An opportunity to grow a recovery community on Tuesday 16 June – and there’s free pizza too …
Tag: community safety
We need your help, say fire chiefs
SFRS asks for public’s help after 28th fire death in five months
People will die in fires that could be prevented unless their friends, relatives and neighbours help them get the support they need to stay safe in their homes. The stark warning from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) makes clear firefighters across the country need the public to put them in touch with those who are at greatest risk.
It comes after confirmation that a man firefighters removed from a blaze at a flat in East Renfrewshire last Thursday later succumbed to his injuries. He was the 28th person in Scotland to die as a result of a fire this year.
Among the factors identified as having contributed to the fatalities were age, living alone, physical and mental health conditions, chaotic lifestyles, smoking, alcohol and drugs use.
Assistant Chief Officer Lewis Ramsay, the SFRS director of prevention and protection, said: “To lose someone through fire is utterly devastating and it always leaves a lasting impact on the families, friends and communities touched by the tragedy.
“The sad reality is many fatal fires could be prevented. We know very simple steps are often the difference between life and death.
“Every one of us can make that difference just by talking to people we know who might be vulnerable and putting them in touch with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
“Fire threatens every home – we all need to understand it can happen to us and the people around us, consider the risks and live up to our responsibility to do what we can to save lives.”
Older people, those with physical or mental health issues and others with issues involving the misuse of alcohol or drugs are all at increased risk of experiencing a fire in their homes and suffering injury or death as a result.
Firefighters throughout Scotland actively work to help individual householders stay safe but many of those most at risk can be reluctant to contact SFRS for support.
As part of the Join Scotland’s Fight Against Fire campaign, SFRS has called on anyone who looks out for the well-being of a friend, family member, co-worker or neighbour to discuss fire safety with them.
Mr Ramsay explained: “Our crews always do everything they can but unfortunately their courage and professionalism in responding to a fire won’t always be enough. Even where a fire has remained small, the smoke and heat produced can very quickly spread through a home and threaten the life of anyone inside.
“We would much rather take the time to do a free home fire safety visit and help someone prevent a fire than respond to a blaze where they may have already suffered life-changing, or even life-ending, injuries.”
He added: “Protecting the most vulnerable members of our communities isn’t something we can do alone. Reaching people who need some help to stay safe is always a challenge and we need the public’s help to meet it.”
Free home fire safety visits are available from SFRS by calling the freephone number 0800 073 1999, by texting ‘FIRE’ to 80800 or by filling in an online form at www.firescotland.gov.uk.
Conducted by local crews at times convenient for the householder, the visits also see firefighters provide and install free smoke alarms where these are found to be needed.
Mr Ramsay added: “We’ll probably never know just how many lives have been saved because someone had the presence of mind to arrange a free home fire safety visit, whether for their self or for someone close to them.
“It doesn’t take long for a local firefighter to show someone the common hazards that many people just don’t realise are in their home.
“Our crews help residents take very easy steps to address these risks and they also make sure the property has working smoke alarms and that everyone knows what to do if a fire does start.
“It’s a service that can make all the difference. I’d urge anyone who thinks they or someone they know could benefit from it to get in touch with us today – before another tragedy happens.”
Drink Driving: don’t take the risk
A driver will be stopped and breath tested every two minutes this summer
The Scottish Government and Road Safety Scotland have launched their 2015 Summer Drink Drive campaign in support of Police Scotland’s Summer Safety Campaign. Using the strapline ‘Don’t spoil summer’, the campaign reminds drivers that getting behind the wheel after even one drink isn’t worth the risk or the consequences.
New data released yesterday shows that in Scotland there has been a 17% reduction in drink driving offences from January – March 2015 (997) compared to the same period in 2014 (1,209). This follows the introduction of Scotland’s new lower drink drive limit on 5 December, which means that even just one drink could put a driver over the limit.
Police stop a driver approximately every two minutes in Scotland Scotland, and have the powers to breath-test many of them. Police Scotland enforcement activity is running alongside Road Safety Scotland’s social marketing campaign, which highlights the often spontaneous nature of summer socialising.
