YOTEL Edinburgh are opening their doors to local charities and non-profits this year for International Women’s Day by offering free working space for six months to a nominated group.
Providing a fresh, engaging space to collaborate, advance their work and provide inspiration and resources, YOTEL Edinburgh are joining this year’s #BreaktheBias theme for International Women’s Day.
As an added extra, the city-centre hotel will offer the founder or leader of the organisation a complimentary overnight stay for two, as a small thank you for all of their work in the hotel’s local community.
A UK wide initiative, YOTEL are asking communities across Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester and London to nominate local organisations doing incredible work for or with women, offering one full day (subject to availability, 9am – 5pm) per month for groups to use however they wish – whether it’s a small non-profit working from home who need a meeting room, a group looking for an inspirational new working space or a local branch of a national charity hosting workshops, YOTEL will make them feel right at home.
To nominate a charity or non-profit in Edinburgh head to YOTEL Edinburgh’s social channels. Simply tag the organisation in the comments or share the post on your story and tag your chosen charity.
Entries will close 21 March 2022, before being whittled down to a shortlist of five organisations to be spotlighted on YOTEL Edinburgh’s social media channels across the month of April, offering support and exposure to the local groups.
The nominated organisation can kick off their free six months of working space from April 2022 – September 2022 with one day per month available.
In Edinburgh’s New Town YOTEL, the nominated group will win the use of a flexible private meeting room, enjoying the hotel’s buzzing city-centre location, just a 5-minute walk from Princes Street, as they collaborate on their group’s inspiring ideas for up to 10 people.
Sahrette Saayman , VP Communications at YOTEL said: “We’re excited to open the doors to YOTELs across the UK and collaborate with our local communities for International Women’s Day in 2022.
“We know there’s some inspirational work happening right on our doorsteps and we’re excited to lend a hand, whichever way we can.
“We also hope this campaign will help our local communities discover some incredible new non-profits or charities to support, and shine a light on the outstanding work they are doing across Edinburgh, Glasgow, London and Manchester.”
Aiming to give back to their local communities, YOTEL are throwing open their doors and collaborating with female-focussed charities and non-profits in 2022, offering an inspiring space to work, collaboration and perhaps a much needed break.
Hoping to provide the organisations with room to grow in a welcoming environment, YOTEL Edinburgh are keen to hear from local groups about the ways in which they’d use the spaces.
Prices are rising at the fastest rate in 30 years, and energy bills alone are expected to rise by 50% in April. We are all feeling the pinch but the soaring costs of essentials will hurt low income families, whose budgets are already at breaking point, most.
There has long been a profound mismatch between what those with a low income have, and what they need to get by. Policies such as the benefit cap and benefit freeze have left many struggling. Families are still reeling from the £20 cut to Universal Credit last October. And, though benefits will increase by 3.1% in April, inflation is projected to be 6% by then. This means yet another real terms cut to incomes.
The government must respond to the scale of the challenge. Immediate targeted protection to prevent serious hardship is essential, but short-term support will not be enough in the face of ongoing inflation.
The government should increase benefits by 6% in April and ensure support for housing costs increases in line with rents. All those struggling, including families affected by the benefit cap, must feel the impact.
Much more is needed for levels of support to reflect what people need to get by. But, in taking these first steps, the government will prevent the gap from getting wider and lay the foundation to further strengthen our social security system that protects us from poverty.
Signed by:
Alison Garnham, Chief Executive, Child Poverty Action Group
Graeme Cooke, Director of Evidence and Policy, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Emma Revie, Chief Executive, The Trussell Trust
Imran Hussain, Director of Policy & Campaigns, Action for Children
Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director, Age UK
Sarb Bajwa, Chief Executive, British Psychological Society
Joseph Howes, CEO, Buttle UK
Leigh Elliott, CEO, Children North East
Laurence Guinness, Chief Executive, The Childhood Trust
Paula Stringer, CEO, Christians Against Poverty (CAP)
Niall Cooper, Director, Church Action on Poverty
James Plunkett, Executive Director of Advice & Advocacy, Citizens Advice
The public are being urged to sign-up to a world-leading study for antivirals if they test positive for COVID-19
Recruitment drive backed by charities including Kidney Care UK, Cystic Fibrosis Trust, Diabetes UK and the British Liver Trust as antivirals help protect most vulnerable from hospital
At least 6,000 more participants needed as soon as possible so the life-saving treatments can be rolled out more widely
Adults over the age of 50 or with an underlying health condition who test positive for COVID-19 are being urged to sign up for a world-first COVID-19 study which is providing life-saving antivirals to thousands of people.
