China or the UK? Where should I go? What happens after I graduate? The things you ignore during the day will often creep into your dreams.
Gripping reflections on the subconscious intermingle in this showcase of the ideologies and anxieties of a Chinese international student.
Overseas students consider these things every few seconds: the anxieties of uni life, and the dilemma of the ominous life after graduation.
Is this real life? explores cultural stereotypes, freedom, an antitheist encountering gods and Chinese allegory in an entrancing and thought-provoking play.
Chinese students Hongye Chen and GuoZhao Sun, drama students at the University of Exeter, are Microcosm. The pair of theatre-makers, and dreamers, are excited to bring their first show to the Fringe.
NHS Lothian is encouraging parents and carers to help keep children healthy over the school terms this winter by getting them vaccinated against flu. All primary and secondary school pupils are eligible for the vaccine, which is given in schools as a painless nasal spray.
Getting children vaccinated against flu reduces the chances of them missing class time and other activities due to illness and helps prevent them passing the illness to vulnerable family members.
Consent packs containing a letter, leaflet and consent form will be sent home to parents and carers of school children on return to school in August. Secondary pupils can self-consent, though they are encouraged to speak to a parent or carer first.
Letters with appointment details for children aged two to five years who are not yet at school will begin to arrive at homes from September.
Parents and carers should call the number on their child’s letter if their child has missed their appointment or needs to reschedule.
The nasal spray is a quick and painless way of delivering the flu vaccine to children and should start to provide protection within 10-14 days.
Pat Wynne, Nurse Director for NHS Lothian who is overseeing this year’s programme, said: “Getting the nasal spray flu vaccine is the best way to protect your child and those around them. The flu virus changes over time so your child needs to get the vaccine each year to help stay protected.
“Please look out for your child’s consent pack, which they will receive through school from August, and ensure that their completed consent form is returned on time if you wish them to receive the vaccine.”
Public Health Minister Maree Todd said: “Schools are back but we want to keep flu out, which is why all primary and secondary school children are being offered the free flu vaccine.
“Flu can be serious, even for healthy children, so the vaccine offers the best possible protection for your child and those around them who may be more vulnerable to flu. Getting your child vaccinated can help prevent them getting sick, from spreading flu, and requiring time off school and away from other activities.”
School children will receive the flu vaccine in school between September and December. Parents of two to five-year-olds who are not yet at school will be given information about where their child will be vaccinated in their appointment letter. In a small number of cases, the nasal spray may not be suitable, and the vaccine can be given as an injection in the arm instead.
For more information about the flu vaccine, visit NHS Inform or call 0800 030 8013.
Winter Vaccines
Scotland’s Winter Vaccine Programme will see eligible groups invited forward for vaccination against flu and/or COVID-19.
Following advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the following groups will be offered both the flu and COVID-19 vaccines this year:
• aged 50 or over • residents and staff working in a care home for older adults • younger adults in long stay nursing and residential care settings • frontline health and social care workers • Those aged 5 to 49 years with an eligible health condition, including those with poorly controlled asthma • Those aged 5 to 49 years who are: – a household contact of someone with a weakened immune system – an unpaid carer or a young carer (16 years or over) – pregnant
The flu vaccine is also recommended for:
• people aged 16 to 49 years with an eligible health condition, including well controlled asthma • children aged 6 months to 2 years with an eligible health condition • all children aged 2 to 5 years (not yet at school) • all primary and secondary school pupils • nursery, primary and secondary school teachers and pupil-facing support workers in local authority and independent settings • prison population and prison officers and support workers who deliver direct front-facing detention services.
Appointments for priority groups will be made available as the programme progresses – people in those groups should wait until they are contacted or called forward. Read the latest update from the Scottish Government here.
TUC: We’re not saying the Transport Secretary ‘should get involved’ – we’re saying he’s already involved
During the last round of rail strikes the Department for Transport put out a statement saying: “It’s extremely misleading to suggest the Transport Secretary should get involved in these negotiations.”
To be clear, trade unions are not saying the Transport Secretary ‘should get involved’. We are saying he already is involved.
