“Transformational” expansion of free early learning and childcare
Spending on childcare will double to £840 million a year by 2021-22 in a bid to transform the life chances of children in Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced yesterday. The funding boost has been welcomed by local MSP Ben Macpherson. Continue reading Scottish Government to double childcare spending
Patients experiencing mental health problems will be better supported – thanks to a half million pound increase in funding. NHS24 will use the development funding to improve the services it offers to people experiencing low mood, depression and anxiety, supporting those who need unscheduled care but do not require to contact emergency services. Continue reading Extra support announced on World Mental Health Day
Scottish charity Arts & Business Scotland has been officially accredited as a Living Wage employer by the Living Wage Foundation and Scottish accreditation body, the Poverty Alliance, joining organisations in Scotland who have committed to paying their staff at least the Living Wage rate of £8.45 an hour. Continue reading Arts & Business Scotland becomes Living Wage employer
It’s been a spectacular summer for historic sites across Edinburgh and Midlothian as Historic Environment Scotland (HES) announced record-breaking visitor figures for the 2017 summer season today. Continue reading Spectacular summer for Scotland’s historic sites
An additional £5 million is being given to NHS boards to support winter resilience across health and social care. NHS Lothian will receive an additional £737,000. Continue reading £5 million more to support winter health planning
A £300,000 fund to encourage more women and girls to get involved in sport has been awarded to 14 projects on Active Girls Day by Sports Minister Aileen Campbell. From wheelchair basketball in Glasgow, judo in Fife and bikepacking adventures in the Highlands, the projects will tackle the barriers that lead to historically lower levels of physical activity among girls than boys. Continue reading Edinburgh projects net Sporting Equality cash
Recipients of Universal Credit in Scotland will be offered two new ways to help them manage their money. People in Scotland making new claims in full service Universal Credit areas will have the choice of changing the frequency of their payments from once to twice monthly, and to have the housing cost element of their Universal Credit paid directly to their landlord. Continue reading Universal Credit: new option for Scots claimants
The Scottish Government has announced that it will not support the development of Unconventional Oil and Gas in Scotland, meaning there is an effective ban on fracking in Scotland. The decision has been given a qualified welcomed by local campaigners Our Forth while Northern and Leith MSP Ben Macpherson is delighted that the government is ‘putting communities first’. Continue reading Scottish Government says NO to fracking
Social Security Minister Jeane Freeman and COSLA Community Wellbeing Spokesperson Kelly Parry, have joined forces to demand a halt to the full service roll-out of Universal Credit in Scotland. In a joint letter to Secretary of State for Work and Pensions David Gauke, they raise a number of ‘abject failures’ of the new UK Government system. Continue reading ‘Abject Failures’: yet another call for halt to Universal Credit roll-out
Karate is fastest growing sport for girls
The five fastest growing sports for girls in Scotland have been revealed in new statistics to mark the start of Women and Girls in Sport Week. Continue reading Minister encourages girls: get into sport
