Tag: Children and Families

Scottish families face rising childcare costs

Scottish parents are paying 2% more for childcare for the under-twos than they were one year ago, according to the country’s most comprehensive annual survey of childcare costs, published today.

Coram Family and Childcare’s 20th annual Childcare Survey finds that parents in Scotland are now paying an average of £111.26 per week, or almost £5,800 per year, for a part-time nursery place.

Even where parents can afford childcare, some will struggle to find it.

In Scotland, though the majority of childcare categories have shown an increase in availability between 2019 and 2020, only 27% of local authorities have enough childcare for parents working full-time – significantly lower than in England (56%).

In September 2017 in England, free childcare was extended for three and four year olds with working parents to 30 hours per week during term time. Free childcare in Scotland will now also be extended to 1,140 hours per year (30 hours per week for 38 weeks per year) for all children, not just those with working parents.

The entitlement will be available from August 2020. Local authorities are broadly optimistic about this extension, with over two-thirds (69%) of local authorities expecting it to have a positive impact on the attainment gap between disadvantaged children and their peers.

Claire Harding, Head of Coram Family and Childcare, said: “Good childcare is essential: it enables parents to work and boosts children’s learning. But for far too many families in the UK, it just isn’t working.

“Recent government investment is welcome, but many families still face crippling costs, especially in the period from the end of parental leave to when a child turns three. There are seven different types of childcare support depending on families’ individual circumstances, and many parents find it difficult just to find out what’s available to them.

“Investing in childcare supports is good for us all because it helps parents to work now, and boosts children’s learning and skills for our future. We’re calling on Government to reform and simplify the childcare system so every parent is better off working after paying for childcare, and every child has access to childcare which supports their learning and development.”

The Childcare Survey 2020 sets out actions that Scottish, Welsh and UK governments can take to help parents find affordable childcare:

  • Reform Universal Credit so it doesn’t lock parents out of work: increasing the maximum amount of childcare costs paid under Universal Credit and moving to upfront payments for childcare
  • Regularly review the funding rate for free early years entitlements to make sure that they meet the cost of delivering high quality childcare
  • Double the early years pupil premium, to boost outcomes for the most disadvantaged children
  • Reallocate any underspend against the budget for Tax-Free Childcare to other parts of the childcare system – and focus this on the most disadvantaged children.

Elementary: Edinburgh Science Festival programme

Edinburgh Science Festival sparks debate on climate crisis with Elementary, an inspiring programme for 2020

  • World’s first and Europe’s biggest science festival has launched its 32nd programme, presenting 250 family and adult events at 34 venues between 4 and 19 April.
  • Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and the rise of the environment movement, the Edinburgh Science Festival’s 2020 theme is Elementary; using the ancient classifications of Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Aether as lenses to explore global environmental challenges and opportunities.
  • As part of Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 2020, the Festival presents Pale Blue Dot at the National Museum of Scotland, a multi-sensory exploration of the depths of the seas and oceans and of their transformative and life-giving nature. While Into the Blue on Portobello Promenade, is a large-scale outdoor photography exhibition showcasing Scottish coastlines, biodiversity and our relationship with our plentiful coasts and waters.
  • After a successful first year, the Pleasance returns as the Festival Hub, hosting an expanded Experimentarium science showcase and a special dinosaur-themed Easter weekend extravaganza, alongside a variety of science shows, hands-on events, debates, discussions and workshops for curious minds of all ages.
  • Edinburgh Science Festival is supported by a range of organisations, including Principal Funding Partners: The City of Edinburgh Council, Scottish Government and Edina Trust.

www.sciencefestival.co.uk /@EdSciFest / www.facebook.com/EdinburghScienceFestival

World’s first and Europe’s biggest science festival, Edinburgh Science Festival returns for its 32nd edition from 4 until 19 April 2020, presenting hundreds of events, talks, workshops and exhibitions for both children and adults across dozens of venues in the Scottish capital.

This year’s theme, Elementary, uses the ancient classification of Earth, Air, Fire and Water as lenses to explore global environmental challenges and opportunities. Striking a balance between urgency and optimism it highlights the roles that creative thinking, science, technology, engineering and related disciplines play in helping to secure a successful and sustainable future.

From biodiversity, ecology and food security (Earth) and clean air (Air) to energy and climate policy (Fire) and marine biodiversity (Water), the Festival places its focus firmly on our environment.  As some of the ancients did, the Festival adds a fifth element, with a special focus on the digital world (Aether), exploring how to merge creative technology with live events to create new experiences for Festival audiences and on delivering more content online, taking science and culture to wider and more diverse audiences.

Some of this year’s Festival highlights include:

  • Pale Blue Dot at the National Museum of Scotland: an interactive exhibition aimed at audiences of all ages, it explores the essential and life-giving nature of our oceans, with a focus on their important biodiversity and their role as providers of energy, transport, food and opportunities for leisure and pleasure. This large-scale exhibition is part of Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 2020 (YCW2020).
  • Into the Blue on Portobello Promenade: also part of YCW2020, this large-scale outdoor photography exhibition takes its audiences on a fascinating journey around Scottish coastlines, highlighting their biodiversity and potential, our relationships with our coasts and waters as well as the threats they face. Opens on 18 March.
  • Elemental at Summerhall: Bright Side Studios create a new digital immersive experience combining magic, alchemy and science. This art piece has been commissioned by Edinburgh Science and supported by the Scottish Government’s Festivals Expo Fund.
  • Edinburgh Medal Address in Council Chambers: the prestigious Edinburgh Medal is awarded to Sunita Narain, the Indian environmentalist and political activist who, as a member of the Prime Minister’s Council for Climate Change between 2007 and 2014, played a major role in Indian and global environment and development policy formulation. Her Medal address and a linked event from the Scottish Parliament will explore climate justice, equity and the links between climate and development.
  • City Art Centre: The Festival’s flagship family venue is a unique 5-floor science playground filled with exciting hands-on science activities for young minds, including the all-time favourites Blood Bar and ER as well as two new activities including Ocean Constructors (part of YCW2020), where little explorers build an underwater landscape, and Creative Coding with Marty the Robot. The building will also house three digital artworks supported by the Scottish Government’s Festivals Expo Fund.
  • Experimentarium at the Pleasance: a five-day celebration of hands-on science for all ages, where keen young minds will get a chance to dance with molecules, meet Scotland’s largest pests and prove that maths is anything but boring!
  • Gastrofest, various venues: the ever-so-popular gastro-science strand takes inspiration from the Year of Coasts and Waters 2020 as it tickles the taste buds with events on coastal cocktails, seaweeds and seasonings, whisky and cheese.
  • European Stone Stacking Championships, Dunbar: returning for the fourth year but its first time as part of the Science Festival, the Championship merge art and science, celebrating land art and taking materials found in nature and working with Earth’s gravity to create sculptural towers, archways and other awe-inspiring structures from rocks and stones.

