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Category: North Edinburgh News
Resolution in sight as ‘historic’ pay offer made to teachers
*14.6% pay uplift over 28 months *
*Union recommends acceptance *
Teachers across Scotland have been offered the largest pay package in over twenty years, with most teachers seeing their salaries rise by £5,200 in April if the new pay offer is accepted. The EIS is to ballot its members on the latest pay offer to teachers, with a recommendation that the offer should be accepted.
The 28-month deal – the sixth offered to unions – has a cumulative value of 14.6% and would mean an overall increase of more than £6,100 for the 70% of classroom teachers who are at the top of their main grade pay scale.
It would amount to a cumulative rise of 33% for most teachers since January 2018 and would bring the starting salary for a fully qualified teacher – already the highest in the UK – to £38,650 after probation by January 2024.
The revised offer, agreed by the Scottish Government and COSLA, is:
- 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 – a 7% uplift for all grades up to a ceiling of £80,000, where a cap of £5,600 (pro-rata) will apply
- 1 April 2023 to 31 December 2023 – a 5% uplift for all grades up to a ceiling of £80,000, where a cap of £4,000 (pro-rata) will apply
- 1 January 2024 to 31 July 2024 – a 2% uplift for all grades up to a ceiling of £80,000, where a cap of £1,600 (pro-rata) will apply
Cumulatively, these amount to an uplift of 12.4% by April 2023 and 14.6% from 1 January 2024.
Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “Teachers make an invaluable contribution to the lives of our children and young people. This historic offer, if accepted by unions, would see teacher pay increase by 33% from January 2018 to January 2024.
“We have looked for compromise and we have arrived at a deal that is fair, affordable, and sustainable for everyone involved. The Scottish Government is supporting this deal with total funding of over £320 million across this year and next.
“This reflects our commitment to reach a fair agreement and avoid further disruption to children and young people’s education.
“I hope that teaching unions will now give their members the opportunity to consider this new offer and to suspend the planned industrial action next week. This would minimise any further disruption to learning, particularly in the run up to the SQA exam diet.”
COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann said: “We have reached a position today whereby we sincerely hope our Trade Union partners can take this revised offer to their membership for a vote.
“Scotland’s Council Leaders fully value all of their workforce and recognise the invaluable contribution teachers make to the lives of our children and young people.”
The EIS is to ballot its members on a revised pay offer to teachers that was presented yesterday by local authority employers, with a recommendation that the offer should be accepted.
The EIS is also suspending all planned industrial action while it ballots its members on the new offer.
A special meeting of the EIS Salaries Committee, comprised of teachers from across Scotland, has this evening unanimously agreed to ballot members on the new offer. The Committee also overwhelmingly agreed to recommend that members vote to accept the new pay offer.
Subsequent to the decision of the Salaries Committee, a special meeting of the EIS Executive Committee agreed to suspend all planned industrial action while members are consulted on the offer. The online ballot will open today (Friday) and run until 1000hrs on Friday 10th March.
Commenting, EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said, “The view of our negotiators is that this deal represents the best that can be achieved in the current political and financial climate without a much more prolonged campaign of industrial action.
“It is through the determination and collective action of teachers and associated professionals across Scotland, led by EIS members, that we have improved this pay offer from an initial 2% for the current year to 7% for the current financial year, with additional increases of 5% and then 2% within the following financial year.
“This will result in the majority of teachers seeing a 12.3% increase on their current rate of pay by April of this year and by 14% by January 2024.”
Ms Bradley added, “This has been a long dispute which has been challenging for all concerned. Teachers have taken strike action as a last resort, and that strike action has delivered an improved pay offer that the EIS can credibly put to its members with a recommendation to accept.
“It is now for our members to decide whether to accept this offer, and it is our recommendation that they should do so.”
