Creative Scotland – The NEN – North Edinburgh News

It’s now or never for public agencies to support the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Open Letter from SHONA McCARTHY, Chief Executive, Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society

What a fantastic week for the cultural sector of Scotland. All the lobbying, advocacy and effort from so many, for so long, has resulted in some desperately needed stability and longer-term security; and Culture Counts did a sterling job in leading the charge.

It has been uplifting and joyful to see so many brilliant theatres, companies, community art centres, creatives and festivals across Scotland, invested in, and supported to make new work and do ambitious things.

A special nod to the success of our sister festivals – the Film, Children’s, Art, Book and Jazz festivals; and with over £5million in public sector support per year, the Edinburgh International festival will be enabled to undertake some truly wonderful commissions and programming. Perhaps this will be the moment for some shared resource into a collaboration of all six summer festivals to create a spectacular, free-to-access opening and closing of the whole season for Edinburgh’s residents. Exciting times and I look forward to the imaginative programming to come.

It is also wonderful to see Hidden Door secure some core support – its devolved curatorial approach and fusions of genre and imagination have brought something new to the whole festivals landscape. Congratulations are due all-round and hats off to the Scottish Government for recognising the value of the arts to the heart and soul of the nation, to job creation, well-being and the economy. All of this in the same week that the Fringe Society has had its own news to share, with the announcement of our new Chief Executive coming in to post in April this year.

However, I hope support can also be found for those who didn’t make the list this time.

The Fringe is a different beast. It is complex, but only if you want it to be. However, its complexity should not be a reason not to support the very event that gives Edinburgh’s festivals their global brand, economic success and enormous impact for the performing arts across Scotland, the UK and the world. It truly is an access point for so many artists and audiences alike, into the arts.

Here’s where we are:

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is made up of thousands of moving parts. All of those are important and are what make it unique. The Fringe is not a funded, curated arts festival, it is a platform and a marketplace that is open to anyone. Every artist or show that comes to Edinburgh does so at their own financial risk, and with their own set of objectives for what they want from participating in the Fringe. There are many producers who will annually develop and support a selection of shows to present at the Edinburgh Fringe, who share the risk with their artists. The venues that host them are all different models, but many of them also take significant risk, or share risk with producers and artists.

Then there is the Fringe Society – the small charity that is made up of Fringe members and provides core services to the festival: artist support, box office, marketing, promotion, and audience navigational tools. Income generated from participants through registration fees and box office commission pays for these services. The Fringe Society delivers a whole programme of added value that is designed to remove barriers to participants and audiences and ensure inclusion. This work isn’t financed by income from the Fringe, but is supported by donations, fundraising and ring-fenced public funds for projects. In keeping costs to participants low or frozen for 18 years, the income generated from registration fees and tickets, has long-since come far short of covering the costs of services to the Fringe.

Once upon a time the Fringe was a self-financing ecosystem with a collective effort from all the fringe-makers on keeping it affordable for artists and audiences. However, the well-documented economic context of recent years changed that. In this moment, if Edinburgh, Scotland and the UK wants to keep the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, then the whole thing needs support, and that has to come from multiple sources and has to support both the Fringe and the Fringe Society.

The Fringe Society needs core annual public sector support if it is to continue to provide services to the Fringe at an affordable level. It also needs to be able to adjust its fees to meet some of the rising costs too. A stable Fringe Society can continue to play a positive convening role for the wider Fringe community and in recent recovery years we have been able to redistribute some £6.3million out through the Fringe ecology in funds for artists, producing venues and support for Scottish work, to help it survive and stabilise.

The Fringe Society will continue to use its convening role to raise funds to support artists through the Keep it Fringe fund and Made in Scotland. We must also ensure that the essential digital infrastructure that supports festival systems – online tools and wayfinding, are future-proofed, and will seek support and donations to retain our 32 community partnerships across the city so that they can continue to experience their Fringe their way, both during August and year-round.

What could a whole Fringe support strategy look like.

For a stable, healthy Fringe we need a joined-up investment strategy that includes the Scottish Government, the City of Edinburgh Council and the UK Government. We have continuously made the case and both UK and Scottish Governments have recognised the unique place that the Fringe occupies as a platform, a showcase, a marketplace and global expo. There is nothing else like it on these islands, and it offers something unique in the world as an annual global meeting place to celebrate the performing arts in all their glory and for the business of the performing arts to be done.

We of course need a stable Fringe community with companies, producers and theatres able to produce work, and the investment from the Scottish Government last week goes a long way towards this. We will continue to lobby until Scotland is on a par with the best of Europe.

The Fringe Society’s new year-round Fringe Central secured a capital grant that will create new affordable rehearsal spaces for artists, and also unlocked £1million in Keep it Fringe funds for direct bursaries to 360 artists over 2024 and 2025. The Fringe Society are aiming to sustain the Keep it Fringe fund in some form, and producer James Seabright, has already committed the first £25,000.

Investment in the Fringe Society from the Scottish Government is needed to ensure the charity can continue to provide core services to this vital event.

The Scottish Government have recognised that this organisation falls between the cracks and have made the commitment to support, and this is a work in progress. Scottish artists, companies and many local producing theatres and venues are supported through the multi-year funding programme, the Open Fund, and the Made In Scotland showcase at the Fringe and this helps. Yet there is still a gap in support for the whole Fringe operation, and there is a continuing disparity between the infrastructural needs and financial support made available for major sport events as opposed to the investment in sustained, annual arts events with longitudinal impact, like the Edinburgh Fringe.

For the UK Government – the Edinburgh Fringe hosts artists from all over the UK, with over 2,000 shows coming from England alone every year; with producers and promoters bringing work to be showcased and booked for onward opportunities. The Fringe ecosystem needs support to host all of this.

