All short-term let properties will require a licence to ensure they are safe and the people providing them are suitable, under legislation approved by the Scottish Parliament.
Local authorities will be required to establish a short-term lets licensing scheme by 1 October 2022, and existing hosts and operators will have until 1 April 2023 to apply for a licence.
The legislation was developed in response to concerns raised by residents and communities about the impact of short-term let properties on their local communities, including noise, antisocial behaviour and the impact on the supply of housing in some areas.
Housing Secretary Shona Robison said: “This legislation is a significant milestone on our path to bringing in an effective system of regulating short-term lets.
“Our licensing scheme will allow local authorities and communities to take action to manage issues more effectively, without unduly curtailing the many benefits of short-term lets to hosts, visitors and the economy.
“We have already introduced legislation allowing councils to establish short-term let control areas and manage numbers of short-term lets. This is the next step to delivering a licensing scheme that will ensure short-term lets are safe and that allowing them to continue to make a positive impact on Scotland’s tourism industry and local economies while meeting the needs of local communities.
“This legislation covers the whole of Scotland, including island and rural communities, and offers flexibility to local authorities in how it is implemented based on local needs and concerns.
“We appreciate the input from tourism bodies, local government, community organisations, residents and others in reaching this point.”
Welcoming the announcement, city council leader Adam McVey said: “This is fantastic news for residents. After our call for this legislative change we worked with the Scottish Government as they consulted on this issue and how the details of a licensing scheme would work.
“I’m really pleased all short term lets will now need a licence making them much easier to control not only in terms of overall impact on our housing supply but also help us deal with any anti-social behaviour and noise issues.
“It’ll mean whole properties being let out as short term lets will need to have ‘change of use’ planning permission before they can be granted a licence. This will help to stop homes being taken out of residential use or being let out when they are unsuitable or unsafe.
“In addition to this, councillors will consider a report next month on whether we should apply to the Scottish Government for Edinburgh to become a ‘short term let control area’. Enforcement of planning legislation is a costly and lengthy process. If approved, many properties being used as short term lets would automatically require to have planning permission in place.”
All short-term let properties will require a licence by July 2024.
Children aged five to 11 years old who have specific medical conditions which place them at greater risk from COVID-19 will be invited for their first vaccination from this week onwards.
Parents do not need to book an appointment for them online as they will be contacted directly by Health Boards.
Those five to 11 year olds who are household contacts of people with immune suppression will be invited to receive their vaccination in due course.
Letters will also be sent to young people aged 12-15 who are at particular clinical risk from COVID-19 inviting them for a booster jag, 12 weeks after their last primary dose.
Meanwhile, second doses are now available for all 12 to 15 year olds who had their first dose at least twelve weeks previously. This cohort can book an appointment online at NHS Inform or go to a drop-in centre. Parents and carers are welcome to accompany them..
Any 16 or 17 year old can book a booster online for 12 weeks after their second dose. They can also visit any drop-in centre.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “The vaccination programme continues to be a huge success and we are so grateful to all those who have taken up the offer of a vaccination and of course, every single person involved in the delivery of our national programme.
“In this next part of the programme we continue to deliver boosters and take forward the latest advice from the JCVI regarding younger cohorts. They and their parents can find out more about the vaccination that is recommended for each age group at NHS Inform.
“We urge all those who are eligible for any dose to take up the offer to protect them, those around them and of course our NHS at this particularly busy time.”
Public asked to remain cautious while case numbers are still high
Additional measures aimed at stemming the spread of the Omicron variant whilst the vaccination booster programme took effect will be lifted next week.
From 5am on Monday 24 January, restrictions including one metre physical distancing in hospitality and leisure settings and table service in hospitality venues will not be required and attendance limits at indoor events will be removed. Non-professional indoor contact sports will also resume.
Nightclubs can reopen and whilst the Covid certification scheme will not be extended at this stage, regulations will be updated to ensure venues cannot avoid the scheme by putting tables on dancefloors whilst still allowing dancing.
People will continue to be asked to work from home whenever possible, with employers asked to facilitate this. However, the Government will engage with businesses now about a return to a more hybrid approach from the start of February if case numbers continue to decline.
The guidance to keep social interaction at home and in indoor public places to a maximum of three households is also being lifted but given case numbers remain high, the public are being asked to be cautious and to limit contacts where possible, in addition to taking lateral flow tests before meeting people from other households.