Pay offer details:
| Current Salary 2021/22 | Salary following 1/4/22 7% increase | Salary following 1/4/23 5% increase | Salary following 1/1/24 2% increase | |
| Principles Point 8 | £59,571.00 | £63,741.00 | £66,927.00 | £68,265.54 |
| Probationers Main Scale Point 0 | £28,113.00 | £30,081.00 | £31,584.00 | £32,215.68 |
| Teachers Main Scale Point 1 | £33,729.00 | £36,090.00 | £37,896.00 | £38,653.92 |
| Teachers Main Scale Point 2 | £35,643.00 | £38,139.00 | £40,047.00 | £40,847.94 |
| Teachers Main Scale Point 3 | £37,713.00 | £40,353.00 | £42,372.00 | £43,219.44 |
| Teachers Main Scale Point 4 | £40,107.00 | £42,915.00 | £45,060.00 | £45,961.20 |
| Teachers Main Scale Point 5 | £42,336.00 | £45,300.00 | £47,565.00 | £48,516.30 |
| Music Instructors Point 6 | £39,147.00 | £41,886.00 | £43,980.00 | £44,859.60 |
| Educational Psychologist Point 6 | £60,423.00 | £64,653.00 | £67,887.00 | £69,244.74 |
| Principal Ed. Psych Point 9 | £74,382.00 | £79,590.00 | £83,571.00 | £85,171.00 |
| L Teach Point National | £67,449.00 | £72,171.00 | £75,780.00 | £77,295.60 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 1 | £52,350.00 | £56,016.00 | £58,818.00 | £59,994.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 2 | £53,964.00 | £57,741.00 | £60,627.00 | £61,839.54 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 3 | £55,740.00 | £59,643.00 | £62,625.00 | £63,877.50 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 4 | £57,657.00 | £61,692.00 | £64,776.00 | £66,071.52 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 5 | £59,571.00 | £63,741.00 | £66,927.00 | £68,265.54 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 6 | £61,185.00 | £65,469.00 | £68,742.00 | £70,116.84 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 7 | £62,964.00 | £67,371.00 | £70,740.00 | £72,154.80 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 8 | £64,737.00 | £69,270.00 | £72,735.00 | £74,189.70 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 9 | £66,498.00 | £71,154.00 | £74,712.00 | £76,206.24 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 10 | £68,271.00 | £73,050.00 | £76,704.00 | £78,238.08 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 11 | £71,223.00 | £76,209.00 | £80,019.00 | £81,619.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 12 | £74,175.00 | £79,368.00 | £83,337.00 | £84,937.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 13 | £77,124.00 | £82,524.00 | £86,523.00 | £88,123.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 14 | £80,070.00 | £84,870.00 | £88,869.00 | £90,469.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 15 | £83,445.00 | £88,245.00 | £92,244.00 | £93,844.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 16 | £87,771.00 | £92,571.00 | £96,570.00 | £98,170.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 17 | £91,212.00 | £96,012.00 | £100,011.00 | £101,611.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 18 | £95,409.00 | £100,209.00 | £104,208.00 | £105,808.00 |
| Heads & Deputes Point 19 | £99,609.00 | £104,409.00 | £108,408.00 | £110,008.00 |
Hidden Door Festival Programme announced
TICKETS ON SALE NOW
| The programme for this year’s Hidden Door is now live, as we reveal the first details of an ambitious series of original, immersive performances specially designed for our unique venue, plus live music from Porridge Radio, Hot 8 Brass Band, Max Cooper, NiNE8 and Pillow Queens. We’re transforming the former Scottish Widows office complex on Dalkeith Road for a five-day spectacular more immersive and atmospheric than any Hidden Door so far. The Complex will host a diverse live music and spoken word programme alongside a collection of visual art from Scotland’s best emerging artists. Hidden Door 2023 runs from Wednesday 31 May to Sunday 4 June. |
| ENVIRONMENTS |
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| Responding to the vast interior spaces, Hidden Door presents a series of Environments for the audience to explore as they venture deeper into the former office building. Featuring live music, dance, film projections, set design and even opera, each Environment brings together some of the most visionary emerging artists to talk about our natural world in a unique and imaginative way.The Environments will create an immersive journey – responding to the world around us and the impact we’ve had on it – and inviting the audiences to explore The Complex, with several surprises along the way. |
| MUSIC |
