We’re encouraging you to quit and win financially.
The average person who smokes could save around £205 a month if they quit smoking or savings of £2,430 in a year.
Visit http://QuitYourWay.Scot and get free expert support to stop smoking.
In times of crisis, access to the arts is not a luxury — it is essential. It gives young people a voice, builds resilience and offers joy and connection when the future feels uncertain.
For over 18 years, Leith-based charity Strange Town has provided life-changing access to the arts for hundreds of young people across Edinburgh each year.
Through youth theatre groups, holiday programmes, film skills workshops, stage management experience, a Young Company and professional agency support, the organisation nurtures the next generation of Scotland’s creative talent — many of whom would not otherwise have access to these opportunities.
Strange Town is committed to creating meaningful professional pathways for early-career artists — opportunities that are increasingly rare in today’s funding landscape. All artists and practitioners are paid fairly and supported throughout.
The charity also extends its impact beyond Edinburgh, enabling local performers to progress to stages in London’s West End and onto the small screen and major streaming platforms.
This March, the charity shines a spotlight on its Young Company (18–25), returning to Summerhall following previous sell-out runs with a newly commissioned production:
Aphrodite Rogue
by Eleanor McMahon
Set in a near-future Edinburgh, Aphrodite Rogue follows four flatmates navigating heartbreak, climate dread and a flat that is quite literally falling apart. When one of them begins to suspect that something — or someone — is quietly sabotaging their lives, tensions rise in this sharp, timely comedy about love, uncertainty and the importance of trying again.
Tickets: https://strangetown.org.uk/styc-aphrodite-rogue-by-eleanor-mcmahon/
Don’t suffer in silence with dental pain. 
NHS inform has advice on when and where to seek further help during a dental emergency.
Visit NHS inform and search ‘dental emergencies’ for more advice and dental clinics near you.
SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE
The Child Poverty Action Group (UK) – CPAG are carrying out research to understand the impact of the two child policy on children and family life prior to abolition of the policy in April.
This is so they can conduct further comparative research later in the year on the impact of getting rid of the policy.
It would really help them if you can spare a few minutes to answer some questions about your experience of the two child limit.
They want to hear from parents who are not receiving tax credits or universal credit for a child born after April 6 2017.
The survey should take less than 5 minutes to complete.
No information will be used that could identify anyone involved.
Take the survey here: https://f.mtr.cool/mvoinbqtdb
You can find more information about the Child Poverty Action Group here – https://f.mtr.cool/pambkzwiyp
If you can spare a few minutes we’d be really grateful 
Want to make a personal playlist for yourself or someone you know, but not sure where to start?
Our ‘conversation starters’ leaflet has easy-to-use prompts to get people talking about the songs that give them that flashback feeling.
Use one prompt or all, each one will give you a start in creating a personal playlist for use in dementia care and support.
Access and download here for free: https://sbee.link/cx3vby6jwd
More than a quarter (27%) of people in the UK say they or someone close to them has experienced housing insecurity in the past five years, according to new research from Better Society Capital (BSC).
Among younger adults aged 18-34, this rises to 47%, highlighting the growing prevalence of housing instability across younger generations in the UK.
Housing insecurity includes experiences such as sofa surfing, the risk of eviction, or time spent in temporary accommodation. Together, the findings suggest that housing insecurity has touched the lives of more than 13.5 million people* across the UK in recent years.
Despite this widespread experience, public understanding of how homelessness is funded and addressed locally remains limited. On average, people believe that 28% of their council tax goes toward homelessness services, which is almost ten times higher than preliminary local authority returns suggest. Half of respondents (52%) say they do not know how much is spent in their area.
Over half of the public surveyed (56%) support the use of public-private partnerships to deliver housing and homelessness services, with just 8% opposed, and emphasise proof of value for money, transparency and local accountability as drivers that would increase their level of support.
Charities and social enterprises are regarded as the most trustworthy organisations to deliver housing and homelessness services effectively with 71% of respondents saying they would trust them to deliver, followed by housing associations (55%) and local authorities (47%).
Similarly, more than half of respondents (52%) said they would be willing to invest a portion of their own savings or pension in products tackling social issues such as homelessness, provided this had little impact on their financial returns.
10% of respondents overall said they would be willing to do so regardless of the impact on returns. With just 0.05% of total UK pension assets currently allocated to social impact investment – an approach to investing that seeks to tackle social issues generating positive social impact alongside financial returns – this suggests significant untapped potential.
These pressures are already being felt by councils. Local authorities responding to the inaugural Better Society Index reported a combined £1.65bn in expenditure on homelessness services in 2024/25, with a median year-on-year increase of 10.62% (mean of 18.57%).
Temporary accommodation continues to be a major driver of costs, with councils recording more than 3,000 people needing housing every night for the last year alone. At the same time, there is wide variation in both spending and demand between areas, with urban councils typically facing higher levels of pressure.
In more than half of local authorities, cost pressures from homelessness services outstrip entire planning and development budgets and are on par with expenditure on highways and transport services.
