For World Sleep Day on Friday March 14, 2025, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) highlights the serious risks of drowsy driving, with over 430 people killed or seriously injured, and 1,276 collisions, linked to tiredness in 2023
RoSPA is working with the Fatigue Group, a non-profit organisation led by award-winning NHS anaesthetists, to provide advice to workers and their employers on managing the risk of fatigue, the importance of regular rest and recognising when people are too tired to drive
RoSPA also wants government to take actions including standardised tests for fatigue (similar to breathalyser tests), and public awareness campaigns targeting high risk groups such as shift workers
Spokespeople from RoSPA and the Fatigue Group are available for interview
World Sleep Day 2025
“If you’re tired, don’t drive” – that’s the message from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) ahead of this year’s World Sleep Day on March 14. The charity is raising awareness about the significant risks associated with drowsy driving, after over 430 people were killed or seriously injured, and there were 1,276 collisions, linked to tiredness in 2023.
RoSPA is working with the Fatigue Group, a non-profit organisation led by award-winning NHS anaesthetists, to raise awareness of the dangers of driving after working long hours. The Fatigue Group was formed after tragic incidents in which colleagues were killed while driving home exhausted.
The Group is continuing the work of the #fightfatigue campaign originally designed for NHS staff, although much of the advice will help anyone who works long hours or night shifts keep themselves and others safe.
These include the HALT principles, which advise against driving if you are Hungry, Angry, Late or Tired, and recommendations to take regular rest breaks at work.
Although the issue is particularly serious in the health service – with a recent Medical Defence Union (MDU) survey revealing that 90% of doctors feel sleep deprived at work – fatigue presents a risk across the entire workforce. That’s most apparent in physically demanding industries such as haulage and construction, but can also affect people putting in long hours at an office before driving home.
RoSPA emphasises that anyone who begins to feel tired when they are driving stop as soon as is safe and possible, and ideally try and find somewhere safe to sleep until they feel rested. Although two strong coffees and a 15 minute nap might help in the short-term, this should never be done more than once per journey.
RoSPA is also calling upon employers to ensure their staff are well rested and safe, for example by ensuring workers take regular breaks, and incorporating effective staff fatigue risk management in working patterns.
In addition, RoSPA wants the government to introduce standardised tests for assessing fatigue at the scene of road traffic collisions, similar to breathalyser tests for alcohol, establish a national registry of drowsy driving incidents, and run public awareness campaigns targeting high-risk groups such as shift workers.
The Fatigue Group advocates that healthcare organisations should have the same regulatory requirements for fatigue risk management as exist for all other safety-critical industries.
Caitlin Taylor, Road Safety Manager at RoSPA, said: “Drowsy driving is responsible for many serious and fatal collisions each year. Fatigue impairs driving ability similar to drink or drug driving but gets much less attention. This must change.
“Fatigue slows reaction times, reduces awareness, and affects decision-making, putting everyone at risk. RoSPA calls on employers, policymakers, and the government to act now by improving workplace fatigue management, investing in public awareness campaigns, and collecting better data on fatigue-related crashes. No one should lose their life due to preventable driver fatigue.”
JP Lomas of The Fatigue Group said: “‘We have our own personal experience of the perils of driving while tired, having had colleagues die driving home after night shifts.
“Although not every journey ends in tragedy, the pressure on healthcare staff leads to many feeling forced to take risks, with research showing that 57% of trainees and 45% of consultants had experienced an accident or near miss driving tired post-shift.
“Working long hours without adequate rest breaks not only puts the patients they care for in danger – with evidence demonstrating that surgery performed at night or after hours is associated with higher mortality rates – but also other people outside of hospitals.
“With such a large number of tired employees on the roads all day and night, this is an urgent problem in the healthcare sector. We call for hospitals to provide dedicated rest time and spaces for staff.
The so-called ‘hero’ culture where people continue working despite being exhausted for fear of looking ‘weak’ or letting others down, needs to be replaced by a safety culture where staff mitigate the impacts of fatigue with power naps and rest breaks.
“Our message is simple – getting enough rest is a necessity not a weakness, and could save lives.”
The Regenerative Futures Fund is a new initiative to improve the lives of people living in poverty and experiencing racism in Edinburgh, while contributing towards a just, green transition in the city.
It will support community organisations in Edinburgh for 10 years and we are bringing together people who live in Edinburgh to decide who gets funded!
Group members will:
• have lived or be living in poverty and/or have experienced racism
• have lived in Edinburgh for at least the past year and plan to stay here
We’ll ask you to join 2 – 4 meetings a month and bring your imagination and hopes to make Edinburgh a happy, healthy home for everyone.
We will pay for your time (more than £15 per hour), pay for things that can make your life better (for you or your career) and offer translation, costs of childcare, travel and other things that make it easy for you to join.
What’s next? Read more about joining the group and then talk to us… we’re Aala (she/her) and Andy (he/him) and we would love to chat!
Ending NHS England will ‘reduce bureaucracy, make savings and empower NHS staff to deliver better care for patients’
Major reforms to empower NHS staff and put patients first
Changes will drive efficiency and empower staff to deliver better care as part of Prime Minister’s Plan for Change
Move will reduce complex bureaucracy and undo the damage caused by 2012 reorganisation
Reforms to reduce bureaucracy, make savings and empower NHS staff to deliver better care for patients have been set out today by the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer.
NHS England will be brought back into the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to put an end to the duplication resulting from 2 organisations doing the same job in a system currently holding staff back from delivering for patients.
By stripping back layers of red tape and bureaucracy, more resources will be put back into the front line rather than being spent on unnecessary admin.