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| An eclectic mix of bands will be filling three performance spaces this year, offering almost every genre of music you can imagine.Indie rock band Porridge Radio, Grammy-winning Hot 8 Brass Band, electronica and techno producer Max Cooper, radical pop collective NiNE8, and Irish rock band Pillow Queens will take to the Cabaret Stage.Also performing in the former canteen will be post-punk outfit Pozi, doom jazz trio AKU!, jazz collective Corto.alto, alt-pop singer Berta Kennedy, Edinburgh band Dinosaur 94, and post-punk electronica Sweaty Palms.The Cabaret Stage will culminate each night with a party featuring the likes of brass band Blue Giant Orkestar, sax and drums duo O., and utopian synth duo Free Love.Down in the Loading Bay stage, indie band DEADLETTER, rap artist Bemz and alt musician Rozi Plain will entertain audiences. Over the five days, they’ll be joined by indie band Wombo, American rock band Flasher, hip hop artist Billy Got Waves, rapper and singer Jelani Blackman and outsider pop outfit The Microband.In the Club Space, music label Paradise Palms, Afro-Latin club night Samedia Shebeen and women and non-binary DJ collectives Sisu and EPiKA will each host residencies showcasing their roster of talent and keeping the tunes coming until closing time. |
| VISUAL ART |
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| On display inside The Complex will be visual art from a wide range of artists practising in Scotland, much of which will explore the same issues as the Environments.A series of interactive installation pieces from Becky Hunter, Chell Young, Elvey Stedman, Evie Rose Thornton, Kirsten Millar, Scott Hunter, and Soorin Shin will explore ideas of climate change and industry.Also on display will be photography from Emily Nicholl, abstract art from Iain H Williams, industrial art from James Sinfield, an installation from Jo Fleming Smith, object art from Joan Smith, textile art from Laura Lees, etchings from Madeline Mackay, found billboards from Martin Elden, ice-inspired hangings from Mary Walters, ink drawings from Natasha Russell, sculpture from Ross Andrew Spencer, paintings from Ryan Cairns, and sculpture from Tim Taylor.Work from recent art school graduates Aimee Finlay, Alice Sherlock, Amy Kim Grogan, Ben Caro and Kat Culter-MacKenzie, Ciaran Cannon, Coire Simpson, Dhira Chakraborty, Irene Aldazabal, Leah Wood, Sarah Phelan and Shae Myles will also be on display. |
| POETRY & SPOKEN WORD |
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| This year’s poetry and spoken word programme will showcase a diverse group of new and developing performers from across Scotland and beyond.On the first day of the festival, writer, poet and researcher Caitlin Stobie will share her writing, and Clare O’Brien will present her work inspired by the natural world and the creatures that wander through it. Queer writer and spoken word poet Gray Crosbie makes their return to Hidden Door, as does Sean Wai Keung presenting his reflections on identity and migration.Thursday 1 June sees poet and performance maker Bibi June present post-apocalyptic stories on climate change, while actor and poet Rupert Smith takes inspiration from Shakespeare into his work. Jay Whittaker will perform her irreverent, unsentimental poems looking at mortality, illness and loss.On Friday 2 June, Irish poet Éadaoín Lynch will perform from their debut poetry pamphlet, and Genevieve Carver will present her work in response to dolphins, porpoises and seals. British-Sudanese lyricist and performance poet Zaki El-Salahi will take to the stage to perform their work rooted in rap, dub poetry and the role of MC culture in grassroots black British consciousness. Sal will perform her work entangling trans and chronically ill experiences with organic processes of decay and birth.Saturday sees queer Latinx writer Andrés N Ordorica share his writing on the diasporic experience, and Ross McCleary performs his piece advocating for refilling of the Nor Loch. Edinburgh-based US poet Allie Kerper will also perform.The last day of Hidden Door will have performances from Scottish-Canadian poet Patrick James Errington, and Glasgow’s Oliver Robertson. Janette Ayachi will share her musings on searching landscapes and human connection, and Elspeth Wilson will celebrate joy from a marginalised perspective. |
More action needed to protect the world’s ocean, says Environment Secretary on World Wildlife Day
The Environment Secretary calls for countries to join together to halt and reverse the loss of nature and protect at least 30% of the world’s ocean by 2030
Countries around the globe must join together, raise ambition and act faster to protect and restore nature on both land and sea, Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey has said on World Wildlife Day (3 March).