The UK government and leading charities, including Kidney Care UK, Cystic Fibrosis Trust, Diabetes UK and the British Liver Trust, are calling on at least 6,000 more participants to come forward for these cutting-edge treatments through the PANORAMIC study.
This is so that expert scientists can understand more about how to deploy these treatments in the NHS more widely later in the year – including who would benefit most from receiving antiviral treatments for COVID-19.
Antivirals are medicines which can be swallowed as a tablet to help treat people with COVID-19 infections to reduce the risk of hospitalisations and death. Molnupiravir, which is currently being deployed through the study, has shown to reduce this for at risk, non-hospitalised adults with mild to moderate COVID-19 by 30% – potentially saving thousands of lives once the drugs are available to the NHS.
Anyone over the age of 50 or between 18 to 49 with an underlying health condition can sign up to the study as soon as they receive a positive PCR or lateral flow test result. They need to be experiencing COVID-19 symptoms that began in the last five days to be eligible to enrol.
Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid said: “The vaccines are critical as a first line of defence, but antivirals form a vital part of our approach as we learn to live with COVID by preventing the most vulnerable from being hospitalised.
“If you’re eligible, please step forward for the PANORAMIC trial and play your part in a vital mission – helping us to learn more about medicines which could save thousands of lives.”
The UK-wide study, run by the University of Oxford and supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), launched at the start of December 2021 and currently has around 4,600 trial participants signed up, but needs thousands more to sign up as soon as possible to gather the data necessary.
This will ensure medical experts can learn more about the potential benefits these treatments bring to vaccinated patients, and will help the NHS to develop plans for rolling out the antivirals to further patients later this year.
It is open to anyone living in the UK who meets the following criteria:
Have received a positive PCR or lateral flow test for COVID-19 and feel unwell with symptoms of COVID-19 that started in the last five days; and
are aged 50 and over, or 18 to 49 years old with an underlying medical condition that can increase the risk of developing severe COVID-19.
While vaccines remain the most important first line of defence against the virus, antivirals are used after someone contracts the virus to slow it down, make symptoms less severe and complications less common.
The antiviral, molnupiravir, that is part of the PANORAMIC trial, was granted approval for use by the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority (MHRA) in November 2021, and so far no unexpected safety findings have been reported in clinical trials.
The UK government, through the Antivirals Taskforce, has procured 4.98 million courses of antivirals – including 2.23 million courses of molnupiravir and 2.75 million courses of PF-07321332/ritonavir.
Professor Sir Jonathan Van-Tam, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England, said: “If you’re eligible for PANORAMIC please give some serious consideration to taking part.
“This will help us decide how to use COVID-19 antiviral drugs for many years to come.”
Eddie Gray, Chair of the Antivirals Taskforce, said: “Antivirals are a hugely important addition to our response to COVID-19 and we have secured access to two important products for NHS patients.
“Getting people enrolled onto this study is vital, not just in protecting the most vulnerable now, but in ensuring we can deploy these medicines more widely as soon as possible.”
Pippa Erskine, double lung transplant recipient who lives with Cystic Fibrosis, accessed antivirals after testing positive for COVID-19 at the start of January. Pippa said: “Even after three vaccines, testing positive for COVID-19 after avoiding the virus for more than 18 months was worrying.
“Knowing antivirals would help ease my symptoms and help prevent potential complications was a huge relief.
“With restrictions easing, it’s so important that those vulnerable to COVID-19 have the best possible chance of staying protected against the virus and, most importantly, staying out of hospital. Antivirals are essential to this.