The UK Government have so far provided a Capital Grant to the Fringe Society to create a year-round Fringe Central space, and we have been making the case to build on this investment for the whole ecology. This could happen in several ways:

Theatre Tax Relief could be extended to support the venue infrastructure set up at the Fringe that is undoubtedly part of the production process
The Fringe should be supported by UK Government for its role as a driver of the Creative industries – Industrial strategy, and well-positioned for support from the £65 million recently announced by Secretary of State Lisa Nandy
It should be recognised as a Major Event for the UK, and its operating structures supported as would so readily be done with a sporting event of this scale and reach, such as an Olympic or Commonwealth Games
Arts Councils across UK should be investing in their artists to support them coming to the Fringe, as international showcases already do

The City of Edinburgh Council is crucial in providing a supportive operating context:

The Fringe will generate over £1million in Visitor Levy – this money should be ring-fenced to be redistributed in supporting the event
Affordable accommodation is the single biggest barrier to making the Fringe truly inclusive for creatives, workers and audiences. There are three ways this could be alleviated
- Exemptions on home-letting and home-sharing being real, effective and immediate
- A mechanism for HMOs (houses of multiple occupancy) privately run student accommodation to be made available to artists during the summer months
- A map of accommodation capacity within a one-hour commute of Edinburgh and the supporting transport routes to make that underused capacity viable

New structures have already been set up to create this joined up approach through a National Festivals Partnership and a Festival City Infrastructure group. Let’s hope these structures can finally bring a strategic and supportive approach, to enable the Fringe to sit comfortably within Scotland’s national cultural asset base whilst also being properly enabled to welcome the emerging performing artists and breakthrough work from across the UK and the world.

The Edinburgh Fringe is unlike any other cultural event in the world, in that it is largely self-financed by those who take the risk to make and show work. It is made up of hundreds of parts, all of which are important. It is a wonderful balance of ticketed venues, street performance, free shows and pay what you want shows; from new discoveries to world-class and established artists.

It is the sum of these parts that makes it distinctive, inclusive, extraordinary and with something to say in the world. The stability of the Fringe is dependent on a recognition by everyone involved in it; that it is not owned by anyone – no organisation, group, or collective. It has no super league or participant base that is any more important than any other. It is a platform for freedom of expression like no other – ever evolving, growing, contracting and contorting.

It is not stuck in any one period of time, and should never allow any single interest group or sense of entitlement to derail its beautiful, messy and joyful mission for inclusion and cultural democracy

Its mantra is to give anyone a stage and everyone a seat – and that’s a mantra worth protecting and championing. That’s the Fringe. What a welcome it would be for the incoming CEO of the Fringe Society, if this extraordinary event was set on a new foundation stone where both the Fringe itself and the charity that supports it are validated and supported. With that support and validation, the whole Fringe community can move forward together collaboratively to secure the future of this vital event.

The cultural sector review will perhaps take a closer look at why the Edinburgh Fringe doesn’t sit comfortably within the established mechanisms of investment in the cultural sector, and a new way may be found to give it investment and support. Edinburgh is a city that has given huge recognition to new infrastructure and investment in classical music and the classic artforms.

It would be wonderful to see some validation of the forms of creative expression, such as comedy and street performance, which allow a significant point of access into the arts, and anyone to step into the opportunity to perform.

Often all that is required is space, a microphone and a story to tell.

Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive, Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society

Creative Scotland announces Multi-Year Funding Outcomes for arts and culture organisations

A record number of cultural organisations to receive stable, year-on-year funding to deliver culture and creativity for Scotland’s people
All organisations currently funded by Creative Scotland to receive a significant uplift after years of standstill funding
An additional 141 organisations will receive a multi-year funding commitment for the first time
Significant increase in community-focused organisations being supported, alongside established cultural organisations, better representing Scotland’s geography and diversity
Overall funding to the portfolio will increase further in 2026/27
This cultural shift has been made possible thanks to a significant budget commitment from the Scottish Government

Today, Thursday 30 January 2025, in a significant moment for culture in Scotland, Creative Scotland has announced the largest portfolio of cultural organisations ever to be supported on a multi-year basis.

The recent uplift in Grant-in-Aid funding from the Scottish Government, releasing the largest budget ever available to Creative Scotland, enables more than £200m in support to be provided to 251 organisations over the next three years.

Further to this, 13 other organisations, will be supported by a £3.2m Development Fund, with a view to them joining the Multi-Year Funding portfolio in 2026/27.

Over half of the organisations in the portfolio are being offered a multi-year funding commitment for the first time, reaching more parts of Scotland, and more parts of our society, than ever before.

Those organisations which have an existing regular funding relationship with Creative Scotland will receive an average uplift of 34% in their funding in 2025/26, increasing to an average of 54% from 2026/27, bringing certainty and stability.

North Edinburgh Arts is one of the organisations to receive three year funding. They said: ‘We are delighted to share that North Edinburgh Arts has been awarded Multi-Year Funding from Creative Scotland! We are looking forward to re-opening our venue in the coming weeks, so the confirmation of Multi-Year Funding has come at the ideal time.

“NEA’s venue is owned, used, and loved by our community. The stability of long-term funding will allow us to plan with confidence and make a real difference for the hundreds of artists, participants, volunteers, and visitors coming through our door.”

Hidden Door also received good news. They announced: “We’re proud to be one of 13 organisations to receive Creative Scotland development funding with a view to joining their Multi-Year Funding portfolio in 2026

This is a huge vote of confidence in our support for emerging artists, connecting audiences with inspirational cultural experiences.

‘We’re acutely aware of the challenges facing the creative sector, and we know that not everyone will have received good news today. But we warmly congratulate all those who secured funding, and we look forward to collaborating with many more wonderful projects in the years to come.’

Together, the organisations in this portfolio deliver cultural and creative work of quality, breadth and depth to audiences across Scotland and internationally and the portfolio is more representative of Scotland’s geography, diversity, people and communities than ever before. All this underlines Scotland’s reputation as a thriving creative nation where culture is valued and developed for all.

Importantly, the portfolio also provides significant support to Scotland’s local and national economy, through direct employment, by creating opportunities for freelancers, and by supporting individual artists and creative practitioners of all types.

Robert Wilson, Chair of Creative Scotland said: “This is an extremely positive moment for culture in Scotland, bringing with it a renewed sense of stability and certainty to Scotland’s culture sector.

“Thanks to the vote of confidence in the culture sector, demonstrated by the recently announced budget from the Scottish Government, Creative Scotland can offer stable, year-on-year funding to more organisations than ever before.

