Tales of magic, mystery and spectacular sorcery are set to storm the capital this winter, as Castle of Light conjures a charming start to the festive season.
Returning to transform the city’s skyline for a fourth fantastic year, Castle of Light promises to bring even more unmissable moments to Edinburgh Castle as the iconic landmark is illuminated with extraordinary light and sounds displays.
An enchanting experience for all ages, guests can uncover the secrets of Scotland’s past in the unique after-dark walking trail as a tapestry of all-new storytelling projections dance across the castle walls.
Brought together by a consortium of the finest digital and visual talent in Scotland, in partnership with Historic Environment Scotland, the larger-than-life installations are set to bring magic to locals and visitors alike throughout the festive season.
Andy McGregor, creative director of Castle of Light, said:“As Edinburgh’s summer season draws to a close and the darker evenings begin to creep in, the countdown to this year’s Castle of Light event can officially begin.
“This year’s theme of ‘Magic and Mystery’ allows us to bring tales from years gone by back to life through spectacular displays of visual ‘sorcery’ designed to brighten up the winter months. This year’s immersive trail will include interactive elements and unique experiences which truly bring the magic of Scotland’s history alive.”
A limited run of discounted early bird tickets will be available until midnight on Saturday 30 September for the popular light trail. Running for six weeks throughout the festive season, on select dates from Friday 24 November 2023 to Wednesday 3 January 2024, let immersive illuminations and enchanting installations guide you through the castle grounds in a sea of twinkling lights and colourful displays, with help from Rex, the beloved lion.
Ticketed entry slots will run every 15 minutes between 4.30pm and 7.30pm each evening, with last entry between 7.30pm and 7.45pm. The event closes at 9pm. Visitors can also enjoy bespoke offerings from a variety of local vendors who will be on site throughout the event run.
Adult early bird tickets cost £19.80 (using the promo code: COLSM23 at checkout). Concession rates, family tickets and discounts for Historic Scotland members are also available.
For more information and to get your tickets, visit www.CastleofLight.scot. Advance booking required.
Climate campaigners have urged the First Minister to “put action to wind down fossil fuels at the core” of his Programme for Government today.
Campaigners point to the fact that the major environmental interventions during the first six months of the First Minister’s term have included scrapping key measures including enhanced protection of the marine environment and delaying the deposit return scheme.
The First Minister has refused to unequivocally speak out against the controversial Rosebank oil field – the largest undeveloped field in the North Sea – and members of his cabinet criticised UK Labour announcement that they would not grant permission for new oil fields if they won the next general election.
As Europe was gripped by the deadly heatwave and the Greece wildfires began, Humza Yousaf travelled to Peterhead gas-fired power station – the single biggest source of pollution in Scotland – to demand subsidy for Shell’s carbon capture scheme at Acorn Porject, a scheme which would only enable yet more drilling for oil.
Friends of the Earth Scotland climate and energy campaigner Caroline Rance commented: “The time for timid climate politics must be over. Humza Yousaf must quickly get to grips with the climate science and the severity of the climate crisis and put action to wind down fossil fuels at the very core of his Government’s plans for coming years.
“This deadly summer of wildfire, floods and even water shortage warnings in Scotland show that there is no more time to waste with half measures or to listen to those demanding delays to environmental progress. Ministers need to speed to the transition away from fossil fuels, reject plans for a new polluting power station at Peterhead and finally join the campaign to stop the Rosebank oil field.
“Yousaf’s Government needs to supercharge plans that will improve lives as we move beyond fossil fuels such as delivering warm homes, prioritising public transport and putting a credible plan in place to transition workers from oil and gas to good green jobs.”
On the Scottish Government’s Circular Economy Bill which is at Stage 1 of its legislative progress. Friends of the Earth Scotland Circular Economy Campaigner Kim Pratt said: “The forthcoming Circular Economy Bill must tackle Scotland’s resource use, which has serious and extensive environmental and social impacts internationally.