The reforms will reverse the 2012 top-down reorganisation of the NHS which created burdensome layers of bureaucracy without any clear lines of accountability. As Lord Darzi’s independent investigation into the state of the NHS found, the effects of this are still felt today and have left patients worse off under a convoluted and broken system.
The current system also penalises hardworking staff at NHS England and DHSC who desperately want to improve the lives of patients but who are being held back by the current overly bureaucratic and fragmented system.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: “This is the final nail in the coffin of the disastrous 2012 reorganisation, which led to the longest waiting times, lowest patient satisfaction and most expensive NHS in history.
“When money is so tight, we cannot justify such a complex bureaucracy with 2 organisations doing the same jobs. We need more doers and fewer checkers, which is why I’m devolving resources and responsibilities to the NHS frontline.
“NHS staff are working flat out but the current system sets them up to fail. These changes will support the huge number of capable, innovative and committed people across the NHS to deliver for patients and taxpayers.
“Just because reform is difficult does not mean it should not be done. This government will never duck the hard work of reform.
“We will take on vested interests and change the status quo, so the NHS can once again be there for you when you need it.”
Sir James Mackey, who will be taking over as Transition CEO of NHS England, said: “We know that while unsettling for our staff, today’s announcement will bring welcome clarity as we focus on tackling the significant challenges ahead and delivering on the government’s priorities for patients.
“From managing the COVID pandemic, the biggest and most successful vaccine campaign which got the country back on its feet, to introducing the latest, most innovative new treatments for patients, NHS England has played a vital role in improving the nation’s health. I have always been exceptionally proud to work for the NHS – and our staff in NHS England have much to be proud of.
“But we now need to bring NHS England and DHSC together so we can deliver the biggest bang for our buck for patients, as we look to implement the 3 big shifts – analogue to digital, sickness to prevention and hospital to community – and build an NHS fit for the future.”
Incoming NHS England chair, Dr Penny Dash, said: “I am committed to working with Jim, the board and wider colleagues at NHS England to ensure we start 2025 to 2026 in the strongest possible position to support the wider NHS to deliver consistently high-quality care for patients and value for money for taxpayers.
“I will also be working closely with Alan Milburn to lead the work to bring together NHS England and DHSC to reduce duplication and streamline functions.”
Work will begin immediately to return many of NHS England’s current functions to DHSC. A longer-term programme of work will deliver the changes to bring NHS England back into the department, while maintaining a ‘laser-like focus’ on the government’s priorities to cut waiting times and responsibly manage finances.
It will also realise the untapped potential of the NHS as a single payer system, using its centralised model to procure cutting-edge technology more rapidly, get a better deal for taxpayers on procurement and work more closely with the life sciences sector to develop the treatments of the future.
The reforms to deliver a more efficient, leaner centre will also free up capacity and help deliver significant savings of hundreds of millions of pounds a year, which will be reinvested in frontline services to cut waiting times through the government’s Plan for Change.
The changes will crucially also give more power and autonomy to local leaders and systems – instead of weighing them down in increasing mountains of red tape, they will be given the tools and trust they need to deliver health services for the local communities they serve with more freedom to tailor provision to meet local needs.
The number of people working in the centre has more than doubled since 2010, when the NHS delivered the shortest waiting times and highest patient satisfaction in its history. Today, the NHS delivers worse care for patients but is more expensive than ever, meaning that taxpayers are paying more but getting less.
Too much centralisation and over-supervision has led to a tangled bureaucracy, which focuses on compliance and box-ticking, rather than patient care, value for money and innovation. In one example, highlighted by Dame Patricia Hewitt’s 2023 review, one integrated care system received 97 ad-hoc requests in a month from DHSC and NHS England, in addition to the 6 key monthly, 11 weekly and 3 daily data returns.
The review also revealed the challenges caused by duplication – citing examples of tensions, wasted time and needless frictional costs generated by uncoordinated pursuit of organisational goals that do not take account of their wider effects.
Substantial reform, not just short term investment, is needed to deliver the government’s Plan for Change mission to get the NHS back on its feet and fit for the future, and this announcement is one of a series of steps the government is taking to make the NHS more productive and resilient so that it can meet the needs of the population it cares for.
NHS England’s new leadership team, Sir Jim Mackey and Dr Penny Dash, will lead this transformation while re-asserting financial discipline and continuing to deliver on the government’s priority of cutting waiting times through the Plan for Change.
These reforms will provide the structure necessary to drive forward the 3 big shifts identified by government as crucial to building an NHS fit for the future – analogue to digital, sickness to prevention and hospital to community.
Since July, the government has already taken significant steps to get the NHS back on its feet, including bringing an end to the resident doctor strikes, delivering an extra 2 million appointments 7 months early and cutting waiting lists by 193,000 since July.
Commenting on the Prime Minister’s announcement that NHS England is to be abolished, UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea said: “Everyone wants more to be spent on frontline services so the sick and injured can be treated sooner.
“Delays and long waits for operations and appointments have left several million unable to work, with a knock-on effect on economic growth.
“More of a focus and greater investment in the entire NHS team of staff, not just nurses and doctors, would help turn around the fortunes of a floundering NHS.
“Put simply the health service needs thousands more staff and to be able to hold on to experienced employees. At the moment, it’s struggling to do that. Giving staff a decent pay rise would help no end.
“But this announcement will have left NHS England staff reeling. Just days ago they learned their numbers were to be slashed by half, now they discover their employer will cease to exist.
“The way the news of the axing has been handled is nothing short of shambolic. It could surely have been managed in a more sympathetic way.