“I’m particularly pleased that this funding will increase further from next year, enabling even more fantastic artistic and creative work to be developed here in Scotland.

“Stable, long-term funding for as many organisations as possible is the underlying principle of the Multi-Year Funding programme, and we are delighted to be able to bring it to fruition.

“This funding means that we are able to bring so many new, community focused organisations into the portfolio, while also providing significant increases to those more established organisations which have been on standstill, regular funding for so many years.

“I’m also very pleased to be able to offer 13 further organisations significant amounts of development funding, to enable them to come into the portfolio in its second year.

“This signals a significant moment of positive change for Scotland’s cultural community, and I hope that, after the deeply challenging time of the pandemic, and the difficulties that have faced the sector in the subsequent years, that now is the time that we can look forward with confidence and the Scottish culture sector can get on with what it does best, producing outstanding art and creativity for everyone to enjoy.”

Download short audio statement from Robert Wilson, Creative Scotland Chair.

Angus Robertson, Cabinet Secretary for Culture said: “This is a foundational moment for culture and the arts in Scotland. More organisations than ever, in more parts of the country will benefit from the stability of Multi-Year Funding with the number of funded organisations more than doubling, from 119 to 251.

“Funded as part of a record £34 million increase for culture in the draft 2025-26 Scottish Budget, this significant increase in both the number of funded organisations, and the level of grant funding they will receive, has the potential to be truly transformational. It secures the future of key cultural organisations of all sizes across Scotland, which are major assets to our communities and our economy, supporting thousands of jobs and creating new opportunities for freelancers, artists and other creative practitioners.

“It means 251 culture organisations across Scotland, from Argyll and Bute to Shetland, Na h-Eileanan Siar, and the Borders, will receive Multi-Year Funding from April this year and a further 13 have the possibility of doing so from 2026-27.

“I am also reassured that the remaining unsuccessful applicants will all be offered bespoke support from Creative Scotland to adapt their business models.”

Following the ministerial statement in the Scottish Parliament, Labour Lothians MSP Foysol Choudhury welcomed the funding: “This funding decision is a step forward for Scotland’s cultural community. It reflects the collective determination of local groups, artists, and advocates who have worked tirelessly to highlight the importance of the arts in our society.

“I am proud to have played a role in advocating for multi-year funding, and I hope this provides some temporary relief to the culture sector. Festivals have struggled with standstill government funding for years, stunting their growth. The culture sector should not just be fighting for its survival.”

The list of organisations being awarded Multi-Year Funding, and their award for the next three years, is available on our website.

The list of organisations being offered development funding, and their conditional award for the next three years, is also available on our website.

Sue Bruce confirmed as Chair of Creative Scotland review

Survey launches to seek views of cultural sector

Dame Sue Bruce will chair the review of Creative Scotland, Culture Secretary Angus Robertson has announced.

The review will examine Creative Scotland’s remit, functions and how it can best support the culture sector’s ambitions for renewal. It will be the first review of Creative Scotland since its establishment in 2010, as part of a wider commitment to review how the culture sector is supported.

Culture Secretary Angus Robertson welcomed the “wealth of experience” Dame Sue Bruce will bring to the review, with previous roles in Scotland’s arts and local government sectors.

Mr Robertson said: “I’m delighted that Dame Sue Bruce has agreed to chair the Creative Scotland review. She brings a wealth of experience from previous roles in the arts and local government sectors, making her well-placed to conduct a thorough and independent review into how Creative Scotland supports the arts in Scotland.

“The 2025-26 Scottish Budget includes a record £34 million uplift for culture. I am determined to maximise the impact of every penny of that. The review will consider the diversity of potential sources of funding, such as philanthropy, for culture – to underpin a more sustainable and resilient cultural sector in the years to come.

“The intention of this review is to ensure views the length and breadth of Scotland are heard swiftly and the vitally important contribution that artists and cultural organisations do for our nation and our identity is recognised, valued and well-supported.

“The Scottish Government has also today launched a new survey seeking views on how culture and the arts are currently supported in Scotland and areas for change. The responses will help inform the scope of the review so I would encourage all those with an interest to respond to our survey.”

Dame Sue Bruce said: “Culture and the arts reflect our values, aspirations and history as a country and the people who work in the sector make an invaluable contribution to our society and our economy.

“I look forward to working with the sector and Creative Scotland to ensure that it’s remit and functions continue to be relevant for the culture sector today, recognising that there has been much change in the sector since 2010 when Creative Scotland was first established.”

Success for first ever Soundhouse Winter Festival

Music fans packed out the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh for Soundhouse’s first ever Winter Festival (28 Nov to 2 Dec). Bringing in an audience mostly comprised of locals (73% from the capital, with 21% from the rest of Scotland), it proved the best antidote to a dark time of year and a great way to mark St Andrew’s Day.

The festival ran over five days thanks to support from The National Lottery through Creative Scotland and included some of the finest jazz, indy and folk musicians from Scotland. Sellouts included the Nicole Smit Quintet; Fergus McCreadie with an outstanding performance from guest Italian star Mattia Galeotti on drums; and Su-a Lee performing alongside a stellar line-up of trad favourites – Duncan Chisholm, Donald Shaw and Hamish Napier.

Other popular highlights included a screening of The Rugged Island: A Shetland Lyric (1933), opened by Shetland pianist Amy Laurenson, and accompanied by music composed by award winning multi-instrumentalist Inge Thomson from Fair Isle with Shetlander Catriona Macdonald; a preview of rock goddess Megan Black’s new album; and a performance of Unwritten Women read by Edinburgh’s former Makar Hannah Lavery to a new score written and performed by Kate Young.

The Festival also received five star reviews and was a key part of this year’s Fair Saturday celebrations in Edinburgh.

Jane Ann Purdy and Douglas Robertson, producers of the Soundhouse Winter Festival said: “We are thrilled with the appetite that audiences have shown for live music during the winter months.

“We knew that people would come out for the festival if we programmed great music, so that’s what we did and it paid off.

“It’s been an absolute blast to present five days of jazz, rock, punk, poetry, and silent film, not a line-up we have had the opportunity to programme before, but one that we would definitely look to repeat next year.”

