At Cats Protection we have much to be grateful for. This year has challenged us like never before but we have come through with greater focus and a renewed commitment to improving the welfare of cats and supporting better cat ownership.
As we mark the anniversary of the first lockdown measures, we want to learn from our shared successes and experiences and acknowledge what we have achieved together.
One year ago we launched Hands-Free Homing, a pioneering online adoption process that has become the new normal. Prospective owners pick a pet from our website and, after a chat with our adoption team, the cat is delivered to its new home.
This programme has been a triumph, allowing us to successfully match more than 20,000 cats with their forever homes to provide much-needed companionship.
Additionally, the number of cats returned by their new owner has gone down by a third.
We do not underestimate this incredible achievement and the dedication of everyone involved in helping us reach this milestone.
It is just one example of how our team of colleagues, volunteers and supporters have risen to every challenge and proven how we can progress by embracing change. Thanks to their hard work, cats in need continue to receive our support, even in these most trying times.
I would like to thank everyone at Cats Protection who has contributed to our response to extraordinary circumstances and who continues to be part of our outstanding team.
Yesterday saw the launch of Plan 21-24, the first of three plans that will together set out how Scotland will, by 2030, #KeepThePromise made by the Independent Care Review (writes FIONA DUNCAN).
Plan 21-24 focuses what must be done during the period from 1 April 2021 until 31 March 2024. It provides key priorities and areas of focus for organisations to work to achieve the required change over the next three years.
It is ambitious. It is bold. It will deliver transformational change.
And it only exists because of the care experienced babies, infants, children, young people and families who campaigned for the Independent Care Review and then selflessly shared intimate and often painful experiences of the ‘care system’ in the hope of change.
Change that would mean that children, young people and families were listened to, respected, involved and heard in every decision that affects them. Change that would support families to stay together and prioritise the safe loving relationships that are important to children and young people. Change that would make love the value that drives everything and that everything operates around.
That change is here. And this is Scotland’s plan to deliver it.
Plan 21-24 is truly ground-breaking.
Hundreds of organisations committed to keep a single promise made to children and families in the knowledge that to do so would require them to change, to work together and in sequence – something that hasn’t been attempted to realise a collective vision anywhere else.
But I have seen the level of commitment and enthusiasm from all those required to change, those who need change and those with the power to influence change and I am confident that Scotland will #KeepThePromise.
Those 100+ organisations, including local and national government, national bodies and agencies, local and national organisations across public, third and private sectors and those with statutory responsibility for children and families directly engaged with The Promise Scotland team.
They submitted plans, reports and survey responses to outline what they would do to #KeepThePromise, the support they needed and what help they could offer. Scotland is primed and ready to do the hard work required.
The ordering of the Care Review’s conclusions have been translated into five priority areas of change:
A good childhood
Whole family support
Supporting the workforce
Planning
Building capacity
Each priority area contains actions that will be achieved by 2024.
These actions cover a wide range of important areas such as; family therapy, support for children of young children, schools and exclusion, the importance of safe, loving relationships, youth justice, advocacy, independent living, values and the workforce, investment, information-sharing, data, legislation, children’s hearing system and inspection and regulation.
But do not be mistaken – Plan 21-24 isn’t about building a new ‘system’. Rather, it is about building a country that cares, made up of services that work to meet the needs of children and families where and when they are needed.
The system, the scaffolding around services, policy, budgets and legislation are secondary, and must shift to facilitate what children and families need and reflect what they have said matters at every level.
The Promise Scotland is working towards a promise kept by 2030, and its own obsolescence. It will drive the change needed and provide support, honesty and accountability. But it is Scotland that will deliver change.
It is Scotland that will #KeepThePromise.
Mary Glasgow, Chief Executive, Children 1st, Scotland’s national children’s charity said: “Scotland must be a country where all children are loved, cared for and respected.
“They should be able to live safely at home with their own families – where this isn’t possible the state must ensure they still get that care and respect in a safe and loving home. I am therefore delighted to welcome ‘The Plan’, the exciting next phase of the Independent Care Review that has been published today.
“The Plan outlines how over the next three years we will keep the Promise made to children and young people. Support for families to help them stay together must be simple to access and joined-up – we must end the siloed approach. Help must be offered much earlier, to prevent families falling into crisis.
“The impact of childhood trauma, and what works to aid recovery, must be understood by every professional. Most of all, children, young people and their families have a right to be heard and have a say in all the decisions that affect their lives.