Amanda Tyndall, Festival and Creative Director at Edinburgh Science said: “We share our planet with almost eight billion people and the collective environmental challenges we face have never been greater or more complex.

“As the custodians of planet Earth we have responsibility to ourselves and to future generations. The climate crisis is the defining local and global challenge of our age and as will be one of the great disruptors of the 21st century, radically reshaping how we live, work and play. But with disruption and uncertainty comes possibility….and with possibility comes hope … THIS hope is the elementary message at the heart of our 2020 Science Festival programme.”

SPECIAL EVENTS

Into the Blue

Supported by Year of Coasts and Waters 2020, this large-scale outdoor photography exhibition on Portobello Promenade showcases our relationship with Scotland’s waters. Oceans shape our environments and landscapes, influence our climate and weather systems, and have enabled the rise and fall of civilisations. They give us food and fuel, medicine and minerals, as well as leisure and pleasure. But their supply is finite or fragile, or both – under threat from pollution, global warming and acidification, over-fishing and biodiversity loss. Into the Blue takes its audiences on a fascinating journey around some of Scotland’s most remarkable coastlines, revealing the story of our oceans’ scale, biodiversity and majesty.

Edinburgh Medal Address

2020 Edinburgh Medal recipient is Sunita Narain, the Indian environmentalist and political activist. As a member of the Prime Minister’s Council for Climate Change between 2007 and 2014, she played a major role in Indian and global environment and development policy formulation.  She is currently Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). In her Medal Address, Narain discusses what must be done in our world – to make it less insecure, less angry and less vulnerable to the effects of carbon. Remember, climate change, like air pollution is a great equaliser. So, what can we do? Our existence is at stake. Nothing less.

Pale Blue Dot

Taking over the Grand Gallery at the National Museum of Scotland, Pale Blue Dot is a multi-sensory exploration of the depths of the seas and oceans and of their transformative and life-giving nature. Aimed at audiences of all ages, the exhibition focuses on the biodiversity and beauty of the waters and their role as energy, transport and food providers. It also showcases the risks they face – from pollution to the effects of the climate emergency on the planet’s weather and water systems – and explores some of the creative ways these are being tackled. In response to Pale Blue Dot, students from Edinburgh College of Art have created Ocean Threads, an exhibition of costumes and design books made from 80% recycled materials.

Dinosaur Weekend

Pleasance, venue sponsored by Cirrus Logic, is overrun by dinosaurs this Easter weekend! Dino-devotee Jules Howard presents his fantastic new show Prehistoric Beasts and How to Know Them, family audiences will also get a chance to create masks, hats and other stylish dino-accessories in one of a range of drop-in activities. Young palaeontologists will rampage around the courtyard on a reptilian egg hunt and join Festival’s friends from Dynamic Earth to dig for fossils.

Experimentarium

Also at the Pleasance, Experimentarium is back and bigger than ever! Running for five days this year, it is jam packed with hands-on science of all kinds. Visitors can explore the music of molecules, learn how radiation works, meet some of Scotland’s biggest pests, get hands-on with farming and get their brains tricked as they put their maths skills to test.

European Stone Stacking Championships

Rounding off the Science Festival’s contribution to Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 2020, the European Stone Stacking Championships return for the fourth year and for the first time form part of the Festival. Stone stacking takes materials found in nature and works with Earth’s gravity to create sculptural towers, archways and other awe-inspiring structures from rocks and stones. Transient in nature – at the mercy of the elements, tides and time – these wonderful land-art creations merge artistic skill and the laws of physics to amazing effect. With a new family competition, demonstrations and workshops across the weekend, the Festival audiences are in for an outdoor treat!

Cyber Zone

The Festival shines a special light on the digital world with the brand new, immersive Cyber Zone at the Pleasance, packed with events covering technology, computing, programming and artificial intelligence (AI) for adults and young people. This includes, among others, programming a self-driving car, the Festival-favourite App Factory and creating an interactive story that changes depending on reader’s decisions.

EVENTS FOR ADULTS AND YOUNG PEOPLE 

EARTH: One Earth

Focusing on ways of protecting natural land diversity and building a sustainable future for the ever-growing Earth population, this series includes Adapt or Die, a panel discussion exploring what an extinction event means to the one million animals and plants at risk of disappearing. In How Humans Are Altering Life on Earth, Dr Helen Pilcher considers the many ways humans have affected even the most remote environments and have potentially caused some animals to evolve at breakneck speed to survive. In Disaster by Choice, science journalist Kate Ravilious talks to author and professor of disasters and health Ilan Kelman, who offers the uncomfortable truth that most natural disasters are created or exacerbated by human choices.

AIR: The Air We Breathe

Earth has a breathable atmosphere, a rare and precious resource. This series offers a variety of discussions exploring the opportunities and issues connected with protecting the air we breathe.

Let Me Breathe sees a panel of experts exploring the experiences of adolescents with asthma in Delhi, one of the world’s most polluted cities and present a personal exposure sensor.

Roads Re-Imagined focuses on how Edinburgh city centre could look like if it featured more cycle and pedestrian friendly spaces, creating a healthier future for its residents.

Electric Futures looks at our electric transport future and its benefits for climate, environment and human health.

