Initially at least, services will be restricted. As you might expect, numbers within buildings will be limited and social distancing measures will be in place. Face coverings are mandatory in Libraries.
We appreciate your support and look forward to welcoming you back!
Culture and Communities Convener Cllr Donald Wilson said: “It’s a really positive step forward that these six libraries are opening to the public ahead of schedule as they are invaluable resources for our local communities.
“This phased reopening, which will also see community access to sports facilities in secondary schools start up again next month, is an important step in our plans for a phased reopening of community assets across the city.
“Libraries are a vital requirement in any democratic society, giving access to knowledge and literature, helping to bridge the digital divide and also centres for strengthening local communities.”
Culture and Communities Vice Convener Cllr Amy McNeese-Mechan said: “We really appreciate everyone’s support and patience as we gradually reopen our libraries, welcoming people back into their local spaces.
“Although services will be limited initially due to current restrictions, with an online booking service for some such as browsing and borrowing, I’m sure everyone will fully appreciate that our top priority remains the health of our residents and library colleagues.
“This cautious approach demonstrates our commitment and recognition of the importance of public libraries in this, the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature.”
Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross has proposed a new Fans Fighting Fund to help keep football clubs afloat.
Douglas, who is also an assistant referee, is calling for the Scottish Government to match the money that fans raise to save their local teams, as many clubs warn that they will struggle to get through the next few months without funding support.
On Friday, Douglas held a discussion with 24 clubs across each of Scotland’s top divisions to hear about their concerns.
Douglas has previously held similar Roundtable Scotland events with teaching unions, drug recovery organisations and business groups.
Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said:“On Friday, I spoke with representatives of 24 clubs across Scotland to hear about the perilous state of the game. Clubs told me that they’re on the brink without paying punters in the stadium.
“I’ve taken away a range of issues from the meeting that I want to look at further but this initial suggestion could provide some immediate help.
“I’m proposing that we help clubs out, especially those smaller clubs embedded in communities, with a Fans Fighting Fund. I’d like to see the government commit to matching what fans raise to keep their clubs alive.
“The money from the UK Government is there. The SNP received £97 million to protect culture venues from the impact of Covid and haven’t spent at least £10 million of it. And we all know in Scotland that football is our culture, even more than comedy clubs or theatres.
“As long as clubs commit to paying the living wage and those who can chip in too, this is a fair deal to support football.”
Lothian MSP Miles Briggs said:“Many clubs throughout Edinburgh and the Lothians are in real financial difficulty without any income from supporters.
“This initial proposal would go along way in keeping clubs afloat during what is going to be a very challenging season.
“SNP Ministers must take this proposal seriously to ensure that clubs throughout the region have a fighting change of making it to next season.”
The Scottish Men’s Sheds Association (SMSA) has released a Covid-19 poster resource pack for Men’s Sheds in Scotland.
The Association is still advising Men’s Sheds to remain closed in Phase 3 however, a recent SMSA poll – on the reopening of Sheds in Scotland – identified that 15% of the Sheds that responded are already open within the Scottish Government’s Guidelines for Phase 3.
The resource pack – currently containing 25 individual posters – will allow Sheds that are open to print off and prominently display the posters that they require for their Shed premises but also help those Sheds considering opening in the future to prepare in advance.
The SMSA is in ongoing discussions with the Scottish Government regarding the closure of Sheds and the health and safety of Shedders during the pandemic.
SMSA is currently working on the guidance (including risk assessments) for Sheds which will be issued at the appropriate time in line with Scottish Government guidance.
From online youth poetry events, to debut album recordings and digital presentations of visual art, the 173 funding awards – 113 of which to individuals (£1.4million) and 60 to organisations (£1.4million) – are supporting creative development across the breadth of Scotland, helping the creative and culture sector adapt and respond to current challenging circumstances.
Iain Munro, Chief Executive, Creative Scotlandsaid: “The Open Fund: Sustaining Creative Development is all about helping to ensure that Scotland’s creative workforce and organisations have opportunities to continue to develop creative practice in a challenging context.
“Thanks to £7.5million from National Lottery and the recently announced additional £3.5million boost from the Scottish Government, we’re able to support creative people who are addressing the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on their creative practice.