“I’d urge anyone eligible for the trial to put themselves forward to help make antivirals more widely available, and to protect themselves and others.”
Mr Harkishan Mistry, age 58, is General Secretary of Bradford Hindu Council said: “After testing positive for COVID-19 last Monday on a lateral flow, a friend recommended I look into the antivirals trial.
“As I’m over 50 and was experiencing symptoms such as sore throat, headache, and achiness, I was eligible and was selected to receive the antiviral treatment by Monday afternoon.
“The whole process was so simple – a courier delivered the capsules the next morning and I began taking the course straight away. While I’m still testing positive and remain in isolation, my symptoms eased daily and I feel much better.
“I’d really recommend anyone who’s eligible for the trial to sign up – why would you not if we can help others and ease pressure on the NHS.”
Hazel, a pharmacist from Whitley Bay, got COVID-19 early in January and so signed up to the trial immediately to help find antiviral medicines to treat the virus.
Hazel said: “I enrolled online when I got COVID-19 and the process was really simple. I got a call from a nurse right away who took me through everything and since then I’ve just had to keep a short online daily diary which takes less than a minute to do.
“The process really couldn’t be simpler, and it’s so exciting to be part of this world leading effort to find a treatment for COVID-19.
“Both as someone who got COVID-19 and as a pharmacist, I know the damage this virus can do and would urge anyone eligible to visit the website and really consider getting involved as it could save lives.”
Fiona Loud, Policy Director at Kidney Care UK, said: “We welcome the development and provision of antiviral treatments for people who are vulnerable to COVID-19.
“This trial is one of the ways to make them more widely available so we would like to encourage everyone who is eligible, including those with kidney disease, to take part in this study.
“While we continue to encourage people to take up the offer of vaccinations, antiviral treatments are going to be a vital tool to give more protection to people who are most at risk from COVID-19, including those with kidney disease.”
Vanessa Hebditch, Director of Policy at the British Liver Trust, said: “The introduction of new treatments for COVID-19 for the most vulnerable is an important and welcome development in the tackling of the pandemic.
“People with liver disease and liver transplant recipients are among the highest risk from COVID-19 and have less immunity from vaccines so treatments are vital to reduce their risk of hospitalisation should they catch the virus.
“We urge people living with a liver condition to consider signing up for trial to protect themselves and ensure that more people can access these treatments.”
David Ramsden, chief executive of Cystic Fibrosis Trust, said: “It is vital for that we continue to focus on the development and evaluation of new treatments for COVID-19.
“This is a really important study and we would encourage all eligible people with cystic fibrosis to get involved.”
Help for low income households this festive period
Projects that support low income households will benefit from a funding boost through the Scottish Government’s Winter Support Fund.
Sixteen charities will receive a share of over £6 million to provide support to low income families with direct assistance for living costs, as well as initiatives such as debt advice and parenting helplines.
The cash is part of a £41 million Winter Support Fund announced by the Social Justice Secretary in October which also includes £10 million to help people struggling to pay fuel bills and £25 million awarded to local authorities to respond to financial insecurity and support wellbeing based on local needs.
The Winter Support Fund aims to help people on low incomes, children and people at risk of homelessness against a backdrop of rising living and fuel costs.
Social Justice Secretary Shona Robison said: “We know many families are struggling financially just now with the rising cost of living and the impact of the pandemic.
“The recent sharp increase in Covid-19 cases, linked to the omicron variant, has only added to the challenge but we’re determined to ease some of the strain by providing direct support to people who need it most.
“Our trusted charity partners and volunteers have played a crucial role throughout the pandemic and we appreciate and value the services they provide.
“We hope these funds will help those most in need over Christmas, which we appreciate can be a difficult time for many.”
The STV Children’s Appeal will receive £1,200,000 to support children in need through its network of grassroots and community organisations.
Chair Paul Reynolds said: “The winter period is often one of the most difficult times of the year for families affected by poverty in Scotland, so this support package comes at the most crucial of times.
