Edinburgh Festivals welcome £1 million UK Government support

Edinburgh Festivals – the biggest combined festivals in the country – will benefit from £1 million from the UK Government this year

Half a million pounds will fund a new digital platform to promote UK talent and content to both international and domestic producers

£500,000 will be made available for Festival organisers to increase their digital capabilities

The UK Government will fund two new projects to expand the digital potential of the Edinburgh Festivals with £1 million investment, Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has announced.

The Edinburgh Festivals are the biggest combined festivals in the UK, attracting audiences of nearly 5 million every year, generating £313 million for Scotland’s economy alone, and providing unparalleled opportunities for artists across the country. 

Last year many shows at the Edinburgh Festivals had to move online due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

The challenge of moving to a combination of physical and online events, and the increased demand for British virtual cultural content around the globe, revealed the need to expand the Edinburgh Festivals’ digital capabilities as part of the cultural sector’s post-Covid recovery. 

The UK Government is providing £1 million in funding for digital improvements that will enable more ways for people to virtually access the events across the country, increase opportunities for UK artists and ensure Edinburgh’s landmark events will continue to be major contributors to the UK’s economy and cultural landscape. 

The 11 festivals in the Festivals Edinburgh event portfolio will be able to apply for a share of a new £500,000 fund which will support innovative virtual solutions to the challenges of commissioning, producing and promoting festival programmes in an increasingly digitised cultural sector.

The funding will help encourage collaboration between events and develop hybrid events with live and digital elements. 

Another £500,000 will be provided to create a new digital platform that will help national and international buyers and producers search for talent and content from the festivals’ hugely varied programmes, which showcase thousands of artists and performers every year, and promote the work of British artists and performers around the world. 

The funds will be available to Festivals Edinburgh this financial year. Events with live audiences at limited capacities in Scotland will return no earlier than 17 May, and further details about the planning for this year’s Edinburgh Festivals will be released in due course.

This funding builds on £100,000 previously awarded to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2018 to better connect UK artists with international producers. As part of ongoing support for culture in Edinburgh, the UK Government provided £10 million for the Dunard Centre, through the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal.

It will be the city’s first dedicated new space for music and the performing arts in 100 years. Scotland also received £97 million from the UK Government’s Culture Recovery Fund to provide support for the nation’s arts and cultural sectors. 

Lothian MSP candidate for Edinburgh Southern, Miles Briggs, said: “This funding from the UK government is a very welcome investment into the arts and supporting the Edinburgh festival.

“It has been an exceptionally challenging year for artists and performers, many of whom have needed to adapt to virtual audiences.

“This investment will pave the way for hybrid Edinburgh Festival performances, which will allow people around the globe to see the creativity and talent on show in Edinburgh.”

Oliver Dowden, Culture Secretary, said: “Edinburgh’s Festivals have long been a springboard for the very best of British talent and a vital part of culture in Scotland and the UK.

“The UK Government’s investment will promote it to a worldwide audience online, helping the UK’s biggest combined festival build back better from the pandemic.”

“This is on top of £97 million we provided last year to the Scottish Government to support Scotland’s arts organisations through the pandemic. Like everyone else, I look forward to our fantastic arts and culture coming back better than ever before, as soon as it is safe to do so.”  

Iain Stewart, UK Government Minister for Scotland, said: “Edinburgh is world-famous for its festivals, bringing wider benefits to Scotland’s economy, tourism and arts sectors.

“We know the last 12 months have been difficult for the culture sector. This £1 million funding boost will support organisations to improve their digital capabilities and engage with audiences here in Scotland and further afield.”

Sorcha Carey, Chair, Festivals Edinburgh, said: “While live events in Edinburgh will remain the backbone of our world-class festivals, it’s crucial that we enhance our digital operations and so we’re delighted with this incredible support from the UK Government which will help reposition our work, and the work of creatives, across the digital world.”

Sir James Macmillan, Composer, said: “I’m delighted and encouraged to see this significant and notable support being given to the Edinburgh Festivals at this crucial point.

“The arts have been seriously affected by the pandemic and it is wonderful that the UK Government is showing its tangible commitment to culture in Scotland by investing in one of Scotland’s and Britain’s most important arts organisations.”

Pro-EU organisation urges Scottish Government to set up its own Erasmus programme

Scotland’s leading pro-EU organisation, the European Movement in Scotland, has urged the Scottish Government to follow the Wales Government and establish its own version of the Erasmus education exchange programme.

