Tag: information

Additional advice support services for Ukrainian refugees in Scotland

Organisations that will provide advice, support and information services for Ukrainian people and their families are to receive Scottish Government funding as part of Scotland’s response to those fleeing the war in Ukraine.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has visited the headquarters of the Scottish Refugee Council (SRC) to learn about the vital work they are doing to help individuals arriving from Ukraine, and to announce more than £1 million of funding to allow them to recruit additional staff ahead of an increase in requests for support.

Ukraine Advice Scotland, run by Scottish charity JustRight Scotland, will also receive funding from the Scottish Government to provide financial stability for the project, which provides free and confidential legal advice to those displaced by the war in Ukraine.

This funding will ensure the organisation can increase their support for legal work, as well as interpretation for advice calls, and translation of online information.

Following the visit to the SRC, where the First Minister met Ukrainian nationals and saw an advice phone line in action, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “Nearly three million people have now fled the war in Ukraine, the biggest refugee crisis in Europe since World War II.

“Scotland is ready to play its part to offer safety and sanctuary to those forced to leave their homes because of Russia’s brutal invasion, and it is heartening to see preparations for increased support, advice and information already being put in place.

“We are determined to do everything in our power to give them the warmest welcome possible when people so start to arrive and we will need organisations like SRC and JustRight Scotland, as well as the support of the people of Scotland, to do just that.” 

Sabir Zazai, Chief Executive of Scottish Refugee Council, said: “People fleeing the war in Ukraine will need advice and support to help them find their feet and settle into life in Scotland.

“We’ll provide practical, one-to-one support to new arrivals and their families, helping with everything from registering with a GP, to sourcing school uniforms and applying for jobs.

“No matter which part of the world people are from or which conflict they are fleeing, our advisors work with people in an empowering, trauma-informed way to build the foundations of a safe life here in Scotland.”

Kirsty Thomson, Managing Director of JustRight Scotland, said: “In this extraordinary time, we welcome the commitment from the Scottish Government to fund Ukraine Advice Scotland which will support Ukrainian people who are seeking safety in Scotland.

“This vital, free and confidential service will provide high-quality initial legal assistance to address needs and protect fundamental rights as well as linking into other legal and support networks that have been established by our partners.”

Online advice booklet launched to support Scotland’s kinship carers

A new online booklet is launched today to help people across Scotland who care for the child of a relative, or friend, after the vast majority (88%) of kinship carers said they were not given enough information about how to access vital financial and emotional support.

What Now? produced by the Kinship Care Advice Service for Scotland (KCASS), includes a guide to the kinship assessment system, as well as contact details of organisations and support groups who can offer help and advice to carers.

Since 2010, there has been a significant increase across Scotland in the number of children being cared for by family member or friend because they are unable to live with their birth parents, an arrangement known as kinship care.

The latest Scottish Government statistics show there were 4,456 children formally looked after in kinship care in 2019-20, (31% of the looked after children population), compared to 3,172 children in 2009-2010 (20% of the looked after children population). **

KCASS, which is operated by Adoption UK Scotland and Adoption and Fostering Alliance Scotland in collaboration with the Child Poverty Action Group, is urging kinship carers and social workers to access What Now? online, or request a hard copy of the booklet, launched to mark the start of this year’s Kinship Care Week.

Susan Hunter, KCASS project coordinator, said: “Since its inception our KCASS Advisory Group, all of whom are kinship carers, has highlighted the lack of suitable information available to them, particularly at the start of their kinship journey. 

“All too often kinship carers get in touch with our helpline asking for assistance; they have taken on the care of children at short notice with no understanding of what this will entail for them and their family.

“Kinship carers describe feeling overwhelmed and very much alone. Where they have been provided with information, they have found this to be difficult to comprehend with terms they are not familiar with, leaving them confused and uninformed.”

Children’s Minister Clare Haughey said: “Kinship Care Week provides an opportunity to celebrate and pay tribute to the important role that kinship carers play in providing loving, secure, stable, and nurturing homes for children and young people who can no longer live with their parents.