Following the historic agreement reached at the UN Biodiversity summit last year, the Environment Secretary is attending the Our Ocean conference where she will work with other countries to make this the decade we halt and reverse the loss of nature and protect at least 30% of the global ocean by 2030. She will also acknowledge the effectiveness of established tools such as CITES convention that celebrates 50 years of protecting endangered species today.
Building on commitments outlined in the Government’s Environmental Improvement Plan launched last month and progress to protect nature on land, the UK is this week announcing vital funding to boost marine conservation efforts worldwide, fight climate change, and support vulnerable coastal communities.
The UK has renewed support through its ambitious £500 million Blue Planet Fund to protect and restore important marine habitats such as mangroves, coral reefs and seagrasses that play a key role in the fight against climate change. This includes an additional £24 million to the Global Fund for Coral Reefs, and the UK becoming the first donor to the Blue Carbon Action Partnership, committing £4 million to support countries unlock and mobilise finance to protect and restore blue carbon ecosystems.
The Environment Secretary has also announced £45 million to the new ‘Blue Tech Superhighway’ project. From community-led fisheries management enabling local communities to set and monitor their own catches; new seawater farming systems working with species more resilient to warmer waters; through to pioneering approaches to reduce food waste, this investment will support small-scale fishers and aquaculture farmers improve their climate resilience, sustainability and incomes. The project will also encourage collaboration between countries across Asia and Africa to scale action.
This comes as the UK announced it will provide £1.5 million to the Asian Development Bank’s new Blue Pacific Finance Hub to support climate resilient, sustainable blue economies for Pacific Small Island Developing States including developing circular economies to reduce plastic waste and improved fisheries management.
The Environment Secretary, Thérèse Coffey said: “It is almost impossible to overstate the importance of stepping up our efforts to bolster the resilience of the marine environment and, in turn, the economies and communities that depend on it.
“At the UN nature summit in Montreal, we made a commitment to manage our whole ocean sustainably and set a target to protect at least 30% of the world’s ocean by 2030. The UK is leading, co-leading, and supporting global coalitions of ambition to drive forward this mission, and I urge countries to come together to deliver coordinated, impactful action on the ground.”
She also urged more countries to join forces to tackle the scourge of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, one of the most serious threats to the world’s ocean which equates to approximately 11-19% of reported global fisheries production and leads to losses of roughly $10-23.5 billion in value. IUU fishing undermines efforts to conserve fish stocks, damages marine ecosystems, impacts global food supply chains and threatens coastal communities whose livelihoods rely on sustainable fishing.
The UK, US and Canada launched the world’s first global alliance to tackle IUU fishing last year, with members sharing data and tools to monitor and crack down on this pervasive issue. This builds on progress under the UK-led Blue Belt Ocean Shield programme which uses innovative surveillance techniques to tackle illegal practices in over 4.3 million square kilometres of waters around the UK Overseas Territories.
Since its launch, the Alliance has grown to 16 members, with Norway, Iceland and Korea recently coming onboard. More members will sign up at the Our Ocean conference today, including the EU, Panama and New Zealand.
Thérèse Coffey said: “For too many communities, the threat of IUU fishing looms year after year, as they bear the brunt of the instability and violence that accompanies this serious, organised, transboundary crime.
“For marine species, the impact can be devastating and this has a catastrophic effect on the lives of the hundreds of millions of people who depend on fisheries for their livelihoods.
“So, we need to accelerate our efforts and scale up. That is a priority for us in the UK – something we are addressing by improving import controls, sharing more data on vessels, identifying those who profit from IUU fishing, and holding them to account.”
Edinburgh University student wins U20 Scottish Athletics National XC Championships
Matthew Knowles, a running enthusiast from Edinburgh University, saw off tough competition at the weekend to win the men’s U20 Scottish Athletics National Cross-Country Championships.
Knowles, 19 who also works part-time at the specialist running shop, Up & Running is no stranger to gruelling races, having previously represented England and GB at a number of under 20 mountain running events.