With Brexit, the UK government has withdrawn from the EU’s Erasmus scheme, which offered student exchanges as well as school links and work experience.

Its replacement, the Turing Scheme, includes a fraction of the benefits provided to students under Erasmus+.

Free tuition and travel expenses have been scrapped, except for the most disadvantaged students and the cost-of-living allowance has been slashed by a fifth. In addition the Turing Scheme does not extend to apprentices and trainees.

The Turing scheme does not extend to staff exchanges. Funding will also not be reciprocal, meaning that international partner institutions will not be supported for any exchanges coming to the UK.

Around 2000 Scottish students and staff used Erasmus+ each year and now many will be denied the chance to study and travel in 27 other EU countries as the new scheme puts financial barriers in front of them.

In contrast, the Welsh Government said its scheme would “support, as far as possible, the entire range of activities that have been available to learners in Wales” under Erasmus+.

The new programme will fill in many of the gaps Turing leaves, including, crucially, the commitment to long-term funding, the retention of the principle of two-way exchanges and the inclusion of youth work.

Scotland attracts proportionally more Erasmus participants from across Europe – and sends more in the other direction – than any other country in the UK. Through associated youth work projects, the scheme is estimated to deliver at least £7 in value for every £1 it costs in public cash, and its value to the economy has been estimated to be worth nearly £34 million annually since 2014.

The Scottish Government had lobbied the EU for continued membership but its hopes were quashed last month by Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, who told MEPs that, as a “constituent nation” of the UK, Scotland could not rejoin. Students studying at institutions in Northern Ireland can take part in Erasmus thanks to an arrangement with the Irish government.

Mark Lazarowicz, Chair of the European Movement in Scotland commented: “The loss of Erasmus is an act of cultural vandalism and we would urge the Scottish Government to follow Wales and fill the immense gaps presented by the Turing scheme.

“Erasmus brings different countries and nationalities together and generates such massive cultural and educational benefits, its loss is a huge blow.  It allowed many thousands of young people, no matter their background, to continue to improve their futures, their access to global opportunities, and their development as citizens of a connected world. 

“Over 2000 Scottish students, staff and learners used the scheme each year. Indeed, Scotland attracts proportionally more Erasmus participants from across Europe – and sends more in the other direction – than any other country in the UK.

“A unilateral replacement, such as the proposed Turing scheme, will never be able to replicate the wealth of opportunities for all young people, or raise the same reciprocal benefits of the Erasmus Programme.”

Fairer pay for social care workers

A commitment to ensure adult social care workers receive at least the Real Living Wage of £9.50 an hour has been agreed with COSLA.

Funding of £64.5 million will be committed to ensure adult social care workers will be paid at least the Real Living Wage from May 2021, backdated to April 2021. This is an important early response to the recent Independent Review of Adult Social Care and comes as a joint statement between with COSLA has been issued setting out how they will work together to deliver on the review’s recommendations.

Subject to the outcome of the Scottish Parliament elections,  minimum standards for employment terms and conditions will be developed for the sector in partnership with COSLA. This includes a requirement for ethical commissioning which ensures procurement decisions take into account factors beyond price, including fair work, terms and conditions and trade union recognition.

There will also be new measures introduced to ensure staff, the majority of whom are women, are able to raise concerns, respond to local conditions and support an effective collective bargaining role in a sector where staff currently lack a clear representative voice.  

The Scottish Government and COSLA have also jointly committed to working together to deliver recommendations of the independent review, including:  

  • ending charging for non-residential services as soon as possible
  • introducing agreed ethical commissioning principles 
  • overhauling eligibility criteria to ensure social care support is based on human rights and needs
  • implementing measures to put voices of those with lived experience at the heart of policy development and service delivery
  • ensuring unpaid carers are fully supported to continue in their caring roles

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “Social care workers do a critical and invaluable job and they should be paid fairly for it. The Scottish Government want Scotland’s social care services to be high quality and consistent for those who use them and also for those who deliver them.

“Derek Feeley’s Independent Review of Adult Social Care set out clearly the need for better recognition and treatment of the, largely female, workforce, describing this as a key issue of equality and gender fairness, as well as an investment in critical service provision. The Scottish Government agree with those conclusions.

“This funding will help support a move to an ethical approach to commissioning which recognises the economic and social value of the work that staff in social care do, and that decisions must be about more than just price.”