“At Children 1st, we are committed to doing what is required of us to deliver The Plan. We will continue to work with government and local authority partners to deliver the transformation needed. We must make sure we have a system that always helps families stay together where possible, protects children’s rights and offers early practical and emotional help to all who need it.”
Edinburgh Castle to become student accommodation and will double as exclusive holiday lets
There has been a furious reaction to news that Edinburgh Castle has been sold – and will be converted into top of the range student accommodation.
The city council says the sale will do much to change the capital’s old-fashioned image but heritage groups say the sale of the castle is an act of barbarism
Glen Morangie, marketing director of Historic Environment Edinburgh, confirmed: “The decision was a no brainer. The building has been lying idle for over a year and it’s beginning to show it’s age.
“The city council has ambitious plans for the city centre so we have decided that now is the time to think outside the box and jump on the bandwagon. Make no mistake, this plan is a win, win.
“The building, which will be renamed Hogmanay Heights, will be converted into as many student flats as we can legally get away with – and as a major plus we have negotiated a deal with the city council to take over Princes Street Gardens.
“The gardens will be coverted into a huge drying space – which we’ll call The Back Green – to enable students to dry their laundry. This is to compensate for the lack of space in the flats – to be honest you won’t be able to swing a cat in them, but students don’t really care about that sort of thing. Laundry, I mean.”
Essential Edinburgh also has plans for Hogmanay Heights during the summer and winter breaks.
Mr Morangie continued: “We’ll send the students packing at end of term, give the flats a quick spruce up and let them out – at exhorbitant rates – to tourists. Visitors to Edinburgh are used to being ripped off so they’ll lap it up – it’s all part of the unique Edinburgh experience!”
Rupert Morningside-Merchiston, a ‘change champion’ consultant for City of Edinburgh Council, said: “There are exciting times ahead in the capital. After a year of pandemic misery this is just the tonic that the citizens of Edinburgh want and need – not that we’ve asked them, of course.
“Rest assured, the city centre will be transformed. The boring old fuddy-duddy stuff will be gone for ever – the trees, the flowers and the statues will be replaced with line after line of crisp clean laundry blowing in the breeze. Auld Reekie no more: and Edinburgh – sponsored by Persil – will lead the way once again.”
The Esplanade will become a massive bicycle shed, which causes a major problem for the organisers of Edinburgh’s world famous Tattoo.
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo’s Pipe Major Ruaridh Bannockburn said: “Of course we’ll miss Edinburgh Castle but times are changing, everyone’s cutting back and shows of miltary might ain’t what they used to be.
“Oddly enough, our very first Tattoo was a small event staged at the Ross Bandstand back in 1949, and it seems that we must now go back to our roots and stage a drastically scaled down Tattoo once again.
“With Underbelly’s permission we will be performing ‘Twa’ Pipers Ana’, Ana’ in a phonebox near the Ross Bandstand this August. Buy your tickets now, but remember to bring your own seat – the prices Underbelly charge are eye-watering!”
Archie Brunstane-Bingham, chairman of the Old Town Preservation Society, was unavailable for comment. It’s understood he’s moved to Glasgow.
The candidates nominated to stand in the City of Edinburgh’s six constituencies and the Lothian Region in the Scottish Parliament Elections on Thursday, 6 May have been announced.
Nominations for candidates closed earlier today (Wednesday 31 March). The nominated candidates for each constituency are listed in full below.
Edinburgh Central Constituency
BOB, Bonnie Prince – Independent DOUGLAS, Scott – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party JOHNSTONE, Alison – Scottish Green Party KIRKMAN, Maddy – Scottish Labour Party LAIRD, Tam – Scottish Libertarian Party MACKAY, Donald Murdo – UK Independence Party (UKIP) ROBERTSON, Angus – Scottish National Party (SNP) WILSON, Bruce Roy – Scottish Liberal Democrats
Edinburgh Eastern Constituency
COOK, Bill – Scottish Labour Party DENHAM, Ash – Scottish National Party (SNP) HUTCHISON, Graham – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party REILLY, Jill – Scottish Liberal Democrats
Edinburgh Northern and Leith Constituency
BELL, Rebecca – Scottish Liberal Democrats FACCENDA, Katrina – Scottish Labour Party LAIDLAW, Callum – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party MACPHERSON, Ben – Scottish National Party (SNP) PULLMAN, Jon – Scottish Freedom Alliance SLATER, Lorna – Scottish Green Party
Edinburgh Pentlands Constituency
CAMERON, Lezley Marion – Scottish Labour Party and Scottish Co-operative Party GRAHAM, Fraser John Ashmore – Scottish Liberal Democrats LINDHURST, Gordon – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party LUCAS, Richard Crewe – Scottish Family Party MACDONALD, Gordon – Scottish National Party (SNP)
Edinburgh Southern Constituency
BRIGGS, Miles – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party HOLDEN, Philip – Scottish Family Party JOHNSON, Daniel – Scottish Labour Party and Scottish Co-operative Party MACDONALD, Catriona Mary Elizabeth – Scottish National Party (SNP) MACKINTOSH, Fred – Scottish Liberal Democrats
Edinburgh Western Constituency
COLE-HAMILTON, Alex – Scottish Liberal Democrats FRASER, Daniel – Scottish Libertarian Party GRAHAM, Margaret Arma – Scottish Labour Party MASSON, Sarah – Scottish National Party (SNP) WEBBER, Sue – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Lothian Region list:
PARTY: Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party
CANDIDATES: LECKIE, John Johnson; NICHOL, David Lindsay
Joint statement on the COVID-19 origins study convened by the World Health Organization (WHO):
The Governments of Australia, Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Israel, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America remain steadfast in our commitment to working with the World Health Organization (WHO), international experts who have a vital mission, and the global community to understand the origins of this pandemic in order to improve our collective global health security and response.