Further baseline measures including a requirement to collect customer details in hospitality settings, the use of face coverings in public places and on public transport in addition to the current Covid certification scheme will remain in place to limit the spread of Omicron and reduce pressure on essential services.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “Because of the vaccination programme, and the efforts we have all made to curb transmission, our position is not as difficult as feared back in December. That is why we were able to lift the limits on outdoor events yesterday and why we are lifting other restrictions from next Monday.
“We are still in a very challenging position and the NHS remains under significant pressure, with the number of Covid cases still exceptionally high. Although we can be cautiously optimistic about our current position, we all still need to play our part in helping to slow the spread of the virus.
“The key ways in which all of us can do that include getting vaccinated as soon as you can, limiting and prioritising contacts that matter the most to you and taking lateral flow tests when you are planning to see other people.
“All of this makes a difference and is the reason why we have been able to start lifting restrictions and can look ahead to a much better spring and summer.”
The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC),an alliance of leading providers of specialist care and education to vulnerable children and young people, has raised concerns over a sharp decline in the number of legally-binding education support plans for those with complex or multiple additional support needs (ASN).
So-called co-ordinated support plans (CSPs), prepared by local authorities, are the only education plans that are legal documents.
This provides some guarantees of entitlement to additional resources and legal redress, placing statutory duties on local authorities to review and ensure the provisions contained within it are being met.
Despite a Scottish Government promise that there would be no reduction in the proportion of pupils receiving them since their introduction in 2004, there has been a significant fall in the number of pupils with a CSP, from 3,448 in 2012 1 to 1,420 in 2021 2, amounting to a drop of 58.9%. This is a reduction from 2.9% to 0.6% of those with ASN, amounting to 0.2% of the pupil population.
A concern raised by the coalition is that councils are reluctant to issue CSPs due to the legal protections they afford, against the backdrop of a lack of resources to support these, with non-statutory alternatives often being offered in their place.
This sharp fall in the number of CSPs is against a background of a dramatic increase in the number of pupils with ASN, such as autism, dyslexia and mental health problems which in 2021 has reached a record high of 232,753.
Of this total 58.0% cent are boys. This represents 33.0% of the pupil population, rising from 118,011 in 2012, and is a near doubling (97.2%) in numbers from that year.
The coalition has called for an expansion in access to CSPs, ensuring that those requiring it receive the care and support they are entitled to, and to revise the relevant statutory guidance, with the necessary resourcing to support this.
A spokesperson for SCSC commented: “We are deeply concerned that there has been a decline in the use of CSPs, which are designed to support those with the most complex needs. This is despite a Scottish Government assurance that they would not decline and a dramatic increase in the numbers of those with ASN.
“By not providing this statutory support, many of those vulnerable individuals are being failed and not getting the support they are entitled to, which is of particular significance given the impact of Covid-19. The Scottish Government, local authorities and other agencies need to collaborate to ensure that those requiring a CSP receive it, with the necessary resourcing to support this.
“With those with ASN drawn disproportionately from poorer neighbourhoods, if we are to genuinely close the educational attainment gap they must get the care and support they need, when they need it.”
Around 12,000 students will assist in the safe delivery of health and social care as services continue to respond to the pandemic.
More than 3,000 nursing and midwifery students are heading out on placements this month. A further 7,000 students will be placed across the service in February, complemented by around 1,500 Allied Health Professional students and more than 500 paramedic students who will also be involved in the delivery of care via supervised practice.
The practical component of student learning remains centred on supervised involvement in the frontline delivery of patient care as part of accruing the hours necessary for registration as a healthcare professional. It is an integral part of the ongoing work to respond to the challenges of COVID-19, and is greatly valued by the workforce.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “As part of their professional programme of education, and throughout the pandemic, these students have worked tirelessly to support our NHS, making an invaluable contribution to the delivery of care as part of their supervised practice in health and social care environments.
“As we go into a third year facing up to the challenges of COVID, we are fortunate to combine good quality learning attained by students as part of their supervised practice with the positive impact these students have on the delivery of safe, effective patient care and their ongoing support of our NHS. And I wholeheartedly thank them for their hard work during this difficult time.”
Senior Charge Nurse for Critical Care at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary Steve Walls said: “As part of their learning experience, students have adapted to what has been very challenging time, providing the highest quality of care as valued members of clinical teams across a broad range of services, from our hospitals to the community.