Table 1: Region by Region Breakdown of Spending Trends (2023/2024 – 2024/2025)
Across the UK, the spending trends across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales suggest an average spending increase 2023/2024 – 2024/2025 of 18.57 per cent. However, regional disparities emerge, as set out in Table 1 below.
| Region/Nation | Regional Average Year on Year Percentage Change in Spending (2023/2024 – 2024/2025)(positive % is an increase, negative % is a decrease) |
| London | 43.67% |
| South East | 32.52% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 28.95% |
| East Midlands | 28.54% |
| North East | 17.50% |
| West Midlands | 15.45% |
| North West | 11.64% |
| East of England | 10.94% |
| Northern Ireland | 9.45% |
| South West | 5.78% |
| Scotland | 4.36% |
| Wales | -2.53% |
Drew Ritchie, Director of Better Society Capital comments: “This data freshly reminds us that homelessness is not a fringe issue. It is a major and pressing concern for both the public and the local councils working on their behalf.
“However, the analysis also highlights an appetite for innovative solutions. A majority of savers and pension holders would like to see their money make a difference.
“Public attitudes to private investment working alongside Government are positive and the public overwhelmingly trusts charities and social enterprises to deliver those services effectively.
“Social investment combines these key ingredients, building partnerships to deliver innovative finance solutions to tackle entrenched social issues and ensuring tax payer money goes further.
“After more than 10 years of investing into housing, we believe that social investment should be a bigger part of the solution to homelessness in the UK.
“The new Office for the Impact Economy in Cabinet Office is well-placed to coordinate efforts and use this insight into public attitudes to unlock impact finance solutions across government.
“We look forward to seeing how their partnership with social investors, philanthropists and responsible-driven business evolves to tackle joint problems.”
Past Shelves: Histories of Queer Reading, now open at the Museum of Edinburgh, brings together interviews, books, magazines, and artefacts to examine how LGBTQ+ lives have been shaped by reading.
A collaboration between the City of Edinburgh Council and Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive, the exhibition celebrates the vital role that queer bookshops have played in Scotland’s LGBTQ+ community.
Visitors can listen to interviews reflecting on the groundbreaking 1980s and 1990s LGBTQ+ bookshops Lavender Menace and West & Wilde and discover how these spaces became hubs for sharing information on everything from health issues to activism.
The exhibition features a rich array of content, including the original West & Wilde bookshop sign, ACT UP health awareness materials, slogan t-shirts, and posters. Visitors can also browse a wide selection of LGBTQ+ books while learning more about key genres in queer publishing and the ways in which these texts fostered connection, visibility, and pride.
Culture and Communities Convener Margaret Graham said: “Past Shelves highlights an important part of Edinburgh’s recent history and the role that local bookshops played in supporting the city’s LGBTQ+ community.
“It’s great to see these stories and collections brought together in a way that recognises their significance and makes them accessible to a wide audience.
“I’d encourage everyone to visit the exhibition and discover this powerful chapter of our shared history for themselves.”
Curator Vicky Garrington, Museum of Edinburgh, said: “We are delighted to be working in collaboration with the Lavender Menace archive.
“They do so much to preserve LGBTQ+ history as well as support today’s community. Their team have selected objects from our collections and given them fresh context, highlighting just how significant our LGBTQ+ collections are.
“More than anything, this exhibition explores the power of books and reading to bring people together, despite the challenges they may be experiencing in society.”
Curator Anna Broomfield, Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive, said: “We are so excited to celebrate the legacy of Lavender Menace and West & Wilde bookshops, the history of LGBTQ+ publishing, and the profound impact this had on Scotland’s LGBTQ+ community.
“Our interviewees have generously shared their stories with us, and we are delighted to combine these stories with a treasure trove of material from both the City of Edinburgh Council and the Lavender Menace Archive.”
The exhibition, which is free to enter, is open until Sunday 3 May 2026. More information is available on the Culture Edinburgh website.
Foysol Choudhury MSP visited Kids Operating Room in Edinburgh last week to see first-hand the charity’s pioneering work improving access to safe surgery for children globally.
During the visit, the MSP met with Project Manager Kristyna A. Rycovska and members of the Kids Operating Room team to discuss the urgent global need for paediatric surgical care and the role Scotland can play in addressing this challenge. Millions of children worldwide still cannot access the operations they need, leading to preventable deaths or lifelong disability.
Kids Operating Room, a Scottish global health charity dedicated exclusively to children’s surgery, works with partners across Africa, South Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean to design, build and equip dedicated paediatric operating rooms in low-resource settings.
The charity also trains local surgical teams and supports biomedical engineers to maintain vital medical equipment.
To date, the organisation’s work spans 38 countries, with 125 dedicated paediatric operating rooms, creating capacity for more than 780,000 surgical procedures for children who would otherwise struggle to access life-saving care.
In Scotland, in addition to its Edinburgh office and Glasgow headquarters, Kids Operating Room also has a presence in Dundee, where the organisation supports biomedical engineering and the preparation of equipment for operating rooms deployed internationally.