Together, we support a transparent and independent analysis and evaluation, free from interference and undue influence, of the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In this regard, we join in expressing shared concerns regarding the recent WHO-convened study in China, while at the same time reinforcing the importance of working together toward the development and use of a swift, effective, transparent, science-based, and independent process for international evaluations of such outbreaks of unknown origin in the future.
The mission of the WHO is critical to advancing global health and health security, and we fully support its experts and staff and recognize their tireless work to bring an end to the COVID-19 pandemic, including understanding how the pandemic started and spread.
With such an important mandate, it is equally essential that we voice our shared concerns that the international expert study on the source of the SARS-CoV-2 virus was significantly delayed and lacked access to complete, original data and samples. Scientific missions like these should be able to do their work under conditions that produce independent and objective recommendations and findings.
We share these concerns not only for the benefit of learning all we can about the origins of this pandemic, but also to lay a pathway to a timely, transparent, evidence-based process for the next phase of this study as well as for the next health crises.
We note the findings and recommendations, including the need for further studies of animals to find the means of introduction into humans, and urge momentum for expert-driven phase 2 studies.
Going forward, there must now be a renewed commitment by WHO and all Member States to access, transparency, and timeliness.
In a serious outbreak of an unknown pathogen with pandemic potential, a rapid, independent, expert-led, and unimpeded evaluation of the origins is critical to better prepare our people, our public health institutions, our industries, and our governments to respond successfully to such an outbreak and prevent future pandemics.
It is critical for independent experts to have full access to all pertinent human, animal, and environmental data, research, and personnel involved in the early stages of the outbreak relevant to determining how this pandemic emerged.
With all data in hand, the international community may independently assess COVID-19 origins, learn valuable lessons from this pandemic, and prevent future devastating consequences from outbreaks of disease.
We underscore the need for a robust, comprehensive, and expert-led mechanism for expeditiously investigating outbreaks of unknown origin that is conducted with full and open collaboration among all stakeholders and in accordance with the principles of transparency, respect for privacy, and scientific and research integrity.
We will work collaboratively and with the WHO to strengthen capacity, improve global health security, and inspire public confidence and trust in the world’s ability to detect, prepare for, and respond to future outbreaks.
As nominations close, Scottish Liberal Democrats have announced their list of candidates for Lothian and are pledging their commitment to make recovery from the pandemic their number one priority as MSPs.
Today the Scottish Liberal Democrats submitted their nomination papers for the upcoming Scottish parliament election to be held on the 6th May.
The Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for Edinburgh Northern and Leith will be Rebecca Bell (above). She is also the mental health spokesperson for the Scottish Liberal Democrats.
Rebecca Bell said:“People are under huge pressure from the pandemic. There’s a lot of work to be done to recover from this crisis. It will not be easily done and we will need our complete focus on the project at hand.
“As an MSP, I want to focus on cutting mental health waits, a bounce back plan for education, creating jobs and tackling the climate emergency.
“After years of arguing about independence and Brexit, the last thing we need right now is another independence referendum.
“As the MSP for Edinburgh Northern and Leith, I will put the recovery first.”
Willie Rennie said: “This election is about priorities. Liberal Democrats will put recovery first. After the dreadful year we have endured, people want a needle-sharp focus on jobs, mental health, our NHS, schools and the climate crisis.
