Tag: Children and Families

Man jailed for twelve years for ‘appalling abuse’

A man has been jailed for twelve years for a horrifying series of offences against children including rape and allowing a child to be raped, cruelty and neglect. Police are now appealing for help to hunt down Thomas Nelson’s associates – they believe up to twenty more abusers could be guilty of horrific crimes. Continue reading Man jailed for twelve years for ‘appalling abuse’

Encore, encore: theatre’s support for charity is a smash hit

Edinburgh Playhouse CHAS - 1

The UK’s largest theatre – the Edinburgh Playhouse – and its generous audiences have together raised a total of £82,485.83 for Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS). Continue reading Encore, encore: theatre’s support for charity is a smash hit

Schools: £45 million to close attainment gap

More than £45 million will be provided to primary and secondary schools in 2017/18 to help close the poverty-related attainment gap, Deputy First Minister John Swinney announced today. Nine local authorities and an additional 72 individual schools have been allocated funding from the Scottish Attainment Challenge, for education initiatives and projects targeting Scotland’s most deprived children. Continue reading Schools: £45 million to close attainment gap

Hours of fun for the under 5s on 5 August

Edinburgh Leisure is hosting a series of FREE under 5’s open days on Saturday 5th August at:

Craiglockhart Leisure and Tennis Centre: Tennis (afternoon)

The Meadows: Tennis (morning)

Royal Commonwealth Pool: Gym nippers, swimming, dance, Jump & Dive (morning), magician, balloon modelling, tattoos, hook a duck

Tumbles at Portobello: Gym nippers (morning)

Experts agree the best way to help kids enjoy healthy, active lives is to start as you mean to go on. And at Edinburgh Leisure there are lots of activities that wee ones, and their parents, can enjoy starting from birth through to 5 years old.

There’ll be 25-minute taster sessions to try out in swimming, gym nippers, jump and dive, tots tennis and dance for the toddlers.  It’s possible to try just one or a variety but booking in advance is recommended.

Click here to see the full programme list and time slots available.

To book your space, contact the relevant centres:

Craiglockhart Tennis and Leisure Centre
0131 443 0101
info.cltc@edinburghleisure.co.uk

The Meadows
07766 774529
0131 443 0101
info.cltc@edinburghleisure.co.uk

Royal Commonwealth Pool
0131 667 7211
info.rcp@edinburghleisure.co.uk

Tumbles at Portobello
0131 669 0878
info.tumbles@edinburghleisure.co.uk

 

 

Lottery success for MCFB

Multi-Cultural Family Base Awarded National Lottery Funding

chairs at vogrie

Children between the ages of four and seven from mostly Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) families are set to benefit from a Lottery award of £204,660 made to the 4-2-7 project at Leith-based Multi-Cultural Family Base (MCFB). Continue reading Lottery success for MCFB

Local language school is Whats On 4 Kids Awards finalist

Local language franchise named as finalist in prestigious awards

12141175_1629328437318169_7181569948269242167_o (1)

Giselle Dominguez, whose Lingotot business in based in North Edinburgh, is celebrating being named as a finalist in four categories in the 11th National Whats On 4 Kids Awards.

These prestigious awards are intended to reward innovation, raise standards and generate awareness of family activities and those individual experts involved who make such a difference to so many young families.

Whats On 4 Kids says: “ Every nominee deserves to be congratulated on getting this far in the UK’s leading and longest established awards for the sector. It’s been an exceptional year with voting very fierce across all of the categories right up to the end, so thank you to everyone for being part of the action!”

Lingotot is a multi-award winning languages program being delivered to over 12,000 children across the UK each week. Their interactive learning format aims to introduce preschool and primary aged children to languages, while instilling confidence and developing an enjoyment for languages.

Giselle Dominguez, of Lingotot Edinburgh says “I am absolutely delighted that Lingotot has been named as a finalist in an outstanding four categories and would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who voted for me! I really love what I do and it’s a fantastic feeling to have Lingotot’s hard work recognised.”

The final results will be announced during a live ceremony, hosted by NatWest, in October.