“Thousands of expert staff will be left wondering what their future holds. Wherever possible, their valuable skills must be redeployed and used to the benefit of the reformed NHS and patients.
“Ministers have to reassure employees right across the NHS that there’s a robust plan to rejuvenate a flailing NHS and deliver for working people.”
Following Sir Keir Starmer’s announcement to scrap NHS England, a leading cybersecurity expert has warned the move could leave the health service dangerously exposed to cyberattacks.
While the proposed reforms aim to cut bureaucracy and streamline services, he warns that removing NHS England’s centralised cybersecurity infrastructure is “like a hospital suddenly removing its emergency department and expecting patients to fend for themselves.”
Graeme Stewart, head of public sector at Check Point Software, said, “While the Prime Minister’s sweeping reforms cover everything from cutting red tape to reining in bureaucracy, one critical area must not be left in the lurch: our cybersecurity defences. Scrapping NHS England’s centralised services is not just a bureaucratic shake-up; it’s like a hospital suddenly removing its emergency department and expecting patients to fend for themselves.
“At present, NHS England provides the backbone for our cyber defences, from a unified email service to specialised threat protection. Removing these central functions risks leaving individual NHS Trusts to fend off cyberattacks with a patchwork of under-resourced teams. As the adage goes, ‘a chain is only as strong as its weakest link,’ and our cyber chain is already under severe strain with attacks on the rise.
“Moreover, dismantling these central services could open the door for a surge of third-party suppliers to step in. While more suppliers might seem like a win for competition, it also fragments our defence and leaves us vulnerable; each new supplier is a potential weak link in our security armour.
“We need a robust, unified security system that acts like a digital fortress, not a hodgepodge of outsourced patches. In the midst of these broad reforms, let’s ensure the cyber element isn’t left out in the cold. Our digital defences must be retained or replaced with an equally robust solution; otherwise, we’re setting the stage for a cyber disaster.”
The right to guaranteed hours for zero hours workers.
Protection from unfair dismissal from day one in the job.
Sick pay for all workers, from the first day of absence
The right for unions to access workplaces to speak to workers.
The establishment of a state Fair Work Agency to bring together existing bodies to better enforce the law.
The common sense reforms take a step towards resolving key issues for many workers, such as being parked on zero hours contracts for months or years on end. Or workers being afraid to take a better job because currently they can be dismissed for no reason within the first two years.
Such steps take the UK closer to equivalent countries in the strength of its employment law.
After consultations with businesses, trade unions and the wider public at the end of last year, the government tabled a number of other notable changes when the Bill returned to parliament this week.
Here are some of the key ones:
Zero hours contracts
Agency workers will have to be offered guaranteed hours contracts reflecting their normal hours, based on a 12-week reference period. This closes a loophole that could have allowed employers to switch from employing zero hours workers directly to hiring them via an agency.
There is a provision that new rights to guaranteed hours, reasonable notice of a shift and payment for cancelled, moved and curtailed shifts can be changed if workers and an employer agree alternative arrangements in a collective agreement. This means arrangements can be tailored to suit particular workplaces.
Sick pay
The government has confirmed that workers will be entitled to receive minimum sick pay of 80 per cent of their normal wages or statutory sick pay, whichever is the lower. This largely affects workers who are not currently entitled to statutory sick pay. The government had modelled a rate as low as 60 per cent.
Union access
The right for a trade union to access a workplace to support workers and talk to them about joining has been extended to a digital right of access as well. This will be especially important where workers work outside an office and are better contacted by digital means such as email or intranet posts.
Unions have been given stronger rights to access workplaces when workers are seeking recognition. Employers will be barred from carrying unfair practices to undermine unions from the start of the process.
Trade union rights
Current law deliberately ties unions up in red tape, which gives employers great opportunities to challenge strike action in the courts on technicalities. This will reduce somewhat as the government reduces the amount of information unions must disclose to employers when they launch a strike ballot.
Meanwhile, notice for strike action will be cut from 14 days currently to ten days. And the mandate for taking strike action after a vote in favour doubled to 12 months.
Industrial action is a last resort for trade union members. After all, workers usually suffer a significant loss of income. But a vote for action can give real weight to union negotiations and kickstart talks when progress has stalled.
These changes mean some of the artificial barriers to action have been removed.
Work still to do
While the Employment Rights Bill will take important steps towards a fairer economy, there are further reforms required. These include:
Some workers could receive less sick pay under these changes than they currently receive. This should be remedied and a review conducted to improve the paltry headline rate of SSP.
A huge amount of detail will be set out in subsequent regulations laid by the government. It is crucial that new “initial periods of employment” during a worker’s first nine months in the job provide sufficient protection from unfair sacking, including a route to take a case to the employment tribunal. And that loopholes are not opened up stopping workers getting guaranteed hours contracts.
The Bill makes it easier for workers to gain recognition for their trade union. But leaves in place a law requiring a three-year gap between recognition attempts, benefiting union-busting employers. This gap should be significantly reduced.
The government will delay the repeal of a Tory measure that requires a 50 per cent turnout for a strike law to be valid until after it has introduced electronic balloting.
The government has pledged to reform current employment status rules that govern whether someone is self-employed, a worker with some rights, or an employee with full rights. An overhaul is needed to stop exploitative employers attempting to deny workers their protections.
The passage of the Employment Rights Bill represents another significant step forward for working people.
The recent amendments further strengthen government efforts to crack down on worker exploitation and strengthen their voice in the workplace.