COSLA Health and Social Care Spokesperson Councillor Stuart Currie said: “This statement of intent will allow work to begin now which will make improvements to adult social care in Scotland, and I welcome this progress.

“It is evident that there is significant discussion needed around the areas in the review that relate to governance and accountability within the report.

“However, COSLA Leaders are clear that there is much in the report to be welcomed  particularly the principles in relation to empowering people, valuing the workforce and embedding a human rights-based approach in social care.”

Easter Weekend: Remember your repeat prescriptions, says NHS 24

NHS 24 is reminding people who take regular medication to make sure their repeat prescriptions are ordered in plenty of time for the Easter Weekend.

The reminder is part of the ongoing health campaign ‘Show you care. Prepare’ which encourages people to take care of themselves, their loved ones and the NHS by being prepared for minor ailments.

The Easter Weekend impacts on many local GP and pharmacy opening times,  so it’s important that people check their prescription, order only what they need and in plenty of time.

NHS 24’s Head of Pharmacy, John McAnaw said: “This can be a really busy time of the year but it’s important that we all take time to think about our health, do what we can to stay well and be prepared for illness. That way we’ll also be doing our bit to support the NHS through the busy Easter period.

“Things like paracetamol, ibuprofen and indigestion remedies are useful to have and you can ask your pharmacist for advice about helpful medicines for your household. It’s also a good idea to keep a few child friendly remedies if you have any wee ones.

“We’re all looking forward to spending time in the spring sunshine (should it appear!), so it’s a good idea to think ahead to what you might need to support you and your family’s health.

“Check what you have, and order only what you need and collect it in plenty of time – you should order by Friday the 26th March at the latest to be sure of having your medicines ready before Easter weekend.”

General advice and information on how to stay healthy can be found at www.nhsinform.scot/easter

Mentor scheme to improve life chances for young people

A £19.4 million Scottish Government fund will support a six year mentoring programme to help young people reach their full potential.

MCR Pathways charity will roll out its successful Young Scottish Talent mentoring programme and social enterprise and charity Columba 1400 will expand its values-based Leadership Academy for Young People, working in partnership to improve education outcomes, career opportunities and life chances.

A network of volunteer mentors – drawn from business, civic society and the wider public – will offer tailored support to young people through schools as lockdown eases. They will be trained to develop strong relationships that are at the heart of the programme and key to helping young people achieve their full potential.

The programme will be delivered in partnership with local authorities that wish to participate and will be part of the Scottish Government’s Young Person’s Guarantee, to provide long term support where it is needed most.

Education Secretary John Swinney said: “Our young people have endured an extremely challenging 12 months coping with the disruption to school life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. For some young people, this period has impacted them disproportionality, which is why we have introduced the young person’s guarantee.

“Improving the education and life chances of all our children and young people is the defining mission of this government, which is why we are funding this mentoring support package that will enable young people to reach their full potential.”

Marie Clare Tully, Chief Executive of Columba 1400, said: ‘We are delighted that the Scottish Government is enabling Columba 1400 to deepen the reach and impact of our Leadership Academies.

“We can now welcome more of Scotland’s impressive young people on a shared journey to explore their own values, and values-based leadership.

“The core values of Scotland’s young people will be crucial in ensuring that our communities thrive post COVID-19. Columba 1400 is honoured to play a part in creating the conditions for change – enabling Scotland’s young people to transform their schools, their communities and the future of Scotland.”

Graeme McEwan, Chief Executive of MCR Pathways, said: “We are absolutely delighted that the Scottish Government is supporting the expansion of the Young Scottish Talent mentoring programme to thousands more inspiring young people across the country. This recognises the transformational impact of mentoring and the key role it will play in post-Covid recovery in our schools and local communities.

“We look forward to partnering with our local authorities and schools to work with volunteer mentors across the country to help our young people find, grow and use their talents and be all they can be.”

The ambition of the Young Person’s Guarantee is that, within two years, every person aged between 16 and 24 will have the opportunity to study; take up an apprenticeship, job or work experience; or participate in formal volunteering.

MCR Pathways is currently operating in 72 schools across 12 local authorities. Young Edinburgh Talent has been running in Craigroyston Community High School since 2019 and in 2020 the programme was extended to 9 schools across the capital.

This proposal would see it increase to potentially 300 schools over a 6 year period.

Alexander McCall Smith gets set for Edinburgh Award

Alexander McCall Smith CBE has been getting ready to receive the prestigious Edinburgh Award 2020.