The Soundhouse Organisation returns in May with more live music at the Traverse for Edinburgh’s Tradfest (2-12 May 2025). Dates for the Soundhouse Winter Festival 2025 are to be confirmed.

‘A Budget filled with hope for Scotland’s future’

Progress for Scotland, by Scotland

The 2025-26 Budget will deliver progress for the people of Scotland, with a record increase in frontline NHS spending, and plans to lift 15,000 children out of poverty by mitigating the UK Government’s two-child limit from 2026.

Setting out the Budget to Parliament, Finance Secretary Shona Robison said the government had listened and would now act on the priorities of people, businesses and organisations across the country – delivering progress for Scotland, by Scotland.

The 2025-26 Budget includes:

a record £2 billion increase in frontline NHS spending taking overall health and social care investment to £21 billion to reduce NHS waiting lists, making it easier for people to see their GP, and progress the Belford Hospital, Monklands Hospital and Edinburgh Eye Pavilion projects
funding for universal winter heating payments for older Scots, and investment to allow the mitigation of the two-child cap from 2026
tax choices that freeze income tax rates, increase the Basic and Intermediate rate thresholds to put more money in the pockets of low and middle-income earners, and provide business rates relief for hard-pressed local pubs and restaurants
a record £15 billion for local government to support the services communities rely on and £768 million to provide 8,000 more affordable homes
£4.9 billion of action on the climate and nature crises to lower emissions and energy bills, protect the environment, and create new jobs and opportunities
a real-terms uplift of 3% for spending on education and skills to maintain teacher levels and invest in school infrastructure, as well as new funding to put more breakfast clubs in primary schools
a £34 million uplift for culture in 2025-26

The Finance Secretary said: “I am proud to present a budget that delivers on the priorities of the people of Scotland.

“Parliament can show that we understand the pressures people are facing. We can choose to come together to bring hope to people, to renew our public services, and deliver a wealth of new opportunities in our economy.

“This Budget invests in public services, lifts children out of poverty, acts in the face of the climate emergency, and supports jobs and economic growth.

“It is a budget filled with hope for Scotland’s future and I look forward to working with all parties in Parliament to secure agreement around its provisions.”

Scottish Budget 2025 to 2026 – gov.scot

The 2025-26 Scottish Budget also includes:

£6.9 billion total investment in social security, including the Scottish Child Payment
almost £4.2 billion across the justice system in 2025-26, including £1.62 billion for policing to support capacity and capability, £881.1 million for prisons, including £347 million for the prison estate to deliver HMP Glasgow and HMP Highland, and £159 million for community justice services to support the wider use of community interventions
over £2.6 billion towards public transport to support bus, rail and ferry services and increases the dedicated funding available to the four councils operating their own ferry services to £50.3 million
over £660 million for rural communities to support the crucial contribution of Scotland’s farmers, crofters and the wider rural economy
almost £90 million to protect, maintain and increase our woodlands and peatlands, to restore more than 15,000 hectares of degraded peatland and ensure the creation of more than 11,000 hectares of woodland across Scotland
a £34 million uplift for culture in 2025-26, building on the £15.8 million increase in the last Budget to take the total incremental increase in culture funding to almost £50 million – the halfway point in our commitment to increase funding to culture and the arts by £100 million more annually by 2028-29
£6 million for the National Islands Plan to deliver infrastructure projects designed in partnership with islanders to support successful and resilient island communities
protection for free tuition and a 3.5% increase in total investment in Higher Education, compared to a 3.08% increase in university funding in England

Ben Macpherson MSP has welcomed the Scottish Government’s budget commitment to provide significant additional funding for the Granton Waterfront regeneration project, with a long-term agreement to be formalised in 2025.

Having spoken regularly about Granton in the Scottish Parliament this year, and previously, to promote the area as a strategic development site for Edinburgh and Scotland as a whole, Ben Macpherson MSP is delighted that the Scottish Government has committed financial support to significantly progress the City of Edinburgh Council’s ambitions plans.

The budget statement by Shona Robison MSP included: “I can confirm today that we will be working with Edinburgh City Council to unlock over 800 new, net zero homes at their Granton development site.”

In the Scottish Parliament, during the Budget statement and question session, Ben Macpherson MSP for Edinburgh Northern and Leith said: “As the local constituency MSP, I believe passionately in the significant potential for the development of Granton Waterfront to help tackle Edinburgh’s housing challenges, to transform the northern part of our capital city for the common good, and to deliver economic growth, new opportunities and multiple positive benefits for existing communities and our country more broadly – that’s why I have worked constructively to highlight all of this to Ministers, and am therefore delighted and grateful that the Finance Secretary has committed to working with City of Edinburgh Council to deliver 800 more homes.

“Can the Finance Secretary say more about the Scottish Government’s commitment to the development of Granton Waterfront – as a strategic site – and the positive impact this will deliver for the people of Northern Edinburgh and Scotland as a whole?”

The Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Shona Robison MSP, replied: “Ben Macpherson is absolutely right, the Granton Waterfront development is a big deal for Edinburgh, and we will work with Edinburgh Council over the coming months and hope to announce a deal on the detail early in the 2025-26 financial year to support this multi-year project.

“And I talked in my statement about it unlocking 800 new net-zero homes of mixed types and tenures but also sustainable transport links and placemaking initiatives.

“This can be a gamechanger for Edinburgh and I am very acutely aware of the housing need in Edinburgh, and I think this will go a long way to helping as part of this solution.”

Ben Macpherson MSP for Edinburgh Northern and Leith, added: ““This is a very significant step forward towards tackling Edinburgh’s housing emergency and realising all of North Edinburgh’s remarkable potential.

“I have passionately and consistently supported the regeneration of Granton Waterfront throughout my time as the MSP for Edinburgh Northern and Leith, and have worked to be a constructive link between the Scottish Government and the City of Edinburgh Council in this collective endeavour.

“The vacant and derelict land in Granton has the potential to be transformed into a new residential hub and a destination to visit for locals and tourists alike – just like in Dundee and other waterfront cities across the world. It is fantastic that the Scottish Government has committed to this vision and given pivotal financial backing to make it happen!