“Through collaboration with hundreds of charities and projects, we support the most vulnerable children and young people across the country, and we’ll help to make sure that these funds provide the food, clothing, shelter and heating needed by so many families throughout this challenging season.”
Aberlour Children’s Charity will receive £250,000 for its Urgent Assistance Fund.
Chief Executive SallyAnn Kelly said: “This support comes at a time when families and their children are facing the second tough winter in a row. It will make a real difference to so many families, who have found themselves pushed into poverty and who are struggling to keep their head above water.
“Applications for our fund have doubled in recent months and the top reason for families seeking help is to feed their children. It’s vitally important that this funding is distributed to families quickly and reaches those children who need the very basics.”
Social Justice Secretary Shona Robison first announced the £41 million Winter Support Fund on 29 October 2021.
A digital funding mapping tool has been developed to display the funding allocated across the three strands of the Winter Support Fund.
Aldi Scotland has launched its ‘Not Socks Again?!’ campaign for the second year running, following its widespread success in 2021, which saw more than 2000 pairs of socks donated to good causes.
The initiative encourages customers to donate any unwanted or extra unused socks they may have received as Christmas gifts to charities supporting people in need across Scotland.
Every year, millions of people receive socks for Christmas that they often don’t want or need, charities across Scotland do, and Aldi’s ‘Not Socks Again?!’ campaign aims to put these gifts to better use by donating new and unused socks to those who need them most.
Aldi’s Sock Amnesty’ boxes will be in stores across Scotland from the 3rd of January until the end of the month, where people can drop off their unused socks to help keep vulnerable people warm this winter.
The Bethany Christian Trust are working toward the goal of ending homelessness in Scotland. The team at the Bethany Christian Trust offer a broad range of services, from assistance with housing, education and employment, to crisis intervention wellbeing support.
Nathanael Smith, Community Fundraiser, Bethany Christian Trust, said: “It’s surprising how much a good pair of socks can make a difference in someone’s life.
“It’s a simple gift that can mean warmth, comfort and dignity to those in need. Thanks to Aldi for making such an amazing project possible.”
Richard Holloway, Regional Managing Director for Scotland, said: “Following an immensely challenging year, the team at Aldi Scotland were eager to support charities which are working tirelessly to help those in need.
“In winter, charities are always looking for essential items to be donated, and so we thought, why not encourage our customers to donate any unwanted gifts of socks to people who truly need them.
Aldi will also contribute a £250 donation to each charity in the hope of helping the most vulnerable in our communities.
Aldi’s Sock Amnesty boxes will be in store from 3rd January and customers are invited to drop off any unwanted, new and unused, socks which will be donated to the charity in their local area.”
This initiative builds on Aldi’s commitment to supporting communities across Scotland. Since 2016, Aldi’s Scottish Sports Fund has supported over 500 local clubs with more than £290,000 worth of donations.
In addition, Aldi has helped to provide over 10 million meals to vulnerable people across the UK through its partnership with community engagement platform, Neighbourly. Aldi also helped 12 local foodbanks this year after it relaunched its popular Supermarket Sweep programme this year.
To find your nearest Aldi store please visit their website here and donate your unwanted socks this Christmas.
Charities bracing themselves as nearly one third of Scots say they may need to take on debt to cover the costs of Christmas
Nearly one third of people in Scotland (29%) may need to take on debt to cover the cost of Christmas this year, according to a survey of 2,000 people carried out by Censuswide for charity The Big Give.
Nearly one quarter of Edinburgh residents (24%) are not looking forward to the holiday season this year, with money worries being the most common reason, the survey also found.
While lower than the national average (16%), a shocking 13% of Scottish residents are worried they may need to use food banks to help them manage this Christmas.
Thankfully, more half of respondents from Scotland plan to donate the same amount to charities over the Christmas period. Between rising financial concerns and the ongoing health crisis that is the Covid-19 pandemic, the work done by local charities is more important than ever.
A campaign organised by the Big Give and backed by celebrities such as Stephen Fry, Dame Judi Dench, Russell Brand and others is aiming to help.
The Big Give Christmas Challenge, the UK’s biggest Christmas coordinated fundraising appeal, is supporting over 900 charities to raise funds with the unique offer of matching any donations made during the week of 30th November – 7th December.