And that’s the problem. He is deeply involved, yet pretends he isn’t.
We know this because it is there in black and white in the contracts between the government and the train operating companies (TOCs).
The TUC commissioned an independent legal opinion from Michael Ford QC, who looked in detail at these contacts.
His opinion, which you can download here, advises that the Transport Secretary has “very extensive powers” over what can be agreed between rail operators and unions, and “very significant contractual power” to direct how industrial disputes are handled.
The contracts require TOCs to abide by the Transport Secretary’s Dispute Handling Policy. In addition to this, the Transport Secretary may give TOCs a Dispute Handling Plan to direct them in a specific dispute.
According to Michael Ford QC, this means that the Transport Secretary has “overarching direction and control of the strike… either because the strategy is agreed with the Secretary of State or because the Secretary of State simply directs how the strike is to be handled”.
The contracts also make clear that TOCs face financial penalties if they agree with unions changes to pay, terms & conditions, redundancies, or restructuring that fall outside of the mandate given by the Transport Secretary in these documents.
For the rail firms, it is like negotiating with a brick wall – and Grant Shapps is the mason who built it.
To the public, this brick wall is invisible. And Grant Shapps would prefer that nobody knows it exists. When asked in parliamentary questions to publish the Dispute Handling Plan, his department refused.
But surely it is in the public interest to know the truth about this dispute.
We hope that with public attention returning to the dispute again during this week’s action, he will finally come clean on some important questions:
Why is Grant Shapps pretending he has no role in negotiations when he sets the mandate for employers on pay, term & conditions, redundancies and restructuring?
What are the secret red lines that Grant Shapps has set, and that will trigger financial penalties if the train operating companies cross them?
Why won’t he publish the Dispute Handling Policy and any Dispute Handling Plans so that the public know what the government is demanding? After all, the rail unions have been very open with the public on their demands.
Rail workers do not want this dispute to be prolonged. But due to the Conservative government, the negotiations are a sham.
Genuine negotiations can only happen in an employment dispute if both the employer and the union are in control over the agreements they can reach.
Rail unions would prefer Grant Shapps to give back control of the negotiating mandate to the TOCs. But if he keeps a tight grip on the negotiating mandate, then he should at least come clean on his demands.
And he should agree to meet with rail unions after months of refusing to. Otherwise, how can any progress be made?
TWO MEN TO APPEAR AT EDINBURGH SHERIFF COURT TODAY
Detectives investigating the disappearance of Peter Coshan (75) have arrested and charged two men and are continuing to appeal for information.
Former Fettes College teacher Peter Coshan was last seen in the Seafield Road area of Edinburgh around 11.50pm on Thursday, 11 August, 2022 and was reported missing the next day.
Officers can confirm that Peter, of Edinburgh, is believed to be dead and they are treating his death as murder. However, his body is yet to be recovered.
Two men, aged 27 and 63, have been arrested and charged in connection. Both men are due to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today Thursday, 18 August.
Detective Superintendent Andrew Patrick, of Police Scotland Major Investigation Team is appealing to the public for information. He said: “Our thoughts are very much with Peter’s family at this difficult time.
“Extensive enquiries are ongoing to trace Peter and I would encourage anyone with any information regarding Peter’s disappearance to contact police as a matter of urgency.
“Any piece of information, no matter how small or insignificant you think it is, could prove vital so please do pass it on to officers.
“We have also set up a website that gives members of the public access to a form to send information directly to the Major Investigation Team.
“You can select to remain anonymous when submitting information.
More than £17.1 million has been paid to support children and young people since Child Disability Payment launched.
These payments are designed to mitigate some of the additional costs of caring for a disabled or terminally ill child or young person.
It is estimated that as of 30 June 2022, 13,200 children and young people are in receipt of Child Disability Payment.
£11.3 million was issued to new applicants and a further £5.8 million was issued to children and young people who have had their payment transferred to Child Disability Payment.
The total number of people receiving payments includes 7,230 who had their Disability Living Allowance for children transferred from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to Social Security Scotland.
Figures for 26 July 2021 to 30 June 2022 include an initial pilot period where Child Disability Payment was only available in Dundee City, Perth and Kinross and the Western Isles local authority areas.
Child Disability Payment became available to people making new applications across Scotland in November 2021. Payments for children and young people whose awards transferred from DWP began in February this year.
Almost three quarters (74%) of applications were made online, with 16% by phone.
Child Disability Payment replaces the UK Government’s Disability Living Allowance for children.
Those already receiving Disability Living Allowance for children from the DWP do not need to make a new application for Child Disability Payment as Social Security Scotland will contact them ahead of their award being automatically transferred.
Social Security & Local Government Minister Ben Macpherson said: “I’m proud to be working to further develop our Scottish social security system rooted in dignity, fairness and respect.
“We want people to get the support they need and are entitled to”.
The Heart of Newhaven Community (HoNC) has finally received the keys to the front door!
The charity, formed four years ago to purchase Newhaven’s old Victoria Primary School for use as a community hub, has faced a long battle to get all the legal documentation with the City of Edinburgh Council signed, sealed and delivered but has finally been given legal possession of the site.
The original Steering Group was set up after public consultation and eventually converted into a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO), registered with OSCR the charity overseer in 2020.
They won the right to purchase the site under the Community Asset Transfer scheme in July 2020 and secured funding for the purchase from the Scottish Land Fund in June 2021.
The school pupils and teachers moved out of what was then the oldest working primary school in the city in December 2021, but delays originally caused by Covid 19 and last minute legal hurdles meant that the final transfer could not take place until this week.
Current HoNC Chair Judy Crabb and former, and very first Chair, Rodney Matthews led the way in and now it’s all systems go, with volunteers tidying and cleaning and potential users and tenants queuing up to move in and get started.
First though, there are some necessary health and safety measures to install, IT equipment and communications must be set up and the most urgent repairs to the structure need to be completed.
Once open to the public, the community hub will be offering spaces for intergenerational activities of all kinds, including space for such as theatre groups, choirs and performances, rooms for rent for meetings or parties, artists’ studios and small business rooms for rent, a Heritage Suite including the Victorian Schoolroom run by the History of Education Centre, much needed early years’ provision in the modern Anchor Building, rooms for the Men’s Shed to carry on their activities in the Creel Building and of course a community cafe.
Current Chair, Judy Crabb has been involved since even before the first public consultations and is now celebrating with the rest of the Board.
“It’s a well known phrase ‘ If it is worth having, it is worth waiting for’ and how true that is as of today,” she says. “Finally, we are thrilled to announce that HoNC now owns the former Victoria Primary School that from now on will be known as ‘The Heart’.
“A huge thank you to everybody who has helped over the years to bring about this day, volunteers, supporters, members of the community, our funders, trustees and consultants. Every contribution, big and small, has made a difference.
“Over the next few months we will begin to open up the buildings to all the services and activities that support our themes of culture and heritage, learning and enterprise and improvement in well being.
“Watch this space as we offer opportunities for people of all ages, from all walks of life and interests, to come together in an accessible and welcoming environment and The Heart comes to life.”
Cara Gillespie, Chair of the Scottish Land Fund, said: “The Scottish Land Fund is committed to helping urban and rural communities across the country to unlock assets on their doorstep and to put them to work for local people, so we are delighted that Heart of Newhaven Community has now taken ownership of Victoria Primary School.
“We wish them every success with their plans to turn the school into a thriving community hub.”
People aged 65 and over as well as frontline health and social care staff will be first in line for a winter booster jab to protect the most vulnerable from COVID-19 and ease the pressure on hospitals.
Letters with appointment times for those aged 65 and over will begin landing on doormats this week so the NHS can get ahead of any potential surge in infections.
The booster jabs will be given at the same time as the flu vaccine to those eligible where possible – evidence shows that administration of both vaccines together is a safe and efficient way to deliver maximum protection over the winter months.
From 22 August the online portal will be available for health and social care workers to book their appointments. Staff should book on the portal or follow advice from their boards on any local arrangements.