TUC: Work-related ill-health is costing the UK economy over £400 million a week
New analysis shows that number of days lost due to work-related ill-health has rocketed by a third since 2010 to 34 million days
Work-related ill-health reduced economic output by £22bn in 2023
TUC says findings highlight the importance of driving up job quality in the UK and stronger rights at work ahead of Employment Rights Bill returning
Work-related ill-health is costing the UK economy over £415 million a week, according to new TUC analysis published on Monday.
The analysis of official statistics shows that the number of days lost due to health conditions – including stress, depression and anxiety – has shot up by a third since 2010.
In 2023 to 2024 (the latest year for which figures are available) 34 million working days were lost to work-related ill-health – compared to 22 million in 2010.
The TUC says the findings – which are published as the Employment Rights Bill returns to parliament – show the “urgent importance” of improving the quality of work in the UK.
In 2022 to 2023 (the latest year for which figures are available) work-related ill-health is estimated to have reduced economic output by £21.6bn.
Boom in insecure work
The TUC says the rise in days lost to work-related ill health has coincided with a huge boom in insecure work.
The union body estimates that over a similar period (2011-2023) the number of people in precarious employment also rocketed by a third to over 4 million.
A separate report out this week from the Commission for Healthier Working Lives suggests that poor quality work can harm employee health.It states:
“Most health conditions develop outside work, but for a significant number of people, work itself is the cause. Persistent insecurity, workplace discrimination and extreme demands take a serious toll on health. In some cases, poor-quality work is even worse for health than being unemployed.”
The TUC says driving up employment standards will help improve staff well-being, health and productivity. It will also ensure that more people with disabilities or health conditions can stay in work.
This view was backed up by polling last autumn which revealed that:
Three-quarters (75 per cent) of managers think that strengthened employment rights will improve employee health, compared to just 4 per cent who disagree
Seven in 10 (74 per cent) believe that strengthening employment rights will improve workforce retention, compared to just 6 per cent who do not.
Employment Rights Bill back in parliament
The government’s Employment Rights Bill returned to parliament this week for its report stage. The Bill will deliver “common-sense reforms” which bring the UK closer to the European mainstream on workers’ rights, the union body says.
The TUC says the legislation will help to deliver better quality work in every corner of the country by cracking down on insecure work and banning exploitative zero-hours contracts.
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: ”Improving the quality of work in Britain is good for workers and our economy. Work related ill-health is costing us hundreds of millions each week – that’s billions of pounds down the drain every year.
”That’s why the government’s Employment Rights Bill is so important. Cracking down on exploitative practices like zero-hours contracts and giving people more security will boost workers’ health, well-being and productivity. It will also help more people stay in work.
“We need to turn the corner on Britain’s low-rights, low-pay economic model that has been tested to destruction over the last 14 years. Giving working people more control and predictability over their lives will help create a happier, healthier and more robust workforce.”
Ensuring people receive help before reaching crisis
Further measures to prevent people experiencing the trauma of homelessness will be introduced as part of amendments to the Housing (Scotland) Bill.
The Bill currently places a stronger importance on preventing homelessness through ‘ask and act’ duties on social landlords and relevant bodies, such as Health Boards, Police Scotland and the Scottish Prison Service, to ask about a person’s housing situation as early as they can and act to avoid them becoming homeless wherever possible.
Scottish Government amendments to the Bill, developed with help from homelessness charities including Crisis, will ensure people get the help they need. They will also require a range of services to do more to prevent homelessness and to co-operate, share information and will be specific on what is required of them to help people remain in their homes, supported by £4 million pilot programmes in 2025-26.
Housing Minister Paul McLennan said: “We want Scotland to be a world leader in homelessness prevention. We already have the strongest homeless rights in the world, but we want to go even further. These changes to the Housing Bill will increase the likelihood that people will receive help before reaching the point of crisis.
“Making sure everyone has the right to a safe and stable home is essential to the Scottish Government’s priority of ending child poverty and the Bill will play a role in reaching that goal.
“Working closely with our partners including Crisis, we have developed a set of amendments that further strengthens rights and gives people the help they need by ensuring that preventing homelessness becomes a collective responsibility across society.
“These amendments will have a lasting, positive impact for many households, and I urge Parliament to back them when they come to a vote.”
Researchers at Heriot-Watt University have made a groundbreaking discovery paving the way for a transformative era in photonic technology.
For decades, scientists have theorised the possibility of manipulating the optical properties of light by adding a new dimension—time. This once-elusive concept has now become a reality thanks to nanophotonics experts from the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences in Edinburgh.
The team’s breakthrough emerged from experiments with nanomaterials known as transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) – a special glass capable of changing how light moves through the material at incredible speeds. These compounds are widely found in solar panels and touchscreens and can be shaped as ultra-thin films measuring just 250 nanometers (0.00025 mm),smaller than the wavelength of visible light.
Led by Dr Marcello Ferrera, Associate Professor of Nanophotonics, the Heriot-Watt research team, supported by colleagues from Purdue University in the US, managed to “sculpt” the way TCOs react by radiating the material with ultra-fast pulses of light. Remarkably, the resulting temporally engineered layer was able to simultaneously control the direction and energy of individual particles of light, known as photons, a functionality which, up until now, had been unachievable.
The discovery is directly linked to the possibility of processing data at a far greater speed and volume than what is currently available. It is expected to have transformative impact in several key areas such as optical computing and AI, integrated quantum technologies, and ultra-fast physics.
“It is difficult to grasp the advances we will experience in our daily lives as a result of this breakthrough,” explains Dr Ferrera.