Alex Day, Director of The Big Give said: ‘Our study shows that, sadly, people across Scotland and the rest of the UK are facing an imperfect storm; High fuel prices, chronic mental health problems, rising debt, loneliness and fears about Covid-19 will mean that, for many, this festive period will be a far cry from picture perfect scenes portrayed on Christmas cards.
‘Some will rely on charities which will be further and further stretched as demand grows.’
‘That is why, for those who can, supporting charities is more important than ever. Through The Christmas Challenge campaign, we are offering to match any donation made to hundreds of amazing charities through theBigGive.org.uk. That means whatever you can give will go twice as far.’
Scotland’s community foundation has distributed over £130 million to date
Foundation Scotland, Scotland’s community foundation, is marking the organisation’s silver anniversary this St Andrews Day – also aptly ‘Giving Tuesday’ this year.
Originally established in 1996 as ‘Scotland’s Community Foundation’, the major funder has distributed more than £130 million to charitable organisations, social enterprises, and community groups operating across Scotland since its launch 25 years ago.
Set up with an initial group of three staff, the Edinburgh-based foundation now has over 30, managing around 100 different national and local funding programmes each year.
Earlier this year the foundation began offering investment for social enterprises following the integration with Resilient Scotland, further expanding the breadth of financial support offered to charitable groups and enterprises.
Through the pandemic, Foundation Scotland awarded over £1.1 million in crisis support grants to 268 Edinburgh-based community projects.
Supported groups included The Eric Liddell Centre, East Lothian Roots and Fruits, Sikh Sanjog, Bridgend Farmhouse and The Edinburgh Tool Library (above).
Quite often, groups can be eligible for more than one source of funding from the foundation and some organisations have received ongoing support from Foundation Scotland for many years.
The team pride themselves in getting to know and understand funded groups, supporting them with essential funding and vital advice to help them to develop and sustain their services.
Giles Ruck, Chief Executive at Foundation Scotland, said: “We are proud to be Scotland’s community foundation. For 25 years, we’ve maintained the vision of supporting confident, thriving, resilient communities across Scotland.
“And for every community to thrive, it should be resourced to match its vision and powered by transformative funding. That’s where we come in. Over the last quarter of a century, we have connected the generosity of donors, corporates and individuals, to enable and empower vital projects and grassroot-led change.
“As we look ahead, we will continue to work hard to reach and connect with new donors keen to distribute funds effectively at a local level so that together we can continue to deliver extraordinary support.”
The generosity of local donors
Foundation Scotland is an independent charity. The funds awarded to projects within Scotland’s communities are thanks to the generosity of donors who support the foundation’s work.
The breadth of donors includes individuals, families, companies, community bodies and other charities who distribute funds. The foundation connects donors funds with community organisations working on the ground, ensuring their support stays relevant to local circumstances and delivers real impact.
Even throughout the pandemic, new donors have come on board, and new funds have opened to help support communities through the crisis and beyond.
In the summer of 2020, Edinburgh-based investment company Martin Currie approached Foundation Scotland to design and brand a new fund to help them support charities and community groups in Edinburgh, with consideration for projects across Scotland.
Their priorities were to address inequality and support initiatives that improved social and environmental sustainability. The Martin Currie Community Partnership Programme launched in September, and to date has awarded almost £44,000 between 8 organisations Recent grantees include Edinburgh Remakery, Venchie Children and Youth Project and the Salisbury Centre.
Jennifer Mair, Chief Operating Officer for Martin Currie said: “The Martin Currie Community Partnership Programme (MCCPP) is delighted to partner with Foundation Scotland to support local charities that promote diversity and inclusion, or social and environmental sustainability.
“The MCCPP was established in 2020 and focusses on the communities where we live and work by partnering with and building deep and lasting relationships with organisations who are well placed to help us deliver Martin Currie’s goal to improve lives.”