“The vast majority of Scotland’s carbon footprint comes from the products and services we buy so we need strong consumption targets to change this. This would mean policies to encourage producers to make products last for longer, ensure they are easy to reuse and repair and to shift consumption patterns away from carbon intensive goods and services.
“The climate crisis is a global problem, so we need to take responsibility for the impact which happens outside of our borders due to our consumption of materials.”
Childcare provision will be expanded to increase access for more families across Scotland, as part of a new package of measures to tackle poverty.
The First Minister will outline the proposals as part of this year’s Programme for Government, which will be focussed on reducing poverty and offering practical help and support, particularly to those families who need it most.
Further support is to be announced for frontline staff working in private, voluntary and independent (PVI) providers in the early learning and childcare sector.
The First Minister will set out details of the expansion plans in an address to Parliament today. Speaking ahead of his statement he said: “Helping families deal with cost of living pressures is one of my key priorities, and providing further funding to expand childcare provision will help deliver that.
“Scotland already has the most generous and high quality early learning and childcare offer in the UK and the measures I am setting out today will help make it even fairer and more affordable for those who need it most.
“Supporting families is not only fundamentally the right thing to do, it is critical to our mission – affordable and accessible childcare supports employment and the economy, and secure and sustainable employment helps lift families out of poverty.
“This will be a Programme for Government focused on what really matters to the people of Scotland – reducing poverty, delivering growth, helping to tackle climate change, and providing high quality public services.”
The First Minister met parents who have benefitted from early learning and childcare provision at Rowantree Primary School Nursery, Dundee, on Monday.
In 2022-23 the Scottish Government delivered on a commitment to start designing and building a system of school age childcare to help tackle child poverty through work in four ‘early adopter’ communities in Glasgow, Dundee, Clackmannanshire and Inverclyde – supported by £15 million of funding.
Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines has teamed up with astronomy organisation Go Stargazing for a series of cruises setting sail next year.
The new partnership will see astronomers join a selection of 26 cruises on board Bolette, Borealis and Balmoral to destinations including Norway, Iceland, the Azores and the Canary Islands throughout 2024, encouraging guests to look up at the night skies.
The stargazing experts will spend time on deck helping guests aboard navigate the dark skies with laser-guided tours of the constellations, observing fascinating celestial objects from the Moon’s craters to distant galaxies and experiencing phenomena including meteor showers and the Aurora Borealis.
James Moss, Journey Experience Coordinator at Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said:“We know that our guests love sitting on the open deck, snuggled in a blanket with a hot chocolate or a toddy, looking up at the beauty of the night sky.
“Now, thanks to our partnership with Go Stargazing, we will be able to offer 26 incredible itineraries where an astronomer will join our guests on-board and bring the darkness to life.
“The itineraries include the likes of the Natural Wonders and Wildlife of the Azores and Madeira in April and In Search of the Northern Lights at Christmas in December.
“To have the Go Stargazing experts on-board, sharing their vast expertise and insight, is something that we know our guests will enjoy and enable them to get even more from cruising with Fred. Olsen.”
In addition, the Go Stargazing team will host various presentations and answer questions about all things astronomical.
The new partnership ties in with Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines’ Signature Experience, the Sky at Sea, which celebrates a sunrise at sea or the beauty of the night sky from the deck of the ship.
Neill Sanders, Director of Go Stargazing, said:“The entire Go Stargazing team are delighted to be embarking on this exciting new journey with Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, working in partnership to truly showcase magnificent dark skies.
“These itineraries offer an incredible opportunity to see some truly phenomenal sights including the Milky Way, the Aurora, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies as well as witness the likes of the solar eclipse in April and the Perseid Meteor Shower in August.
“Out at sea there is little to no light pollution, meaning the skies are at their darkest. It’s the perfect place for people to look up, and for us to share our passion and enthusiasm for astronomy.”
The cruises that Go Stargazing will be joining include a host of specially timed sailings to coincide with natural wonders and destination events with departures from Liverpool, Newcastle, Dover, Southampton and Portsmouth.
Details of some of Go Stargazing’s sailings with Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines are as follows:
Balmoral’s14-night L2402 ‘Discovering Cultural Morocco’ cruise, departing from Southampton on 18th January 2024. Prices start from £1,799 per person.