“By using a nonlinear material to fully exploit optical bandwidth, companies and major organisations can process so much more information. This will hold huge benefits to the likes of data centres and advancing AI technology, among others, and will underpin exciting new technologies we cannot fully understand at this time.”
Commenting further on the potential future uses arising from this research, Dr Ferrera said: “Society is thirsty for bandwidth.
“If we are aiming at making a virtual meeting a fully immersive 3D experience, this would demand enormous computational power and processing speed, which only ultra-fast all-optical components can provide. The material properties we are investigating here could increase computational speed by several orders of magnitude, enabling handling much greater volumes of information at a fraction of current energy expenditure.
“What science and technology is trying to do is emulate the human brain but by using electronic hardware. The materials we are working on are the ingredients towards this goal that can lower the energy consumption of these computational units, reducing costs and increasing processing power.”
Dr Wallace Jaffray, a postdoctoral research associate and Sven Stengel, a doctoral researcher, have been working alongside Dr Ferrera on the cutting-edge research at Heriot-Watt University.
The core of their breakthrough lies in the ability to manipulate TCOs to control the speed at which photons travel. This newfound capacity effectively adds a ‘fourth dimension’, enabling extraordinary light transformations, including amplification, the creation of quantum states, and new forms of light control.
Dr Ferrera continues: “Searching for a material that can drastically change under low-energy illumination in an ultra-fast manner has been the quest for the Holy Grail in all-optical technologies since the invention of laser.
“This new class of time-varying media is the biggest leap forward towards the perfect optically controllable material in decades enabling a large variety of novel and exciting effects that scientists all over the world are rushing to attempt. This is a new age in nonlinear optics which targets full light-control without the need of slow electric signals.”
The findings have been published in the peer reviewed journal, Nature Photonics.
Vladimir M. Shalaev, a Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University, who assisted in the research said: “These low-index transparent conductors have brought a real revolution within the field of integrated nonlinear optics, allowing for the effective and energy-efficient manipulation of optical signals on unprecedentedly short time scales.”
Alexandra Boltasseva, a Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University, added: “Our common research effort demonstrates that with these materials we can finally use the variable of time for engineering the optical properties of compounds beyond what is currently possible by using standard fabrication processes.”
Dr Ferrera was recently awarded a share of £6.5m from the UK-Canada Quantum for Science Research Collaboration to advance his research over the next two years.
Call for greater resourcing as spending to support vulnerable children in Scotland is slashed by just under a third
Spending cut of £1,708 per pupil from 2013/14 for those identified with additional support needs (ASN) – 30.1 per cent cut over a decade
Number of pupils identified with ASN has almost doubled (97 per cent increase) over the same period
Postcode lottery in spending across local authorities for those with ASN
The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC), an alliance of leading providers of specialist care and education to vulnerable children and young people, has warned of a potential lost generation of children and young people with ASN, such as autism, dyslexia and mental health problems, and called for greater resourcing to support this group.
The call comes as new figures contained in a parliamentary answer to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, Jenny Gilruth MSP, reveal that average additional support for learning (ASL) spend per pupil has slumped by just under a third (30.1 per cent) over the last decade.[1] This comes against a perfect storm of escalating numbers of pupils with ASN and cuts in support.
The SCSC is calling on the Scottish Government to work with local authorities to increase funding to support the needs of vulnerable children and young people, including greater provision of specialist ASN teachers, educational psychologists, behaviour support staff and classroom assistants.
The figures highlight that average spending per pupil on ASL by local authorities in Scotland (primary, secondary and special education) has fallen from £5,558 in financial year 2013/14 1 to £3,850 in 2023/24 [2] (based on 2023/4 prices). This amounts to an overall cut in spending of £1,708 per pupil, representing a 30.1 per cent drop.
This fall is against the backdrop of a 97 per cent increase between 2013 and 2023 in the number of pupils identified with ASN, from 131,593 to 259,036, amounting to 127,443 individuals. Those with ASNrepresent more than a third of all pupils (36.7 per cent).3
There is a wide variation in spending on pupils who need additional support, ranging from £2,624 per pupil in the Scottish Borders to £7,470 in North Lanarkshire, highlighting a postcode lottery in spending across local authorities.
A recent report from Audit Scotland has called on the Scottish Government and local authorities to fundamentally rethink how they plan, fund and staff additional support for learning as part of core school education in Scotland.
A spokesperson for the SCSC commented: “It is devastating to note cuts in spending supporting those with ASN, and we would urge the Scottish Government and local authorities to increase resourcing to support the greater provision of the likes of specialist teachers, educational psychologists and classroom assistants.
“We are facing a lost generation of children with ASN, and they must get the care and support they need, when they need it, especially given the impacts of the Covid-19 and cost-of-living crisis and the escalating mental health emergency. This is also key if we are to deliver genuine inclusion in the classroom and close the educational attainment gap.
“Our schools are also witnessing dramatic increases in classroom disruption, impacting on pupils and teachers alike. This is in part due to increased levels of social, emotional and behavioural difficulties post-lockdown, and we must ensure the necessary resourcing is delivered to address this.
“The Scottish Government and local authorities must work together to provide adequately resourced support across Scotland for those children and young people with ASN, who represent some of the most vulnerable individuals in our society. “
World Glaucoma Week (9–15 March) is ‘Uniting for a Glaucoma-Free World’ with eyecare innovation high on the list of priorities amid an estimated 150,000 people in Scotland living with the condition.
Supported by formal NHS Scotland partner InnoScot Health, the annual initiative of the World Glaucoma Association (WGA) aims to raise awareness of what is considered the leading global cause of preventable irreversible blindness.