In A Hydrogen Powered Future: Pipeline or Pipe Dream, ARUP’s hydrogen expert Mark Neller discusses the exciting role this most abundant yet underused element plays in helping to accelerate the decarbonisation of our industry, transport and homes.

FIRE: All Fired Up

Discover the steps – from policy to personal choices – required to create a cleaner, greener planet. Prof Hilary Graham, specialist in the relationship between climate and public health, heads a panel in Climate Sickness discussing whether a climate emergency is also a health emergency. In The Four-Day Week experts explore the benefits of a shorter working week and its effect on the planet. Consume. Discard. Repeat. explores the perils of irresponsible consumerism, including topics such as disposable devices, sustainable nutrition and fast fashion.

WATER: Water for Life

Part of Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters 2020, this special series shines a spotlight on the essential and life-giving nature of our oceans and on our relationship with them, exploring the challenges and opportunities they face and asking how we best protect them. Senior scientific advisor for Blue Planet II and marine conservation biologist Prof Callum Roberts brings Life on the Reef to the Festival, exploring how reefs became one of the wonders of the ocean world and how they now struggle to survive. Scotland’s Precious Seas offers the opportunity to discover the country’s diverse sea life and talk about the threats it is currently facing. The Five Deeps Expedition was a venture conceived by explorer Victor Vescovo which saw him reach the deepest point in each of the five oceans in his own, purpose-built, full ocean depth submersible in a series of expeditions between 2018 and 2019; in Exploring the Five Deeps a panel of experts discusses the challenges of such expeditions and what they brought to light.

AETHER: Go Digital

With technology embedded in every aspect of our lives, this series explores the power and potential of the digital world. Presented by Bright Side Studios in association with the Festival, Elemental takes its audiences on a multi-sensory journey of discovery where magic, alchemy and science meet. As of 2018, gaming disorder is recognised by the World Health Organisation and Addicted to Games explores the affects gaming might have on players as well as challenges some common misconceptions. The Festival also zooms in on pros and cons of deepfakes, the technique of human image synthesis based on AI and machine learning in Deep Dive into Deepfakes. With Edinburgh becoming one of the six UK cities to get 5G, Craig Steele of Digital Skills Education sorts 5G facts from 5G fiction in 5G: What’s In It for Me?

From STEM to STEAM

Complex problems require complex solutions and never before has creative thinking been more important. The Festival continues its championing of art-based learning in science and the power of bringing scientists and other creatives together with a programme that brings STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) together with Arts to make STEAM!

Syncrasy is a group contemporary art exhibition co-curated by Summerhall and ASCUS Art & Science which takes place at Summerhall. It offers its audiences an opportunity to experience the ground-breaking work of visual artists Beverley Hood, Victoria Evans and Sneha Solanki, who merge the fields of art, science and technology. Sneha Solanki probes the habitats of the un-natural and presents a new and expanding rendition of the ‘E-Number’ food additive system in E-Numbers V2.0. In Oscillations, Victoria Evans explores how distant and invisible phenomena affect our everyday lives. Using data sonification, she makes audible the cyclical patterns of the tides and their interplay with lunar and solar orbits; this exhibition will include sounds of Edinburgh coastlines. Inspired by eczema genetic research laboratory, Beverley Hood multi-artform sensory exhibition We Began As Part of the Body tells a story as seen from a point of view of an artificial skin cell, from the precious, short three week long in vitro life to disposal.

Also at Summerhall, Bright Side Studio’s Elemental invites its audiences to interact with the Elements as they embark on a magical, multi-sensory journey of discovery through an intriguing, immersive digital world in which magic meets alchemy and alchemy meets science. Play, discover and create with your fellow explorers.

At Collective, artist Julijonas Urbonas presents Planet of People, a fascinating project which sees visitors being 3D scanned before their bodies become part of an artificial planet made entirely from human bodies.

Artist and activist Dr Roman Viguier invites everyone on The Carbon Walk which will see everyone meeting at Dynamic Earth to collect a 5kg bag, the equivalent of 3.5 hours of the average carbon footprint in the UK before walking to the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation where those bags will form part of an installation representing one tonne of carbon dioxide.

Gastrofest

Where food and science collide in sociable science events! Where is Your Next Meal Coming From? explores topics such as food security and Scotland’s relationship with food and how the climate crisis might change things. Eat Shoots and Leaves shines a light on the tasty and increasingly popular world of veganism while Festival favourite Cheeseology returns with more cheesy treats. Coasts and Cocktails presents a selection of delicious drinks inspired by Scotland’s 10,000 miles of coastline. In Seasoning sees a panel of experts discussing the nature of spices and seasonings and 8,000 Year Love Affair shines a special light on the story of a humble tattie. Whisky and Water explores the history of one of the world’s favourite spirits – with a wee tipple included!

In other news….