Case Study: The Melting Pot
The Melting Pot is Scotland’s Centre for Social Innovation. Based in Edinburgh’s city centre on Carlton Road, the organisation runs a large coworking hub, meeting venue and events programme for charities, social businesses, campaigners and freelancers.
Foundation Scotland has supported The Melting Pot for over 15 years. The organisation received its first award from the funder back in 2006 and has received £120,000 from a number of different funds to support their growth and development since 2006.
Claire Carpenter, Founder and CEO of The Melting Pot said: “Foundation Scotland have been an instrumental investor for me and The Melting Pot. They’ve been part of the birthing story – twice now!
“Back in the 00’s when “Coworking” wasn’t a thing you could Google, they saw the potential in my big, novel and very practical idea to better support our sector, in all its diversity. Then, due to Covid, the landscape changed once again – for good.
“We’ve been able to play to each other’s strengths to help #BuildBackBetter. I’m looking forward to seeing how together we co-create the conditions for social innovators to thrive in the years ahead.”
More Info:
From grantmaking to social investment opportunities, legacies to bursaries, Foundation Scotland is continually developing innovative and effective ways for donors to help Scotland’s communities thrive.
Anyone interested in finding out more can contact:
· RWE marks £5 million donated over 15 years to community funds in Scotland
· Flexible financial support has benefited a wide range of local people, groups and infrastructure
· Bad á Cheò Wind Farm education & training fund provides residents with opportunities to upskill and increase employment potential
RWE, one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies, has reached the milestone of donating £5 million over 15 years, through its community funds set up at projects it operates in Scotland. The community funds help charities and causes to thrive and supports local communities.
This money goes a long way to supporting the sustainable development of the communities in which renewable projects are located. Hundreds of projects and communities have already been supported across Scotland with many other projects ready to be funded across the country.
In total, RWE operates 26 sites in Scotland with many employees living locally. In addition to Community Funds, RWE is committed to offering community shared ownership at many of the projects in development.
The funding process is flexible and easily accessible, with decisions about funding allocations made by a panel of local representatives who know their communities best.
A number of examples of positive, grass roots projects funded by RWE’s Community Funds, including causes such as:
1 – Education and training fund supported by Bad á Cheò Onshore Wind Farm
Bad á Cheò Onshore Wind Farm Education and Training fund is open to residents living closest to the wind farm and provides bursaries to local people to access training and education opportunities that better equip them with the range of skills required to enter into, or retain, employment in key sectors. To date it has awarded nearly £50,000.
Taking advantage of the fund, the first two beneficiaries, Zoe Farquhar and Louise Todd, both undertook courses that increased their ability to generate more income and work for themselves.
Zoe Farquharson undertook an Introduction to Kiltmaking course, to enable her to meet a demand locally for handmade kilts by participants in Highland Dance Schools as well as sympathetic repairs to older garments. Louise Todd formalised her accountancy skills by taking a professional bookkeeping course that enabled her to increase the services her business could offer.
Thirty-five local people have received funding towards courses as diverse as childcare, sign language, deer stalking, welding inspection, accountancy and kilt making, or to assist them with costs whilst completing university education.
2 – Helping communities on their journey to net zero by supporting community energy projects
The An Suidhe Onshore Wind Farm Community Fund provided an investment in equity (share ownership) towards the River Avich Community Hydro Scheme. Providing financial support to the project while enabling a return of 4% back to the An Suidhe Wind Farm Community Fund.
This was the first investment in a community-owned renewable project from a community benefit fund in Scotland and an exciting example of how an area can achieve its renewable energy ambitions whilst continuously reinvesting in local initiatives.
Community Benefit UK
Katy Woodington, Community Investment Manager UK & Ireland, said: “This is an important milestone, which represents the significant difference that renewable energy can make to people’s day to day lives as well as the planet.
“Funds are set up with decisions made by local people, so it is great to see them making the most of these flexible funds to support innovative projects, push boundaries and help realise their ambitions.”
There are additional long standing community and societal benefits that have been provided as a result of RWE’s green developments including a significant boost to local and regional supply chains, and supporting the development of high skilled, well-paid jobs and training programmes.