“For me it has been fantastic to see how they have developed while providing an extra pair of hands, eyes and ears to make sure our patients are safely cared for as we respond to the pandemic. They also bring with them an enthusiasm that can lift the mood of a shift.”
Honours nursing student at Glasgow Caledonian University and mother-of-three Natalie Elliott, from Lanarkshire, was one of the first students to go out on supervised hospital placements in April 2020. She said: “ I learned so much. The experience has helped boost my confidence and improved my performance.
“It was a real privilege to be part of the pandemic response and to feel that you’ve made that little bit of a difference. There was a sense of camaraderie on the wards and I really felt part of the team.
“It has also helped me develop more self-awareness. Nursing can be stressful but I’ve learned to look after myself and be more resilient when I feel overwhelmed with the challenges I face, particularly when wards are short staffed and there are difficult cases to deal with.”
Crown Estate Scotland has announced the outcome of its application process for ScotWind Leasing, the first Scottish offshore wind leasing round in over a decade and the first ever since the management of offshore wind rights were devolved to Scotland.
The results coming just months after Glasgow hosted the global COP26 climate conference show the huge opportunity that Scotland has to transform its energy market and move towards a net zero economy.
Highlights include:
17 projects have been selected out of a total of 74 applications, and have now been offered option agreements which reserve the rights to specific areas of seabed
A total of just under £700m will be paid by the successful applicants in option fees and passed to the Scottish Government for public spending
The area of seabed covered by the 17 projects is just over 7,000km2 (a maximum of 8,600km2 was made available through the Scottish Government’s Sectoral Marine Plan)
Initial indications suggest a multi-billion pound supply chain investment in Scotland
The potential power generated will provide for the expanding electrification of the Scottish economy as we move to net zero.
The details of the 17 applicants who have been offered option agreements can be found below and in the downloads section.
Map reference
Lead applicant
Option Fees
Technology
Total capacity (MW)
1
BP Alternative Energy Investments
£85,900,000
Fixed
2,907
2
SSE Renewables
£85,900,000
Floating
2,610
3
Falck Renewables
£28,000,000
Floating
1,200
4
Shell New Energies
£86,000,000
Floating
2,000
5
Vattenfall
£20,000,000
Floating
798
6
DEME
£18,700,000
Fixed
1,008
7
DEME
£20,000,000
Floating
1,008
8
Falck Renewables
£25,600,000
Floating
1,000
9
Ocean Winds
£42,900,000
Fixed
1,000
10
Falck Renewables
£13,400,000
Floating
500
11
Scottish Power Renewables
£68,400,000
Floating
3,000
12
BayWa
£33,000,000
Floating
960
13
Offshore Wind Power
£65,700,000
Fixed
2,000
14
Northland Power
£3,900,000
Floating
1,500
15
Magnora
£10,300,000
Mixed
495
16
Northland Power
£16,100,000
Fixed
840
17
Scottish Power Renewables
£75,400,000
Fixed
2,000
Totals
£699,200,000
24,826
Simon Hodge, Chief Executive of Crown Estate Scotland, said: “Today’s results are a fantastic vote of confidence in Scotland’s ability to transform our energy sector. Just a couple of months after hosting COP26, we’ve now taken a major step towards powering our future economy with renewable electricity.
“In addition to the environmental benefits, this also represents a major investment in the Scottish economy, with around £700m being delivered straight into the public finances and billions of pounds worth of supply chain commitments.
“The variety and scale of the projects that will progress onto the next stages shows both the remarkable progress of the offshore wind sector, and a clear sign that Scotland is set to be a major hub for the further development of this technology in the years to come.”
Should any application not progress to signing a full agreement, the next highest scoring application will instead be offered an option.
Once these agreements are officially signed, the details of the supply chain commitments made by the applicants as part of their Supply Chain Development Statements will be published.
This is just the first stage of the long process these projects will have to go through before we see turbines going into the water, as the projects evolve through consenting, financing, and planning stages.
Responsibility for these stages does not sit with Crown Estate Scotland, and projects will only progress to a full seabed lease once all these various planning stages have been completed.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has welcomed the “truly historic” opportunity for Scotland’s net zero economy, as the winners of the ScotWind offshore wind leasing auction were announced by Crown Estate Scotland yesterday.
17 projects, with a combined potential generating capacity of 25GW, have been offered the rights to specific areas of the seabed for the development of offshore wind power – with developers giving commitments to invest in the Scottish supply chain, providing opportunities for high quality green jobs for decades to come.