Last year, InnoScot Health welcomed a £2 million Scottish Government investment aimed at reducing short-term ophthalmology waiting times – but still believes that the focus must remain on embedding longer-term innovation.
The organisation says that the Scottish population has historically suffered from chronic long-term eye diseases, and the multi-faceted, often interlinked issues causing them now requires more advanced approaches alongside efforts to enhance awareness and encourage regular eye tests.
Innovation Manager Frances Ramsay insists that forward-thinking ophthalmic solutions can instil a more sustainable service that helps to prevent further exacerbation of waiting times in future and detect glaucoma in its earliest stages.
She believes World Glaucoma Week is a key annual event for encouraging better preventative understanding and collaborative thinking.
Frances said: “It is undoubtedly an exciting time for innovation in the field of glaucoma detection and treatment, all aimed at improving early diagnosis and more effective management of the disease. Scotland has to be alive to the possibilities.
“Worldwide, we are seeing an increasing focus on such advancements as artificial intelligence-powered image analysis for early detection, genetic testing for risk assessment, and novel drug delivery systems.
“While some of these solutions are not available to us yet, we should be setting our sights on laying the groundwork for their eventual implementation now, creating a more resilient health service.
“World Glaucoma Week is also a reminder that the NHS Scotland workforce can drive that work by leveraging its vast knowledge and deep understanding of patient needs, together with analysis of where bottlenecks occur and identification of smarter, more innovative approaches to solving them.
“NHS Scotland staff with a vision for ophthalmic innovation must be encouraged to use World Glaucoma Week as their focus for inspiring lasting change during this pivotal period of renewal.”
Scotland’s launch of the NHS Community Glaucoma Service in 2023 has demonstrated the potential of independent prescribing optometrists to support eye care at a national level, helping up to 20,000 stable glaucoma patients to be discharged from hospital eye services into the community.
However, ophthalmic innovation from within NHS Scotland can yet unlock more solutions amid an increasing number of treatments for glaucoma patients, including fresh laser-led and minimally invasive procedures.
Frances continued: “Progressive thinking can transform pressured ophthalmic services, and the 180,000-strong NHS Scotland workforce can take a lead on grasping its possibilities in this priority area.
“Ophthalmology responds to a complex mixture of treating the increasing needs of an ageing population, management of life-long issues, and one-off surgical interventions.
“In order to ease demand, Scotland’s forward-thinking workforce should feel empowered to make a vital contribution to an eye-opening future through the submission of ideas, whether simple or complex.”
Encouraging NHS Scotland’s diverse workforce to come up with new ideas that achieve better outcomes in pressured ophthalmology is vital and at the heart of InnoScot Health’s latest innovation call.
The call offers a package of support to health and social care staff, including advice and guidance in such areas as intellectual property protection, regulation, funding, project management, and commercialisation.
British schoolchildren took their fight for global education funding straight to Westminster yesterday, as part of a powerful protest against government cuts to overseas aid.
Backed by TV presenter, Paralympian, and Street Child charity Ambassador Ade Adepitan MBE, students from the Send My Friend to School coalition urged policymakers to reverse the decline in education aid and prioritise investment in learning worldwide.
The demonstration came as the UK Government confirmed a further reduction in the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget, slashing it from 0.5% to 0.3% of Gross National Income.
With education already one of the most underfunded areas in global development, campaigners fear the cuts will leave millions more children without access to schooling.
Speaking at the event, Ade Adepitan reflected on the life-changing impact of education. “The only reason I’m where I am today is because of two reasons: luck and education,” he said.
“Lucky enough that my parents were brave enough to leave our home in Nigeria, give up everything for a better life, but also because of education. I was able to access a strong education in London that changed my life.”
Students leading the campaign made an impassioned case for urgent action, warning that education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty.
“Education is not just about learning subjects like maths or science,” said student activist Ewura. “It’s about giving young people the tools to build a better future. When children are educated, they can help change the world.”
Echoing the call, fellow campaigner Davi urged the UK to step up its leadership on the issue: “That’s why campaigns like Send My Friend to School are so important,” he said. “They remind leaders that education should be a top priority. And as young people, we have a voice too.
“We can speak up, raise awareness, and encourage real action.”
The protest highlighted the sharp decline in UK aid for education over the past decade. In 2013, education accounted for 13.5% of bilateral ODA spending, but by 2023, this had plummeted to just 3.5%.
While the UK remains the sixth-largest donor by volume, it now ranks 25th among OECD-DAC countries in prioritisation, falling far behind its international counterparts.
The Send My Friend to School coalition is demanding urgent action from the UK Government, calling for:
• A commitment to protect and reprioritise education aid within ODA spending.
• Full funding for key global education initiatives, including the Global Partnership for Education and Education Cannot Wait.
• Stronger UK support for international tax and debt reforms to help low-income countries sustainably increase their own education budgets.
While aid remains crucial, 87% of education financing in low-income countries comes from domestic sources.
Campaigners argued that the UK has a vital role in ensuring governments have the resources to invest in quality education for all.
The event was part of a wider movement, with Send My Friend to School mobilising 250,000 UK students every year to push for global education rights.
As the UK reassesses its international development priorities, campaigners are urging leaders to reaffirm their commitment to ensuring that education remains central to the country’s foreign aid agenda.
Edinburgh Tradfest is delighted to announce full details of its 2025 programme of traditional music, storytelling, film, workshops, talks, ceilidhs, and special events taking place at various venues across the city, thanks to continued support from The National Lottery through Creative Scotland and the William Grant Foundation.