“All kinship carers deserve to get the support they need, and I welcome publication of the What Now? booklet, which will help kinship carers access important information. I would like to thank members of the KCASS Advisory Group who ensured the voices of those with care experience were heard when the booklet was developed.”

Fiona Aitken, director, Adoption UK Scotland, said: “We’re proud to be facilitating Kinship Care Week as an opportunity for us to raise the profile of the carers who tirelessly provide loving homes for their children. 

“The week allows us to provide valuable opportunities for children in kinship families to take part in fun activities, workshops and group sessions for carers and learning and networking events for practitioners, encouraging all Scottish kinship care families, and those who support them, to take part.”

Robin Duncan, Adoption and Fostering Alliance Scotland director, said: “Kinship Care Week is a great opportunity to increase awareness of kinship care and give recognition to the carers for the remarkable, and often unsung, contribution they make. It also gives us the chance to spread the word about the new What Now? booklet so that this can be as widely available as possible helping to improve the availability and consistency of support to people when they take on the care of a child.”

This year’s Kinship Care Week takes place from 14th -18th March and features a range of webinars and discussion groups for carers, social workers, and childcare professionals. A full programme of events can be found at https://kinship.scot/kinship-care-week-2022/

Kinship carers or professionals can order a hard copy of What Now? by contacting KCASS at advice@kinshipscot.org, or by calling 0808 800 0006.

What-Now-booklet-2022_onlineDownload

Case Study

Michelle became a kinship carer to her two granddaughters five years ago. She says she and her husband were not given any advice or guidance at the time about kinship care or what was expected of them as carers.

She said: “When I first became a kinship carer I got a call out of the blue asking me to look after my granddaughters for a few weeks whilst social work got things sorted out at home. Five years later they are still with us.

“The day they arrived I heard the words kinship carer, something I had never heard of before and knew nothing about. My husband, daughter and I looked like rabbits caught in headlights with two little children. We were given no help, advice, or guidance as to what to do or what was expected of us, we felt so very alone and angry. We had no contact numbers and did not even receive a phone call. If I had been given this booklet then it would have made things a little easier. Just to know that we were not alone and that help was out there, it would have been an absolute lifeline.

“I suggested developing a booklet like this at the KCASS Advisory Group which I am a part of. I didn’t want anyone else to go through the horrible, sometimes debilitating situation I was left in. This booklet would have helped so very much.

“That is why I am so very passionate and determined that it should be given to all kinship carers when they take on the care of a child, just so they know that they are not alone and have all the information they will need.”

Edinburgh College Open Day

Edinburgh College Open Day on Friday 4 February is for school pupils looking at their options at college.

You will have the opportunity to book a place on our live Q and A sessions to find out more about the different subject areas you can study.

Book your place now:

https://edinburghcollege.ac.uk/news-and-events/events/open-days

EU Settlement Scheme webinar

‘Can I join my family in the UK?’ ‘Can I bring my family member to live in the UK’ ? We’ve heard these questions a lot in the last few weeks!

Join our next webinar on Tuesday, 25 January to learn more about #EUSS Joining Family Members.

Please register here: https://bit.ly/3GY2NTu

Online Police Recruitment event

POLICE Scotland will be hosting an online recruitment event aimed at people from all minority ethnic communities across Scotland tonight.

This event will give attendees a fantastic opportunity to hear from serving BME officers and their experiences as a police officer in Scotland as well as the opportunity to ask questions.

The event will also focus on the recruitment process and the training, with a unique insight in to life at the Scottish Police College. The event will be held on Microsoft Teams tonight – Thursday 13th January – from 6.30pm – 8.30pm.

To sign up, please email: recruitmentpositiveactionteam@scotland.pnn.police.uk

The consent, support and co-operation of our fellow citizens lies at the heart of the identity and legitimacy of policing in Scotland.

To ensure that bond is as strong as possible, we must fully represent and reflect the communities we serve. Inclusion is an operational necessity and morally the right thing to do.

We are committed to increasing the number of officers and staff from under-represented groups.There are well documented barriers to some people applying to join the police service.