The projects are expected to secure at least £1bn in supply chain investment for every 1GW of capacity proposed. They will also generate around £700 million in revenue for the Scottish Government and represent the world’s first commercial scale opportunity for floating offshore wind.
As well as helping complete Scotland’s own journey to net zero, creating thousands of jobs in the process, our offshore wind resource also has the potential to position Scotland as a major exporter of renewable energy, including green hydrogen.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: ““The scale of opportunity here is truly historic. ScotWind puts Scotland at the forefront of the global development of offshore wind, represents a massive step forward in our transition to net zero, and will help deliver the supply chain investments and high quality jobs that will make the climate transition a fair one.
“It allows us to make huge progress in decarbonising our energy supply – vital if we are to reduce Scotland’s emissions – while securing investment in the Scottish supply chain of at least £1 billion for every gigawatt of power.
This will be transformational. And because Scotland’s workers are superbly placed with transferable skills to capitalise on the transition to new energy sources, we have every reason to be optimistic about the number of jobs that can be created.
“That means, for example, that people working right now in the oil and gas sector in the North East of Scotland can be confident of opportunities for their future. The spread of projects across our waters promises economic benefits for communities the length and breadth of the country, ensuring Scotland benefits directly from the revolution in energy generation that is coming.
“The scale of opportunity represented in today’s announcement exceeds our current planning assumption of 10GW of offshore wind – which is a massive vote of confidence in Scotland. So we will now embark on the rigorous consenting process required to make sure we can maximise the potential that clearly exists in offshore wind while also ensuring that the impacts of large scale development – including on other marine users and the wider natural environment – are properly understood and addressed.
“While it is not yet possible to say with certainty what the scale of development will ultimately be, there is no doubt that the scale of this opportunity is transformational – both for our environment and the economy.”
The Falck Renewables and BlueFloat Energy partnership taking part in the current ScotWind offshore wind leasing round is celebrating the success of three of its bids to secure seabed leases for sites which lend themselves to the deployment of large-scale floating wind technology in Scotland.
Two of the partnership’s proposed projects – a site east of Aberdeen in Plan Option E1 and a site north of Fraserburgh in Plan Option NE6 have been granted leases from Crown Estate Scotland – along with a proposed site east of Caithness in Plan Option NE3 which will be developed by a consortium of Falck Renewables, BlueFloat Energy and Ørsted.
The three areas could accommodate a total of approximately 3.0 GW of offshore wind capacity with the projects scheduled to be operational by the end of the decade, subject to securing consent, commercial arrangements and grid connections.
The successful bids combined BlueFloat Energy’s knowledge and experience in developing, financing and executing offshore wind projects with Falck Renewables’ strong track record of global project development and over 15 years of community engagement in Scotland.
Carlos Martin, CEO of BlueFloat Energy, said: “The Scottish coastline is ideal for developing offshore wind projects and our team is thrilled to be given the opportunity to deploy our expertise to deliver these projects in Scotland.
“The potential for boosting the economy and reinforcing Scotland’s position at the forefront of the energy transition is huge. We have already carried out extensive work on mapping out the Scottish supply chain and now look forward to ensuring we work with as many local companies as possible.”
Toni Volpe, CEO of Falck Renewables, said: “We are delighted that our applications have won the support of Crown Estate Scotland and that our offshore wind projects will be making a considerable contribution to providing Scotland with clean energy.
“Falck Renewables has a worldwide renewables portfolio and with our growth strategy we are on track to facilitate the global transition to a low carbon future.”
Richard Dibley, Managing Director of Falck Renewables Wind Ltd, said: “We are hugely excited about the positive impact these projects will have on the whole of Scotland in terms of creating jobs, economic benefit and helping to achieve a net zero future.
“Over the past 15 years we have seen communities empowered with the help of the financial support they have received from our onshore wind farms and we look forward to sharing the benefits of offshore wind with local communities.”
The Falck Renewables, BlueFloat Energy, Ørsted consortium has already begun work with community ownership experts Energy4All on a new framework which will allow residents of Scotland and Scottish communities to share the financial benefits of the offshore wind energy projects the consortium plans to build in the future.
As part of the preparatory work to deliver the offshore wind projects the consortium will collaborate with Energy Skills Partnership Scotland (ESP) to help train up a skilled workforce in time for construction to begin.
