Come and meet LifeCare’s friendly team at Stockbridge Market tomorrow (Sunday 24th August)!
Learn about the support we offer local older people and unpaid carers, the wide range of weekly activities for all ages, and our Love the LifeCare Hub campaign – including a unique chance to sponsor a space at the heart of the community.
Make a lasting impact!
THE Scottish Women’s Rugby team recently took a break from the training pitch to connect, recharge, and challenge themselves in a different way – by spending a full day immersed in the Scottish outdoors at Foxlake Adventures and Ocean Vertical in East Lothian.
The squad – made up of 32 players and 17 support staff – took part in a range of outdoor adventure activities designed to boost confidence, build resilience, and strengthen team bonds ahead of a busy competitive season.
Ellen Dickson, Team Manager, and former Scotland International, said: “We wanted to give the players a chance to reset and have fun away from the pressures of training, and Ocean Vertical and Foxlake were perfect for this.
“The team had a brilliant time on the water, and are looking forward to visiting again in future.”
The day kicked off at Foxlake Adventures, where players threw themselves into the inflatable Aqua Park, diving, balancing, and cheering each other on across the over-water obstacle course.
Next, the team travelled to Ocean Vertical, an outdoor adventure company based in East Lothian offering guided outdoor experiences, where the Scottish Women’s team enjoyed a relaxed, fireside lunch provided by FieldFireFork, before breaking into smaller groups for an afternoon of exhilarating coastal activities – including coasteering, stand-up paddleboarding along the East Lothian coastline, and electric mountain biking through nearby trails.
“It was a real pleasure to organise this away day for the Scotland Women’s team,” said Mollie Hughes, Director at Ocean Vertical.
“It was the perfect blend of fun, challenge, and downtime ahead of what will be an intense and exciting summer for the squad.”
To round off the day, the team returned to Foxlake where some players tackled the high ropes of the iconic FoxFall, while others unwound in the HotFox Sauna before braving a refreshing ice-cold plunge.
“It was fantastic to welcome the Scottish Women’s Rugby team to Foxlake,” said James Barbour, Director of Wild Shore.
“Our experiences are all about pushing limits in a fun and supportive environment – and watching the team enjoying this experience together, away from their ‘day job’, captured that spirit perfectly.”
The day offered not only a physical challenge, but also a valuable opportunity for Scotland’s top female athletes to reconnect, relax, and prepare together.
For more information on activities, bookings, and events, visit:
www.foxlake.co.uk and follow foxlake_adventures on Instagram.
For more information about Ocean Vertical, please visit:
https://www.oceanvertical.com/
The Scottish Women begin their Rugby World Cup campaign with a game against Wales in Manchester this afternoon – KO 2.45
Have a good look at our new programme below! We are so ready to welcome everyone back NEXT WEEK!
Please look carefully as some of our age groups have changed and we want you to come along to the right one! 
Children/Young people MUST have a new completed consent form to come along, any done before or during the summer holidays don’t count! Please follow this link to fill them in 
The shortlist for the Scots Language Awards 2025 has been unveiled, with figures from Scottish literature, theatre, education and business all in the running for awards at the annual ceremony.
Nicola Daniel of Broughton High School is nominated for Scots Teacher of the Year for her dedication to the language in her teaching.
She is one of 45 individuals and organisations nominated who each showcase the Scots language in their own unique way. 2025 nominees hail from across Scotland and voting is open until Sunday 31st August.
The Scots tongue was given official status as a language earlier this year with the unanimous passing of the Scottish Languages Bill. Now in its seventh year, the Scots Language Awards – organised by cultural advocacy organisation Hands Up For Trad – aim to recognise the importance of the Scottish indigenous language to daily Scottish life.
Returning to Dundee, the 2025 awards will be held at Discovery Point on Saturday 6th September and hosted by Dundee’s own Taylor Dyson, who is this year’s National Library of Scotland Scots Scriever, and Scots folk singer from Angus, Lynne Campbell.
Scots Language Awards host Taylor Dyson said: “Scots is oor language – it’s intrinsically linked to oor culture and we are so proud tae celebrate it.
“This is a chance tae gie credit tae aa the guid fowk daein work in Scots. We’ll be gien oot awards tae teachers wha promote Scots in scuils, tae actors yaisin Scots on stage, fowk scrievin books for bairns an adults, as weel as aa sorts o ither awards.
“We would encourage folk tae cast a vote for the projects, poets, businesses and figures they reckon deserve it maist and why not come alang for a celebration of all things Scots in Dundee this September.”