“People are thinking about new ways of working, how to reach audiences in different ways, taking creative risks or looking at ways to stabilise existing activity.
“Even in these challenging circumstances, these awards announced today are a positive reflection of Scotland’s resilient and innovative creative sector.”
An additional £3.5m funding from the Scottish Government was announced on Friday 28 August as part of £59million emergency funding for culture and heritage.
In addition, the threshold of funding that can be applied for will increase from £50,000 to £100,000 for individuals and organisations, from next week. Full details will be made available @CreativeScots / www.creativescotland.com, during w/c 5 Oct.
The fund has no deadlines, and full eligibility criteria and application guidance can be found on the Creative Scotland website.
Foundation Scotland announces targeted partnerships with Edinburgh charities to deliver significant COVID related support
Foundation Scotland, Scotland’s community foundation, has awarded over one million pounds through thirteen new strategic response grants. Funded in partnership with the National Emergencies Trust, projects have been identified as those that will enable the funder to deliver on its key priorities designed to assist the third sector in providing specialist support needed through the pandemic.
The community foundation has played a pivotal role distributing key funding through the crisis and the £1 Million support announced is further to the £3.6 Million already awarded to more than 900 grassroots organisations nationwide via the Response, Recovery & Resilience Fund.
Launched in March, the community foundation’s crisis fund was the first source of community funding to open as COVID-19 took hold of the country and has so far reached over 1 Million people in need across the country.
Strategic support will be delivered to local organisations delivering support to those living across Edinburgh and the Lothians. Edinburgh-based Children 1st will receive over £104,000 to help support their essential money advice, family wellbeing and outdoor activity programmes.
Shelter Scotland will receive £30,000 to support homeless people in the city. Community Law Advice Network (CLAN) will also receive a £30,000 grant to help deliver their core services supporting vulnerable and disadvantaged children and young people.
Working in partnership with other major Scottish funders such the Scottish Government and SCVO, Foundation Scotland chairs the newly-established Scottish Emergency Funding Advisory Board (SEFAB) which brings together essential expertise to recognise, assess and identify the key priorities for funding across the country.
In total, the funders have identified nine priority funding themes and they work together to ensure all needs are adequately addressed. Examples include support for those with poor or worsening mental health, those with poor access to critical services or care, those experiencing bereavement and support for those in poverty or at risk of poverty or destitution.
Mental health challenges have been widely recognised as a key area of need throughout the crisis. In recognition of this SAMH (the Scottish Association for Mental Health) will receive a Foundation Scotland strategic grant of over £100,000 to deliver a partnership programme offering tiered mental health support to key workers.
Graeme Henderson, Executive Director of Delivery and Strategic Development at SAMH (above), said: “SAMH is committed to making sure people get the mental health support and information they need, when they need it.
“Frontline workers have been under considerable pressure in recent months and we would like to thank Foundation Scotland for providing this funding, so that we can help these staff who have worked tirelessly under very difficult circumstances.”
The new strategic grants awarded by Foundation Scotland will deliver financial support to multiple funding priorities. In total over £1,168,127 will be distributed between the thirteen charities as follows:
Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH) (£105,000), BEMIS Scotland (£104,000), Shelter Scotland (£30,000), Community Law Advice Network (£30,000), Children 1st (£104,750), Dundee North Law Centre LLP (£30,000), Govan Law Centre (£30,000), JustRight Scotland (£30,000), Legal Services Agency Ltd (£28,265), Castlemilk Law and Money Advice Centre (£30,000), Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector (£307,000), Cruse Bereavement Care Scotland (£98,912) and the Scottish Refugee Council (£240,000).
Helen Wray, Programmes Manager at Foundation Scotland (above) said: “We are incredibly proud of these new awards which will make a significant impact across the Third Sector.
“This level of strategic support will enable these charities to deliver the essential support needed to help some of the most vulnerable who are suffering through the crisis. We understand that charities across the country are struggling more than ever to raise the funds they need, and at the same time many are experiencing increased demand for their services.