Research will also be carried out with the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) to investigate the potential effects of floating offshore wind developments on the marine environment. Projects under discussion will examine how fishing interests and offshore wind can work together and study the interaction of fish, marine mammals and seabirds with floating offshore wind farms.
Energy4All is a non-profit distributing co-operative social enterprise formed by the Baywind Energy Co-operative in 2002 to enable more communities to own and operate renewable energy projects.
Marna McMillin, Chief Executive of Energy4All, said: “Climate breakdown is the key environmental challenge facing our society. If we are to successfully decarbonize our economy, we must rapidly replace polluting fossil fuels with clean power. This requires us to generate much more zero carbon electricity to heat our homes and power our vehicles.
“We need the public to support those changes, and we believe one of the best ways of ensuring that support is to allow individuals to have a share in those projects.
“Falck Renewables has a 15-year track record of working with Energy4All having successfully set up seven co-operatives at its Scottish onshore wind farms, enabling thousands of people to buy a stake in their local wind farm.
“We think partnerships of this sort could be a model for other offshore projects in both the UK and the rest of Europe.”
Reacting to the outcome of the application process for ScotWind leasing by Crown Estate Scotland, the ALBA Party Depute Leader and MP for East Lothian Kenny MacAskill MP said:“This offshore wind giveaway is selling the family silver cheap while Scots families face crippling energy bills this April.
“Those who don’t learn from history are destined to repeat it. It looks like the Scottish Government have surrendered vast chunks of the North Sea wind resource for a relative pittance just as Westminster gave away Scotland’s oil in the 1970s.
“Instead of a one off payment of under £700 million there should be annual payments. Instead of Scottish resources being just handed over to international investment companies there should be a public stake in every single field.
“One has to question the basic competence of Crown Estate Scotland. They think they have auctioned away 10-12 GW of power. Informed industry estimates are the real capacity from this round alone is double that.
“Offshore wind is fast becoming the most lucrative major power source on the planet. Scotland has one quarter of the resource of Europe. It will be cold comfort to Scottish pensioners shivering in their homes facing vast fuel bills to know that the Scottish Government have given away so much of the green power of the future for so little in return.”
The STUC says that the announcement must mark the end of broken promises to Scottish workers and presage the start of a long overdue renewables jobs revolution.
Oil giants Shell and BP, alongside Scottish and Southern Energy, Scottish Power Renewables, and a number of multinational companies have all won leases to develop offshore wind farms off Scotland’s coast.
Following campaigns from trade unions in the wake of failures to secure meaningful fabrication contracts at BiFab, the ScotWind leasing round included requirements on companies to make supply chain commitments, with many bidders making public statements promising major investments in job creation. However, these statements have not yet been published and in any case they do not require a specific proportion of work to be undertaken locally.
The STUC continues to be concerned that so few successful bids are from domestic companies, with previous experience showing that multinational companies regularly offshore work to Europe and the Far East.
The STUC is calling for the Scottish Government to call a summit of successful developers to secure ongoing commitments to cooperate on delivery and work with unions and government to make the green jobs revolution a reality.
STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer said: “Over the past six months the public relations teams of the prospective bidders have been in overdrive, promising the long overdue renewables jobs revolution. Now we need to make that happen.
“The First Minister says that we have every reason to be optimistic about the number of jobs that can be created, but our skills workers in oil and gas need more than words given the experience over the past decade tells us that jobs in offshore wind are consistently offshored overseas.
“With over 1000 massive turbines to become operational over the next decade, it would be nothing short of economic vandalism if we fail to build a thriving supply chain in Scotland. Fundamental to that is building the infrastructure to enable large scale fabrication in Scottish yards, requiring local content from developers, and addressing questions of ownership through the development of a Scottish National Infrastructure company.
“Unions will work proactively and positively with employers and business to deliver the Fair Work future our workers deserve, but we will also campaign vigorously to ensure that promises are kept.”
Over 30 public and school libraries across Scotland have been awarded Scottish Government funding to deliver a range of innovative projects including initiatives to tackle climate change and promote sustainable development – but none of them are in Edinburgh.
The Public Library Improvement Fund and the School Library Improvement Fund are annual awards set up by the Scottish Government and administered by the Scottish Library and Information Council. This year nearly £400,000 has been awarded through the two funds.