Appointments for all other priority groups will be made available as the programme progresses – people in those groups should wait until they are contacted or called forward.
The programme follows advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisation (JCVI) which recommended vaccinating people as soon as possible to have the best chance of mitigating the impact of COVID-19 over the winter.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “As was the case in previous rounds of the vaccination programme, spring/summer boosters have enjoyed very high uptake among eligible groups with 86% of older adult care home residents and 93% of those aged 75 and over gaining an important additional layer of protection at a time when Covid cases rose sharply.
“I’d like to thank all those who have worked so hard to ensure that Scotland still has the highest overall uptake of first, second and third doses in the UK.
“Following the JCVI’s recommendations, we will roll out the winter booster programme getting jabs in arms from early September to ensure those most at risk are protected over winter.
“Vaccination remains the best way to protect your health and those around you – I strongly encourage everyone to take up the offer of a booster jab when they get the call up.”
You will never cross the street in the same way again!
DON GNU digs into the tediousness of everyday routines in search of poetry and humour in a performance with muscular physicality and edgy stunt tricks.
One ordinary day, four ordinary men take a walk through a city. They readily follow unwritten and strict rules of good behaviour and norms of social etiquette until one of them suddenly decides to rebel …
With trademark DON GNU “everyday stunts” and raw physicality, WALK-MAN is a performance in which the ground is literally swept away from under the feet of four men walking. In a world where rules, norms and routines no longer apply, a pedestrian is not simply a person crossing the street and common understanding of “good behaviour” falls apart. You will never cross the street in the same way again!
WALK-MAN is the first performance of a trilogy about the extraordinary experiences of ordinary life.
DON GNU guarantees physical action theatre and dance combined in a playful and poetic man-power universe!
The company was founded in 2010 by the two choreographers Jannik Elkær and Kristoffer Louis Andrup Pedersen, who also constitute the artistic duo at the helm of DON GNU. Today the company is one of the most touring companies in Denmark.
In addition to extensive tour activities in Denmark, DON GNU has also toured in all the Nordic Countries, South Korea, Canada, big parts of Europe and Cuba.
Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip, written by the Health Promotion and Education Team at Heart Research UK
Healthy Heart Tip: Healthy Habits for Summer Holidays
The summer holidays can be a stressful time for many families. Whilst they are a lovely opportunity to enjoy the summer together as a family, parents and carers can find it hard to juggle having the children at home with work, household and general life commitments. Naturally, during busy periods one of the first things to be pushed aside is healthy eating and taking time for ourselves to recoup and recharge.
We’ve put together some tips to help you get through the summer holidays and keep providing nourishing meals for the family – without going crazy:
Consider an early start
If you have older children who sleep well, you could try getting up an hour before they rise. This gives you an hour of calm before the hustle and bustle of the day begins, you can use this time to get on top of the household chores, get ahead of the day’s work commitments, do some meditation to set you up for the day or just have your breakfast in peace! Of course, this means going to bed an hour earlier to make sure you are getting enough sleep (seven to nine hours per night is ideal).
Meal plan
If you don’t already meal plan, now is the time to start. Having a comprehensive meal plan over the summer holidays will really take the stress out of eating well. We recommend planning for every single meal, including snacks, and have the plan pinned on the fridge for all to see. To make it easier still, use the same meal plan for every week of the holidays, as long as you have varied meals throughout the week, there’s no reason why you can’t eat the same and it makes shopping easier, as it’s the same list each week.
Write a diary/plan
Writing a diary or a day planner the night before each day can really help lessen those feelings of overwhelm we can experience when life is busy. It can also help calm and quieten your mind before going to sleep. You could group things into ‘urgent’ – those things that are priority and can’t wait and ‘can wait’ – those things you want to get done at some point, but if they don’t happen tomorrow that’s ok.
Above all, remember to not take on too much, and try to let the small things go as children can be demanding and take up lots of our energy.
There is plenty of information available online about free and local things to do during the holidays, so be sure to have a look and get out and about in nature everyday where possible.