  • One of Festival’s key highlights, Tam Dalyell Prize for Excellence in Engaging the Public with Science is awarded to Dr Andrew Manches from the Moray House School of Education and Sport at The University of Edinburgh for his unwavering passion to support children’s learning in the Early Years.
  • One of the UK’s leading nuclear engineers Dr Dame Sue Ion explores the country’s rich engineering heritage in Energising Engineering: Half a Century of British Innovation.
  • We need carbon for life but too much of it and we’re as good as dead! Prof Monica Grady (European Space Agency and the Open University) focuses on the fascinating versatility of carbon in Element Six.
  • In Truth About Vaccines a panel of experts examines the past, present and future of vaccines and alleviate public concerns about this hot topic.
  • Behavioural scientist Dr Pragya Agarwal presents Sway: Unravelling Unconscious Bias, a talk on how we perceive the world and how it influences our decision making, even in life and death situations.
  • In Wildfire Resistance Through Architecture design scientist Dr Melissa Sterry takes a look at the potential for urban resilience to wildfires through the creation of complex adaptive architectural systems by mimicking the biochemistries, behaviours and relationships of fire-adapted flora and fauna species.
  • Dr Rory Hadden explores the history and science of fire in Fire Power.
  • To honour the 30th anniversary of the famous pale blue dot image, the Festival hosts An Evening with Gaia, a special event of science talks, poetry, live music and hands-on activities in the shadow of the impressive Gaia at Dynamic Eearth.
  • You wouldn’t fly an aeroplane without a fuel gauge yet many economies are run without knowing the demands on our natural resources. Dr Mathis Wackernagel co-created such a gauge for our planet, The Ecological Footprint and in Decade for Decisions he discusses the ideas presented in the book.
  • Founder of The People Who Share and Global Sharing Week Benita Matofska is an expert in Sharing Economy, a phenomenon causing the most significant shift in society since Industrial Revolution. In Generation Share she discusses this hot topic and the 200 change-makers featured in her book.
  • Geneticist, broadcaster and host of BBC Radio 4’s Inside Science, Dr Adam Rutherford explains How to Argue With a Racist.
  • Did you know that electrical energy in a single mosquito is enough to cause a global mass extinction? Best-selling author Marcus Chown explores some of the most profound and astounding science around us in Infinity in Your Hand.
  • Edinburgh-based endurance athlete and author Markus Stitz has travelled 34,000km around the world on a single speed bike and presents Endurance with Markus Stitz to tell his remarkable stories.
  • They lie, they steal, kiss and sing. Indecent Insects offers a unique insight into the diverse sex life of insects.
  • Recorded in front of a live audience, Level Up Human is a comedy podcast show where audiences have a go at redesigning humans.
  • A scientist studying laughter, Prof Sophie Scott explores why people laugh and when do they laugh the most in What’s So Funny?
  • Science author and presenter Claudia Hammond presents Tired of Being Tired?, explaining why rest matters and offers a roadmap to a more restful life.
  • In Period Power, period and hormones expert Maisie Hill argues that being hormonal is a good thing.
  • Comedian Florence Schechter takes her audiences onto a hilarious and thought-provoking tour of LGBTQ+ behaviour in animal kingdom in Queer by Nature.
  • The Festival offers a variety of sociable events to get everyone’s science juices flowing! Scottish Famelab Final is a geekery galore: fascinating subjects and mind-blowing research presented live on stage in a bite-size, 3-minute talks.
  • Jukebox Bingo: Science Up Your Life is a 2020 science twist on the nation’s favourite pastime, testing everyone’s recall of scientifically-inspired chart classics from across the decades. Grab your dobbers now!
  • Comedians Simon Watt and Rachel Wheeley join science communicator Hana Ayoob to take the audiences through the world’s weirdest and most wonderful critters in Ugly Animal Preservation Society.

EVENTS FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

City Art Centre

City Art Centre, venue sponsored by EDF Energy, once again becomes a family hub during the Festival with 5 floors of hands-on science for children. With two new workshops this year, City Art Centre is a perfect family day out – rain or shine – this Easter holidays. New workshops include Ocean Constructors where children build underwater landscape and Imagination Playground which unlocks the creative spirit as the little engineers make super-sized constructions. All-time favourites such as ER Surgery, Blood Bar and Splat-tastic also feature in a 15-strong line-up of world-class workshops.

EARTH: One Earth

  • Family audiences are invited to Dynamic Earth to marvel at our planet like it has never been seen it before, as artist Luke Jerram’s stunning Gaia comes to Edinburgh for the first time. A huge scale model of Earth, Gaia is 1.8 million times smaller than the real thing, each centimetre of the artwork faithfully recreating 18km of Earth’s surface.
  • In Think Plastic at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, a panel of experts discuss a science-meets-art collaboration encouraging all of us to think about plastic.
  • Historic Environment Scotland’s rangers and experts take audiences onto a unique journey of discovery on Holyrood Park’s dramatic hills and crags as they learn about the affect that the elements had on the landscape in Elements in the Park.

AIR: The Air We Breathe

  • Supported by British Hearth Foundation Scotland, It’s All Connected presents a glowing human LED sculpture which showcases how all heart and circulatory diseases at the National Museum of Scotland.
  • Imaginary Energy fires up the audiences’ imagination as they re-imagine our energy future in this entertaining, interactive show from Dr Stephen Peake.
  • Could hydrogen power the Cars of the Future? The workshop offers the participants an opportunity to design, build and test a model vehicle powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.

FIRE: All Fired Up

  • In Polar Ice World: Heating Up and Melting Down, hands-on science demonstrations, interactive activities, lively discussions and stories of incredible polar experiences from real scientists shine light on these crucially important parts of Earth and the challenges they face.
  • In Zoo Eco-Detectives at the Edinburgh Zoo, young curious minds explore a detective trail following clues pointing towards sustainable innovations. Children learn about the five elements of waste, energy, water, biodiversity and food as they go, and uncover sustainable tips and eco-tricks to take home.
  • In Making Circles children create new objects for Zero Waste classroom as they explore about waste and how it can be transformed into something amazing.

WATER: Water for Life

  • Seashore Safari, taking place on Joppa Sands in Portobello, invites young audiences to investigate Edinburgh’s rocky shore and discover what lives there – with guidance from the Marine Conservation Society while in Seashore Nature Detectives naturalist and wildlife tracker Dan Puplett explores clues left behind by wildlife on Fisherrow Harbour in Musselburgh and near Scottish Seabird Centre in North Berwick.
  • Rockpool Rambles offers a unique opportunity to zoom in on the amazing wildlife of rockpools of North Berwick with help from experts from the Seabird Centre.

AETHER: Go Digital

  • For future engineers, Hands-On Robots is a must: presented at the National Museum of Scotland, it offers an opportunity to meet Arduino-powered wheeled robots, created and run by the students of the Edinburgh Napier University while Talos Humanoid Robot Showcase presents Talos, a six-foot-tall humanoid robot and the newest addition to the robotics research lab at The University of Edinburgh.
  • In Electronic Music: Beginners, part of Cyber Zone, participants learn how electronic circuits make sounds and solder components to a small circuit board which is shaped like bagpipes. When the circuit is complete, the gadget will be able to play a tune!