To date, RWE, which directly employs around 100 people in Scotland, has invested over £180 million in the country and recently confirmed its participation in the ScotWind seabed leasing round process, as we look to expand our global offshore wind portfolio.
RWE is the third largest renewable generator in the UK with the largest renewable project pipeline including the construction of the 1.4 GW Sofia and 857 MW Triton Knoll offshore wind farms. RWE is also progressing four extension projects in the UK, with a combined potential installed capacity of around 2.6 GW (RWE’s pro rata share: 1.3 GW.)
Furthermore, we successfully bid for two new adjacent offshore sites on Dogger Bank, developing some of the world’s most advanced offshore wind farms, in support of government net zero ambitions.
To find out more about RWE’s Community Funds, and the local projects and causes that they help to support, visit our Community finding in action page.
In the festive spirit of giving, Dobbies’ Edinburgh store has launched a new campaign to share some joy in the run up to Christmas.
Not Your Average Community will see three local groups from across the UK win £1,000 to spend on trees, lights and decorations to brighten up their local area for Christmas. The campaign follows on from the successful Not Your Average People and Not Your Average Gardener campaigns, which saw Dobbies recognise outstanding and talented individuals making a difference in their local areas.
Now Dobbies is looking to celebrate special community groups, charities, clubs or neighbourhoods in Edinburgh who deserve some festive treats.
A member of the Dobbies’ team will help each winning group select their Christmas items, providing expert advice on the best trees, lighting and decorations to make the most impact. As part of this visit, the winning groups will be invited to enjoy afternoon tea in their local Dobbies’ restaurant.
Graeme Jenkins, CEO of Dobbies, said: “With Christmas just around the corner, we’re looking to spread some festive joy in Edinburgh with our next community initiative.
“We are looking forward to hearing from community groups from across Edinburgh who want to brighten up their local area for their friends, team members or neighbours. Whether they need outdoor lighting, Christmas trees or festive finishing touches, our teams will be on hand to help them make the most of their prize.”
Not Your Average Community is open to community groups, clubs, charities and neighbourhoods in Edinburgh, where they will be invited to complete a simple application form online telling Dobbies about their community group, why they are important to their local area and what trees, lights and decorations they would need to make a difference to their space.
Entries will close for all applicants at 5pm on Monday 22 November, and winners will be selected and contacted by the end of November.
Prizes will be collected at the start of December.
Small businesses can win a mentoring session with the Dragons Den star and Wellbeing Entrepreneur
Caribbean cuisine entrepreneur Levi Roots and beauty and wellness megabrand founder Liz Earle are leading a new campaign to encourage UK small businesses to unlock the benefits of digital skills training to help drive their post-pandemic growth and prosperity.
The ‘Get mentored, Get growing’ campaign highlights a partnership between BT and Google, that offers free one-to-one mentoring sessions for UK small businesses and charities covering a range of topics including digital marketing, e-commerce and business strategy.
This comes as BT research* shows almost half of all UK small firms (49 per cent) said they worried their business wouldn’t survive without external support. Meanwhile, 64 per cent said they’d be more likely to adopt new technologies if the IT and telecoms industry provided training.
As an extension of their mentoring programme, BT and Google are offering small businesses the opportunity to win a one-to-one mentoring session with Levi and Liz, where they can learn from their experiences of building and scaling a brand as well as adapting to a digital-first world.
UK based small business, we can ask for proof of a registered UK business address if required.
Small business with under 50 employees
They must be available on 15th November, Tuesday 16th at 10:00AM, Thursday 18th at 10:00AM, 19th November (11:00AM onwards)
They must want to be mentored on one or more the following topics:
Building your brand
Building an online community
Time management
Team collaboration
All entrants are subject to the terms and conditions.**
Ronan Harris, Google’s UK MD, said: ”We’re proud to partner with BT and the participating business leaders on this inspirational program.
“Equipping small businesses with the digital tools needed to grow and succeed, is not only integral to future proofing the UK business landscape but it’s the next step in the UK’s journey to economic recovery. We’re committed to making sure shared knowledge and digital skills are as accessible as possible and make a lasting impact for the entrepreneurs of the future.”