See Saturn and Jupiter and observe the changing phases of the Moon
Visit impressive mosques and explore bustling souks
Enjoy time taking in the Moorish sites of Lisbon
Itinerary: Southampton, UK – Funchal, Portugal – Agadir, Morocco – Casablanca, Morocco (overnight stay) – Tangier, Morocco – Lisbon, Portugal – Leixões, Portugal – Southampton, UK For more details: Visit Balmoral’s L2402 ‘Discovering Cultural Morocco’ cruise
Bolette’s 14-night T2408 ‘Natural Wonders and Wildlife of the Azores and Madeira’ cruise, departing from Liverpool on 19th April 2024. Prices start from £1,899 per person.
Explore volcanic sites in the Azores
Learn to take night-time photos with an experienced astrophotographer
Go in search of whales with ORCA
Itinerary: Liverpool, UK – Praia da Vitoria, Portugal – Ponta Delgada, Portugal – Cruising by Santa Maria, Portugal – Cruising by Cabo Girao, Portugal – Funchal, Portugal (overnight stay) – Lisbon, Portugal – Leixões, Portugal – Liverpool, UK For more details: Visit Bolette’s T2408 ‘Natural Wonders and Wildlife of the Azores and Madeira’ cruise
Balmoral’s 14-night L2437 ‘In Search of the Northern Lights at Christmas’ cruise, departing from Southampton on 22nd December 2024. Prices start from £2,599 per person.
Witness the Northern Lights around the time of peak solar activity
Celebrate Christmas Day on board Balmoral
Experience the maritime tradition of crossing the Arctic Circle
Itinerary: Southampton, UK – Crossing the Arctic Circle, Norway – Bodø, Norway – Cruise Tjeldsundet, Norway – Tromsø, Norway (overnight stay), Alta, Norway – Cruise Tjeldsundet Strait, Norway – Trondheim, Norway (overnight stay) – Ålesund, Norway – Southampton, UK For more details: Visit Balmoral’s L2437 ‘ In Search of the Northern Lights at Christmas’ cruise
For further information on Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, visit the website at www.fredolsencruises.com Book online, call Reservations on 0800 0355 242 (Monday to Friday 8.30am to 6pm, Saturday 9am to 5pm, Sunday 10am to 4pm), or contact your ABTA travel agent.
To celebrate this new partnership, a competition to win a cruise for two to see the Northern Lights will be announced at 12noon on 1st September. Follow Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines and Go Stargazing on social media for updates.
Only five of the UK’s biggest theme and adventure parks currently offer electric charging facilities but the situation is set to improve in the coming months, according to a new study by the RAC.
Just Thorpe Park in Surrey, Chessington in London, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Crealy in Devon and M&Ds in Scotland provide EV chargers for visitors, with many other popular and well-loved attractions in other regions currently offering none at all. At the five parks that have some provision, the average number of chargers on offer is four.
The parks that currently don’t offer any charging facilities include such well-known names as Legoland Windsor in Berkshire, Alton Towers in Staffordshire, Gulliver’s sites in Cheshire, Yorkshire and Buckinghamshire and Oakwood in Wales. But the good news is that the first two of these parks have publicly committed to installing chargers before the end of the year.
The RAC study also looked at the nearest ultra-rapid chargers to top theme parks as the next most convenient place to charge on a day out and found they were an average of seven miles away, with each offering an average of only five chargers each. In some parts of the country however, drivers need to travel much further, with the closest ultra-rapid chargers to Pleasurewood Hills in Suffolk and Flamingo Land in North Yorkshire being some 25 miles away.
RAC Charge Watch data shows that drivers currently pay on average 73p per kWh of electricity at an ultra-rapid (100kW+) charger, making an 80% charge of a family-sized EV currently cost £37.39. If public chargers were only subject to 5% VAT like home chargers, that cost would be around £4 cheaper.