SCIENCE IN THE SPOTLIGHT

  • The Whirlybird, presented by Eco Drama, is an uplifting show for ages 3-7 which features movement, music, bird song, puppetry and lots of things that spin. It tells a story of Bird and Whirlybird with the latter struggling to fly. After many failed attempts, inspiration is found in a very special flying seed. A curious creature, ricketie-racketie on ground but in flight, a wildlife spectacle.
  • At Two in a Barrell audiences meet quirky best friends Riri and Moku as they find themselves stuck in a barrel sitting on top of an island of rubbish in the ocean which proves to be both a source of treasure troves and a real danger. The show explores the consequences of our habits and the challenges of co-existing in an environment with limited resources.
  • Following a fantastic SciDebut last year, StrongWomen Science Aoife and Maria return to the Pleasance with another fiery show filled with balancing a chair on a chin, juggling liquid and eating fire, all while revealing the scientific secrets of their astounding tricks.

In other news…

  • National Museum of Scotland hosts a variety of fascinating hands-on activities, including Bio-Discoveries where children get up close with parasites and mosquitoes, Life Beyond Our Planet: Design Your Own Alien which allows them to build their own sequence of DNA and run it through a DNA sequencer or Two Sides of the Same Brain, explaining the build and importance of the organ.
  • Also at the Museum, Medicines in the Making allows the little participants to play life-sized clinical trial board game which aims to cure the mysterious Easter Bunny Syndrome and Neuron Safari offers a chance to explore through Minecraft how the billions of cells in a brain work.
  • Using cutting-edge imaging techniques to uncover body mysteries in Body Image: Technological Tour of the Body, young participants run experiments to discover if whales are stressed and explore ways that body fat can be healthy.
  • Over at the Scottish Parliament the curious minds can experience an Adventure in Science while next door at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, families witness Holyrood Herbal Histories at the newly re-created Physic Garden, home to some fantastic flowers and hundreds of years of herbs.
  • Magnifiers and money checkers are put to use at Pound and Pence: Science in Your Pocket at the Museum on the Mound, revealing the secrets of the cash we handle.
  • Visitors to Surgeon’s Hall Museum get a chance to dissect a pig’s heart in a hands-on workshop Let’s Look at the Heart.
  • Aether in the Archways at St Giles Cathedral sees families exploring how instruments and voices sound differently depending on where you stand in this big, old, unique stone building with impromptu mini-concerts to test it. As an encore, visitors create their own musical instrument to take home using recycled and reclaimed materials.
  • One Health at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh invites young Disease Detectives to try out different lab tests to discover what bugs are making humans and animal sick. Also at the Garden, Shred and Melt with artist Carla Edwards gets everyone hands-on turning waste plastic into precious plastic!
  • At the Festival Hub, the Pleasance, audiences get a chance to control Foxdog’s DIY Robot Chef with their phones, using augmented reality avatars. IT consultants Lloyd Henning and Peter Sutton present their award-winning interactive comedy show, where participants work together to help cook dinner by igniting a gas stove, driving a sky tractor and firing the sausage cannon. In Carbon City Zero Card Game players become a newly appointed city mayor tasked with creating a carbon neutral city. Will they hit the zero-carbon target before their rivals? The race is on!

Minister for Children and Young People Maree Todd (above) said: “I’d like to congratulate Edinburgh Science Festival for compiling another world-class programme, particularly one that seeks to address the climate emergency through this year’s Elementary theme.

“The Scottish Government is pleased to have supported the event in various ways, including £130,000 in Festival Expo funding to Go Digital that explores how digital technologies can inspire innovation, and events under the banner of Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters, supported through the PLACE and EventScotland Open Events funds.”

Councillor Donald Wilson, Culture and Communities Convener said: “For over 30 years, our Science Festival has challenged industry and entertained audiences with cutting-edge discoveries, experiments and events. We’ve seen it grow from the world’s first into the biggest festival of its kind in Europe and its influence is greater than ever.

“Now, as we sit on the edge of major change in Edinburgh – spearheading ambitious plans to be Scotland’s sustainable Capital by becoming net zero by the end of the decade – the festival returns with an impressive climate change agenda.

“This year’s programme promises to explore many of the global environmental challenges we face and how we can all do our bit to help. Tying in with Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters, the programme will also celebrate our place as a coastal city.

“As a Council we continue our support of the Science Festival and I’m pleased to see that our own City Art Centre will once again be transformed into a packed playground for even the youngest scientists and pioneers.”

Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events at VisitScotland, said: “We are delighted to be supporting Edinburgh Science Festival as part of Year of Coasts and Waters 2020.

“Scotland offers the perfect stage to celebrate our country’s natural biodiversity and scientific innovation, and this year’s festival will shine a light on the value of our seas and oceans and the challenges they face.”

Dr Gordon Rintoul, Director of National Museums Scotland, said: “We are delighted to be collaborating once more with the Edinburgh Science Festival.

“In this Year of Coasts and Waters, we look forward to hosting the Pale Blue Dot exhibition which will complement our Scotland’s Precious Seas display, part of a new programme of activity highlighting the issues affecting our waters including climate change and weather events, some of the key issues facing humanity at this time.

“We will also offer insights into cutting edge medical science through a range of events associated with our exhibition Parasites: Battle for Survival, which examines efforts being made here in Scotland to tackle five global tropical diseases.

“In addition to the packed events programme, our Science and Technology galleries showcase our outstanding permanent collections across a host of disciplines and our hugely popular Tyrannosaurs exhibition will be running throughout the Festival.”

Janet Archer, Director, Festival, Cultural and City Events, University of Edinburgh said: “The Edinburgh Science Festival is an important platform helping make the world a better place through science, innovation and creativity.

“The University of Edinburgh is delighted to partner with the Festival once more, with our world leading academics contributing talks and discussions as well as discovery activities for children and young people at the National Museum of Scotland. We especially welcome this year’s focus on the climate emergency.”

Dr Max Coleman, Science Communicator at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh said: “In the 350 years since the Botanics was founded as a source of medicinal plants our understanding of, and impact on, planet Earth has changed beyond all recognition.

“We are delighted to contribute to the Festival programme with a focus on the sustainable use of our planet’s precious resources.”