This facility plays an important role in ensuring that surgical equipment is ready for use in partner hospitals.
Foysol Choudhury MSP said: “It was inspiring to visit Kids Operating Room and see the incredible impact this Scottish charity is having around the world.
“No child should be denied life-saving surgery simply because of where they are born. Their work shows how Scottish expertise and commitment are helping give children the chance to grow, thrive and reach their full potential.”
The Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) will welcome Terry Szuplat, one of President Obama’s longest-serving White House speechwriters, for a unique evening of insightful conversation on Friday 27 March 2026.
Presented in partnership with The David Hume Institute, the event will see Szuplat share insights from his bestselling book Say It Well: Find Your Voice, Speak Your Mind, Inspire Any Audience.
Drawing on his experience helping craft nearly 500 speeches for President Obama across more than 40 countries, Szuplat will discuss the craft of storytelling, authenticity, and the art of connecting with audiences.
Joining him in conversation will be former BBC journalist Clare English, as the pair explore the communication techniques that inspire confidence and clarity, whether on the world stage or in local communities.
The talk is part of EICC Live, the venue’s free public programme dedicated to community engagement and lifelong learning, which brings inspiring voices to Edinburgh audiences.
Amanda Wrathall, Chief Executive Officer of the EICC, said: “At the EICC, we’re committed to creating events that have a lasting impact.
“Hosting Terry Szuplat as part of our EICC Live series embodies that mission and offers the Edinburgh community the chance to engage with ideas that shape leadership and communication at every level.”
Susan Murray, Director of The David Hume Institute said: “The David Hume Institute is committed to fostering informed public debate and bringing world-class thinkers to Scotland to explore the ideas shaping our society.
“We are delighted to be working with Terry Szuplat and the EICC on such a large public event. Terry’s experience at the heart of the White House offers a rare and valuable perspective on leadership and the power of words in public life.
“At a time when trust, clarity and authenticity in communication have never been more important, this event provides an opportunity to reflect on how we can strengthen public dialogue and inspire more thoughtful engagement across our communities.”
Discussing his upcoming talk, Terry Szuplat said: “I’m deeply grateful to the EICC and the David Hume Institute for the opportunity to bring the communications and leadership lessons of Say It Well to the people of Edinburgh and Scotland.
“The lessons that I learned from President Obama can help all of us communicate with more civility, empathy, and honesty, which our world needs more than ever.
“I’m looking forward to a wonderful evening.”
Free tickets are available to book on the EICC website here: –
Dynamic Earth has announced its most immersive Edinburgh Science Festival programme to date, with a month-long celebration of discovery running from 3 April to 3 May 2026.
As a programming partner of Edinburgh Science Festival 2026, Dynamic Earth will host hands-on workshops, live storytelling, outdoor geological adventures, immersive Planetarium screenings and the chance to meet real scientists working at the forefront of research today.
From dinosaur encounters to astronaut training, this year’s programme invites families, curious adults and science fans of all ages to dive into discovery.
Edinburgh Science Festival 2026 at Dynamic Earth is designed to move science beyond the page and into real experiences. Young explorers will be able to:
Across the festival, visitors can also meet researchers tackling some of today’s biggest scientific questions, including:
These free drop-in sessions give visitors the rare opportunity to speak directly with experts and discover how science is shaping our world.
Dynamic Earth’s 360° Planetarium will become a festival stage in its own right, hosting an exciting programme of family favourites and special late-night screenings.
Families can enjoy dino-themed adventures including The Land Before Time, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, The Good Dinosaur and Dinosaur.
For adults, Planetarium Lates offer a completely different atmosphere. Guests can enjoy a Cretaceous cocktail before settling in for prehistoric blockbusters including Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Jurassic World and Godzilla.
Festival evenings also include an immersive 360° experience of The Dark Side of the Moon, alongside Stargazing Late and Live – presenter-led journeys across the cosmos with Dynamic Earth’s in-house astronomers.
Throughout the festival, families visiting Dynamic Earth can also take part in an Egg Hunt Across the Ages, included free with admission from 3 April to 3 May. The trail encourages children to explore the galleries while uncovering clues linked to Earth’s extraordinary history.
Speaking about the programme, Dynamic Earth Director Conor Ellis, Director for Science Learning and Engagement said: “Edinburgh Science Festival is a highlight of the year for us.
“It’s a chance to fill our galleries and Planetarium with even more energy, curiosity and hands-on discovery. Whether you’re training to be an astronaut, meeting real scientists or enjoying a blockbuster under the dome, there is something here to inspire every curious mind.”
Located at the foot of iconic Arthur’s Seat, Dynamic Earth offers visitors a full day out, combining immersive galleries, live science engagement and one of the UK’s most striking Planetariums.
Events run from 3 April to 3 May 2026 and can be booked via Dynamic Earth’s website:
https://dynamicearth.org.uk/easter-at-dynamic-earth/.
Advance booking is recommended.
Full Programme: https://dynamicearth.org.uk/easter-at-dynamic-earth/