Stay safe in the sun this summer

DSCF5094 (2)
NHS Lothian’s Sheena Dryden, Clinical Nurse Specialist for skin cancers at the Dermatology department of the Lauriston Building. talks about how to keep sun-safe outdoors this summer: 

Be sun-aware

We can all get caught out unawares by the sun and I think that’s one of the biggest problems in Scotland. Because our weather is so varied, we’re often unprepared for periods of great sunshine – we can start off a day in summer with a fleece on and want to be in shorts by the end of the same day! When we’re abroad we expect the blue skies and the heat and are prepared for it, but here we don’t tend to think about using sun protection, what with the changeable weather.

We need the sun for vitamin D, so it’s good to get at least 10-20 minutes in the daylight every day to maintain a healthy level of vitamin D. However, everyone is at risk of melanomas and other skin cancers, even if you tan well or have darker skin, so even on cloudy or breezy days, always try and remember to apply sunscreen regularly to keep protected if you’re outdoors. The months between April and the end of September are the highest-risk months, with the most affecting times of day being between 10am and 3pm.

Staying safe

We recommend an SPF (sun protection factor) of 30 or above, and UVA protection of at least 3 stars or smiley faces. SPF protects against the UVB (shorter burning) rays, and UVA are the deeper, more damaging rays that age the skin and are thought to cause some forms of skin cancer. Sunscreen must be applied liberally over the skin, because if it is rubbed in, this halves its efficacy. You need the thick layer of sunscreen to properly protect you. Some people have SPF in their facial make-up, but that’s only ever a maximum of factor 15, which when it’s rubbed in brings it down to 7.5, so it’s always better to have extra protection on as well. The basic principle for safety is that if you can see your skin, so can the sun!

In terms of clothing, the head is very vulnerable, even if you have hair, so it’s important to keep it covered with a hat. Plus, remember to cover your ears and the back of your neck when you’re out in the sun, in addition to wearing sunglasses and tightly-woven clothing.

DSC00389

Things to remember

Sunscreen needs to be reapplied every couple of hours, and always after you have been swimming, towelling dry or perspiring. Apply evenly onto your skin, without forgetting hands and feet. It’s also worth getting a friend or family member to help apply sun cream to your back, because it’s so easy to miss parts of it when you do it yourself.

As soon as you start to get red you should move out of the sun. However, the problem with this is that on holiday you could be sitting under a parasol but you can still get reflection off the sand, the decking of a boat or light pavements. Anywhere close to the water is also dangerous as water is very reflective. So when we say ‘out of the sun’, we mean right indoors, and also avoiding areas like conservatories or inside cars – contrary to popular belief, you can still get burnt through glass.

Keeping children safe

The advice for babies is simple – they should not be out in the sun. Young children should have cream of at least SPF 50 applied regularly, and minimal doses of being out in the sun, with a special effort being made to keep them directly out of the sun between 10am and 3pm. For families this can be quite a challenge when you’re trying to keep the kids occupied during the Easter and summer break and with outdoor activities. However, kids are often up early and that would be the ideal time to take them out. The challenge is thinking of creative ways around keeping them indoors at those times. Do as the locals in the Mediterranean do and take leisurely lunches inside and siestas!

What to do if you get bad sunburn

If you get sunburnt make sure to keep hydrated with lots of water (avoiding any alcohol or caffeinated drinks), and try to keep your body temperature down, for example with a cool shower and resting in a cool room. If you or a family member gets seriously burnt and you’re unsure of what to do, seek medical advice from your GP or call 101 for guidance. If there’s a lot of redness and blistering, or you are showing signs of severe burns, medical attention may be required. Headaches, nausea, vomiting and sometimes shivery episodes can also be signs of heatstroke, which can be serious.

Useful links

NHS Inform’s tips for staying safe in the sun.
https://www.nhsinform.scot/campaigns/summer-health
YouTube video: David Cornfield Melanoma Fund – Dear 16 Year Old Me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEZtMrSGAio
Teenage Cancer Trust’s ‘Shunburn: stay safe in the sun’ video.
https://www.teenagecancertrust.org/support-us/spread-word/shunburn-stay-safe-sun