The festival’s music programme kicks off on Friday 2 May at the Queen’s Hall with Scotland’s most sought-after piper and composer Ross Ainslie performing with the Sanctuary Band, and special guest Terra Kin.
Then, over the 11 days of the festival, there will be live music every night at the Traverse Theatre, Folk Film screenings predominately at the Cameo, and storytelling, music and special events taking place at the Scottish Storytelling Centre.
Some of the musicians headlining include folk song sensation and multi award-winner Siobhan Miller; Scots singer of the Year 2024 Beth Malcolm; Aberdeenshire’s crowning light, folk singer and Young Musician of the Year 2025 Ellie Beaton; national treasure Kathleen MacInnes; and cutting-edge piper Finlay MacDonald performing with his band which includes award-winning piper Ailis Sutherland (Hecla), guitarist/piper Ali Hutton (Ross & Ali, Old Blind Dogs, Treacherous Orchestra, Tryst), and drummer Paul Jennings (Croft No 5, Treacherous Orchestra). Plus, there will be a special event on Sunday 4 May featuring the music and enduring legacy of piper Martyn Bennett.
Also headlining are virtuoso English folk trio Leveret; leading Scots fiddler Lauren MacColl who will be playing tunes from her most recent album Haar; and Mary Macmaster (The Poozies) who will curate and perform as part of this year’s festival commission For the Love of Trees with some of Scotland’s finest musicians: Amy Macdougall (vocals), Donald Hay (percussion), Mairearad Green (accordion, pipes), Pete Harvey (cello) and Ciarán Ryan (banjo/fiddle).
Other Scottish highlights include Morag Brown and Lewis Powell-Reid who perform pacy traditional tunes from Scotland and as far afield as the Balkans; Divergence (Freya Rae, Siannie Moodie and Tim Lane) so named because of their passion for playing non-traditional instruments in traditionally inspired music; cinematic alt-folk duo Rhona Stevens and Joseph Peach; and the unmissable annual #WorldPlayAStrathspey Day presented by Hands Up for Trad and featuring Rory Matheson (piano), and Anna Robertson, Catriona Price and Adam Sutherland (fiddle) who will take audiences through some of the world’s best known strathspeys, reels and marches.
International musicians headlining at this year’s festival include Pelkkä Poutanen whose music weaves together Scandinavian and Finno-Ugric folk singing with electronic, roots and traditional world folk influences; Canadian singer Catherine MacLellan, and English folk musician Lucy Farrell, also based in Canada, who’ll be presenting a selection of self-penned songs; legendary Kora virtuoso Seckou Keita who has been dubbed the ‘Hendrix of the Kora’; Finnish power-fiddle duo Teho; and the Hartwin Trio from Belgium.
Plus, TheTravelling Janes led by Ali Affleck bring their unique mix of Americana, jazz and blues; and The Hot Seatsfrom Virginia whose combination of old-time, bluegrass and country make them the hot ticket of the festival.
At the Scottish Storytelling Centre there will be stories and music from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland (A Necklace of Stories) with Bea Ferguson and Heather Yule; and tales and tunes from in the North East Bothy Traditionwith ballad singer Allan Taylor, fiddler Karin Paterson and storytellers Phyll McBain and Jackie Ross; storyteller Rachel Pugh and harpist Lucy Nolan present Bog Standard the gripping true story of a tip off which led a rookie journalist to one of the most important archaeological finds of the 20th century; and MAIK (folksingers Jamie Cook and Kirsty Law) present folks songs in Scots and Cumbrian dialects; whilst cinematic-folk duo Dowally and innovative French drummer Philippe Boudot celebrate the release of their album Ici et Là-Bas.
Plus, TuFlamenco celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Spain with a tribute to poet Garcia Lorca, with Inma Montero (dance & vocals), Danielo Olivera (guitar & vocals), and Inés Álvarez Villa (storyteller); the Sangstream Scots Folk Choir led by renowned musician Corrina Hewat perform a cappella in Let Them Be Heard; and author Stuart McHardy launches his new book Scotland’s Ancient Goddess: Hidden in Plain Sight exploring the mythology of creation and the pre-Christian beliefs of the Scottish people, published by Luath Press.The popular Hearth Fire Sessions return with storytellers Dougie Mackay and Niall Moorjani, Moroccan filmmakers/storytellers Tizintizwa and musician Evie Waddell.
The Folk Film Gathering returns to Edinburgh Tradfest this year with a selection of films from the world’s archives including a screening of Ukranian film The Enchanted Desna (1964) directed by Alexander Dovzhenko’s widow Yuliya Solntseva; Fertile Memory (1981) the first full length film to be shot within the occupied Palestinian West Bank ‘Green Line’ introduced by Scottish-Palestinian poet Nada Shawa; George Nasser’s Ila Ayn (1957) the first ever Lebanese film to screen at Cannes; The Nouba of the Women of Mount Chenoua (1977) which explores the intergenerational experiences and histories of women in Algeria and of speech and silence; and Icelandic film The Juniper Tree (1990) which stars Björk in an early performance of this adaptation of a Brothers Grimm fairy tale.
Staying with horror, O’r Ddaear Hen (1981) the first horror film to be made in the Welsh language and set in a council house in Bangor about a mysterious stone head, will be screening; along with the Scottish premiere of the new restoration of cult classic of Irish independent cinema The Outcasts (1982); and a series of short dark Gaelic tales from 1996-1999 introduced by Edinburgh-based Gaelic storyteller Martin McIntyre who is also doing a separate session introducing Gaelic storytelling culture and history at the Storytelling Centre.