“With ten years of experience as leader I have won support for areas like mental health, education and nursery education. For me it has always been about investing in people so they can do great things.
“For the next five years the divided nationalists will put independence first, dividing the country too.
“For the next five years I will put the recovery first, cut mental health waits, help pupils bounce back, create jobs and take action on the climate. The SNP will prioritise another independence referendum.
Police are appealing for information following a road traffic incident in the north west Edinburgh.
The incident happened at around 11am yesterday (Tuesday, 30th March), when a sliver Mercedes and black BMW were travelling at high speeds between Telford Road and Ferry Road at the junction with Granton Road.
Detective Sergeant Rory Legge said: “The incident took place in broad daylight on a busy stretch of road and we are asking members of the public to come forward with any information they may have.
“If you were in the area at the time and witnessed these vehicles, or have any dashcam or mobile phone footage that could assist with our investigation, I would urge you to contact police.
“Police can be contacted by calling 101 and quoting incident number 1017 of Tuesday, 30th March, 2021.”
Associate Professor in Journalism lands major research grant
AN Edinburgh Napier academic has received a prestigious research award to provide fresh insights into the life of celebrated American novelist and journalist Ernest Hemingway.
Dr Eamonn O’Neill aims to shed new light on the writer’s time in World War Two London after being named as a recipient of the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Foundation’s Ernest Hemingway Research Grant.
The award will give Dr O’Neill access to the famous Boston institution’s Hemingway Collection and cover costs of up to $5000 as he delves into a fascinating period which saw A Farewell to Arms writer Hemingway stay at the Dorchester, drink at The Savoy and hang out with children’s author Roald Dahl.
The first recipient of the award in the UK, Dr O’Neill, 54 – an Associate Professor in Journalism at Edinburgh Napier – aims to produce both scholarly research articles and a book for a wider readership.
He said: “The library has been in lockdown since the pandemic struck and my research has been deferred, but I hope to hit the ground running in Boston as soon as is feasible.
“The grant covers research costs and travel, but for me its real value is in allowing me to gain access to original material from the narrow, previously hidden, period I am covering.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity. Hemingway’s work has influenced and fascinated me since I was an undergraduate. I am a committed member of the US-based Hemingway Society and I have been reading, teaching, and studying him since the beginning of my academic career at Strathclyde University two decades ago.”
Hemingway (1899-1961), whose most popular works include For Whom the Bell Tolls and The Sun Also Rises, is famed for his lean writing style and thirst for adventure, but his time in England is less well-known than his escapades in France, Spain and Cuba.
Dr O’Neill’s research award will give him the chance to scrutinise the writer’s time in Europe between May 1944 and March 1945 via the biggest repository of Hemingway papers, archives and personal belongings in the world.
The former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy secured the collection as part of her late husband’s Presidential Library and Museum directly from Hemingway’s fourth wife Mary Welsh Hemingway as the JFK Library was being established.
The John F Kennedy Library Foundation provides funds to scholars interested in researching the Ernest Hemingway Collection, with grant applications evaluated on the basis of the expected use of the Collection, the proposal’s contribution to Hemingway studies and the applicant’s qualifications.
Dr O’Neill said: “Hemingway was quite a phenomenon in 1944, a one-man global industry, with big-screen Hollywood film adaptations of his books playing in the London cinemas he walked past.
“He literally had the world at his fingertips, yet in the period I am researching he was also a human wrecking-ball, destroying his marriage to fellow journalist Martha Gellhorn, drinking morning, noon, and night, and yet still able to charm anyone who crossed his path. One minute he was staying in the White House with President Roosevelt, the next he was being spied on by the FBI.
“It’s that shadowy world, that nexus of a complex man who lived a very public life but retreated daily into his secret places, often hidden from even those closest to him, that fascinates me and which I hope to reveal in my work.
“There are few academics in the UK doing serious work on Hemingway but if the intense interest, even at this stage, from publishers and documentary and film production companies is anything to go by, it seems there’s already a massive audience ready to step into his world again.”
Supporting children during the pandemic and beyond, is the focus of a free online conference being held for people working with families in Edinburgh.
The virtual conference has been organised by Edinburgh Child Protection Committee and NSPCC Scotland to mark the end of a year-long campaign launched to encourage families in the city to access support and advice.
Anyone who works with children or families in Edinburgh can sign up to the conference, which is being hosted on Microsoft Teams on Tuesday, April 13th, between 2pm and 5pm.
Speakers will look at how the pandemic has impacted children, the ways in which organisations have adapted to help struggling families and what has been learned during the last year.