“Edinburgh continues to face significant, various housing challenges and building more affordable homes is crucial in helping to tackle this. With Scottish Government support, the development plans for Granton will deliver transformational change to benefit the local area and the wider economy.

“It has been a consistent priority since my election to promote and deliver more affordable housing in Northern Edinburgh – as well as accompanying infrastructure and facilities in the area, like cultural and creative hubs, opportunities for small businesses to thrive, and key services such as schools and health centres – and I look forward to seeing the development of Granton benefit the people of Edinburgh in the years ahead, and the additional investment and opportunities that will be created.”

BUDGET REACTION:

Responding to today’s Budget statement by the Finance Secretary, John Dickie, Director of Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) in Scotland, said: “The Finance Secretary is absolutely right to mitigate the two-child limit in the absence of abolition at UK level. It’s a pernicious policy that pushes 15,000 children into poverty in Scotland alone.

“Investing in social security for families is key to delivering on the First Minister’s number one priority of eradicating child poverty.

“The devil will be in the detail and families really can’t wait until 2026 to see their incomes boosted, so an above inflation increase to the Scottish child payment is still needed in the meantime.

“But there is no question this is the right focus for prioritising spend. We need the UK government take the same approach to investing in family benefits as a matter of utmost urgency.”

CHILD POVERTY ACTION GROUP

COSLA

Responding to today’s Scottish Government draft budget, Poverty Alliance chief executive Peter Kelly said: “The two-child limit is a huge injustice that has no place in a compassionate society – because every child matters and every child should get support they need.

“We welcome the Scottish Government’s proposals today, and we hope that the UK Government works positively and quickly to get this extra support to households with children. We hope it adds to the pressure to scrap the two-child limit across the UK.

“With record numbers of children in temporary accommodation, additional investment in affordable homes and homelessness prevention is necessary and welcome. But we know that more social homes are needed to tackle the housing emergency in Scotland – meeting that challenge requires further investment.

“Many of our members have called for the Scottish Government to make up the difference for pensioners who have had Winter Fuel Payments taken away from them. They will welcome today’s plans.

“We have worked directly with people who are forced to live on a pittance by the unjust UK asylum system, and we supported their campaigns for free bus travel. It is welcome that the Scottish Government have allocated to funding to that proposal, which will increase their freedom to build a life beyond poverty and take part in society. We hope this is the start of a move to provide bus passes to more people – starting with those eligible for benefits.

“But we can do more. There are around 240,000 children in poverty in Scotland. We need to go further and faster if we are going eradicate child poverty.

“That means more immediate support through the Scottish Child Payment and using our powers over tax and investment to build a stronger society for all of us – especially people in poverty.”

POVERTY ALLIANCE

SAVE THE CHILDREN SCOTLAND

SCVO

SCOTTISH HOSPICES

“Today @scotgov announced £768m to buy or build 8k affordable homes next year. It is a sign it’s taking the housing emergency seriously but it is only a reverse of previous cuts. As a result, it’s a cut in real terms as same money buys less now compared to two years ago.

“Though it is a step forward, 8,000 homes is a drop in the ocean compared to what is needed There are 243,000 people on waiting lists in Scotland. The last decades have seen the decimation of council housing because of a lack of funding, stock transfer and right to buy.

“This government needs to deliver more social housing by allocating greater funding for stock buy back and for social and council house building programmes, to ensure more people have a stable, secure, affordable place to live.”

LIVING RENT

We welcome the budget statement from the Scottish Government signalling the value it places on culture & the arts.

Culture is the beating heart of Scotland & this budget offers us all hope for a more stable, positive future.

EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

Creative Scotland wholeheartedly welcomes the positive news of the substantial uplift for Culture, including Creative Scotland, in the Scottish Government’s draft budget announced today.

In 2025/26, Creative Scotland’s draft Grant-in-Aid budget from the Scottish Government will be £80m, up from £51.4m in the previous year. Included in this is an additional £20m, specifically for use in supporting the Multi-Year Funding programme and an additional £2m to support delivery of Screen Scotland’s strategy.

The Board of Creative Scotland will meet on 16 December to agree the final budget for Multi-Year Funding and a further update will be made following that meeting.

The final outcomes from the programme will be announced by the end of January.

Creative Scotland’s Chair, Robert Wilson, said: “Today’s draft budget announcement by the Scottish Government is enormously welcome. The major boost to Multi-Year Funding and other activities opens up wider opportunities, and we are grateful to the Scottish Government for this significant vote of confidence in Creative Scotland and the creative and culture sector.

“This is especially positive in the light of the long-term financial challenges the sector has been dealing with and will enable people and organisations to once again look forward with more confidence.”

CREATIVE SCOTLAND

Today’s budget released by the Scottish government is a “step in the right direction” but comes too late to ease the winter crisis already hitting some of the country’s A&Es.

This is the response from The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) following the budget announcement today – Wednesday 4 December 2024 – by Finance Secretary Shona Robison MSP.

The College has welcomed the announcement of £200 million to tackle delayed discharge, a key contributor to long A&E waiting times and a 25% increase in social care spending.

The budget also included a £2 billion increase in frontline NHS spending to reduce waiting lists and improve access to GPs.

However A&Es continue to face the current reality, with NHS Grampian declaring a ‘critical incident’ last week due to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary being over capacity.

Dr Fiona Hunter, RCEM’s Vice Chair for Scotland said: “We welcome the government’s commitment to addressing many of the systemic issues that have plagued our health care system – its patients and staff – for far too long.

“RCEM has long campaigned for a sustained focus on tackling delayed discharge and improving social care capacity and this budget represents a step in the right direction. We are glad our call, and those of others highlighting this issue, have been answered.

“However, it has not come soon enough to ease pressures faced by A&Es who are working under extreme pressure to care for patients right now.

“We restate our commitment to working with the Scottish government to bring an end to this reality and #ResuscitateEmergencyCare in Scotland, for generations to come.”

The budget statement comes just one day after an Audit Scotland report revealed the number of people remaining in hospital because their discharge has been delayed – often due to a lack of social care capacity – is the highest on record.