Impressions of the internationally-admired author’s hands have been cast in clay, pictured, by Leigh Bradley of the Colin Braid Stone Workshop, ready to be carved into stone.

The handprints will be gilded and laid outside the City Chambers next to the prints of previous Edinburgh Award recipients including Doddie Weir, Ann Budge, Sir Chris Hoy, JK Rowling and Elizabeth Blackadder.

Writing four or five new books every year Mr McCall Smith’s career continues to go from strength to strength. The Edinburgh Award will go some way towards recognising his celebrated and thriving writing career, through which he often shares his love of Scotland’s capital city.

Alexander’s name will be inscribed onto the Edinburgh Award honour panel in the City Chambers and he will be presented with an engraved Loving Cup by the Lord Provost at a ceremony when restrictions around the ongoing pandemic allow.

Lord Provost Frank Ross said: “In many ways, a lasting tribute to Alexander McCall Smith in one of the Capital of Scotland’s Streets is long overdue.

“A true advocate of Edinburgh through his writing, it seems right to me that those famous hands will be immortalised in stone and given pride of place along our very own Edinburgh Award ‘walk of fame’.”

Alexander McCall Smith said: “I am deeply honoured to have been given this award by the city that means so much to me. Beyond that, all that I can say is thank you.”

Covid recovery strategy must not exacerbate existing inequalities, finds MSPs

Issues faced by protected and disadvantaged groups should be proactively addressed as the country navigates its post-Covid recovery to ensure that nobody is left behind, according to a report from the Equalities and Human Rights Committee.

MSPs on the Committee are calling on their successor Committee in the next Parliament to prioritise these issues to ensure that existing inequalities are not further exacerbated by the Covid pandemic.

Convener of the Equalities and Human Rights Committee, Ruth Maguire MSP, said: “As the country navigates its way out of the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s vital that those who are already disadvantaged, should not face any further inequality.

“As this parliamentary term comes to a close, we need to ensure that these issues are given the utmost priority as we move forward to creating a more equal country after Covid.

“We need a strengthened approach that puts equalities and human rights at the core of what we do and urge our successor committee to play a key role in this by actively progressing the key issues highlighted in this report”.

In the report, published today, the Committee also called on all Scottish Parliament committees to prioritise equalities and human rights from the outset and to actively pursue and encourage participation from those least likely to engage to ensure their voices are heard.

MSPs also want to ensure the Scottish Parliament continues to develop as an effective human rights guarantor, demonstrating strong human rights leadership. The Committee has set out a number of actions to achieve in the new Session, building on the actions taken this Session.

A copy of the report is attached.

£40 million to improve children and young people’s mental health services

Mental Health Minister Clare Haughey has written to health boards setting out priority areas of investment from the Scottish Government’s recently announced £120 million Recovery and Renewal Fund.

Ms Haughey said: “The lockdown has been difficult for us all, not least young people – affecting their work, social and family lives and job and learning opportunities. That is why we intend to make around £40 million available to take forward dedicated work to improve Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).

“This will include capacity building to meet expected increases in demand, specialist neurodevelopmental assessments, and ensuring young people have access to intensive psychiatric inpatient care when they need it.

“An essential part of this investment will be funding for a clinical director for each CAMH service to drive forward change.

“Further to this, we will invest up to £15 million to help clear backlogs in CAMHS and Psychological Therapies waiting lists.

“However we recognise that not all children and young people need specialist services like CAMHS, and so we will also continue to support the expansion of community services at a local level.

“Our £120 million Mental Health Recovery and Renewal Fund is the single largest investment in mental health in the history of devolution, and shows the priority we are placing on mental health. The Fund will be used to deliver our full agenda for mental health and wellbeing, as set out in our Transition and Recovery Plan.

“This will help to improve access to services across Scotland as well as ensuring good mental wellbeing at a population level, a comprehensive distress response, and the right help and support in our communities. We are carefully considering the potential for other investments over the course of 2021-22, and we will make further announcements in due course.”

Joanna Barrett, Associate head of Policy for the Devolved Nations, NSPCC Scotland, said: “The events of the last year have profoundly impacted the lives of children and young people in Scotland, with some suffering traumatic experiences including bereavement and abuse.