Following the success of the legislation change in Scotland, the Police Federation of England & Wales last week issued a call for the legal limit in England and Wales to be in line with Scotland.
Cabinet Secretary for Justice, Michael Matheson, said: “Since the introduction of the new lower drink drive limit six months ago, Scotland is starting to see a real change in behaviour. The 17% reduction in drink driving offences indicates that Scottish drivers are avoiding alcohol when they are driving.
“Fewer drink driving offences is a positive story for Scotland and shows that we’re leading social and legislative change in the UK. We’re urging Scots to take care this summer and to remember it’s safer to avoid driving if you’ve consumed alcohol.
Michael McDonnell, Director of Road Safety Scotland, said: “Summer can be a time for getting together with friends and family, and many people go for a drink with colleagues after work on a sunny evening. Because this drinking is often unplanned, people may not have thought about the journey home. And many people don’t realise that just one drink can put them over the legal limit.
“Evidence shows that even one alcoholic drink before driving makes you three times more likely to be involved in a fatal accident. It is estimated that one in eight deaths on Scottish roads involve drivers who are over the legal limit and, despite what many people think, eating food or a perceived alcohol tolerance don’t reduce its effects. Even a small amount impairs your judgement and reactions so, the best advice is just don’t risk it.”
Chief Superintendent Iain Murray, Head of Road Policing at Police Scotland, said: “Our message is simple – don’t spoil summer for you and your family or another family by drinking and driving. Police Scotland stop more than 20,000 Scottish drivers a month. That’s one vehicle every two minutes. If you have committed an offence, or if we have reasonable cause to suspect that you have been drinking, you may be subjected to a breath test.
“Even if you’re just over the limit, you’re still a drunk driver in the eyes of the law – there is no grey area. This may affect your current and future employment and can have wider implications for other areas of your life including overseas travel, even just for family holidays. If you drink and drive, you won’t just spoil summer.”
Find out more by visiting www.dontriskit.info or the Road Safety Scotland Facebook page.
If you suspect someone of drink driving, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 your local police office by dialling 101. In an emergency, dial 999.
Blanket ban on ‘legal highs’
‘Sadly, too many have paid the ultimate price from taking these risky substances and this change will go a long way to stop further deaths’ – Maryon Stewart, Angelus Foundation
Action to protect young people from the dangers of so-called ‘legal highs’ and target those who profit from their trade was announced by the UK government today.
The Psychoactive Substances Bill will prohibit and disrupt the production, distribution, sale and supply of new psychoactive substances (NPS) in the UK. They are often sold online or on the high street.
The ban will extend to the sale of nitrous oxide for human use, known as ‘laughing gas’ or ‘hippy crack’, although its legitimate sale will not be affected.
Minister of State for Policing, Crime, Criminal Justice and Victims, Mike Penning, said: “Young people who take these substances are taking exceptional risks with their health and those who profit from their sale have a complete disregard for the potential consequences. That’s why we are targeting the suppliers.
“The landmark bill will fundamentally change the way we tackle new psychoactive substances – and put an end to the game of cat and mouse in which new drugs appear on the market more quickly than government can identify and ban them.
“The blanket ban will give police and other law enforcement agencies greater powers to tackle the reckless trade in psychoactive substances, instead of having to take a substance-by-substance approach.”
The government has already taken a range of action against so-called ‘legal highs’, including banning more than 500 new drugs and creating the Forensic Early Warning System to detect substances not seen before in the UK. There is also ongoing work to enhance the response to prevention, treatment and information sharing.
Last year the government established an expert panel on New Psychoactive Substances to look at ways of further enhancing the enforcement response. Having carefully considered the evidence, ministers decided to act on the panel’s recommendation to explore the feasibility of a blanket ban and are now introducing this new legislation.
Under the Bill:
- it will be an offence to produce, supply, offer to supply, possess with intent to supply, import or export psychoactive substances; that is, any substance intended for human consumption that is capable of producing a psychoactive effect. The maximum sentence will be seven years’ imprisonment.
- all of the UK will be affected by the blanket ban and law enforcement powers would be extended to all NPS supply from UK websites, so they can be shut down.