ROYAL COLLEGE OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE

In response to today’s Scottish Government Budget, Debbie Horne, Scotland Policy and Public Affairs Manager at Independent Age said: “Older people across Scotland will be relieved to see the return of some help with winter energy bills through the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment from next year.

“For many not currently receiving Pension Credit, or those just above the eligibility, this money is desperately needed. Although not what they were originally due to receive, last week’s decision has been welcomed by older people in financial hardship across Scotland.

“It’s also good news that Scottish Social Security has been uprated with inflation, including entitlements that are important to older people, such as Pension Age Disability Payment and Winter Heating Payment. Many people in later life will be reassured that this has been confirmed.

“We are pleased to see that the Scottish Government is focussed on supporting renters. Over recent years both the number of older people renting privately and the proportion in poverty has risen. The increase in the Discretionary Housing Payment funding pot is an important lifeline to many older private renters, making up rent shortfalls, and the increased investment in social homes building should give tenants of all ages more security.

“However, it is concerning that the Scottish Welfare Fund, which can be a crucial safety net for older people when emergencies occur, such as needing help with food or heating costs, has not been increased.

“Generally, the older people in financial hardship that we speak to will feel heard by the Scottish Government today. However, we remain concerned about older people this winter. Going forward, the Scottish Government must continue to make decisions that improve the lives of older people in poverty.”

INDEPENDENT AGE

Jonathan Carr-West, Chief Executive, LGIU Scotland, said: “We know from our annual survey that local government finances in Scotland are hanging by a thread. One in four councils are afraid they won’t be able to pass a balanced budget next year. Three quarters are warning that they may not be able to do so within the next five years. Today’s Budget from the Scottish Government does not engage with the scale of that challenge.

“Local government may welcome commitments to the New Deal with Local Government continuing work on a fiscal framework and plans to deliver new revenue raising powers. However, they will be dismayed to see how much funding continues to be ring fenced.

“There is an increase in core funding in today’s Budget but it doesn’t cover the ever growing costs of core statutory services.

“The Scottish Government has responded to the concerns of councils and has removed the freeze on council tax rises, but the Cabinet Secretary’s expectation that record funding levels should mean councils do not need to put up council tax is too complacent.

“The truth is that even with the additional funding announced today, local authorities will still need to raise council tax and make cuts to services and will still edge closer to being unable to balance their books.”

LOCAL GOVERNMENT INFORMATION UNIT

Commenting on the Finance Secretary’s Budget statement this afternoon, Director of CAMRA Scotland Stuart McMahon said: “Pub goers and licensees will be raising a glass to the news that the Scottish Government are finally introducing help with the burden of business rates that have contributed to scores of pubs having to close their doors in recent years, and at a higher rate than elsewhere on these islands.

“Pubs are a vital part of our social fabric and it is right that they will now get the same 40% reduction in business rates that pubs in England get. It is also encouraging that pubs on island communities will continue to get a 100% reduction with their business rates.

“In order to make sure our pubs survive and thrive at the heart of our communities ministers must now commit to reforming the entire Business Rates system to make it fairer. The Scottish Government should level the playing field between online and bricks-and-mortar businesses and finally end the shocking overpayment that pubs have to cough up under the current system.”

CAMRA

Mary Glasgow, chief executive at Children First said: “The Cabinet Secretary says this budget will lift children out of poverty but given that Scotland faces a childhood emergency it is difficult to see how.

“The promise of jam tomorrow, in the form of mitigating the UK two-child cap does nothing to alleviate the plight of thousands of children and families across Scotland who are going hungry today.

“We called on the Scottish Government to invest in early help and support for families and to increase the Scottish child payment. It is disappointing that they have chosen to delay investing in children rather than taking immediate action. Children can’t wait.”

CHILDREN FIRST

Soundhouse Winter Festival kicks off tomorrow

Dates: Thursday 28 November to Monday 2 December 2024

www.soundhousewinterfest.com

There is just one day to go before the brand new Soundhouse Winter Festival kicks off in Edinburgh, thanks to support from The National Lottery through Creative Scotland.

The programme is packed with big names and up and coming bands from across Scotland including award winning feminist rock goddess Megan Back, who hasrecently returned from gigs in California, performing tracks from her new album out next year; and impulsive punk/rock n’ roll multi-instrumentalist Callum Easter performing with his full band the Roulettes and special guest indie/folk soloist Iona Zajac.

They will be headliningalongside some of Scotland’s finest jazz and trad musicians including Fergus McCreadie, Su-a-Lee, Duncan Chisholm, Hamish Napier, and Donald Shaw; a screening of silent film The Rugged Island: A Shetland Lyric accompanied by music composed by multi-instrumentalist Inge Thomson and fiddle player Catriona Macdonald; and live performance poetry with Edinburgh’s previous Makar Hannah Lavery accompanied by music from Kate Young.

Callum Easter & The Roulettes who play the Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh on Monday, 2 December with special guest Iona Zajac

The festival’s programme also includes early evening concerts at the Traverse with Nicole Smit performing some cool jazzy numbers with her Quintet (Vid Gobac on drums, Cameron Bradley on piano, Dave Toule guitar, and Kassandra E’Silva on saxophone); Gaelic singer-songwriter Rachel Walker performing with one of the country’s foremost folksingers and accompanists Aaron Jones; Edinburgh-based poetic psychedelic supergroup Acolyte (Ruairidh Morrison on bass, Gloria Black on synth and backing vocals, Daniel Hill on percussion and led by award-winning poet and spoken word artist Iona Lee); and acclaimed singer songwriter Victoria Hume, joined by long-term collaborator Chris Letcher.

Plus, there will be a showcase of emerging new jazz musicians including the Rosalind Orr Trio, TAO and C.A.L.I.E; a masterclass with jazz pianist Fergus McCreadie; and two workshops -Gaelic lullabies with Rachel Walker, and jazz saxophone with one of Scotland’s leading jazz instrumentalists Helena Kay.

Jane Ann Purdy and Douglas Robertson, producers of the Soundhouse Winter Festival said: “We are thrilled to be presenting a five-day festival of live ‘music from Scotland’ at this time of year.