Eilidh Massie, marketing director at Dynamic Earth, said: “We’re always proud to be a programme partner with fantastic Edinburgh Science Festival.

“We’re especially excited this year to be launching our festival activity with Luke Jerram’s spectacular Gaia installation. This huge scale model of Earth is guaranteed to inspire and impress audiences of all ages.

“On top of that we have a jam-packed programme of hands on family fun in the daytime, and fascinating Dome events in the evening. There’s something to get everyone sparked up about this April!”

Ama-zing Harmonies returns tomorrow

Our young people’s Transition to Confidence Workshop for this month is on Monday 24th February.

Topic: Young People’s confidence boosters

Venue: West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre

Time: 5-6pm

Free and fun packed full activities For Ages 9 and above. Spaces available!

Our choir group also resumes for the year on Monday 24th February.

Our singing club offers refreshing music, dance and food in a relaxed atmosphere.

Come and join us at West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre from 6 – 7pm tomorrow and every last Monday of the month.

See you there!

Forthview kids to GoFitba!

Local school children from Forthview Primary School are to have the opportunity to participate in an exciting 12-week community project delivered by The Scottish Football Partnership Trust and The Spartans Community Football Academy.

GoFitba is a free to access football-based health and wellbeing project for Primary schoolchildren developed by The Scottish Football Partnership Trust and delivered by community football clubs. 

The project aims to support the Curriculum for Excellence’s Health and Wellbeing outcomes as set out by The Scottish Government’s Schools (Health Promotion and Nutrition) (Scotland) Act 2007. 

Through a fun and progressive structure and delivery, the weekly two-hour project offers young children a platform of regular and fun physical activity and an understanding of the importance of leading a balanced and healthy lifestyle through diet and nutrition.

In addition, the project aims to increase the young people’s self-motivation, improve their self-confidence, further develop their social and interpersonal skills and improve their general self-esteem.

The project timetable provides one structured afternoon per week and takes a holistic approach to teach the children the benefits of regular physical activity within a football environment. 

Starting this Friday, the youngsters participate in an hour of fun football activity, and during the second hour of each session they take part in an interactive educational journey to explore the benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle through diet and nutrition.  Each session ends with the children being served a hot, healthy meal and an opportunity to enjoy some social time with their peers.

Stuart McCaffrey, Chief Operating Officer at The SFP Trust said “The sport of football when used positively can act as a significant tool for personal and community development. 

“We are excited to be delivering this project with (name of club) – a club truly at the heart of the community – and to be given the opportunity to positively engage with local school children to encourage them towards a healthy and active lifestyle.”

Douglas Samuel of The Spartans Community Football Academy said, “We are delighted to be working in association with The SFP Trust on this project which will see The Academy welcome 20 local schoolchildren over the next 12 weeks. 

“Spartans Community Football Academy is always looking for new ways to engage with the local community and the GoFitba project is a fantastic way to showcase what we can offer to young members of our community at our excellent facilities here at the Academy. 

“Participation in sport can bring a lifetime of benefits and we look forward to working with the children from Forthview Primary School to Get Fit, Get Healthy and Have Fun!”

More money for Parental Support

An additional £7 million is to be invested in the Parental Employability Support Fund this year.

This additional funding will provide intensive employability support for parents both in and out of work, helping to tackle in-work poverty, and enhance links between local employability services and the expansion of Early Learning and Childcare in all 32 Local Authorities

The measures outlined in the 2020-21 draft budget will mean more than £16 million will be invested by 2022 to support low income parents address barriers to employment and to upskill while in work.

Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “In Scotland we have set in statute our ambition to eradicate child poverty and we are taking firm action to deliver progress.

“Last week’s budget included £7 million of additional investment for the new Parental Employability Support Fund which will be delivered in partnership with local authorities across Scotland.

“This investment will deliver new and enhanced services, providing parents with tailored holistic employability support and linking with the opportunities that our massive expansion of Early Learning and Childcare bring.

“Increasing household incomes from work and earnings is one of the keys ways to effectively tackling poverty – our investment will help ensure parents can access the jobs available and progress within employment.”

New ‘KIDS’ health website provides a wealth of information

Finding information on how to self-manage children’s health and well-being couldn’t be easier with the development of Kids Independently Developing Skills (KIDS), a new website and social media resource produced by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde which offers a range of support for children and their parents.

This wonderfully rich resource is a single point of reference for parents, teachers, healthcare professionals and young people themselves looking to access an extensive range of information on self-help. It is supported by a dedicated team of occupational therapy staff.

KIDS aims to help children and young people reach their potential and can be accessed at www.nhsggc.org.uk/kids or on Facebook and Twitter @nhsggckids,

The website, which now has an average of 24,577 hits every month and rising, offers a range of support for children: from a video on how to tie shoelaces to activity sheets for parents and nursery staff to support children gain early writing skills.

It also includes information on supporting the development of children’s communication skills as well as advice on how to manage postural care for children and young people with physical disabilities.

Parents can access information on the development of their child from birth to five-years-old. There is information on language skills, learning to sit, roll, crawl and walk, the use of their hands to grasp, hold and draw, learning independence skills, nutrition and emotional development.

To read more visit https://www.nhsggc.org.uk/about-us/media-centre/news/2020/02/kids-resource/

CashBack support for Police youth projects

A police-led partnership initiative aimed at diverting young people from criminal activity in Edinburgh is to receive Scottish Government funding.

As part of the CashBack for Communities Scheme, £19 million, which was seized from criminals, is to be shared with a range of organisations to further their work in diverting at risk youths away from potentially criminal or anti-social behaviour.

One such project receiving a share of this funding is VOW, a unique collaborative project, where police in the Capital work along a number of partners to engage and empower vulnerable young-people to make positive life choices.

This partnership helps break the cycle of offending and prevent individuals from continually entering the criminal justice system. So far 167 young people have been helped through the work of the team and the funding will ensure this vital work continues and even expands.

Also receiving Cashback support is Police Scotland’s award- winning partnership project with City of Edinburgh Council, Turn Your Life Around (TYLA).