Sustainable projects backed by the Public Library Improvement Fund include East Renfrewshire Culture and Leisure’s The Root Cause Project, which received £14,240 to transform an outdoor space at Thornliebank library into a sustainable community allotment and multi-functional space.
Funds for school libraries were awarded to projects championing anti-racism and anti-discrimination.
These included Prestwick Academy Library and Ayr Academy Library’s project Read Woke Primaries to curate a wider range of contemporary fiction written by, and about, people from minority groups.
Culture Minister Jenny Gilruth said: “Libraries play a key role in our communities and our schools and projects funded through these awards will help to improve the services they can offer.
“Promoting sustainability is integral to our Net Zero ambitions to tackle climate change and our public libraries are an important focal point for conversations and taking action.
“And as part of our wider approach to creating anti-racist environments in school, it is great to see school libraries engaging our young people on the importance of belonging, inclusion and social justice.”
Pamela Tulloch, Chief Executive at the Scottish Library and Information Council, said: “As we begin to rebuild our society following the pandemic, school and public libraries are an essential part of the recovery process to ensure our future social and economic well-being.
“We’re particularly proud to provide funding awards to projects that promote sustainable development in public libraries and champion anti-racism and anti-discrimination across school libraries as examples of how libraries can make a valuable contribution to Scotland’s social fabric.”
The total amount for projects from the two funds comes to £398,142.
South Ayrshire Libraries Jock Tamson’s BairnsAmount Awarded: £9,200
South Ayrshire LibrariesClimate for ChangeAmount Awarded: £26,610
Stirling Libraries in partnership with Stirling University Making a Difference – Amount Awarded: £46,568
West Dunbartonshire Libraries Towards a Sustainable Future – Amount Awarded: £21,435
West Lothian Libraries in partnership with Heriot Watt University Eco-Ableism – Amount Awarded: £6,000 Total: £198,657
School Library Improvement Fund awards
Aberdeen School: Dyce AcademyProject: Hear a Story / Tell a Story – Award: £4,000
School(s): Aberdeen City Libraries / Harlaw Academy with Holocaust Educational Trust Erika’s suitcase – Award: £8,000
Angus School: Arbroath Academy plus othersProject: OPEN – a book, your eyes, your world – Award: £1,630
Borders School: Arbroath Academy plus othersProject: OPEN – a book, your eyes, your world – Award: £1,630
School: Eyemouth High Project: Get Woke – Award: £8,150
Dumfries and Galloway School: North-West Community Campus NWCC Project: Bringing Diversity, Racial Equality to the NWCC Young adult Book Group – Award: £8,150
East Lothian School: Musselburgh Grammar Project Award: Digital Storybag – Award: £4,900
School: Lethams Mains Primary with EL Council – Project Award: The Borrowers Bus – Award: £9,000
Falkirk School: Bonnybridge Primary – Project: Bonnybooks: For a’ Jock Tamson’s Bairns – Award: £24,940
Fife School: Bell Baxter ClusterProject: Racial Equality Transition ProjectAward: £9,000
School: Carleton PrimaryProject: The Same Page – connecting families to promote diversity and equality. – Award: £5,500
Glasgow S -Award: £11,120School: Barmulloch Primary & ALNProject: Digital and Family Learning HubAward: £13,000School: Lourdes SecondaryProject: Inclusive Storytelling for Healthy Minds – Award: £15,870
Moray School: Forres Academy Project: Equality, Inclusion, Diversity, and a Mentally Healthy School – Award: £3,750
North Ayrshire School: Auchenharvie cluster and Strathclyde UniProject: Keep the Heid’n’Read Even Mair! – Award: £16,400
Perth and Kinross School: Breadalbane Community Library/Breadalbane AcademyProject: Read It Racism – Award: £4,220
South Ayrshire School(s): Prestwick Academy Library and Ayr Academy Library (in collaboration with 9 primary school libraries)Project: Read Woke Primaries – Award: £44,000
South Lanarkshire Schools: St Andrew’s and St Bride’s HighProject: Equal Voices using anti-racist and diverse texts in extra-curricular group discussion – Award: £5,125 Total: £199,485
Professional sports affected by the recent COVID-19 crowd limits have been allocated £2.55 million in financial support from the Scottish Government.
The funding comes from the £5 million announced for professional sport on 5 January, as part of £375 million in wider business support. It will support up to 75% of losses after the Omicron outbreak saw a limit of 500 introduced on outdoor crowds.
This restriction will be lifted tomorrow – Monday 17 January.