The full list of nominees are:
Scots Writer o the Year, sponsored by National Library of Scotland
● Josie Giles
● Kathleen Jamie
● Len Pennie
● Yvonne Tait
Scots Community Project o the Year
● Auchies Spikkin’ Auchie – Grace Stewart-Skinner
● Blether – Dundee Scots Nicht
● Celtic Croft – Limelight Music
● Orkney Voices Vaigan b’ the shore
● Seagully Blonde, Aberdeen
Scots Bairns’ Book o the Year, sponsored by Scottish Government
● Foggie Bummer Rescue by Aaron Gale (Doric Books)
● Corrie Doon by Jackie Kay (Walker Books)
● Hirda Da Oorick (Peerie Oorick)
● Hiya in There Wee Bairnie (NHS/Dundee Contemporary Arts)
● The Lass and the Quine (Tippermuir Books)
Scots Teacher o the Year, sponsored by Scottish Qualifications Authority
● Antonia Uri, Peterhead Academy
● Mirren Aird, Perth High School
● Nicola Daniel, Broughton High School
● Olivia Stephen, Meethill Primary School, Fraserburgh
Scots School o the Year
● Meethill Primary School, Fraserburgh
● Perth High School
● Stanley Primary School
● Turriff Academy
Scots Stage Production o the Year
● Goodbye Dreamland Bowlarama by Calum Kelly and Taylor Dyson
● Mistero Buffo (Translator: Joseph Farrell, Director: Ben Standish, A Play, A Pie and A Pint)
● So Long Wee Moon (Braw Clan)
● The Concert Party (Garidge Theatre)
● The Not So Serious Burns Unit by Hamish and Liza
● Through the Shortbread Tin (National Theatre of Scotland)
● Up a Close (Kingsman Travelling Theatre Company)
Scots Book o the Year, sponsored by Scottish Book Trust
● Bloodsongs by Mae Diansangu (Tapsalteerie)
● Fower Pessoas – Colin Bramwell (Carcanet Press Ltd)
● Goonie by Michael Mullen (Little, Brown)
● Iain MacLachlain, This Is What You Get (Rymour)
● William Soutar, Collected Poems (vols 1&2) (Tippermuir Books)
Scots Performer o the Year, sponsored by TRACS
● Eileen Budd
● Ellie Beaton
● Josie Duncan
● Lawrence Boothman
● Robyn Stapleton
Scots in Business, sponsored by Scots Hoose
● Braw Tea (Broughty Ferry)
● Captain Dugwash (Airdrie)
● Dook (St Andrews)
● Run4It (Dundee)
● The Selkie (Dundee)
The esteemed Scots Champion, Janet Paisley Services to Scots Award, sponsored by Creative Scotland, and the Young Scots Writer o the Year award, sponsored by Education Scotland, will be decided by a panel of judges and presented at the event.
The awards will also showcase performances from some of the finest Scots cultural practitioners including Scots singer Ellie Beaton, Slam poetry champion Hamish MacDonald and young Edinburgh vocalist Amy Leach. The event will be followed by an after party at Dundee Scots Language night Blether.
The Scots Language Awards 2025 will take place at Discovery Point, Dundee on 6th September. Voting is open until 31st August.
Visit www.scotslanguageawards.com.
Proposals to help alleviate workload pressures faced by teachers have been announced by the Scottish Government.
Work is underway with councils and teaching unions to create a plan to reduce class contact time for teachers, which is supported by increased funding for councils of £186.5 million to restore teacher numbers to 2023 levels.
In addition, independent work will be taken forward to examine how reducing unnecessary bureaucracy in Scottish education can improve teacher workload. This will be supported by guidance from the Chief Inspector of Education.
Greater use of digital technology will also be explored to help free up teachers’ time.
Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth said: “Scotland’s schools are responding to far greater pressures post-pandemic than they did five years ago, and this is having an impact on the teaching workload and, ultimately, children and young people.
“We recognise the pressures facing teachers, and it is absolutely crucial that we continue to support a delivery of measures to ease workloads.
“These proposals will ultimately provide teachers with additional time to prepare lessons and reduce the number of hours worked outside of the school day, enhancing their wellbeing and benefiting children and young people by providing an improved learning experience.
“Collaborative working with trade unions and local authorities is essential and we want this work to be delivered at pace.”
Edinburgh’s new trial cycle hire scheme, delivered by Voi, has been launched.
The public will be able to use the city’s new scheme of dockless e-bikes from Wednesday 3 September via the Voi app. A guide to using the scheme is available on their website.
A typical 20-minute journey on the e-bike will cost £2.20. There are a range of discounts and concessions for many groups including those on low incomes, people with disabilities, those over the age of 60, blue light workers, veterans, students, apprentices and many more.
In addition to pay as you go fares, Voi also offer day passes and multi day passes.
Full details on fares, concessions and promotions are available on Voi’s website.