“It an unnerving time for many. We would encourage other groups to check our website for further funding programmes. We’re also keen to engage with new potential funders whose donations will enable Foundation Scotland to extend this vital support even further within Scotland’s hardest hit communities.”
Scotland must show “bolder ambition” if it is to meet targets for tackling child poverty, a new report by the Joesph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) has warned.
Over one million Scots – one in six people – are living ‘precarious and insecure’ lives, according to JRF’s latest Poverty in Scotland annual report – and the situation is likely to become even more critical with the ongoing cornavirus and the imminent end of the furlough scheme this month.
Child poverty now stands at 24% – almost one in four of our children now lives in poverty. The Scottish Government’s target is to reduce this figure to 18% or less by 2023 – 24 -but unless there is radical action this target is unlikely to be met.
JRF’s associate director for Scotland Jim McCormick, who also chaired Edinburgh’s Poverty Commission, said we are at a “crucial moment”.
“The decisions we make will determine whether we reach our ambitious child poverty targets by the middle of the next parliament,” he said. “As the shape of our economy changes, it is vital to do all we can to protect people’s jobs, homes and living standards, so more families are not pulled into poverty.”
The JRF report calls on the Scottish Government to be more ambitious.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said the government is ‘absolutely committed’ to tackling child poverty and said initiatives including Scottish Child Payments, Best Start Grants and Best Start Foods are evidence of this. The spokesperson called for the UK Government to match Scotland’s ambition.
Lauder Fire Station has celebrated its 20th Anniversary and firefighters have been reflecting on what it means to serve their community.
When the Borders station opened in 2000, there were 45 applicants to become firefighters, and 15 were successful. Still serving from that very first crew are Watch Commander (WC) John Connell and Crew Commander (CC) Dougie Scott.
Both are retained firefighters and balance being on call for their local community with holding down full-time jobs.
CC Scott is a postal worker. He was a leading firefighter at the crew’s first call out, which was to a horse transporter alight.
CC Scott said: “The first incident was the day after the station officially opened, and I drove to this call, as I was a selected driver. My heart was racing. We were supervised by a full-time Sub Officer, everything went to plan and our training kicked in.
“It was the start of 20 years enjoyable service with great highs and the inevitable lows.
“The camaraderie and team work of my colleagues help to lift you when times are hard, and I always remember that no matter what, I am helping our community at their time of need.”
When the Station opened, full-time farmer, WC Connell was Lauder Fire Station’s Sub Officer.
WC Connell said: “I was honoured to join the crew at Lauder and to lead them as Sub Officer. I had no idea what I was letting myself in for, and it’s been a rollercoaster.
“We have served our Community on over 2,000 occasions, but it’s only a small part of the picture. We are available for them 24/7, working around our families and main jobs as well.
“There’s great satisfaction in talking to a member of the community about joining and their journey to become part of the crew, which is like a family.
“I continue to be honoured and proud to be part of the Lauder crew, to serve our community, and I intend to do so for many years to come.”
Lauder Fire Station was officially opened on September 1, 2000 by HRH The Princess Royal.
Retained firefighter Christine Jaffray was part of the first crew. She’s since left the Service and she’s also the aunt of current Scottish Borders Group Commander (GC) Michael Jaffray.
She met Princess Anne at the official opening which was reported in the Border Telegraph newspaper on September 5, that year.
She said: “The Princess asked me how my family felt about me being a firefighter and what I did as my main job? I told her my family are fine with what I do and I’m a registered nurse, which can come in handy when I’m called out.
“I decided to become a firefighter because it was a challenge for me and it was something for the community that I could be involved in. They had an open day and I thought I would give it a go, I never thought for a minute that I would actually make it, but here I am.”
Lauder Fire Station celebrated the milestone occasion with a socially distanced ceremony.
This was attended by Assistant Chief Officer (ACO) John Dickie, Deputy Assistant Chief Officer (DACO) David Lockhart, Local Senior Officer (LSO) Steve Gourlay, GC Michael Jaffray, Station Commander (SC) Don MacNeil, and the Lauder crew.
ACO, John Dickie was involved in the initial and continuous training of the Lauder crew for their first three years.
He said: “It was very satisfying to observe the team develop from limited knowledge and experience as trainee firefighters to being signed off as ready to go on the run protecting the community of Lauder. Now 20 years on, it was good to meet and chat with some of the original crew again on the anniversary of the station going on the run.”
The SFRS is currently on the look-out for retained firefighters in areas across Scotland.
Retained firefighters must be aged 18 or over, live within five to eight minutes’ drive of their local station and have the permission of their primary employer before joining the SFRS.
The purpose of Picturing Health is to start a conversation with everyone in Edinburgh about how we see the future of health and social care. Health is a social issue which affects us all and the communities in which we live our daily lives.
People across Edinburgh were asked to take a photograph about what health means to them. These photographs tell a story about what health means to people in Edinburgh – what needs to change, what we cherish and what we want to celebrate and protect.
The Picturing Health exhibition launched last month and is now on the wall at Waverley Station. Orgainsers hope the pictures will generate conversation and inform health and social care services in Edinburgh moving forwards.
You can view these images at our exhibition at Waverley Station and in our online gallery at the updatedpicturing-health.com.
We would like to express our special thanks to everyone in Edinburgh who took photographs for this project. Your willingness to share your experiences creatively has brought this exhibition to life.
Council officers handled over 250,000 inbound customer phone calls, 150,000 emails and 50,000 tweets at the height of the pandemic, as part of the city’s round the clock response to supporting residents in need.
The Contact Centre team has been thanked for their lockdown efforts – which have largely been from home – ahead of the Council’s move to re-instate all phone lines to pre-Covid levels.
From tomorrow (Monday 5 October) a full service will start to resume with 200 staff managing customer queries by social media, email and phone. This will take place remotely and from Council buildings, seven days a week, 24 hours a day.
Residents are being urged to keep going online where possible to save time and to keep phone lines free for those without digital access.
Councillor Rob Munn, interim Convener of the Finance and Resources Committee, said: “Our customer team has done an incredible job of supporting residents, with great care given to help some of our most vulnerable citizens during what has been a very challenging situation. I’d like to thank each one of them for this as they prepare to return to their usual roles.
“Over the last six months, we have seen more and more residents save time by going online to report an issue, request help or pay for services, and that’s something we want to see continue.
“We know increasing numbers of people would rather use their mobile phone, tablet or computer to contact us and the website is by far and away the quickest and simplest way to get in touch. The savings we make from digital service delivery can also be invested towards improving the city.
“That said, not everyone has the means, the ability or the want to go online. That’s why it’s also important that we start to reinstate our usual phone services again, and why we need people to help us keep these lines free and accessible for those who need them most.”
Councillor Joan Griffiths, Vice Convener of the Finance and Resources Committee, added: “The ways in which we communicate in our day-to-day lives have evolved this year and our Contact Centre team has had to adapt to the changing demands of the Council, of residents and of course the pandemic.
“More than ever, residents and businesses want and need to contact us and receive information digitally, and our officers offer a responsive social media and email service.
“We recognise that the team has helped an unprecedented number of residents with questions and concerns at all hours of the day, and that they have done this from home. It has been an incredible effort and I’m pleased that we’re now seeing a return to more phone lines being open too.
“We recently extended our ICT contract with CGI which will help us to move more services online and invest in new technology, as this is all part of our commitment to making Edinburgh a Smart City. I’m sure we’ll continue to see a sea change in the way people want to interact with our services and the demand for quick, useful online services will only increase.”
An emergency only service was introduced during lockdown so that the most critical customer queries could be prioritised as well as new phone lines to support people who were vulnerable and shielding.
Many officers were also redirected to boost welfare and benefits advice services and to process tens of thousands of applications for the Coronavirus business support scheme, which has allowed over £112m to be paid out in grants to local business owners.
The Council’s website is designed for reporting issues such as problems with street lighting, potholes and litter and there are currently 70 services available, ranging from requesting a new recycling bin to parking and licensing transactions. It is also simpler and quicker than ever to report, request or pay online, with customers no longer needing to register or sign in to their mygovscot account to use online waste services.
Since the drive to move customer contact online was launched in 2015, the number of transactions being processed by the Council online has risen to over 80,000 a month with the website receiving close to 288,000 visits every week.