We therefore run a number of different recruitment events to answer specific questions from people from diverse communities. This is to make sure everyone has fair access to the Police Scotland recruitment process.

NHS Inform: Help and information for long COVID patients

People in Scotland suffering from ongoing COVID symptoms can find useful information and guidance from NHS 24 at www.nhsinform.scot/longer-term-effects-of-covid-19-long-covid

Most people recover from coronavirus within 4 weeks, but for some people symptoms can last longer, or new ones can develop. Symptoms can also change over time and can affect anywhere in the body. This is often referred to as long COVID and can include breathlessness, a cough, aches and pains, insomnia and low mood or anxiety.

The information on NHSinform.scot includes the most common symptoms, how a patient is assessed and how to manage ongoing symptoms.

NHS 24’s Medical Director, Dr Laura Ryan, says: “Coronavirus can vary from person to person, and sometimes recovery can take longer than we would like. The important thing is not to compare with others and to take the time to look after ourselves.

“The information on NHS inform can really help with managing ongoing symptoms until they do naturally fade away. Of course, you should contact your GP practice if you’re worried about the severity or persistence of your symptoms or they’re getting worse.”

Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “It is important that people with long COVID symptoms get the right advice and having all the information in one place will hopefully make it easier for them. The information and support available at NHS inform has been designed to help people with their recovery.  

“The Long COVID Support Fund was established with £10m last month and was designed to maximise and improve the co-ordination of a broad range of existing services across the health and social care system and Third Sector in response to the condition.”

Planning Democracy: Community Guide to Planning Appeals

Planning Democracy’s new Community Guide to Appeals is now available.

If a developer appeals a planning decision what can you do? How do you get the community voice heard at an appeal? What happens when?

All these questions and more can be found in the guide at:

https://www.planningdemocracy.org.uk/get-help/resources/

Boys Brigade is back in Muirhouse

66th Muirhouse Boys Brigade started back on Friday 27 August. Here’s some important information for returners and for young people interested in joining the BBs:

We start at 6pm, please do not arrive early. All parents/guardians must come in to the hall to sign the annual consent form. If a young person turns up without a parent or guardian we may have to send them home.

We welcome boys and girls who are in primary one, two and three in our anchor section, primary four, five and six in the junior section and Primary seven and all secondary pupils in our company and senior section.

We finish at 7.45 for all children in Primary one to six. For young people in Primary 7 and secondary school we finish at 8.30. All young people will be in the church at the same time as the government no longer limits numbers for youth groups.

Cost

We do not charge a joining fee. We do charge subs each night. This pays towards capitation fees for Boys’ Brigade locally and Nationally along with insurance. The subs also pay towards resources, equipment and awards for presentation night.

This year we need to increase the subs. This was not a decision taken lightly. For the last 20 years we have had the same fee, however with the capitation fees continuing to rise each year we have made the difficult decision to increase our nightly fee.

This session it will be £3 a night.

Uniform – for the first few weeks we ask that all young people do not wear uniform as we settle back in.

We will post in the future the information for new parents along with information for parents who have existing uniforms that most likely will be too small now.

COVID specific guidance to protect all young people and our volunteer leaders:

We must follow all government guidance for youth work.All adults must wear masks when coming in to the church building. All our leaders will be wearing masks for the full evening.

All young people who are 12 and older must wear a mask at all times inside the church building. Younger members can wear masks of they wish. Anyone with an exception should bring their lanyard along and this should be discussed when the parent fills in the annual consent form.

There are hand gel stations at the doors that should be used at entry and exit. We will also have hand gel available throughout the evening.

Please bring your own pen for filling in the consent form.

Subs will be collected as the young people enter.

Please as much as possible bring the correct change, we do not hold petty cash in the church.

If you have been told to self isolate you must not come along to Boys’ Brigade until the self isolate period is over.

If your young person has any symptoms of COVID you must not send them to Boys’ Brigade.

Any young person who develops symptoms during the night will be isolated and a patent/guardian will be called to collect them immediately.