Comparisons with major theme parks elsewhere in Europe show just how different the situation can be when it comes to on-site electric vehicle charging. Efteling in the Netherlands has capacity for 174 electric cars to charge at once, while PortAventura in Spain can accommodate 150 cars charging and Europa Park in Germany offers 32 chargers.
It’s far from a perfect picture everywhere however, with Disneyland Paris and Gardaland in Italy having just four chargers each.
RAC spokesman Rod Dennis said: “Even though most people visiting adventure and theme parks in electric cars will be starting out fully charged from home, many will still need to charge on the way back depending on the length of their journey and their vehicle’s range.
“For those travelling considerable distances to reach them it surely makes sense to have some chargers at theme parks as cars will be parked for long periods, making slower chargers ideal.
“It’s a little disappointing therefore to find some big-name attractions aren’t yet providing any charging facilities, but the situation is thankfully changing with several having stated they’re looking into installing chargers in the near future. We look forward to these plans becoming a reality to make drivers’ lives easier.
“As things stand, families with electric cars who need to recharge after enjoying a day out will no doubt be relying on ultra-rapid chargers to get on the move again as quickly as possible.
“Our research shows drivers will have to travel only an average of seven miles from a theme park to reach one of these, although in some parts of the country the distance is considerably further. Fortunately, with every month that passes provision is improving and in fact over the last 12 months the number of ultra-rapid chargers in the UK has nearly doubled to 8,772.
“Some leading theme parks in other parts of Europe are currently putting the UK in the shade when it comes to more extensive electric charging infrastructure. As they’ve decided it’s right to put chargers for their visitors in place, we now need all major theme park operators in the UK to come to the same conclusion.”
Quentin Willson, automotive journalist and founder of theEV campaign FairCharge, added: “Theme parks are an obvious example of how we need to make sure the UK’s future charging infrastructure really is joined up.
“Parks, attractions, museums, holiday centres, hotels and leisure facilities need to have plenty of chargers for visitors in EVs. Drivers will base their leisure choice destinations – as many already do – on if there are reliable charging facilities. This is the future.”
In a bid to stimulate the take-up of electric vehicles and make public charging more cost-effective, the RAC is supporting the FairCharge campaign’s call to get VAT on public electricity reduced from 20% to match the 5% domestic rate.
New figures reveal worsening employment outlook for Scotland’s young people
New ‘Hatch’ programme will help 16-24 year olds in Scotland who have faced barriers to employment to build their work skills, confidence and land their first job
Number of young people not in employment, education or training on the rise, as two in three (62%) young people in Scotland say that the cost-of-living crisis has increased barriers to finding work
Two in five (43%) employers in Scotland say they are less likely to hire a young person now, due to the current economic climate
KFC, UK Youth and Youth Scotland have launched a new youth employability programme in Scotland to help 16-25 year olds who have faced barriers to employment, to build their work skills, confidence and land their first job, as new research reveals the cost of living has significantly worsened work and training opportunities for young people in Scotland.
The Hatch programme, which was piloted in Manchester last year, is currently being rolled out across Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and surrounding areas. Working with UK Youth and Youth Scotland to identify young people most in need, the programme will offer participants 1-2-1 training, support, and practical work experience, with an interview at KFC on graduation.
The launch of the programme comes as new research from KFC, UK Youth and Youth Scotland reveals the stark impact the cost-of-living crisis has had on young people’s employment outlook in Scotland. This follows recent reports from the Office for National Statistics that the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) increased in April to June 2023, to a current estimate of 794,000 or 11.6%.
Two in three (62%) young people in Scotland say the cost-of-living crisis has increased barriers to finding employment, as two in five (43%) employers in Scotland say they are less likely to hire a young person now, given the current economic climate.
One in three (33%) young people in Scotland feel anxious about their employment, training and education prospects. One in four (26%) of Scottish young people say they do not feel confident about finding a job in the next 5 years, with this figure rising to 28% when asked how they feel about the future in general.
For employers in Scotland the difficult economic climate means hiring young people has taken a backseat to other priorities. Increasingly, employers in Scotland were found to be reducing training and development opportunities available for young people in a bid to reduce costs: half (49%) of employers in Scotland say they are less able to invest in upskilling young people now, while 77% of employers are worried about the future for young people given the current state of the economy and job market.