Matthew also helps to lead a free weekly social run group from Up & Running, aimed at encouraging local runners of all abilities.
Police Recruitment Event
Thursday 9th March: 6.30pm – 8.30pm online
Are you from an ethnic minority background and curious about a career in policing? Police Scotland is committed to increasing diversity within its workforce to better reflect the increasingly diverse communities we serve.
Join us at our upcoming online information event, which will give you a fantastic opportunity to gain insight on the recruitment process and the training at the Scottish Police College. Plus, there will be an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about working for Police Scotland.
The event will take place on Thursday 9 March, from 6.30pm – 8.30pm, via Microsoft Teams.
To sign up, please email 
recruitmentpositiveactionteam@scotland.police.uk
These events are for groups currently under-represented in Police Scotland. The consent, support and cooperation of our fellow citizens lies at the heart of the identity and legitimacy of policing in Scotland.
To ensure that bond is as strong as possible, we must fully represent and reflect the communities we serve. Inclusion is an operational necessity and morally the right thing to do.
We are committed to increasing the number of officers and staff from under-represented groups. There are well documented barriers to some people applying to join the police service.
We therefore run a number of different recruitment events to answer specific questions from people from diverse communities. This is to make sure everyone has fair access to the Police Scotland recruitment process.
Applications are welcome from all suitable candidates, and you can find out more on our website https://www.scotland.police.uk/recruitment/
Focus on the future at Holyrood’s International Women’s Day event
Two pupils from a high school in Cumbernauld will address over 350 women in the debating chamber of the Scottish Parliament tomorrow (Saturday 4 March) as part of this year’s International Women’s Day event.
Zara De Almeida and Grace Lennon both in S5 at Our Lady’s High School, Cumbernauld, will address this year’s theme of breaking the bias, at the event which is held jointly with the Scottish Women’s Convention.
The First Minister the Rt Hon Nicola Sturgeon MSP will also address the Chamber, along with comedian Susan Morrison and academic Dr Radhika Govinda.
A cross party panel of MSPs (Meghan Gallacher MSP; Rhoda Grant MSP; Kaukab Stewart MSP; and Beatrice Wishart MSP) will also take questions from those attending.
The Presiding Officer, the Rt Hon Alison Johnstone MSP, speaking ahead of the event said: “The Scottish Parliament has celebrated International Women’s Day with this event for over 15 years, inviting women from across Scotland to address collectively the challenges they face.”
Agnes Tolmie, Chair of the Scottish Women’s Convention said: “Women make up more than 50% of the Scottish population and we have still not achieved equality.
“However, when we look at the wonderful work done by women in Scotland we have every reason to celebrate. We are looking forward to an afternoon of inspiring and motivational contributions which showcase Scotland’s achievements in working for a fairer society.”
Women from across Scotland will join the event at the Parliament, including 60 high school pupils from S4 to S6 from Our Ladies High School, Cumbernauld; Drumchapel High School; Govan High School; St Ninian’s High School, Kirkintilloch; University of Edinburgh’s Women in Politics society; and members of the Digital Dairy Chain from the University of Strathclyde.
The event will be broadcast by the Scottish Parliament and will begin at 2.00pm on Saturday 4 March.
Entries open for 2023 VIBES Scottish Environment Business Awards
Entries open for 2023 VIBES Scottish Environment Business Awards
Environmental trailblazers from Scotland’s business community are being invited to showcase the link between environmental and economic success by entering the 25th annual VIBES awards this spring.
Open to businesses large and small across the country, the awards recognise those who champion sustainability by reducing pressure on the planet’s resources and winning schemes focused on everything from accelerating action towards net zero, embracing circularity and increasing biodiversity.
Officially launched by SEPA CEO Nicole Paterson at an event in the capital on Wednesday 1 March, the 2023 awards will feature three new categories: the Just Transition Scotland Award, the Vision in Business Scotland Award and the STV Green Fund Award, with a £30K campaign partnership with STV up for grabs.
Other categories include the Product Scotland Award, Service Scotland Award, Circular Scotland Award, Sustainable Transport Scotland Award and Nature Rich Scotland Award.
Nicole Paterson, SEPA CEO said: “Thriving, successful and sustainable Scottish businesses will be those that recognise the link between environmental and economic prosperity, and with record breaking entries to last year’s VIBES awards, it’s clear that Scottish businesses agree.
“The journey towards sustainability is a challenging but necessary one and I, like many others, have been encouraged and inspired by the commitment and action from VIBES winners over the years.
“We saw energy efficient businesses charge ahead at the 2022 awards and I’m sure this year’s entrants will once again demonstrate effective solutions to some of our biggest challenges.”
The VIBES Scottish Environment Business Awards is a partnership between the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), The Scottish Government, Energy Saving Trust, Highland & Islands Enterprise, Scottish Enterprise, South of Scotland Enterprise, Scottish Water, Zero Waste Scotland and NatureScot.
This year’s judging panel includes Franceska van Dijk, Deputy Chair, SEPA, Robbie Kernahan is Director for Green Economy at NatureScot, and Jane Morrison-Ross, CEO, South of Scotland Enterprise.
To obtain an application form, contact vibes@sepa.org.uk.
Businesses have until 5pm on 14 April 2023 to submit their free application. Finalists will be announced in May before the annual awards ceremony in November.
For more information on VIBES – Scottish Environment Business Awards, please visit www.vibes.org.uk.
Community groups launch ‘Let’s go for 1 in 5’ campaign to cut car use by 20% across Scotland
Scottish members of a grassroots ‘community rail’ movement are joining forces to support a shift to greener, healthier, fairer transport, and encouraging people to ditch the car for one in five journeys when they can.
The country’s network of community rail partnerships, supported by Community Rail Network and Paths for All, used the 2023 Rail Scotland Conference to launch their ‘Let’s go for 1 in 5’ campaign, in support of Transport Scotland’s commitment to cutting car use by 20% by 2030. They used the conference to explore how the rail industry can play a key role, working with communities, to support more sustainable journeys that work for everyone and protect our climate.
From the Borders to the Highlands, Scotland’s community rail partnerships engage communities with their local railways and stations, enabling and encouraging more people to get around sustainably by train. Since the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow, they have been raising awareness of how green rail is compared to driving (see statistics below), and working with communities and rail partners to make it easier to use the train combined with walking, wheeling and cycling, buses and community transport.
Transport is the largest contributor to climate emissions in Scotland. In response to the climate emergency, Transport Scotland has committed to reducing emissions by 75% by 2030, and net-zero by 2045. Rail accounted for just 1% of UK domestic transport emissions in 2019, despite representing 7% of the total distance travelled, and for a 30-mile journey, travelling by train instead of by car can reduce emissions by up to 86%.
Community Rail Network chief executive Jools Townsend told the conference how community rail, and the new campaign, contributes to Scotland’s vision of a sustainable, inclusive, safe and accessible transport system. This allied to some of the major themes of the event – which also featured an address from Minister for Transport Jenny Gilruth MSP – such as modal shift from road to rail and the rail network’s net-zero targets.
Ms Townsend said: “Cutting car use by 20% is crucial to tackling the climate emergency, and it can unleash great benefits for communities and families too, by improving health and wellbeing, addressing the cost of living, and making our streets and communities safer, nicer places.
“But we know it’s not so simple as ‘persuading’ people to ditch the car: as well as raising awareness we need to break down barriers and widen access to public and community transport, combined with walking, wheeling and cycling.
“Community rail and other locally-led initiatives have a vital part to play. We’re all about helping communities to feel confident and positive about rail and sustainable travel, addressing issues and worries people might have, and helping communities to have a voice and shape a green and inclusive transport future.
“We’re encouraging communities across Scotland to get involved, and for drivers to consider how they can help Scotland make the ‘1 in 5’ switch, to more climate-safe and community-friendly journeys.”
Community rail works across Britain to develop the place of railways and stations at the heart of local communities, and help communities get maximum benefit from rail. This growing, thriving grassroots movement, brought together under Community Rail Network, is made up of 76 community rail partnerships and 1,200+ station friends’ groups and other local groups.