There will be an initial tranche of around 50 e-bikes in the city centre. Alongside Voi, we’ll then gather rider feedback and monitor initial performance. This will then be used to expand across the city over the coming months, with a target of approximately 800 e-bikes for the full scheme.
The contract between Voi and the Council runs from 22 August 2025 for a period of two years with the option to extend for up to a further 18 months undertaken at the sole discretion of the Council.
The contract will also run at no cost to the Council.
Transport and Environment Convener, Councillor Stephen Jenkinson said: “I’m really pleased that we’ve returned a cycle hire scheme to Edinburgh. Voi is a highly experienced operator, with many successful schemes across the UK and abroad, and I’m looking forward to working with them in this exciting new chapter for our city.
“The new scheme will allow everyone to be able to move around our city in a healthier and more sustainable way. We’re also ensuring that the scheme is accessible for all our residents and visitors, with a wide range of concessionary and discount fares available.
“We know that the demand and appetite for cycling is already strong, and getting stronger, here in Edinburgh. Just last week we saw the record for daily cycle journeys on Leith Walk being broken with 2,147 at the Picardy Place counter.
“Meanwhile, our other major active travel routes such as the City Centre West to East Link (CCWEL) and Roseburn to Union Canal have also seen increasing patronage since opening.
“The scheme will complement our existing active travel and transport infrastructure and enhance connectivity, while also cutting congestion and reducing emissions. I look forward to seeing the benefits the scheme will bring to the city and our residents.”
James Bolton, Voi’s UK General Manager said: “We’re excited to set up in Scotland, starting in the historic capital.
“We are working closely with the council to make an affordable scheme that is sensitive to, and learns lessons from, the previous scheme and our experience in similar cities like Oxford, Dortmund, and Regensburg.
“At Voi we see massive amounts of untapped potential in Scotland, where people are really looking for affordable, quick and convenient ways to get around.”
Problem debt affects many people, and the impact on mental health can’t be ignored. Debt problems can cause anxiety, stress, and sleep problems – and increase the risk of self-harm and suicide.
As well as seeking mental health support, it’s important to get help with debt.
Free, impartial advice is available – and it’s never too late to get help.
Read more about debt and mental health on our website:
CAKE lovers in Edinburgh can enjoy a free slice tomorrow (Saturday 23rd August), as Cake Box opens its new store on St John’s Road, Corstorphine.
Cake Box is known for its fresh cream celebration cakes, cupcakes, brownies and cheesecakes, all of which are 100% egg-free. The bakery is popular among those who enjoy a more delicate textured cake, people simply looking for quick and delicious sweet treats, and those looking for cakes that meet specific dietary requirements.
To celebrate the launch, the first 100 visitors will be given a free slice of celebration cake (while stocks last). Families can also enjoy free face painting and balloons on the day.
The launch event will run from 11am tomorrow – Saturday 23rd August.
Sukh Chamdal, founder and chief executive officer (CEO), at Cake Box said: “We’re really excited to be bringing our delicious celebration cakes and sweet treats to Edinburgh, and we’re encouraging locals to stop by to try them on us, to mark the occasion!
“The timing couldn’t be better – families who are running out of ideas for entertaining their kids at the end of the school holidays will love being able to pick up a free slice of cake and have their faces painted on the launch day.”
Event details:
The new store has also created local jobs, further strengthening Cake Box’s commitment to communities across the UK.
Cake Box is the UK’s leading retailer of handmade, fresh cream egg-free cakes. Its 250+ stores nationwide offer beautifully handcrafted celebration cakes and sweet treats for every occasion. Stores also offer quick and beautiful personalisation, for an extra special touch.
Visit www.cakebox.com to find your local store, or click and collect in as little as one hour.
The gender pension gap in the UK means that retired women effectively go over four months each year without getting a pension – the equivalent of losing out on £7,600 a year on average.
This means that compared to men, retired women effectively stop receiving pension income from yesterday (Thursday 21 August), the TUC warns.
The income gap between men and women in retirement is now 36.5%, according to research from Prospect union – more than double the level of the gender pay gap (currently 13.1%).
Reasons for the gap
The TUC says that the main drivers of the gender pensions income gap are:
Lasting solutions
The TUC has highlighted three key solutions for narrowing the gender pension gap for women retiring in the future:
The Pension Commission
Last month, the Government revived the Pension Commission, which will bring together unions, employer and independent experts to look into the causes of the gap, among other issues.
It aims to reach a consensus on long-term changes needed to ensure that millions of people benefit from a more secure retirement – including women.
And where consensus already exists – like calculating pension contributions from the first pound of earnings and bringing more young workers into auto-enrolment – the government should press ahead quickly.
This is a much needed opportunity to ensure that everyone receives a decent retirement income and the gender pension gap is closed.
TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “Everyone deserves dignity and security in retirement. But right now, too many retired women have been left without enough to get by.