Turn Your Life Around is a mental health and wellbeing project where local volunteers with a range of difficult childhood experiences are supported to share their stories of adversity and resilience with school pupils, families and staff.

Pupils at the schools are then given a platform to discuss the stories, reflect on risk and resilience factors and encouraged to seek help if they are experiencing similar difficulties.

The nature of these projects means that officers, peer mentors and volunteers are regularly asked to revisit, share or support childhood trauma and this funding will be used to provide trauma counselling and additional support for all those involved in delivering these services and will augment the existing skills they already have.

This in turn will increase the capacity for them to help young people turn their lives around.

Chief Superintendent Sean Scott, Divisional Commander for Edinburgh said: “This partnership and public health approach, using these inspirational peer mentors and courageous young volunteers, was a first of its kind here in Scotland.

“The proof that it works is testament to the number of young people that have managed to turn their lives around and the fact that on average the young people who engage with the peer mentors and officers manage to reduce their offending by around 80%.

“Traditionally, it has been difficult for police to identify and engage with at risk youths while working in isolation. This collaboration opens a number of doors, not only in preventing further criminal activity, but signposting those we engage with to a range of support services that can help them make positive lifestyle choices.

“With this essential funding, the excellent foundations and work that has already been commenced, will be continued and expanded to include trauma counselling, with the model being rolled out in Glasgow and other Policing Divisions looking to follow suit.

“This peer mentoring project transforms not only the lives of the young people who engage and take part, but transforms their families and communities, through working in partnership to deliver prevention and interventions that have been evaluated and proved to work at reducing harm”

Councillor Ian Perry, Education, Community and Families Convener at City of Edinburgh Council said: “This funding is fantastic news and will help the programmes continue to go from strength to strength.

“Set up in 2016 with Police Scotland, the Turn Your Life Around project delivered by the Health & Wellbeing Team was recently recognised as Education Initiative of the Year by Herald Society Awards.

“This is testimony to the feedback received from over 1000 children, young people and staff in schools last year who heard the inspiring stories from the TYLA volunteers and were involved in follow up sessions.

“It is of paramount importance that the volunteers are also appropriately supported and this funding will ensure we can continue to provide this as the project continues.”

Cyber-bullying revealed as children’s greatest online fear

  • More than a quarter of children and young people are worried about cyber-bullying, a survey reveals – topping the list of online fears
  • 89% also think talking to parents would help keep them stay safe online, but parents reported that only 35% had done so in the last 12 months.
  • Survey of more than 4,000 children and young people and 4,000 parents and carers conducted on behalf of O2 and NSPCC ahead of Safer Internet Day 

Being cyber-bullied is children’s greatest fear when they go online, according to a major survey conducted on behalf of O2 and the NSPCC ahead of Safer Internet Day (Tuesday 11 February).

When questioned, more than a quarter of children (27%) said bullying or someone being unkind to them was what worried them the most when using the internet.

The survey of more than 4,000 young people also revealed being contacted by someone they don’t know was the second biggest online concern (16% of respondents).

Speaking to parents or carers is overwhelmingly seen by children (89%) as the thing to do to help them stay safe online, but parents reported only 35% had raised internet safety with them in the past 12 months.

The survey of more than 4,000 parents and carers also revealed that 92% felt they knew how to advise their child on staying safe online, but less than half (42%) had agreed guidelines on what they do when using the internet.

To mark Safer Internet Day, O2 and the NSPCC have created a new online family agreement for parents and children to fill-in and sign together to help encourage more regular conversations about internet safety.

The agreement provides families with the opportunity to make a joint pledge on things both parents and children will do when online.

O2 and the NSPCC also offer free online resources in the form of Net Aware, a website which explains the social networks, apps or games that children are using most frequently.

Laura Randall, Associate Head of Child Safety Online and Innovation at the NSPCC, said: “Children and young people are becoming increasingly aware of the risks they face when going online and the vital role their parents or carers can play in ensuring they stay safe.

“As a result, parents and carers need to take the initiative and set up regular conversations with their child about their online life, with our family agreement being a great way to kick things off.

“To ensure they are as well informed as possible parents and carers can also access free tools like Net Aware, where they can learn about the latest games, apps and social networks their children are using.”

Nicola Green, Corporate Affairs Director at O2 said: “The digital world is an amazing place but it’s important that as parents we have regular conversations with our children so they’re aware how to safely navigate any potential dangers online.

“As a mum, I know it can sometimes be difficult to know where to start, which is why for Safer Internet Day this year we’ve created a family agreement, available in-store and to download online for free, as a handy tool for parents to explore what their children like doing online and agree to set some guidelines.”

As well as the family agreement, the partnership have developed a booklet offering the latest practical and simple tips on the risks children might face when using the internet, and advice about what parents can do to keep their child safe.

The booklet is now available in more than 450 O2 stores nationwide.

Review of Scottish care system demands radical overhaul

  • Independent Care Review wants ‘more care, less system’
  • Says Scotland must ‘parent, not process’ children
  • Human and economic cost of care published for first time

The Independent Care Review (Care Review) has called for a radical overhaul of  Scotland’s ‘care system’ and publishes, for the first time, the human and economic cost of the current provision and its failures.

Unprecedented in scope, methodology and model, the Care Review has listened to more than 5,500 experiences.

Over half of those were children and young people with experience of the ‘care system’, adults who have lived in care and their families. The rest came from the unpaid and paid workforce.

These experiences are the heart of the Care Review’s work and guided and shaped its conclusions.

The in-depth examination of all aspects of care in Scotland has revealed a system that is fractured, bureaucratic and unfeeling for far too many children and families. It also doesn’t adequately value the voices and experiences of those in it.

The Care Review has calculated that services which deliver and surround the ‘care system’ cost £1.2 billion annually – this includes children and families support services; Children’s Panels; Children’s Hearings Scotland; Scottish Children’s Reporters Administration as well as delivery of other universal services like education and mental health to children in care.

The Care Review also calculated the costs of the ‘care system’ letting down children and their families at £1.6 billion; a combination of £875 million in meeting the needs care experienced people have as a result of the ‘care system’ failing them and £732 million in lost income tax and national insurance.