- substances, such as alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, food and medical products, will be excluded from the scope of the offence, as will controlled drugs, which will continue to be regulated by the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
- there will be powers to seize and destroy NPS and powers to search persons, premises and vehicles, as well as to enter and search premises by warrant if necessary.
- similar to the legislation introduced in Ireland, it will also capture substances that, although not new, are psychoactive, have been used as intoxicants for many years and are not harm free.
- there will be provision for civil sanctions – prohibition notices and prohibition orders – to enable the police and local authorities to adopt a proportionate response to the supply of NPS in appropriate cases.
In 2013, there were 120 deaths involving NPS in England, Scotland and Wales.
National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for New Psychoactive Substances, Commander Simon Bray said: “When people buy dangerous drugs they will generally have little idea how potent the drug is or what it may contain. Sadly we have seen too many people losing their lives or becoming seriously ill after taking so-called “legal highs” under the impression that they are safe.
“A blanket ban on new psychoactive substances (NPS) will make it simpler for law enforcement to deal with those drugs which are potentially unsafe but which may not yet be controlled.”
Founder of the Angelus Foundation, Maryon Stewart, said: “Angelus very much welcomes these important legal changes on restricting the supply of so called ‘legal highs’ or new psychoactive substances.
“We expect the law to impact very significantly on the high street trade. The open sale of NPS has led to dangerous experimentation with many young people being badly affected by their unpredictable effects and some ending up in hospital.
“Sadly, too many have paid the ultimate price from taking these risky substances and this change will go a long way to stop further deaths.
“No law can offer the perfect solution to protect people from drugs; it is equally vital we all concentrate our efforts of making the public, young people in particular, more aware of the harms of these substances in schools, at university and during festivals.”
Another £3 million to tackle sectarianism
Funding will support communities to reduce and prevent sectarianism across Scotland
Community projects tackling sectarianism at a local level will benefit from £3 million of funding for the year 2015/16, the Scottish Government has announced.
Following on from the Scottish Government’s investment of £9 million over three years this latest round of funding will be used to support a wide range of projects committed to tackling sectarianism at a grassroots level throughout Scotland.
Among those to receive funding is Leith’s Pilmeny Development Project, who will use their £20,000 allocation to ‘help challenge community tensions and encourage better integration of the religious groups that make up the Leith community’.
Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs, Paul Wheelhouse, announced that £2.3 million is to be allocated to 38 community projects throughout Scotland – and the Scottish Government is currently identifying further activities to benefit from the remaining cash.
Mr Wheelhouse said: “The Scottish Government is committed to tackling sectarianism. We have already invested £9 million over the last three years to support, among other things, community-based efforts in dealing with sectarianism and this additional £3 million of funding will allow the issue to continue to be addressed at a local level.
“No one should have to face discrimination or prejudice in any form in 21st century Scotland. It is never acceptable and it will not be tolerated.
“We welcome the fact that religiously aggravated offending is falling and is now at its lowest level in a decade – last year alone there was a 15% decrease. However we will continue to do all that we can to address the issue of sectarianism in Scotland.
“Communities are at the heart of our work to tackle sectarianism and that is why we have committed a further £3 million to support this agenda and to continue to work with, and in, local communities to tackle this issue in the most appropriate way.
“We are confident that these projects will help us to continue to reduce sectarian attitudes and behaviours and help to finally rid Scotland of the prejudices of the past.”
For a full list of projects to receive funding see below:
NOTE: Police are investigating an incident of sectarian graffiti sprayed on a West Lothian church at the weekend. St Andrew’s RC Church in Livingston was plastered with anti-Catholic messages between 7pm on Saturday and 9am on Sunday morning.
Domestic Violence: let’s talk
Toughening up community justice
New Bill will reform the community justice system in Scotland
Plans for a new community justice model, designed to create a stronger community justice system in Scotland, were published by the Scottish Government on Friday.
The Community Justice (Scotland) Bill establishes a new model for community justice which puts local delivery, partnerships and collaboration at its heart.