“We must make sure that these inequalities are addressed for future generations.
“That’s why reviving the Pensions Commission – bringing together unions, employers and independent experts – is a vital step forward.
“We now have a chance to make sure everyone, including women, receive the decent retirement income that all workers need.”
Prospect Senior Deputy General Secretary Sue Ferns OBE said: “The Gender Pension Gap is very slowly moving in the right direction but without a more concerted effort millions of women will continue to suffer from unequal earnings in retirement for much of the rest of this century.
“The first step was the success of Prospect’s campaign for the government to recognise and measure the Gender Pension Gap. The next step is for government to show the way as an employer and take real action to close the gap by adopting trailblazing reforms across all public sector pension schemes.
“That the gender pay gap sits at 14% is unacceptable, for the gender pension gap to be more than twice that is nothing short of disgraceful and shames a society that doesn’t take action.”
TUC report on Gender Pension Gap can be found here.
Karen & Katy Koren and the Gilded Balloon are delighted to announce Madeleine Brettingham as winner of the 38th edition of So You Think You’re Funny? – the UK’s most prestigious comedy newcomer competition.
Reb Day and Joel Walker came second and third place respectively, coming out top from over 435 initial applications and entertaining a sold out crowd at this year’s final at Appleton Tower, hosted by all-star MC Laura Lexx.
Following hilarious heats across the UK, comic Madeleine Brettingham claimed the crown for this year’s competition after a judging panel including special guest judge Doon Mackichan (Comedian and TV Star) plus Angela Squire (Artistic Director of the Kilkenny Cat Laughs Comedy Festival), Bruce Dessau (Editor of Beyond the Joke), Arusa Qureshi (Editor of Fest Mag), Julia Chamberlain (So You Think You’re Funny? Producer) as well as Karen and Katy Koren (Artistic Directors of Gilded Balloon) watched 7 minute sets from all 10 finalists, before convening to choose the winner.
Since it began in 1988, previous winners of SYTYF? have included Aisling Bea, Maisie Adam, Ivo Graham, Tommy Tiernan, Alana Jackson, David O’Doherty and more, with the competition renowned for kickstarting the careers of dozens of the UK’s top comics and providing essential support to comedy newcomers.
Madeleine Brettingham is a writer-turned-performer who, after years of avoiding the spotlight, tried stand-up when a famous comedian appeared in a dream and told her to. Against all odds, it turned out to be pretty solid advice. She lives in London.
Madeleine Brettingham and Doon Mackichan – credit Steve Ullathorne
Karen & Katy Koren and the So You Think You’re Funny? team would like to offer a huge congratulations to 2025’s finalists (in alphabetical order) :
Joel Walker – second runner up
Madeleine Brettingham – winner
Noni
Oro Rose
Peter Josip
Qasim Akhtar
Rachel Porter
Reb Day – first runner up
Sean Chalmers
Valeria Vulpe
Katy and Karen Koren, Artistic Directors of Gilded Balloon and So You Think You’re Funny? said: “Huge congratulations to Madeleine Brettingham – 2025’s fantastic winner of So You Think You’re Funny?
“This year’s competition was extremely competitive with over 435 applications, so it’s an outstanding feat for these 10 finalists from across the UK to have made it this far and perform in front of our sold out crowd tonight.
“Each year it’s fantastic to see so many So You Think You’re Funny? alumni return to the Fringe to make their debut or take part in mixed bill runs. 2024’s winner Alana Jackson has had a huge sold out run with us this August, as well as brilliant shows from the likes of Sophia Wren, Christopher Donovan, our Best of So You Think You’re Funny acts and many more.
“A massive thank you to every comic who entered the competition this year, and all our esteemed judges who joined us at heats across the UK to ensure we could provide a platform to some of the very best new up and coming comedians in the country.
“We’ve all been blown away by the talent on display tonight and we’re sure they will go on to do wonderful things!”
Celebrity guest judge Doon Mackichan said: “I’m absolutely bowled over and amazed at the talent tonight – it was a really difficult decision and such a high standard. I laughed at every single person, but we had to make a decision.
“This is brutal – it’s worse than The Voice and X Factor!”
Judges who chose this year’s finalists included: special guest judge Doon Mackichan, journalists Arusa Qureshi and Bruce Dessau, plus Katy and Karen Koren and more.
Since it began in 1988, So You Think You’re Funny? has kick-started the careers of dozens of the country’s top comics including Dylan Moran, Peter Kay, Maisie Adam, Rhod Gilbert, Tommy Tiernan and many more.
It is the longest running and most established comedy competition of its kind, solely funded by Gilded Balloon without external sponsors.
This year’s winner will receive…
There are also prizes for the runners-up including;
For more information on So You Think You’re Funny? visit:
