There’s still time to complete Police Scotland’s survey on how we can improve the aftercare provided to people affected by crime.
Please share with friends and colleagues and help to spread the word. Deadline for submissions is 31 August.
Access the survey:
It’s a big week ahead for most kids with the return to school and childcare settings.
If your wee one is going back or starting school for the first time you might be wondering …”how on earth are we all going to be up and ready in the mornings?!”
Mornings can be stressful at the best of times and even more so if you have been out of your normal routine during the summer.
Here are some simple, practical reminders of how we can free up a bit of time in the mornings by planning ahead the night before. (We all know these things are helpful already but handy to have them front of mind again if needed!)
For more advice and support on getting the kids prepared for a new routine again:
parentclub.scot/articles/going-back-to-primary-school
Work to provide every school pupil in Scotland with a laptop or tablet has started. Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville has confirmed discussions with local government are underway to deliver the ambitious commitment, which will benefit 700,000 children.
The Scottish Government are also considering how to deliver consistent digital infrastructure across Scotland’s 2,500 school buildings. The announcement delivers on another commitment for the first 100 days of this government.
Ms Somerville said: “Every child has the right to an education and we believe that means an education supported and enhanced by technology. This as a vital aspect of an education system in the digital age which was clearly demonstrated by the pandemic.
“This is a hugely ambitious programme of work that will build on efforts to tackle digital inclusion during the pandemic. These early talks with Scottish councils are a positive step towards delivering this commitment.”
The Edinburgh Agroecology Co-op (EAC) has submitted plans for their urban agriculture project at Lauriston Farm.
The group’s project aims to address access to local, affordable fresh produce, environmental degradation and promote knowledge of food production.
Planning application details can be viewed here:
TUESDAY 17th AUGUST: 8.30 – 9:30pm
Join us for an evening of food and entertainment, hosted by our Citizen Writers in Residence Eleanor Thom and Leyla Josephine.
With live readings, audio recordings and a film created by Citizen participants, our community meal will showcase the insightful and thoughtful work of local people from North Edinburgh and Musselburgh.
This live event is part of Citizen, our long-term creative programme working in partnership with organisations across Edinburgh, offering local people a platform to explore identity, connection, place and everything it means to live in our world right now.
Following on from the success of last year’s virtual event, Stories and Scran returns for a second helping.
This community meal, enjoyed by participants in our Citizen programme, will take place in Edinburgh College of Art, with dinner provided by The Scran Academy.
The meal will be followed by a showcase of live readings, audio stories and short films in a celebration of community spirit.
Find out more at on citizen@edbookfest.co.uk.
TALES FROM THE DOOCOT
During lockdown I took the opportunity to try something new and signed up to North Edinburgh Arts’ Writing the Times creative writing group.
I so enjoyed the experience of meeting up with others – fair enough it was still Zoom, but at least it seemed more like normal life! – that I went on to take part in the Citizen creative writing project this Spring (above).
We were asked to choose and write about a local building, and, living in Drylaw, I chose The Doocot.
While I would never describe the Doocot as a place of worship, pubs, like churches, are more about the people in them than the actual buildings themselves, so I wrote a series of short stories about unforgettable characters – real, imagined and some a bit of both – who made the Doocot such a popular place in it’s heyday.
I will be reading a Doocot tale at the Stories and Scran celebration tomorrow evening. The event is fully subscribed, but Edinburgh International Book Festival will be streaming it live.
Cheers!
People struggling to secure or retain permanent employment can access free support delivered by trained advisers.
The national employment service Fair Start Scotland provides personalised and tailored support to those who have struggled to find and stay in work due to their personal circumstances. This may include caring commitments, health conditions or disabilities or other challenges caused by long-term unemployment.
A new marketing campaign has launched to ensure more people can access advice and support, including those who may be finding it more difficult to secure and retain employment as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Employment and Fair Work Minister Richard Lochhead said: “We know that for some people finding work can be a difficult process. The Scottish Government’s Fair Start Scotland service provides people with practical support and advice which is tailored to the needs of the individual.
“Centred around dignity and respect, the service is there to help those who are having difficulty finding employment.
“The pandemic has created greater uncertainty in the labour market and that is why we want to reassure people across the country that expert support and assistance is there for them. Since launching in 2018 more than 32,500 have accessed advice and support from this service and now we want to reach even more people who could benefit.”
Rachel Walker, aged 26 from Carluke, was referred to Fair Start Scotland in March 2021. The advice and support she received helped her secure an administrative role with Capability Scotland.
Ms Walker said: “The support I received through Fair Start Scotland has been first class. My key worker helped build my confidence and encouraged me to take the right steps back into employment.
“As someone who is blind I had limited pathways into work, however, Scott always kept me upbeat, and I have recently secured a role with Capability Scotland. I am over the moon and I would recommend the service to anyone looking to move back into work.”
Dear Inverleith Neighbourhood Network (NN)
The next meeting of this group is Tuesday 17th August at 6pm on Teams (link below)
Please find attached:
We have no Community Grants applications to consider at this meeting, but Cllr Barrie is still looking for volunteers to join a Funding Panel that will consider any applications in future.
We are particularly keen to have anyone representing projects in the Drylaw Telford area.
Please get back to me if you are willing to assist in this.
Click here to join the meeting
Elaine Lennon
North West Lifelong Learning Development Officer, City of Edinburgh Council
8 West Pilton Gardens, Edinburgh, EH4 4DP
Tel: 0131 529 5270 / 35270
Public Health Scotland supports retaining the £20 a week uplift to universal credit and working tax credits, brought in by the UK Government in April 2020, to help create a Scotland where everybody thrives.
The social security top-up payment was introduced in April 2020 to help low-income households deal with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and is due to expire in October.
The evidence is becoming stronger that increasing the incomes of the poorest, including by increasing means-tested benefits, can help narrow the gap in life expectancy and improve mental health and wellbeing.
All of those families affected claiming working tax credits are already in employment, as are 35% of people claiming universal credit. Another 31% of people claiming universal credit have health problems or caring responsibilities which compromise their ability to secure and retain jobs. Therefore, focusing on getting people into work, in itself, will not be sufficient.
Martin Taulbut, Public Health Intelligence Adviser at Public Health Scotland said: “People with higher incomes are healthier and live longer. Experiencing material hardship can have a profound direct impact on health by affecting our ability to buy the goods and services that support good health and underpin healthy life expectancy.
“The increase in value of universal credit and tax credits has reduced poverty, protecting the physical and mental health of low-income families and supporting working-age adults’ ability to find and keep good work. Decreasing the value of means-tested benefits is likely to result in a decline in the (already poor) health of the unemployed and low-income families, particularly after the experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As well as enabling families to live healthier lives now, action taken to improve and protect the health of children from early in life pays dividends for decades. By embedding health and wellbeing into policy decisions across areas of economy, employment and mental health, Scotland has an opportunity to make real progress on national outcomes.”
UNISON will be holding a static lobby outside the Edinburgh City Chambers tomorrow (Tuesday 17th August) from 9.30am to coincide with the meeting of the Edinburgh Integrated Joint Board (EIJB) meeting taking place at 10am.
Although this meeting will not be making a final decision on care home closures, they will be planning to move forward with wider consultation on the issue, with the purpose of coming to a decision at a meeting in September.
It was UNISON’s quick actions that ensured the EIJB did not move forward with the proposed closures at their meeting on 22nd June 2021.
UNISON will be making a deputation to the meeting tomorrow and will be calling for:
UNISON want care homes to remain run by and for the public and not run by private companies for private profit.
If publicly owned and run care homes are not up to standard, then investment in adaptation, or the building of new care homes must be done to ensure that any demand can be met.
Staff in care home must be paid a decent wage, have access to developmental training and feel secure in their employment.
The lobby outside the City Chambers on Tuesday 17th August is only part of the union’s campaign to ‘Save Our Care Homes’ and UNISON plan to build to a bigger event for the September meeting.
You can sign UNISON’s petition here and click here for a link to a ready-made email to your MSP.
The Another Edinburgh is Possible campaign group is also urging the capital’s citizens to support the fight against care home closures:
‘Join the protest rally outside the City Chambers as the Edinburgh Integrated Joint Board meets on Tuesday 17th August. It’s likely that the board will hold a special meeting in September to make the decision to close 5 out of the 9 local authority care homes in Edinburgh.
‘We want to build a campaign that is so strong that when that meeting takes place the board has no option but to drop its’ closure plans. Three Edinburgh City Councillors sit on the board. We’ve written to the leaders of all five party groups on the council demanding that their group takes a clear and unambiguous public position in opposition to the closures.’
Culinary Dreams or Kitchen Nightmares: Can Brits cook from memory?
Almost half of the nation’s adults could cook more than a week’s worth of dinners from memory, a recent study shows.
Analysing data drawn from YouGov, online kitchen equipment retailer Maxima Kitchen Equipment identified that 43% of Brits – over 29 million adults – felt confident that they could cook ten or more meals from memory, without consulting a recipe.
It was also revealed that women are far more confident in their culinary skills, with half of the UK’s female population able to cook more than 10 recipes from memory, compared with just 35% of men able to stake a similar claim.
Age and experience play a large role in one’s ability to cook from memory. Young adults aged 18-24 show the weakest culinary prowess, with a majority of 27% saying that they would only be able to cook a total of 1-3 dishes without looking at a recipe.
Ages 25 and upward gain the most confidence in their cookery skills, with each age category thereon sharing a majority leaning towards being able to cook 10+ meals without written prompts.
The strongest group of cooks are those aged 50-65, of which 56% claim to be able to cook a variety of meals from memory.
Around 2.7 million UK residents – 4% of the population – say that would be unable to cook any meals from memory.
How many meals could you comfortably prepare without consulting a recipe? (UK)
| All | Male | Female | 18-24 | 25-49 | 50-65 | 65+ | |
| None | 4% | 6% | 2% | 7% | 5% | 3% | 3% |
| Around 1-3 | 14% | 17% | 10% | 27% | 15% | 9% | 10% |
| Around 4-6 | 18% | 19% | 17% | 23% | 20% | 14% | 14% |
| Around 7-9 | 13% | 13% | 14% | 11% | 14% | 12% | 15% |
| More than 10 | 43% | 35% | 51% | 23% | 36% | 56% | 52% |
Analysing further data, Maxima Kitchen Equipment found that Brits hold a slight edge over our American cousins when it comes to feeding ourselves, our friends and our families.
Despite a larger population, only 39% of US residents feel confident in their ability to prepare ten or more meals from memory. A larger portion – 36% of young Americans aged 18-24 – feel that they would only be able to create 1-3 meals without consulting a recipe.
Over 19 million American adults – a total of 6% of the population – claim that they would be unable to prepare any meals from memory.
How many meals could you comfortably prepare without consulting a recipe? (USA)
| All | Male | Female | 18-24 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-54 | 55+ | |
| None | 6% | 8% | 5% | 8% | 8% | 7% | 7% | 5% |
| Around 1-3 | 19% | 22% | 16% | 36% | 27% | 21% | 11% | 12% |
| Around 4-6 | 21% | 24% | 18% | 31% | 28% | 20% | 18% | 15% |
| Around 7-9 | 10% | 10% | 31% | 6% | 11% | 11% | 13% | 9% |
| More than 10 | 39% | 31% | 46% | 14% | 22% | 36% | 47% | 54% |
Commenting on the findings, a spokesperson of Maxima Kitchen Equipment said: “It is interesting to see the disparity among age groups when it comes to cooking from memory.
“With countless recipes and cooking videos readily accessible at the touch of a smartphone’s screen, it stands to reason that younger generations would not need to actively “store” recipes in their memories.”
The research was carried out by Maxima Kitchen Equipment, which has more than 40 years of experience in the supply and maintenance of professional kitchen equipment.