The Community Justice (Scotland) Bill will:
- Place responsibility for local planning and monitoring of community justice services with a defined set of local community justice partners
- Place duties on these community justice partners to engage in local strategic planning and be accountable for its success
- Develop a national strategy and a performance framework in relation to community justice
- Create a national body to provide leadership, promote innovation and provide improvement support where it is required
- Create a focus on collaboration – including the opportunity to commission, manage or deliver services nationally where appropriate
Community Safety and Legal Affairs Minister Paul Wheelhouse said: “The Scottish Government is committed to reducing re-offending and securing better outcomes for community justice services.
“Offending is a complex problem and there are well established links between persistent offending and poverty, homelessness, addiction and mental illness. Re-offending creates victims, damages communities and wastes potential.
“We want to work in partnership with organisations and communities to reduce re-offending and to deliver better outcomes for offenders and communities.
“We have engaged extensively with stakeholders in developing this model and share their view that community justice services should be person-centred and evidence-based while making the best use of resources; all of which is reflected in today’s Bill.”
The defined set of local community justice partners includes local authorities, NHS boards, Police Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Health and Social Care Integration joint boards, Skills Development Scotland, Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and Scottish Ministers in their role as the Scottish Prison Service.
Tom Halpin, Chief Executive of SACRO said: “Sacro supports the introduction of proposals contained in the Community Justice (Scotland) Bill. This provides a strong opportunity for Scotland’s community justice services to work collaboratively and deliver reduced re-offending and safer communities.
“Working through Community Planning Partnerships, where multi-agency working supports the delivery of joined up services with strong leadership and accountability, is key to transforming the lives of people who are motivated to desist from offending.
“The lived experience of people using Sacro’s services to successfully change their life tells us this Bill is critical in building a socially just and inclusive society for all of Scotland’s communities.”
Councillor Harry McGuigan, COSLA’s Spokesperson for Community Well-being said: “COSLA will study the legislation and continue to work with Scottish Ministers to ensure that the Bill enables a truly local model with improved community justice outcomes at its core.
“Reducing reoffending continues to be a priority for local government and we are working closely with the Scottish Government to ensure a smooth transition to the new model for community justice. We have supported the redesign of community justice throughout the consultation process and we welcome the introduction of this Bill.”
Children the focus of Road Safety Week
Scottish Road Safety Week 4 – 10 May
Scottish Road Safety Week runs from 4 to 10 May, with a particular focus on keeping children safe on Scotland’s roads.
Along with regional and local events, Scottish Road Safety Week will also provide practical advice for parents, carers and schools on keeping children safer. In particular, the week will cover child pedestrians, cyclists, and safety in the back of the car.
Go to www.dontriskit.info for more information
Teach your children about Road Safety
There’s nothing more important than your children being safe and road safety is everyone’s responsibility. That’s why the Scottish Government and its partners across Scotland including local authorities, the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service, Police Scotland and many other organisations are all pulling together for the Scottish Road Safety Week (SRSW).
The SRSW runs from 4 – 10 May, aiming to raise awareness of road safety across the country but it will specifically focus on keeping children safe, while they are walking, cycling or in the car.
The number of people killed and injured on Scotland’s roads has fallen significantly in recent years. However, sadly latest figures show there were 1,062 child casualties reported. Of those 143 were seriously injured and nine died. That is nine too many.
On this website you’ll find top tips on how your children can stay safe on the roads. And if you teach them about road safety now, it will stay with them for the rest of their life.
Start making your children safer.
Local learners on a high!
Local young people short-listed for learners award
Late last year I spent time with a bright and enthusiastic group of young adults at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre to plan a piece of work. Their mission? To choose a subject of relevance to young people, research and then write an article on that subject for North Edinburgh News.
The group has now produced their article (see below) – and all their hard work is to be recognised too!
Community Learning & Development tutor Karen Riddell, who supported the group during the project, explained: “They really were a vibrant group of young people with strong opinions and it was great to see them engage with the topic and undertake the various activities related to building their skills and putting the article together.
“The group was nominated for an Edinburgh Adult Learners Achievement Award and I’m delighted to say that they have been short-listed for an award in the Young Adults Category.”
The Tomorrow’s People team will learn their fate at an event at the City Chambers on 20 May. Fingers crossed for you, guys – and here’s your article …
LEGAL HIGHS: Is It Worth It?
