Up to 15,000 people in the Forth Valley area living with cancer could benefit from a brand new Maggie’s Centre which opened yesterday in Larbert. Breast cancer charity Walk the Walk is the principal funder of Maggie’s Forth Valley, through a £3 million grant from funds raised by its iconic night-time fundraising event, The MoonWalk Scotland. Continue reading Thank you, Moonwalkers: new Maggies Centre opens
Dear Editor
Cuts in funding for services affect people differently; most are appalled at the frequency and the damage it is doing to the local social fabric. But, as always, it is those who most in need of services are denied them, with all the consequences including further isolation within the community.
Pilton Equalities Project (PEP), an organisation based in North Edinburgh, runs many services for local people including:
These activities are attended by approximately 200 people each week.
PEP minibuses pick up from and return people to their homes; all the buses are staffed with volunteer escorts. Up to 80 other volunteers help throughout the week with other activities.
Funding cuts from the city council or Scottish Government will hit the provision of these services and the very people who are most in need.
PEP makes every effort in appealing to various social and charitable organisations for grants and support to keep these vital services going, but it is not sustainable in the long run if funding cuts continue.
PEP’s volunteers carried out 13,000 hours volunteering for local people in 2016, adding greatly to the quality of life and indeed their health.
As one of those volunteers, the reason for this letter is to raise public understanding of how serious are repeated cuts in funding for local services. With the best will and efforts, volunteers cannot operate on insufficient funding for their organisation.
A. Delahoy
Silverknowes Gardens
Funding for a charity supporting children with dyslexia is being doubled, Deputy First Minister John Swinney has announced. Dyslexia Scotland will receive £200,000 funding in 2017/18 to support their work, which includes a helpline, dyslexia assessments and tutoring.
New tools to help teachers address the needs of pupils with dyslexia are also being developed.
The Addressing Dyslexia toolkit has been revised to make it more accessible and easier to use. The free online resource helps teachers support children with dyslexia and literacy issues.
Free online training courses are also being developed to help teachers identify dyslexia early and improve support for pupils as they learn and when preparing to leave school.
Mr Swinney announced the funding at the launch of the refreshed toolkit yesterday, where he met young ambassadors for Dyslexia Scotland and the charity’s president, Sir Jackie Stewart.
Mr Swinney said: “It is vital that young people with dyslexia get the support they need so they can achieve their potential. Today I have met young people who show just how much can be achieved with the right identification and support. But we also know there is more to be done.
“That is why we are doubling the funding we provide to Dyslexia Scotland, to support their work in improving opportunities and supporting children and their families.
“To help children get the right start in life, teachers must be properly equipped to identify dyslexia early and provide the right support, which is why we have refreshed our Addressing Dyslexia toolkit, and created new online training tools.”
Sir Jackie Stewart (above) said: “I cannot emphasise how important it is for all teachers – and I mean all teachers – to use this free, comprehensive and informative Toolkit.
“For the sake of the 10-15% of children and young people with dyslexia in Scotland, my hope is that teachers, schools and local authorities actively promote this invaluable guidance and the accompanying online training. My sincere thanks go to the expert working group that has made this possible.
“My own experience at school scarred me for life due to the ignorance of my teacher – and we know that there are still too many young people not being identified and supported today. Therefore, I am delighted and very grateful that the Scottish Government has supported this initiative and that the Deputy First Minister has today announced that the funding to Dyslexia Scotland will be doubled next year.”
The Addressing Dyslexia toolkit was first launched in 2010.
The first of three online training modules – entitled ‘Introduction to dyslexia and inclusive practice’ – has been developed. It will be available on the Addressing Dyslexia, Open University and Dyslexia Scotland websites and through Education Scotland’s digital sites.
NHS 24 is taking the opportunity to highlight the work thousands of carers do across Scotland, in the run up to Rare Diseases Day. On 28 February, people from across the world will come together to campaign for more research into complex health conditions.
Continue reading Raising awareness of carers on Rare Diseases Day
If you have a long term condition that affects your breathing such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), severe asthma orbronchiectasis for example then did you know that singing can have a positive effect on your lung capacity and help you to control your breathing?
The Cheyne Gang is a singing group set up by Practice Nurses based on research that proves the benefits of singing on physical, mental and social health. Our 2 hour sessions are facilitated by a professional voice coach who teaches breathing techniques to help your lung condition and we sing popular songs which you will recognise and which are tailored to your voice and breathing.
Inverleith Neighbourhood Partnership is supporting us over the next 6 months with a grant and with this we have been able to move to a more suitable venue.
See our flyer (above) for more details and please feel free to come along to one of our sessions to try it out!
From Johnny Cash to Amy Winehouse, alcoholism and the spiral down into addiction is a recurring theme amongst musicians. But one man from Blackburn, West Lothian, hopes the music he wrote as part of his recovery will now help the service which turned his life around. Continue reading Recovery on record
In the run up to the most romantic day of the year, NHS 24 is issuing a set of top ten tips on how to have a healthy heart. Continue reading Love your heart this Valentine’s Day!
Health Secretary Shona Robison has marked World Cancer Day today by reflecting on the strides made in Scotland over the past year to help bring cancer down to size. Ms Robison highlighted recent positive developments made across Scotland – and underlined the government’s continued focus on turning Scotland’s Big C into the ‘wee c’ through awareness and action. Continue reading Awareness raising campaign to follow World Cancer Day
Scotland’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer has urged all people at risk of flu to get their flu vaccine as early as possible this year. Continue reading Flu: get your vaccine as early as possible