Driven by an unwavering focus on the voice of care experience, the Care Review demands the following changes:

  • The balance of power must be upended so that listening to children and young people is always the basis of all decisions made about their lives.
  • There must be a focus on building and maintaining life-long relationships – that includes a broader understanding of the risk of not having long term, loving relationships.
  • Scotland must parent, not process, children so there is no difference between the lives of children in care and their peers. Care experienced children must not miss out on the kind of childhood that many take for granted and the future that all our young people deserve.
  • Families must be kept together wherever it is safe to do so. Families must get the support that is right for them at the earliest opportunity and it must be flexible, consistent, patient and free from stigma. This will mean that more children can live a safe, happy life at home with their families.

The report has identified five foundations for change, with over 80 specific changes that must be made to transform how Scotland cares for children and families as well as the unpaid and paid workforce.

Since 2018, the Care Review’s Stop:Go work with all 32 local authorities has already led to many important changes and ensured the review didn’t delay opportunities to improve the day-to-day experience of care received in Scotland today.

The Care Review has also published The Plan, an approach to implementation plotted out over 10 years whilst demanding urgency is maintained in the pace of change.

The five foundations are: 1) voice of the children must be heard at all stages; 2) what all families need to thrive; 3) care, that builds childhoods for children who Scotland has responsibility 4) people, with a relentless focus on the importance of relationships and 5) scaffolding, so that the structure is there to support children and families when needed.

Fiona Duncan, Chair of the Independent Care Review said: “I have heard countless stories of when the care system gets it wrong; separation, trauma, stigma and pain.  Too many childhoods have been lost to a system that serves its own convenience rather than those within it.

“The Care Review has listened to what care experienced people have said needs to change and those voices have driven its work and underpins its conclusions.

“It has sought to understand how the system feels to those who live and work in and around it. And it has produced the what, how, why and when of what needs to happen next.

“This is a radical blueprint for a country that loves, nurtures and cherishes its children. This is Scotland’s chance to care for its children, the way all good parents should.”

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “I would like to extend my thanks to Fiona Duncan and the review members for the work they have put into their final report and supporting documents as well as the individuals who shared their often extremely personal stories with the team.

“In 2016 I accepted a challenge to listen to the experiences of 1,000 looked-after young people because I knew the care system needed a transformation and I wanted to hear first-hand what had to change. These early conversations inspired me to announce an independent root-and-branch review of the care system.

“So for the first time ever the voices of people with experience of the care sector have been, and will continue to be, at the heart of shaping care policy. Over 5,500 people, including care experienced individuals and their families, as well as paid and unpaid care workers, took the time to discuss their thoughts, feelings and experiences to highlight where things are going well and where we need to improve.

“I have had the privilege of meeting many young people with experience of care who are doing extremely well, I have also been given the chance to see the dedication, commitment and passion of those who work in the care sector.

“But I’ve also heard some extremely difficult stories which portray the care sector as bureaucratic and even unfeeling.

“It is clear that despite the efforts of those within the system, the actual experience of too many people in care is not what we want it to be.

“We will keep listening to and working with care experienced people because the case for transformational change is now unarguable and their voice must shape that change. We will work with them and with local authorities, care providers and others to deliver that change as quickly and as safely as possible.”

Fiona Aitken, Adoption UK’s Scotland director said: “This is an incredibly important piece of work – which will affect the lives of millions of children – so we’re delighted that the real-life experiences of care-experienced children and young people, as well as those of their families and carers, is at the very heart of this review.  

“Only by listening to their experiences can significant improvements be made to the care system.”

Joanna Barrett, Policy and Public Affairs Manager at NSPCC Scotland, said: “We are extremely heartened by this thorough and insightful analysis of our care system, with a wealth of important recommendations for its overhaul. 

“We have long had concerns that children are not being put at the centre of our Hearings System and are being let down, and believe changes to its operation are critical. 

“At NSPCC Scotland, we work with very young children in the care system and know that understanding early childhood development and behaviour is crucial to making the right decisions. And so, we are greatly encouraged that the Review recognises the focus needed on this age group, which makes up the greatest proportion of those entering care. 

“It is now vital that there is the will and the resources for us all to work together in implementing these changes.”

Stephen Finlayson, Head of Innovation and Improvement of leading mental health charity Penumbra said: “We know that change is required and it’s great to see this report calling on the transformation of the care system.  It is vital that those with lived experience are at the heart of change. 

“We are pleased to see the Independent Care Review put the voices of children and young people first and ensured their experience was central to the report and the recommendations within it.

“Despite good intentions, the care system in Scotland has too often placed children in care settings which have themselves contributed to poor mental health: it is time for Scotland to prioritise the mental wellbeing of all children and ensure that, when additional care is required,  this is the top priority.  Penumbra is committed to help realise the vision and ambition for Scotland’s children set out in the Independent Care Review.”

Duncan Dunlop, Chief Executive of Who Cares? Scotland said: “The first thing that we want to do is congratulate Fiona Duncan for her commitment and recognise the strength of every Care Experienced person who contributed their voice to the Review over the last three years.

“This was promised to be a Review like no other and that is why we believe its findings should provide a platform for the kind of change that Care Experienced people desperately need.

“Care Experienced people are capable, thoughtful and have enormous potential. What we have seen, unfortunately, are generations of people living with the consequences of a care system that focused on containing them then leaving them, rather than ensuring that they are loved and supported forever.

“We have also seen Scotland struggle to connect with how it can support Care Experienced people. With that in mind, we will now take the necessary time to reflect on the findings that have been published today and consider in what ways the recommendations realise our ambitions for change.

“In January this year, the Care Inspectorate published figures on the early deaths of Care Experienced people. They said that between 2012 and 2018, 36 people in the care of the state died unexpected or untimely death. We know from our own networks that this is an under-representation, with six young Care Experienced people in our network dying in December 2019 alone.

“The evidence shows that what the Scottish Government chooses to do next is literally a matter of life and death. We expect to see urgent action, in the next few weeks, that makes a tangible difference to young people’s lives. Any further delay would be unacceptable.”

The-Promise