Local young people speak out against ‘legal highs’
We are a group of young people from Pilton who have just spent 16 weeks on the Tomorrow’s People employability programme. Part of our course helped us brush up on our literacy and critical thinking skills through a weekly CLD Practical Journalism course held at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre.
Dave Pickering, the editor at the North Edinburgh News, very kindly gave us the opportunity to write an article for his paper, so after much debate we decided to research and write about Legal Highs.
We compiled a local survey and found out that most of the young people who responded to the survey had either used Legal Highs or knew someone who had. The main reasons cited were: they were easy to get, friends were trying them, they’re cheap – at least half the price of illegal drugs, they give you a really good high, taking them gives you something to do, boredom and peer pressure.
Even although a high percentage of young people surveyed had used them without any serious long term consequences, we did find out that at least 68 people died last year as a direct result of using them, so they are not quite as harmless as some people think.
We found that their name made them quite misleading and people thought it meant they were pretty safe to use. The truth is that drugs councilors now advise their clients to stick to their heroin as legal highs are even more dangerous, burning the skin as it is injected and causing blistering and serious infection.
Most people who completed the questionnaire had also tried illegal drugs and strongly felt that these were safer than Legal highs. As a group, we definitely agreed with that.
We also feel that the government are failing to make drug taking safer. No matter what you might feel about drugs, a lot of people from literally all walks of life use them and are going to continue to do so. David Cameron dodges the issue for fear of losing votes and insists that ‘What is in place is working’ despite the fact that over 2500 people died from drugs-related causes last year in the UK.
Is it not time to follow Portugal and make drugs a health issue rather than a criminal one so that people are offered more protection? In Portugal they found that de-criminalising it didn’t bring about any increase in the level of drug use by people and also that millions was saved on the essentially ineffectual enforcement of drug laws.
Across Europe clubs have drug-testing facilities so that people can test substances before they take them – surely that must offer people more protection than kidding on that ‘what is in place is working’!
A recent Home Office report that we looked at said that having tough drugs laws didn’t make any difference to the level of drug use but Home Secretary Teresa May had this part of the report removed and it was only found out about when Norman Baker revealed the findings after he resigned! This just goes to show that governments make useless drug laws to kid on they are in control of the problem when they’re really just doing it as a vote catcher.
Present policy bears no relation to the reality of people’s recreational drug use and it’s time for the government to introduce some new policies to protect its citizens and not put their own vote-catching first.
We need much better drug education to help us keep ourselves safe, and the obvious place for this to take place is in schools. We felt strongly that a peer to peer support programme in schools would help young people make informed choices about drug use and help keep them safer.
Our research found that young people felt there needed to be far more opportunities for young people in the work-place and much better affordable or subsidised recreational facilities to offer them the chance to experience other kinds of ‘legal highs’, their own ‘natural highs’ like ski-ing, skating, abseiling, snow-boarding, canoeing, dirt-biking, go-karting etc. Risk-taking is part of brain-development for young people and we need to offer them the opportunity to explore this in a safer environment.
Drugs become a problem when there is little else in the drug users lives. We found out that in an experiment, mice which were separated from other mice kept going back to drink the drug-laced water whereas mice that lived in groups didn’t. The experiment showed that lack of strong emotional bonds in your life can drive you to bond with legal highs or drugs instead.
They say it takes a community to bring up a child so that’s why it’s very important for us to work together to stop the reckless experimentation that can lead to addiction, to value the young people of Pilton and provide them with the support they need to keep their use of drugs and alcohol to an acceptable level and help them realise their potential.
It seems to us that one of the worst thing about legal highs is the hypocrisy of supposedly ‘respectable’ shop-keepers who are prepared to stock them in the full knowledge that people, especially young people, buy them to consume them. We feel a local campaign should be set up to stop these shops from selling them.
Good websites:
(1)Anyone’s Child; Families for Safer Drug Control – www.anyoneschild.org
(2) Release.org
Community Safety on Drylaw agenda
North Neighbourhood Community Safety manager Ruth Stanley will attend next week’s meeting of Drylaw Telford Community Council.
The meeting will take place on Wednesday 29 April at 7pm in Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre. All welcome.