Scotland’s eight community rail partnerships, who will lead on activities linked to the ‘Let’s go for 1 in 5’ campaign are: Borders Railway Community Partnership; South West Scotland CRP; East Lothian CRP; Strathallan CRP; Highland Main Line CRP; Rail 74 CRP; 6VT Youth CRP and West Highland CRP.
The partnerships are supported by Community Rail Network and the Smarter Choices, Smarter Places programme, funded by Transport Scotland and administered by Paths for All. This support helps to develop projects and deliver work promoting sustainable journeys with rail at their heart.
Graham McQueen, Smarter Choices, Smarter Places manager, said:“Paths for All’s Smarter Choices Smarter Places Open Fund is about supporting local and community-based transport solutions to the climate crisis.
“We want to see more people walking, cycling and using more sustainable forms of transport for their everyday journeys. Projects like this that encourage people to get out of their cars and travel more sustainably are fantastic examples of how grassroots community organisations can lead on the changes we need to make happen”.
Greene King pubs across Scotland raise record-breaking £193,743 to help people living with cancer
- Huge charitable effort from Greene King pubs across Scotland as they raise a phenomenal £193,743 for Macmillan Cancer Support in 2022
- Greene King’s total raised for Macmillan Cancer Support tops an incredible £3million in 2022, the highest 12-month total
- Greene King has raised over £14million during its10-year partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support
Greene King pubs across Scotland raised an amazing £193,743 for Macmillan Cancer Support in 2022 to help people living with cancer.
The brilliant fundraising efforts by pub teams and the generous support of customers means that the money raised can be used to support the 155 Macmillan professionals currently funded by the charity across Scotland such as specialist dietitians, therapists and the iconic Macmillan nurse.
Greene King, the UK’s leading pub company and brewer, has now raised a staggering £14million for Macmillan over its 10-year charity partnership. The tenth year marked a record breaking £3million annual total for the charity. This equates to £342 raised every hour in 2022, which is enough to fund a Macmillan nurse for a whole day.
There was an outstanding effort from kind-hearted regulars and team members at Greene King’s Smiddy Inn in Cumbernauld where a phenomenal £12,518 was raised over the past year.
There was a busy calendar of fundraising events at the popular Ben Lawers Drive pub involving the pub team, regulars and the wider community. Highlights included walking the Rob Roy, the family fun day and taking part in the Edinburgh Tartan Track as well as a host of raffles, hampers, quizzes and bingo nights.
Julia Hutton, general manager of the Smiddy Inn, said: “We are just so proud of everyone’s efforts here at the pub. We were determined to pull out all the stops and set our targets high. And we did it!
“This really was a team effort. The fun days, craft days and Christmas market were great. At every event we have a raffle table, it’s simple but effective and keeps the money rolling in. We go around the pub with collection buckets and people are always happy to pop some money in.
“Our thanks go out to everyone who works here and all our customers. What a year it has been. We have a wall chart showing what we have raised so everyone can see the progress we are making. We’ve had fun in our fundraising and it’s been great to do our bit. Let’s see what we can do in 2023!”
Alison Ramsay, senior social impact manager at Greene King, said: “This is proof that charity really is at the heart of all our pubs. What better way is there to celebrate our 10-year partnership with Macmillan than by having a record-breaking 12-months of fundraising.
“Our teams and customers are simply brilliant to have raised over £3million in 2022. Sadly, we all know someone living with cancer but we know every single pound raised in our pubs helps.”
Local Macmillan Relationship Fundraising Manager, Kirsteen Plop, said: “What a fantastic effort. A big thank you and well done to all the Greene King team members and customers at the Smiddy Inn in Cumbernauld for their amazing fundraising. £12,518 is such a brilliant total.
“Right now, Macmillan is needed now more than ever, and we want to be there for people living with cancer in our community. Macmillan services, such as the innovative and free 12-week Macmillan Move More – North Lanarkshire programme which offers a wide variety of gentle exercise sessions in a number of locations, make a real difference to the lives of people living with cancer and we simply couldn’t do what we do without the support of our partners like Greene King.
“We’re immensely grateful to everyone at Greene King for their continued and generous support of Macmillan and the millions of pounds that the partnership has raised over the years.”