“There are so many world class musicians working here right now that we were literally spoilt for choice. We hope the Soundhouse Winter Festival will not only be a chance for music lovers to hear some of their favourite live bands, but also a chance to hear some of the best up and coming artists of the moment.”

Booking link for tickets: – soundhousewinterfest.com

Celebrate Hope: Book Week Scotland illuminates Edinburgh and the Lothians with inspiring literary events

Scotland’s national celebration of books, Book Week Scotland 2024, returns from 18-24 November to uplift Edinburgh and Lothians with its theme of Hope.

This year’s programme offers unique perspectives on resilience, community, and the landscapes that define the region. Over the years, Book Week Scotland has deepened its impact on Edinburgh and the Lothians, delivering literary events to even the remotest locations and fostering connections in towns and communities.

The 2024 programme spotlights regional authors and local libraries as community cornerstones. 65,000 copies of a new free book, Scotland’s Stories: Hope, will be distributed during the week.

It is made up of real-life stories from people across Scotland, including contributions from people in Edinburgh and Lothians.

Local voices in this year’s Hope book include:

· “A Wee Pocket of Joy” by Rosemary Henderson, East Lothian

· “Dancing for Hope” by Georgia Marlborough, Edinburgh

· “Ribbons and New Socks” by Sheena Mason, Dalkeith

· “Hope and Consolation” by David Pickering, Edinburgh

· “It’s The Hope That Kills You” by Julie Drybrough, Edinburgh

· “Thorin” by Sam Eastop, Edinburgh (also adapted as a comic strip by Mollie Ray)

Each piece reflects the theme of Hope in unique and personal ways, highlighting the power of local stories.

Book Week Scotland event highlights in Edinburgh and the Lothians:

· Landscapes of Hope and Inspiration, Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh, 18 November—This event will bring together visual artist Julie Brook, writer Linda Cracknell, and musician Duncan Chisholm to discuss how Scotland’s landscapes inspire and provide hope.

· The Pleasures of Reading with Jackie Kay, Portobello Bookshop, 20 November – Jackie Kay shares the books that have inspired her, joined by Dr Sarah McGeown to explore the benefits of reading for pleasure.

· Various Author Events Across Edinburgh and East Lothian – Libraries and regional community centres will host readings, discussions, and family events celebrating the joy of reading.

The variety of events this year reflects Edinburgh and Lothians’ longstanding engagement with Book Week Scotland, now in its 13^th year and supported by Creative Scotland.

Scottish Book Trust invites everyone to join the #BookWeekScotland conversation and find further information and event listings at Book Week Scotland 2024 – Scottish Book Trust .

Extracts:

Rosemary Henderson, Tranent (East Lothian), ‘A Wee Pocket of Joy’

Sheena Mason, Dalkeith (Midlothian), ‘Ribbons and New Socks’

Georgia Marlborough, Edinburgh, ‘Dancing for Hope’

David Pickering, Edinburgh, ‘HOPE AND CONSOLATION’

Julie Drybrough, Edinburgh, ‘It’s The Hope That Kills You’

Sam Eastop, Edinburgh, ‘Thorin’ – story also adapted as a comic strip by Mollie Ray Jennie Tripp, Edinburgh

Holyrood Committee welcome commitment to increased culture funding but call for more clarity and greater certainty

A year on from the Scottish Government commitment to increase investment in culture by £100 million annually by 2028-29, stakeholders have indicated confidence in the culture sector remains low due to the lack of clarity from the Government regarding how the additional investment will be rolled out, say the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee.

The Committee say the Scottish Government should provide this greater clarity and certainty to the sector following the UK Spending Review, when it has more clarity on its longer-term budgetary outlook. The findings are part of the Committee’s pre-budget scrutiny of the culture portfolio ahead of the Scottish Government Budget 2025-26.

The Committee says it recognises the challenging environment facing public finances currently and welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to increase investment in culture by £100 million annually by 2028-29. It also welcomes the intended minimum £25 million increase in culture funding for 2025-26.

The Committee say the recent temporary closure of the Open Fund for Individuals was unhelpful given the urgent need to restore confidence in the culture sector.

It says it’s unclear why Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government were unable to resolve any issues before the fund closure was announced and is seeking reassurances from both that lessons have been learned from the significant uncertainty this caused to the sector.

The Committee add that the recent postponement of announcing the Multi-Year Funding Programme outcomes until January 2025, a matter of weeks before those decisions were scheduled to be announced, has led to yet more uncertainty for the sector.

The Committee say there is a need for a substantially improved relationship between Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government and therefore welcome the proposed review of Creative Scotland.

As part of this review the Committee say it should review the legislation which sets out Creative Scotland’s statutory roles and responsibilities, consider where it sits within the wider culture sector, and the level of resourcing it requires to fulfil its functions.

Following the significant concerns highlighted by the Committee regarding Creative Scotland’s handling of the funding for Rein, the Committee say the review must also consider effective governance and transparency.

The Committee also welcome that this will form part of a wider review of the way the culture sector is supported, which it says will be valuable in supporting the effective distribution and investment of additional funding for the sector. However, the Committee say it is key this review does not delay the delivery of additional investment, including the planned minimum £25 million additional funding for 2025-26.

The Convener of the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee, Clare Adamson MSP, said: “We recognise the funding challenges facing the Scottish Government and we welcome their commitment to increase investment in culture by £100 million annually by 2028-29 and the intended £25 million at least increase for culture in 2025-26.

“We think the Scottish Government should provide greater clarity and certainty to the culture sector on planned funding increases following the UK Spending Review, when it has greater clarity on its own budgetary outlook as this can increase confidence in the sector.

“There must also be a strategic approach taken for any increased funding to ensure the Scottish Government maximises the impact of the increased investment in culture that it has committed to deliver. That’s why we welcome the review of the way the culture sector is supported.”

The Deputy Convener, Alexander Stewart MSP added: “The temporary closure of Creative Scotland’s Open Fund for Individuals and the postponement of announcing the outcomes of their Multi-Year Funding Programme only add to the feeling of uncertainty and precariousness across the culture sector.

“We believe the relationship between Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government must substantially improve and while we welcome the proposed review of Creative Scotland, we recommend it should be independent and look at effective governance and transparency.

“We support this forming part of a wider review of the whole culture sector, how it is supported and funded, in order to foster a sustainable and thriving sector for all.”

Desperate times for arts organisations as funding uncertainty continues

NO DECISIONS BEFORE DECEMEBER?

CREATIVE SCOTLAND STATEMENT:

Following discussions with the Scottish Government throughout the Multi-Year process, we have now received confirmation that Creative Scotland’s budget to enable Multi-Year decisions will not be clarified until the overall Scottish Government draft budget announcement, scheduled for 04 December 2024.

As a result, the outcome from the Multi-Year Funding programme is being postponed until the end of January 2025. This is a revision to the published guidance.

281 applications to the programme, with an annual ask of £87.5m, are currently being assessed as part of Stage 2 of the published process. Final decisions on the level of support we will be able to provide to successful organisations will be made once we have budget clarity.

The National Lottery reserves that we hold, currently £11m, remain allocated to support Transition Funding from April 2025 for organisations currently in receipt of ongoing funding from Creative Scotland but are unsuccessful in their application for Multi-Year Funding.

Robert Wilson, Chair of Creative Scotland, said: “While we would have preferred to announce the outcome from this application process in October as planned and have been working collaboratively with Scottish Government to endeavour to do so, we also understand the extreme budget pressures that exist.

“These pressures mean we are required to postpone the outcome until such time as we have budget clarity. This will enable us to make final decisions in a context of budget confidence and to support as many organisations on a multi-year basis as we possibly can.”

Angus Robertson, Cabinet Secretary for Culture, said: “The cultural sector is an integral part of our identity as a country. This is why we’re working hard to help the sector to fulfil its potential in Scotland by assuring at least £100 million more annually in funding by 2028-29.

“We await the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s budget announcement on 30 October which has a hugely significant bearing on the Scottish budget. Following that we will be able to set detailed budgets for the coming financial year including for the culture sector.

“I will continue to work in collaboration with Creative Scotland and the sector over the coming months to ensure stability until Creative Scotland have sufficient clarity to be able to announce the recipients of their multi-year funding awards.”

Soundhouse announces line-up for NEW winter music festival

Full Line-up Announced for New Music Festival

Dates: Thursday 28 November to Monday 2 December 2024

www.soundhousewinterfest.com

The Soundhouse Winter Festival, is a brand new music festival which will take place from Thursday 28 November to Monday 2 December in Edinburgh, thanks to support from The National Lottery through Creative Scotland.

Fergus McCreadie headlines the Soundhouse Winter Festival on Sat 30 Nov

The festival showcases musicians either from, or based in Scotland, and runs over St Andrews Day and the Fair Saturday weekend. The programme includes some of Scotland’s finest jazz, and trad musicians, a showcase of emerging new musicians, music workshops for adults and young people, a silent film accompanied by live music, and live performance poetry.

Headliners include award-winning pianist Fergus McCreadie performing solo and with fellow leading world musicians Mindaugas Stumbras (guitar), Michelangeol Scanroglio (doublebass) and Mattia Galeotti (drums); rising star Megan Black whose music has been described as 70s blues rock meets queer feminist pop, and whose latest EP ‘Full Circle (Part 1)’ has recently been nominated for ‘EP of the Year’ in Scotland; Su-a Lee and Friends (Duncan Chisholm, Donald Shaw and Hamish Napier) who sold out The Soundhouse’s Rose Theatre Fringe run in 2023; and Callum Easter & the Roulettes, fresh from touring the USA, who will play The Queen’s Hall with special guest Iona Zajac whose powerful voice seamlessly blends folk and indie and alternative genres with an authentic grit that has captivated audiences across Europe.

The festival is also delighted to present a brand new collaboration between outgoing Edinburgh Makar Hannah Lavery and acclaimed composer Kate Young. This one hour show will be based on Lavery’s work Unwritten Women with a new score by Young.

The festival’s programme also includes some unmissable early evening concerts at the Traverse with Gaelic singer songwriter Rachel Walker performing with one of the country’s foremost folksingers and accompanists Aaron Jones; Edinburgh-based poetic psychedelic supergroup Acolyte (Ruairidh Morrison on bass, Gloria Black on synth and backing vocals, Daniel Hill on percussion and led by award-winning poet and spoken word artist Iona Lee); acclaimed singer-songwriter Victoria Hume, joined by long-term collaborator Chris Letcher, playing alt-folk songs from her new album Radical Abundance, about the dying days of capitalism and what might emerge next; and singer Nicole Smit performing some cool jazzy numbers with her Quintet (Vid Gobac on drums, Cameron Bradley on piano, Dave Toule guitar, and Kassandra E’Silva on saxophone).

Other highlights over the weekend include the SWF Spotlight, a showcase of the jazz stars of tomorrow programmed by Helena Kay; and a screening of The Rugged Island: A Shetland Lyric accompanied by music composed by award-winning multi-instrumentalist Inge Thomson from Fair Isle with Shetlander Catriona Macdonald. The Rugged Island: A Shetland Lyric is a beautiful tender dramatisation of Shetland life, and was originally filmed in 1933 by pioneering Glasgow filmmaker Jenny Gilbertson. It will be opened by a short solo set by award-winning Shetland pianist Amy Laurenson.

Douglas Robertson and Jane-Ann Purdy, co-producers said: “The Soundhouse Winter Festival presents a snapshot of the very best music produced in Scotland today.

“There’s no doubt that our small country produces some of the world’s finest musicians and we are honoured to give them a platform at our new festival.

“Shining a light on our home-grown stars seems an appropriate way to extend the St Andrew’s Day celebrations across this 5-day event. Despite the current gloom in the Scottish arts world, we hope the event will be inspirational and the first of many Soundhouse Winter Festivals.”

Siobhan Anderson, Music Officer at Creative Scotland said: “The Soundhouse Winter Festival looks to showcase some of Scotland’s finest musical talent and brighten up dark evenings with a dazzling array of acts.

“St Andrew’s weekend is the perfect time to hold such an event and it is great to see the cross section of artists from across different genres with experimental and innovative programming and collaborations.”

Booking link for tickets – soundhousewinterfest.com