The funding will also support clubs impacted by the limit of 200 on indoor sports. The traditional Boxing day Premier League football fixtures and horse racing at Musselburgh on New Years Day were among the events affected by the restrictions.
Sports minister Maree Todd said: “These sports clubs are at the heart of their communities, but many of them have suffered real hardships as the necessary COVID-19 lockdown restrictions meant attendances were heavily restricted.
“This funding will help to ensure clubs are able to bridge the gap in revenue, as spectators return safely to sports events in larger numbers when these restrictions are eased next week.
“This Government has pledged to provide funding to support organisations affected by the necessary measures to keep us all safe and these allocations show we are doing this.
“We will continue to work in partnership to support all our sports clubs to help them through this difficult time and to ensure this funding can be accessed by all clubs as efficiently as possible.”
The funding package is split as follows:
Ice hockey – £350,000
Basketball – £20,000
Horse Racing – £265,000
Rugby – £125,000
Football – £1.79million
Total: £2.55 million
Further funding from the £5million may be allocated in the event of further restrictions having significant financial impacts.
Ice hockey and basketball clubs affected, deemed to be most in need, will receive their funding directly from sportscotland.
The other sports will see the funding provided to governing bodies who will then distribute it to members. The amounts for each football club will be finalised by the SFA/SPFL after this weekend’s fixtures, as they are included in the period of restrictions.
New call centre to support non-emergency healthcare needs
A new NHS 24 call centre has opened in Dundee – allowing the service to help more people and further alleviate pressures on the rest of NHS and social care.
Funded by the Scottish Government, the new Dundee premises will help facilitate the increase in demand for the NHS 24 service which has been generated by the redesign of urgent care. This means that in non-life threatening situations, people should contact NHS 24 before attending Accident and Emergency or a Minor Injuries Unit.
With the demand from those becoming unwell with COVID-19, this has seen the 111 number move from an out-of-hours number to a round-the-clock service.
Around 140 staff will be in post in Dundee by the end of March, including call handlers, nurses, psychological mental health practitioners and mental health nurses.
Visiting the new centre, Mr Yousaf said: “We are experiencing the toughest winter our health and social care system has ever faced. With the current system pressures, and the ongoing impact of the pandemic, the role of NHS24 in giving support and advice to people who need it has never been more vital.
“I am extremely grateful for the contribution that NHS 24 staff have made during the pandemic, and particularly during these difficult winter months. I would urge everyone to make use of these services, by calling 111 or visiting NHS Inform when needed. Highly trained staff will be happy to give advice and direct you to the best place if you need treatment.
“This new call centre facility in Dundee will allow NHS 24 to further expand their capacity – helping more people and better managing capacity throughout the rest of the healthcare system.
“To help make this possible the Scottish Government has invested more than £20 million additional funding for NHS 24 this year for extra recruitment, and this new facility. All of this builds on the work undertaken as part of our £300 million investment in health and care services as part of our winter preparations.”
NHS 24 Chief Executive Jim Miller said: “NHS 24 has played a crucial role in Scotland’s response to the pandemic and our expansion in Dundee will ensure we are enable to continue to provide high quality, safe and effective care to public in the months and years ahead.
“Call handlers, nurses, psychological mental health practitioners and mental health nurses are already working in this key contact centre delivering care. I expect it to be at full capacity by the end of March.”
New staff joining the social care workforce are to have entry costs paid by the Scottish Government until the end of March.
Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) checks and Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) registration will now be funded to help encourage more staff into the profession and address winter staffing pressures.
The scheme starts today and will include staff taking up direct care posts in adult social care, along with comparable roles in children’s social care services and the justice sector.
It has been introduced following discussions with COSLA and will cover local authority, private and third sectors.
Social care minister Kevin Stewart said: “Care workers have been absolutely critical to our pandemic response, giving vulnerable people the care they need and avoiding further pressure falling on the NHS.
“This trial aims to assist easing winter pressures in this sector by removing any financial barriers that may stop people from applying for a rewarding career in care.
“There are significant pressures in social care due to high vacancy levels and increased demand. I hope this support will encourage those considering joining this vital workforce to go ahead and do so.
“We will continue to work closely with our partners to identify all possible ways we can assist the social care sector to aid recruitment and retention within the workforce at this critical time.”
Basic PVG checks cost £59. SSSC registration costs between £15 and £80 depending on the role.