Chris Sims, BT’s MD for its SoHo (Single/Small Office, Home Office) unit, said: “Our partnership with Google comes from a shared vision and commitment to help small businesses harness digital as a driver of growth and prosperity.
“Through our free mentoring programme and digital skills training, we’re aiming to equip small firms with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in a digital world. BT initiatives, including one-to-one mentorships, have already boosted the digital literacy of almost 300,000 small business employees to date and our partnership with Google is helping us significantly extend our reach and impact within the small business community.”
Following his success on BBC’s Dragons Den, Levi Roots is proof-positive of the power of business mentoring, which helped transform his kitchen table start-up into a £45M business.
Similarly, Liz Earle is one of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs. From a career starting as a health and beauty writer, she co-founded her eponymous beauty brand with her best friend, which was sold for a multi-million sum before returning to the wellness category with her own website, magazine, podcast series and YouTube channel and earning an MBE for services to the beauty industry.
Both Levi and Liz are passionate about supporting the entrepreneur community.
Commenting on his involvement in the BT and Google campaign, Levi Roots said; “Running your own business can sometimes be overwhelming and lonely, so I know from my own Dragons Den experience how game-changing it was, both professionally and personally, to work with someone who could understand and appreciate my challenges and ambitions, and give me personalised, meaningful and actionable advice, as well as practical tools and training to help me build and grow my business.
“I’m really delighted to get the chance to pay it forward and share my journey and insights with today’s small business community and help them unlock the power of digital to accelerate their growth.”
Liz Earleadded; “When my beauty brand was launched more than twenty years ago, our mail order business was based around paper forms and payments by cheque. Today everything moves at a completely different pace.
“You have to act like a publisher on your social media channels and be super responsive to customers who want a real-time answer, not a letter in the post! With my later publishing brand, we had to learn a mass of digital skills super-fast and I encourage small businesses to grab all the available resources and training they can to help successfully navigate their way in the online world.”
Both BT and Google are jointly committed to helping small businesses across the UK get better positioned for growth by addressing the digital skills shortage.
Since the launch of BT Skills for Tomorrow in 2019, BT has delivered free digital skills training to almost 300,000 UK small business owners and their employees, supported by webinars from Google Digital Garage, putting Google on course to achieve its target of enabling one million small British businesses remain open by helping them be found online.
On top of this, Google has exceeded its target of helping train 100,000 UK SMBs. In total, over 700,000 business owners have been trained through the Google Digital Garage programme.
Small business case study comments:
Khamisi McKenzie, who co-founded South London soul food business Drums & Flats with his best friend Daniel Opoku-Baah, is one of the thousands of small business founders and employees who’ve already benefited from BT and Google’s digital skills support and training scheme.
Commenting on the experience, he said; “Lockdown forced us to take a step back and re-evaluate our business and we recognised that while our energy and effort went into perfecting our recipes and brand identity, we needed to get seen by more people.
“Thanks to the digital marketing mentoring sessions, we improved how we show up on Google and boosted our efforts in social media. We’ve definitely seen an increase in followers and better engagement rates, and it’s helped build our profile which resulted in us taking over the menu at The Smugglers Tavern in Central London.”
Laurelle Darroux, founder of Sleepgoddess, a one-stop shop for vegan, ethical British-made beauty sleep products, launched her business in the middle of the pandemic in 2020 and BT and Google’s digital skills training was a key enabler in getting up and running and rapidly expanding her customer base.
“Feeling lost and dejected when I was made redundant, I was inspired by my own struggles with sleep to start a business that would help people wake up feeling their best. While finding suppliers to create the prototypes for my satin pillowcases and beauty products, I started an Instagram page and built an email marketing list even before I officially launched!
“I watched on-demand digital skills webinars from Google and BT after I had put my children to bed and had one-to-one mentoring sessions to look at ways to optimise my website and social media, as well as build a digital marketing strategy.
“Since then, business has exploded, with customers as far away as New Zealand, and a really loyal and supportive following on social media. I love the relationships and connections I have with the community I’ve built!”
