lives of working people.  

This is vital if we are going to deliver a much-needed new deal for working people in this country. 

  • 1 in 9 workers are in insecure work. 
  • Record numbers of young people on zero hours contracts. 
  • Seventy per cent of the kids who live in poverty have working parents. 

The New Deal is the right thing to do. Not just morally, but economically. It will establish a level playing field. Stop decent employers from being undercut by the cowboys. And make sure that everyone has a secure job they can build a life on. 

Just like the minimum wage, good employers have nothing to fear from the New Deal. But that hasn’t stopped some employers organisations’ warning of an economic apocalypse if Labour’s New Deal was made law.  And the arguments are exactly the same as they were 25 years ago. It will cost jobs. Put employers out of business. Reduce flexibility. 

The then British Hospitality Association said back in 1997 that the NMW would destroy 32,000 jobs in the industry2 . Spoiler alert: it didn’t!

They were wrong then, and they are wrong now. That’s why Labour should resist the out of touch, out of date siren voices from the 90s. Now is the time to forge a new political consensus on tackling the scourge of insecure work and deliver the New Deal in full. 

Third and final lesson. 

The NMW has succeeded because it has been underpinned by what might be unfashionably called social dialogue.  Employers, unions, supported by independent academics, working with government to deliver a minimum wage. We could do with more of that approach today.

Our so-called flexible labour market has failed far too many people. It’s led to massive rewards at the top and stagnant wages for everyone else. Unleashed epic insecurity and in-work poverty. And actively undermined our productivity. 

So it’s time for a new approach. 

Time to apply the lessons of the minimum wage. Time for the New Deal for workers that Britain needs. 

Councils to use new powers to double Council Tax on second homes

New powers enabling councils to charge up to double the full rate of council tax on second homes come into force this week.

Councils will be able to increase the tax from today (Monday 1 April 2024) and 29 of Scotland’s 32 local authorities, including City of Edinburgh, have confirmed that second homeowners will have to pay the higher charge in their areas.

The changes aim to help increase housing availability by encouraging more homes to be used for living in. They have come into force following joint work with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) and a public consultation held in 2023.

Local Government Empowerment Minister Joe FitzPatrick said: “We know there are housing pressures in parts of Scotland because of the prevalence of second homes. These new powers give flexibility to local councils, allowing them to charge the higher council tax rate on second homes if they wish and making sure they can prioritise homes for living in.

“The majority of people who responded to the public consultation last year supported these changes, which bring second homes into line with council tax policy on long-term empty homes.

“The changes demonstrate the value of the Verity House Agreement between the Scottish Government and COSLA in putting policies in place that can better meet the needs of local communities across Scotland. They also deliver important parts of the Scottish Government’s ‘Housing to 2040’ strategy and Bute House Agreement with the Scottish Green Party.”

Councillor Katie Hagmann, COSLA’s Resources spokesperson, said: “I am pleased that this important legislation is coming into force this week. COSLA welcomes the ability for councils to take the decision to increase the premium on second homes in their areas where appropriate.

“It supports the long-standing COSLA position that councillors who are closest to their communities should be empowered to take the decisions about what best works in their local communities, demonstrating the value of the Verity House Agreement.”

Second Homes and Long Term Empty Policies and Discounts 2024-25