“Following the start of the pandemic last year, we saw a rise in referrals from our adult helpline about child abuse and an increase in contacts to Childline about emotional and mental health. Our counsellors heard from children struggling with loneliness and isolation, worries about education, increased parental stress and abusive home environments. Some young people talked about feeling suicidal.

“So this investment by the Scottish Government to address children and young people’s mental health is crucial for the recovery of our younger generation. But it is important we also remember and support our very youngest and most vulnerable members of society, those under five, whose wellbeing is closely attuned to that of their carers, and who cannot voice the harm they have experienced.”

Student writings show what life is really like living in poverty

A new, powerful collection of writing has highlighted the lived experiences of people living with, and tackling, poverty in their communities.

Disturbing yet timely, this collection of writing from students of the Health Issues in the Community course (HIIC) reveals the corrosive effect that poverty and inequality are having on a day-to-day basis in modern Scotland.

As a society that believes in compassion and justice, the writings act as a call to action to address inequalities and the increasing number of people being swept up in the wake of crushing poverty. 

Public health specialists have drawn attention to the serious impact inequalities have – made even worse by the global health crisis brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Amidst the grim picture that is so minutely described, the writings are also witness to the power of community, of kindness, of the sense of ‘the commonweal’ that is alive in our communities. 

Broadcaster and journalist Lesley Riddoch, who provided the publication’s foreword, said: “From all the grimness of lockdown and the staleness of news comes this wee gem of a collection – words from folk who live at the sharp end of life in Scotland.

“I’ve no doubt that the folk involved in this HIIC course will use the insights and comradeship they’ve gained to start moving mountains – while taking care of one another.”

Health Issues in the Community is an SQA-accredited course for adults and young people that helps students understand what affects their health and the health of their communities.

Running for more than 20 years, HIIC brings a community development approach to tackling health inequalities and reaches more than 300 participants each year.

HIIC is managed by the Community Health Exchange (CHEX) and funded by Public Health Scotland. You can learn more about HIIC here. 

While the HIIC course encourages participants to widen and deepen awareness of health issues in their communities and their involvement, we cannot solve this issue alone. Political action is required by governments to ensure Scotland is no longer defined by poverty and inequality in the 21st century.

These writings provide the voices of lived experience to help make that a reality.

Fiona Garven, Director of the Scottish Community Development Centre, said: “These students’ writings are a stark reminder of the impact of poverty in communities across Scotland – and the power of people coming together to take action on the things that are important to them.

“With a firm foundation in community development practice, HIIC has been tackling health and social issues for more than 20 years. These writings act as further evidence for community-led responses to health inequalities, enabling students to explore and take action to address their own health issues and the health of their communities.”

Bill Gray, Organisational Lead, Public Health Scotland said: “Public Health Scotland is proud to have supported the development of the HIIC course and recognises the need to listen to voices from our communities has never been more important.

“Our Strategic Plan sets out a clear ambition to embed engagement with communities across all of our programmes of work and the experiences of HIIC participants, set out in this powerful new publication is an invaluable resource for anyone working to address health inequalities in Scotland.”

WritingAboutHealthIssuesVol4Download

New Action Plan for Scotland’s social enterprises

Additional investment of more than £5 million

A new Social Enterprise Action Plan will offer increased support to the sector – boosting its potential for growth and putting the social enterprise model at the heart of Scotland’s recovery from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The three year action plan demonstrates the Scottish Government’s commitment to social enterprise as a way of doing business for the common good and  to building a wellbeing economy.

Key investments include:

  • £2 million over three years to ensure that by 2024 every school child will have the opportunity to engage with a social enterprise project in their school career, introducing the benefits of the social enterprise model to young people
  • investing an additional £1.5 million to build on the successful programme of support offered through Adapt and Thrive, which helps community organisations wanting to diversify their income streams
  • investing £1.5 million to create a clear pipeline for social enterprises from conception to the international market, with a focus on ethical opportunities in emerging markets such as Africa and South East Asia

Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government Aileen Campbell said: “I am delighted that we have today launched our new Social Enterprise Action Plan.

“As we move forward from the effects of COVID-19, we need to ensure that we build back in a way that helps us rebalance our economy and enables us to create a society that is free from inequalities and disadvantage.

“The Scottish Government wants to create a wellbeing economy that works for everyone. Social enterprises will be central to this work, demonstrating this ethos through conducting business with social purpose. The social enterprise model can also help us to deliver on our aim to protect the environment, ensuring a just transition to a net zero future.”

Social Enterprise Action Plan 2020