Nonetheless, employers in Scotland recognise the important role they can play in supporting young people into employment, as 89% believe that employers have a responsibility to help young people into the workforce and 88% say they want to do more to help them develop their skills.
To help reduce the barriers young people face across the UK, KFC, UK Youth and Youth Scotland are calling on government to work more closely with businesses to ensure young people are being equipped with the skills that will help them thrive in the workplace.
They are also calling for a joined-up strategy that brings together businesses with local authorities, job centres and youth work organisations to better connect young people with job and training opportunities in their local area.
Meg Farren, General Manager, KFC UK & Ireland, said:“Young people today are facing greater challenges than ever before. The pandemic took away crucial skills and career development opportunities – now, they’re faced with a cost-of-living crisis and uncertain economy, making it so much harder to land their first job.
“As one of the biggest youth employers in the country, we see first-hand how difficult it is for young people to build the skills and experience they need to enter the world of work and our latest research demonstrates how today’s economic climate is only making this harder for young people.
“There are buckets of talent across the UK, but all too often young people are cut out of accessing opportunities. That needs to change. That’s why we’re excited to be bringing our employability programme Hatch to Scotland, to invest in the next generation and help unlock some of this untapped potential.
“Working with UK Youth and Youth Scotland, Hatch, will help young people across Scotland to build their skills, confidence and land their first job.”
Jacob Diggle, Director of Strategy, Research and Impact at UK Youth, said: “The lingering effects of the pandemic and the ongoing cost of living crisis are having a damaging impact on the employment prospects of young people. We cannot ignore the concerns of the next generation as they attempt to enter the world of work – their success is crucial to the success of our economy and our country.
“Youth work can play a huge part in tackling the rise in youth unemployment. However, these life changing services are under strain and need more support – as highlighted by our cost of living campaign. The partnership between youth work and businesses is vital to meeting the scale of need.
“We are proud that our Hatch programme with KFC will help thousands of disadvantaged young people develop the confidence and skills they need to secure stable employment.”
Mike Strang, Youth Scotland Chief Executive said: “The Hatch programme is a fantastic opportunity for young people in Scotland who are facing multiple barriers to entering the workforce. Youth work meets young people where they are at and Hatch does that while offering tangible skills, support and opportunities for young people to realistically set their sights on employment.
“Youth employability programmes like Hatch offer pragmatic solutions and real prospects to some of the most disadvantaged of Scotland’s young people.”
Jordan McQuade, participant of the Hatch programme, said:“There are loads of barriers I faced when looking for employment. Prior to the Hatch programme, I’d spent two years trying to find a job that worked for me and my disability. The cost-of-living crisis had made the situation even worse, which made me feel anxious about my future and ability to find a job.
“However, my experience on the Hatch programme has been really positive and helped me to manage my mental health. The training has grown my confidence, and it’s been great to meet so many other young people working at KFC – I feel like I’ve made friends for life!
“Since completing the Hatch programme, I’ve been given a permanent part-time job at KFC, which is supporting me financially whilst I continue to study at college.”
Since piloting Hatch in Manchester last year, 80 young people have successfully graduated from the programme, with more than 50% finding full time employment as a result. By 2024, KFC is aiming to have upskilled 1,100 young people, ensuring they’re ready for future work, training or education through the Hatch programme.
The impact of poor housing will be explored in the inquiry into how to prevent ill-health. In tomorrow’s second session focusing on ‘healthy places’, MPs will question experts on the relationship between housing and health with questions expected to cover the costs of poor housing to the NHS, the quality of rental properties, indoor ventilation and noise pollution.
The inquiry is seeking evidence on how housing can be designed to improve people’s health.
The session is also likely to consider the extent to which UK Government plans to create more homes through housebuilding or the transformation of non-residential buildings will help to deliver healthy homes.
The role of ‘healthy places’ is the second theme to be explored by the Health and Social Care Committee in its major inquiry into how to prevent ill-health.