Parents are asked to maintain distancing when inside the building.

Leaders will be remaining 2m away from young people as much as possible.

Any failure to follow the COVID guidelines could lead to us having to stop meeting face to face for an extended period of time.

We will not be running a tuck shop at this time.

Our first few nights are all about reconnecting and embedding the routines.

We really look forward to seeing all the young people back in the church halls!

It’s time to Re-open/Re-mobilise

Join EVOC for a session focused on how to re-open / re-mobilise your organisation, projects and activities safely.

About this event

Aimed at organisations and managers who are making plans to re-open / re-mobilise, this event will focus on a selection of issues including community transport, workforce and volunteers.

1. National overview: Ian Brooke (Deputy Chief Executive, EVOC)

2. Volunteers: Marion Findlay (Director of Services, Volunteer Edinburgh)

3. Re-opening Guidelines: Angela Davis (Environmental Health Officer, City of Edinburgh Council)

4. WHALE Arts Re-opening Experiences: Laura Delahunt (Enterprise and Facilities Manager, WHALE Arts)

5. Panel Q&A

Breakout group discussions:

  • Buildings
  • Volunteers/workforce
  • Transport
  • Organising Group work
  • Guidance/paperwork/risk assessment discussion

Please note that this event is now taking place on Microsoft Teams.

EVENT LINK

Registration for this event closes on Tue 17 Aug at 6pm.

You will receive an email through Eventbrite by 9am on Wed 18 Aug that includes the Teams link for this event.

If you don’t receive an email please check your email junk folder or get in touch with us: esther.currie@evoc.org.uk

Ask the GP – live webinar for Polish community tomorrow

“ASK THE GP” The only public live meeting with the Polish GP in Scotland on Covid-19 vaccination for the Polish Community

“ZAPYTAJ GP” Jedyne takie spotkanie z polskim lekarzem w Szkocji na temat szczepień na Covid-19 [ENG]

In response to the needs of the Polish community in Scotland, Feniks would like to invite you to a live webinar with Dr Piotr Konieczny, a Polish GP in Edinburgh who specialises in ENT and is a member of the Royal College of General Practitioners.

During this meeting, the expert will answer the most frequently asked questions about Covid-19 vaccination.

Ask a question prior to the meeting: https://bit.ly/pytaniadoGP

SAVE THE DATE: Thursday, 12 August, 19.30 (the UK time)

The meeting will be held live on Feniks’s Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/Feniks.Support.Services

There is no need to register, but in case you do not want to miss this meeting you can sign up to the Facebook event (a notification will show up an hour before the event): https://www.facebook.com/events/845324889457595

A recording of the meeting will be made available on Feniks Facebook page and on YouTube. The discussion will be held in Polish.[PL]

“ZAPYTAJ GP” Jedyne takie spotkanie z polskim lekarzem w Szkocji na temat szczepień na Covid-19

Odpowiadając na zapotrzebowanie polskiej społeczności w Szkocji zapraszamy na spotkanie informacyjne online z dr Piotrem Koniecznym, polskim lekarzem rodzinnym w Edynburgu specjalizującym się w laryngologii, członkiem Royal College of General Practitioners. W czasie spotkania ekspert odpowie na pytania na temat szczepień przeciwko Covid-19, które można zadawać w poniższym kwestionariuszu.

Zachęcamy do zadawania pytań przed spotkaniem:
https://bit.ly/pytaniadoGP

NIE PRZEGAP: Czwartek, 12 sierpnia, godz. 19.30 (czasu brytyjskiego)

Nie trzeba się rejestrować, ale zachęcamy do dołączenia do wydarzenia na Facebooku (przypomnienie o wydarzeniu pojawi się na godzinę przed): https://www.facebook.com/events/845324889457595

Spotkanie odbędzie się live na profilu facebookowym Feniksa: https://www.facebook.com/Feniks.Support.Services

Nagranie ze spotkania zostanie zapisane i udostępnione na profilu Feniksa na Facebooku oraz na YouTube. Rozmowa odbędzie się w języku polskim.