Also from Scotland there will be a screening of Paper Portraits (2025) a new documentary from Gerda Stevensoncelebrating the history and working people of Penicuik’s paper mills; and a rare chance to see Emma Davie’s Flight(1997) exploring how Scottish traditions continue to be expressed in Canada by the diaspora.
Finally on Sunday 11 May, to close the Folk Film Festival, in collaboration with the Storytelling Centre, there will be a full day of screenings celebrating independent film in Scotland through the lens of filmmaker Douglas Eadie hosted by poet Jim Mackintosh and author James Robertson who will be joined in conversation by former colleagues of Eadie including Robbie Fraser, Fiona MacDonald and Christeen Winford.
Screenings include Haston-A Life in the MountainsAn Ceasnachadh – An Interrogation of a Highland Lass (with Kathleen MacInnes, Dolina MacLennan and Kenny MacRae) and Down Home (with Aly Bain).
Families, at the Scottish Storytelling Centre can enjoy a morning of face painting and crafting ahead of the traditional May Day Parade down the High Street to the Pleasance; storytelling with the Beltane Fire Society; a traditional street games, rhymes and songs session with Claire McNicol and Fergus McNicol; sensory stories and play with Ailie Finlay; and family ceilidhs.
In addition, the Edinburgh Youth Gaitherin (EYG) returns with a three-day workshop programme supported by the William Grant Foundation for 13-18 year olds and led by some of Scotland’s finest musicians; and Claire Hastings hosts an hour-long relaxed session for babies and upwards, playing songs to join in with, accompanied by Ali Hutton and Adam Sutherland.
Other workshops held during the festival include: a singing workshop with Chandra Mather where participants will learn a selection of traditional songs from around the world picked up by Chandra on musical travels; a strathspey fiddle workshop with Lauren MacColl; tune writing with one of Scotland’s finest composers Adam Sutherland; and a masterclass in Highland piping from master of the pibroch Allan Macdonald. Plus, the Traditional Music Forum will present an interactive and fun workshop for musicians who want to improve their patter and be better storytellers on stage.
Rebellious Truth,this year’s popular talk presented in collaboration with Celtic and Scottish Studies at the University of Edinburgh, features Joy Dunlop who will give an insight into her Gaelic journey; from learning Gaelic songs phonetically to being the face of multi-platform learning brand SpeakGaelic. Joy is in high demand as a singer, broadcaster and Scottish step-dancer and is a well-known face on BBC Scotland, BBC Alba and host of the BBC Radio Scotland Traditional Musician of the Year. The talk will also include a special performance by musician Fraser Fifield.
ETF Spotlight, this year’s showcase concert presenting some of the most exciting new performers in folk and traditional music today returns with artist and musician Miwa Nagato-Apthorp, Parsisonic led by Iranian duo Aref Ghorbani and Amir Hossein Feyzi, and trad fusion band Dlù.
And, finally Masks: An Exhibition by Lorraine Pritchard (5 April to 12 May)displaying hand-crafted Venetian masks will be on at the Storytelling Centre alongside a series of photographs and a new behind-the-scenes documentary by Franzis Sanchez shot in Edinburgh and during this year’s Venice Carnival. This exhibition is part of the Pomegranates Festival of world trad dance and presented by the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland.
Alan Morrison, Head of Music at Creative Scotland said: “Scotland’s traditions are vividly expressed and deeply felt in our words, our images and our music. As the beating heart of our national identity, they’re filtered through the 2025 Tradfest programme and across Edinburgh’s stages and screens, its walls and its streets.
“Supported by Creative Scotland through National Lottery funds, this important and inspiring event recognises not only the roots of Scotland’s revived folk culture in the city’s past but also the international ambition of our increasingly diverse country’s future.
“Thought-provoking, thrilling and straight-up fun in equal measure, Tradfest is a highlight on our cultural calendar.”
Douglas Robertson and Jane-Ann Purdy, co-producers of Edinburgh Tradfest said:
“Each year we give ourselves the challenge of building a festival packed with more superlative music than the preceding year. With more shows booked for 2025 than ever before, we think we have achieved that. It’s a wonderful mix of the exotic and the home grown. Virtuoso visitors from Senegal, Finland, Belgium, Canada, the US and England will grace Edinburgh’s stages joining an extremely strong Scottish contingent. Appearing are some of the best singers that Scotland has ever produced, the finest fiddle-players, harpists, strings-players, pianists, and, of course, pipers. We are also indebted to our partners at TRACS and the Folk Film Gathering who have provided a fabulous array of storytelling, family events and folk cinema that complement the musical offerings perfectly.”
Daniel Abercrombie, Head of Programming, Scottish Storytelling Centre said: “Edinburgh Tradfest is a great time of the year, with lighter nights and a chance for storytellers to celebrate with musicians, dancers and other creatives. We are offering a variety of traditional arts activities for all to enjoy, with several exciting new performances alongside workshops and family events. It is a highlight of our calendar at the Scottish Storytelling Centre and we’re delighted to be involved once again.”
Jamie Chambers, Folk Film Gathering said: “We are really excited to be collaborating with our sister festival Tradfest once again, to present a programme of films screenings, in parallel with their exciting music programming. Our 2025 programme features a number of very rare films from Scotland, alongside films from Algeria, Iceland, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Ukraine and Wales, and provides a chance to once again consider how we look outwards from Scotland towards the rest of the world. We hope to see you there.”
Edinburgh Tradfest 2025 will run from Friday 2 May – Monday 12 May. For tickets and more information visit edinburghtradfest.com