Attendees will hear about the All of Us campaign, which was launched to prevent child neglect by encouraging families to get help at an early stage and giving advice on how to support those who were struggling.
There will also be an opportunity for people to discuss how to better support children and families in Edinburgh in the future.
Carla Malseed, NSPCC Scotland local campaigns manager, said: “The pandemic has presented many hardships for families, including financial pressures, school closures, relationship strains, isolation and ill-health, and it has been more important than ever that people feel they can reach out for support and advice and get help.
“Organisations in Edinburgh have worked hard to find ways to adapt and support families while social distancing measures have been in place. This conference will give us the opportunity to look at what we have learned over the last year and how we can best support families in Edinburgh in the future.”
“Protecting young people and supporting families remains a priority for us and we want everyone across the city to be aware of where to turn for help if they or someone they know is struggling.
“It is crucial that we work together to find the best ways of supporting families across the city during this difficult time and beyond.”
Early last year, as part of the campaign, a number of community events were held across the city but further ones were cancelled because of Covid-19 and all activities were moved online, including workshops, seminars and a family fun-day.
In April, the partnership brought together information on its web page about organisations and contacts where families could go for help and support during lockdown.
This included information on support offered by public services, voluntary agencies and charities. Some examples were food banks, financial advice, crisis loans, mental health support, activities for children and support and advice on home learning.
The information was sent in food boxes to more than 300 families across the city and via email to parents through schools, and it was highlighted through social media campaigns. This resource has continued to be regularly updated throughout the pandemic.
The campaign raised awareness among communities and professionals about the early signs of child neglect and how to help families who were struggling through lunchtime learning sessions and webinars.
Worldwide Cancer Research thanks supporters for funding over 3,500 hours of research
Scottish charity Worldwide Cancer Research has today marked the end of Brain Tumour Awareness Month (March 2021) by thanking Suzanne Davies, a mum from Aberdeen living with stage four glioblastoma, for helping raise over £80,000 towards vital research.
Just five per cent of people will survive five years or more after a glioblastoma diagnosis – the most aggressive type of brain cancer. Seven years on, Suzanne is defying all odds and is on a mission to raise awareness of the cancer type.
As the face of their Winter Appeal, Suzanne’s story lead to over £84,194 in individual donations.
The fundraising total will support over 3,500 hours of research, backing the brightest minds around the world in their quest to find new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer.
Since it was established in 1979, the Edinburgh-based charity has funded over £200million of research in over 30 countries to start new cancer cures.
The charity is currently funding two brain tumour research projects, worth over £410,000, one looking at how to beat treatment resistance in childhood brain cancers, and the second hoping to better understand how a gene in our DNA allows brain cancer cells to survive and grow.
In 2014, Suzanne’s consultant told her she’d only have a year to live. Seven years on, she said: “It was a really hard time and came from nowhere. I suddenly found myself having vacant moments, where I couldn’t hear, speak or even breathe.
“When the doctors told me I had a tumour the size of a golf ball in my brain and that I’d only have a year to live, I had my two children (aged four and seven at the time) and husband to think about.
“Now seven years on, I’m so thankful for research and for the treatments, surgery advances and drugs that were and are available to me. I didn’t think I’d get to see my 40th birthday, let alone see my sister get married and have children of her own.
“2020 turned our lives upside down and I think we’ve all breathed a sigh of relief that the year is over, but thanks to the generosity of Worldwide Cancer Research’s supporters, I’m feeling really positive about the year ahead.
“I am thrilled to hear that this campaign has raised over £80,000 towards life-changing cancer research. Any research that can help us get closer to cures, clinical trials and everything in-between is incredible. And the fact it’s a charity close to home starting the research across the world makes it even more incredible.
“I want to be a Grandma and to be able to live my life like I should be able to. And thanks to charities like Worldwide Cancer Research, I might be able to.”
Brain tumours kill over 5,000 people each year in the UK and over 400 in Scotland alone.
Dr Helen Rippon, Chief Executive at Worldwide Cancer Research said:“Brain cancer affects a huge number of people – not only in Scotland, but right across the world. By funding more discovery research, we know that we can save more lives in the future.
“We’d like to say a massive thank you to Suzanne for fronting this campaign, and helping us raise over £80,000 towards cancer research, helping us continue to make our ground-breaking research possible. This money will help us fund over 3,500 hours of ground-breaking research. Together, with the help of Curestarters like Suzanne, we can end cancer.”
For more information about Worldwide Cancer Research or to make a find out how you can help us start new cancer cures, please visit:
