Scottish Government – Page 403 – The NEN

Contracts signed for new Sick Kids hospital

Construction of a major new healthcare facility is set to start after the financial contracts were agreed yesterday. The new £150 million building will see services from the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Department of Clinical Neurosciences and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service brought together in a modern and high-quality setting at Little France.

Construction works will start over the next few weeks and the new building, which will adjoin the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, is expected to open in autumn 2017.

The six storey building (including basement) will have a large atrium with a shop and café, a stunning skylight linking both hospital entrances, a helipad on the roof and a link building adjoining adult and paediatric emergency departments.

It will also bring with it an increase in single rooms with ensuite facilities and a range of new technology.

Health Secretary Shona Robison said: “This is a momentous date for this project and I’m personally very pleased that work will soon be about to begin on the new co-located Royal Hospital for Sick Children and Department of Clinical Neurosciences.

“The new development brings paediatric care, specialist neonatal care, neurosciences and adult and children’s emergency departments all together in one place, making access to services much easier for patients and health professionals alike.

“The Scottish Government is investing over £2 billion in Scotland’s health infrastructure over the spending review period, with this development being one of many that demonstrate the Scottish Government’s commitment to continually improving health services. The investment in this development will ensure the hospital campus at Little France can continue to develop as a modern hub of research and medical practice.”

Susan Goldsmith, Finance Director, NHS Lothian said: “We are delighted to have reached this point and now look forward with anticipation to seeing the new facility taking shape over the coming years.

“This is an extremely exciting time in the proud history of the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, along with the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service and Department of Clinical Neurosciences, which will find a high-quality new home at Little France from 2017.

“The building designs have been heavily influenced by staff, patients and families and, in addition to offering a modern, light and spacious environment, will also enhance the clinical services we deliver.”

Mark Bradshaw, IHS Lothian and Macquarie Capital said: “We are excited that construction will soon start on The Royal Hospital for Sick Children and Department of Clinical Neurosciences. This state-of-the-art facility will allow the delivery of quality healthcare services to the people of the Lothian region and beyond for decades to come.

“It has been a pleasure to partner with the Lothian NHS Board and the Scottish Futures Trust to develop an innovative and competitive financing structure that will ensure value for money over the next 25 years.”

Peter Reekie, Scottish Futures Trust, deputy chief executive and director of investments said: “This is a fantastic deal for NHS Lothian and its partners, bringing investment into the Lothians and allowing construction to start on a great new building which will support many hundreds of jobs as it is built.”

Some key features of the new facility include:

233 beds and 10 theatres. 154 beds in the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, 67 beds in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences and 12 beds in the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.
11 beds will be added to the critical care department within the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
The specifically designed family hotel will mean that the experience for families whose child has to spend time in hospital is more homely.
Conjoined children’s and adult Emergency Departments will mean that the most appropriate services are available to teenagers who currently do not always fit well into either service.
Patients in the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service suffering from physical illness and mental health problems will benefit from the immediate availability of both specialities.
The Department of Clinical Neurosciences will make neurology and neurosurgery available to all age groups on a single site, meaning potentially quicker treatment is available. One advantage will be that patients who present to the Emergency Department at Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and who subsequently turn out to need neurosurgery will no longer need to be transferred to the Western General Hospital.
The most modern imaging equipment within the Department of Clinical Neurosciences along with its adjacency to the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic and the Clinical Research Imaging Centre will allow the Department of Clinical Neurosciences to further enhance its position as a leading clinical and academic neurosciences centre.

‘Shocking increase’ in food bank usage

New report shows growing demand for emergency food aid

More than 160 groups and organisations are now providing emergency food aid in Scotland. The figure is in a new report from the Poverty Alliance which states changes to the social security system and the introduction of sanctions, as well as low pay and insecure work are some of the main factors behind the growing need for emergency food.

The Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice Alex Neil launched the report at a food bank in his Airdrie constituency yesterday.

The Scottish Government has now provided the Poverty Alliance with £28,941 to carry out further work with emergency food providers. This will enable the Alliance to work with those providers to take forward research findings and to focus more strongly on the causes of food poverty and work towards ensuring people get the help needed to move them away from reliance on food aid provision.

Mr Neil said: “The Poverty Alliance report perfectly demonstrates the impact of UK welfare changes. It is unacceptable that so many have had to resort to foodbanks. Emergency food aid is not a sustainable response to the issue of food poverty and its underlying drivers and it cannot become an established feature of the welfare system in Scotland.”

“We have seen previously in figures from the The Trussell Trust, that there has been a shocking increase in food bank usage. This speaks volumes about the real poverty in our society when people can’t feed their families without help and support from food aid organisations.”

The Poverty Alliance report follows figures from The Trussell Trust which shows a rapid and dramatic rise in the number of people accessing emergency food aid in Scotland.

The Trussell Trust has reported a 12 fold increase in usage of emergency food aid in just three years – in 2011/12 5726 people in Scotland accessed food aid, while in 2013/14 that figure was 71,428.

The Poverty Alliance report concludes that more effort should be concentrated on how emergency food aid providers can better connect people with mainstream support services. Providers working in close partnership with other services have been shown to offer better support to those in need, connecting them to the advice and support required to address underlying issues which have led them to access emergency food aid in the first place.

Director of The Poverty Alliance Peter Kelly said: “We need to build on the good work that food aid providers are already doing. Volunteers are providing help to people experiencing real difficulties in often complex circumstances. There is a need to develop partnership working between emergency food aid providers to share ideas, experiences and good practice.

“In the longer term we need to ensure that we are developing policy solutions that address the root causes of food poverty. The support from the Scottish Government will help the Poverty Alliance ensure that those who are on the frontline tackling food poverty are able to contribute to finding these solutions.”

The Trussell Trust Scotland Network Manager Ewan Gurr added: “It has been a pleasure to work alongside and support the research carried out by our colleagues at the Poverty Alliance and we appreciate the consistency of the Scottish Government as they explore creative ways to tackle food poverty in Scotland.

“The voluntary sector, largely, has an openness to exploring fresh ways in which we can enhance the level of support people are offered. We welcome the report and believe it is important for us, as well as other food providers, to digest the findings. It has always been my ultimate desire that our foodbanks are places where dignity is restored, hope is revived and the support is comprehensive and robust.”

To help food aid providers develop a better understanding of the range of support available for users of emergency food aid and identify additional support, the Poverty Alliance has developed a web based resource to assist those delivering emergency food aid better link with mainstream services such as Citizen’s Advice Scotland as well as with other information and links to key support services at www.foodaidscotland.org

Austerity: There IS an alternative, says First Minister

Nicola Sturgeon’s plan puts fairness at the heart of economic growth

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has set out an alternative plan to tackle the economic deficit, by putting fairness at the heart of economic growth, increasing investment and maximising the skills of Scotland’s population.

In a major economic speech at University College London, the First Minister said there should be no ‘trade off’ between reducing the deficit and having a fairer society, with a clear link between economic growth and reducing inequality.

Ms Sturgeon highlighted how successful economic policies such as gender equality and the living wage “have a sense of fairness at their heart” and help grow the economy by ensuring that Scotland maximises the skill and innovation of all its people.

The First Minister set out an alternative to austerity, and said that real term increases in government department spending, limited to half a per cent each year, would see debt reduce as a share of GDP over four years, but allow a further £180 billion investment in infrastructure, skills and education to further boost the economy.

The First Minister also renewed her calls to scrap the renewal of Trident, with the £100bn savings over the next 35 years to be invested back into public services.

The First Minister said: “The Scottish Government has balanced its budget every single year and that’s something which has required genuinely tough decisions. But by and large, we’ve carried people with us because the policies we’ve adopted have clearly had a sense of fairness at their heart.

“In terms of the UK economy, we believe that debt and the deficit should be reduced as a percentage of GDP but more gradually than either of the largest UK parties is proposing.

“For example, if you limited real terms growth in departmental spending to half a per cent each year it would reduce debt as a share of GDP in every year from 2016-17. But it would also permit a further £180 billion of investment across the UK over the next four years.

“We could protect the infrastructure, education and innovation which will support sustainable growth. And we could take a different approach to the crude cuts that reduce work incentives and impact directly on disabled people and families with children. We could manage the deficit down, without destroying the social fabric.

“We could also release savings through some more straightforward choices. Deciding not to renew Trident, for example, would save around £100bn, at 2012 prices, over the next 35 years. That is money that could be – and should be – invested instead in health and education.

“By taking a different approach – by offering an alternative to the austerity agenda – we would ensure that fiscal consolidation is consistent with a wider vision of society. A society which strives to become more equal, as part of becoming more prosperous.

“We simply don’t accept that there’s a trade-off between balancing the books and having a balanced society; fairness and prosperity can go hand in hand. It’s basic common sense that as a society, we will do better if we can benefit from the skill, talent and innovation of all of our people.

“But there are other reasons too. Higher incomes would increase demand and boost the revenues needed for investment in infrastructure and education. More equal economies are more resilient and less likely to depend on borrowing and credit.”

The First Minister continued: “But one thing we’re already very clear on, is that we see the private sector as being an essential partner in all of this. They are not only vital to but will also benefit hugely from helping to build a fairer society. And so we’re also encouraging and supporting business to contribute to a fairer society – because that’s clearly in their own best interests.

“Gender equality is a good example of that. The Scottish Government is leading by example – the Scottish Cabinet is one of only three in the developed world to have a 50/50 gender split. But we’re also launching a major drive – called 50/50 by 2020 – to encourage gender equality in public, private and third sector boardrooms.

“And we have a clear focus on the quality of work – people’s experience in the workplace. The Scottish Government already pays the living wage to all our employees; and we’re using procurement policy, where we can, to encourage its use in all public sector contracts. Now we are funding the Poverty Alliance to run a scheme for accrediting living wage employers.

“Essentially, we are appealing to companies’ sense of enlightened self-interest. In doing so, we are encouraging them to commit to good business practices – such as innovation or internationalisation – and to good employment practices; such as the living wage, gender equality or supporting workforce engagement.

“So we will make the case for a more rational economic policy at Westminster. And we will use the powers we have in the Scottish Parliament to pursue a different approach; one based on partnership, fairness and prosperity.”

Making a big issue of social enterprise

The International Network of Street papers (INSP) has secured funding as part of a £250,000 investment to promote Scottish social enterprises internationally, Housing Minister Margaret Burgess announced today.

Glasgow-based charity ISNP will receive £20,000 from the overall funding for another year, an extension of its current support.

The Scottish Government funding coincides with Vendors Week, an annual global event where celebrities and politicians sell the Big Issue paper for one hour to raise awareness of homelessness.

The total investment is aimed at further developing Scotland’s reputation internationally as a world leader in creating the right conditions for social enterprise to flourish.

Social enterprises have an impact on communities all over Scotland, tackling social problems and strengthening communities. They trade in all markets and aim to make a profit just like any private sector business, but all profits are reinvested back into their social and environmental purposes.

The remainder of the funding will be earmarked for continued support for international social enterprise in Scotland. Detailed allocations will be announced in due course.

Margaret Burgess said: “An enterprising third sector is a vital component in our economy, civic society and in creating a fairer and more inclusive Scotland.

“This £20,000 funding will help social enterprise INSP support vendors who are selling street papers to work their way out of poverty and homelessness. In total, £250,00 will help support international social enterprise in Scotland.

“We are committed to tackling and preventing homelessness and support for frontline homelessness services working with the most vulnerable in our society.

“Homelessness has been falling in Scotland. Latest homelessness statistics published 13 January for the period July to September 2014 indicate continuing falls in recorded homelessness across Scotland.”

INSP Chief Executive Maree Aldam said: “As we celebrate our annual Vendor Week, INSP is delighted to receive this continued strong support from the Scottish Government.

“INSP is proud to call Scotland home. Many years of support from the Scottish Government have enabled us to work internationally, supporting the development of social enterprise in 35 countries.

“Vendor Week is enormously important to INSP. Across our network of 114 street papers, we are paying tribute this week to the 14,000 hardworking men and women who are selling street papers as a way out of poverty.

“Top Scottish politicians will don the red tabard today to take their turn selling the magazine as part of an event that raises awareness of issues around homelessness, while boosting sales for The Big issue and raising money to support INSP.“

Keeping Scotland’s homes warm

An additional £20 million will be invested to cut fuel poverty and improve the energy efficiency of Scotland’s housing, Social Justice Secretary Alex Neil confirmed today. And with energy costs tumbling, Mr Neil also urged energy providers to implement price cuts NOW.

£6 million is earmarked for home energy efficiency programmes that will support measures such as solid wall, cavity or loft insulation.

An additional £14 million will be invested in low cost home energy efficiency loans available to households in the private sector to supplement existing grant schemes to help install energy efficiency measures.

This additional funding will take the Scottish Government’s investment to tackle fuel poverty and boost energy efficiency over the three years 2013/14 to 2015/16 to around £300 million.

Details of the loan schemes will be announced in due course.

Mr Neil said: “This Government is determined to tackle fuel poverty and improve energy efficiency head on, as this additional £20 million investment for energy efficiency measures demonstrates.

“Fuel costs have risen six times faster than incomes since 2003. In 2013, fuel prices rose by seven per cent, pushing more people into fuel poverty. The fact that this is happening in an energy-rich country is outrageous.

“Given the recent reductions in energy costs, all energy providers must implement price cuts now and not wait until the Spring.

“This additional funding means we have allocated over half a billion pounds since 2009 to make Scotland’s homes more energy efficient”.

“Over 700,000 households have benefited from measures like new boilers or insulation targeted in particular at those in or at risk of fuel poverty.”

More Power to the People!

Another £5.6 million for People and Communities Fund

A fund which gives community groups the power to tackle poverty and inequalities in their areas has been given a £5.6 million funding boost.

Social Justice Secretary Alex Neil confirmed community-led regeneration will be given extra support through the People and Communities Fund (PCF), on a visit to the Broomhouse Health Strategy Group this morning.

The People and Communities Fund will be increased from £9.4 million to £15 million as it benefits from support through the dedicated £10 million funding for Empowering Communities announced by the First Minister last November.

This investment builds on the Government’s commitment to giving people the power to take charge and make changes in their own communities.

The additional funding will be allocated to a variety of projects, including community groups who are promoting change in disadvantaged communities through training, employment, healthy eating and volunteering opportunities.

Mr Neil made the announcement ahead of this afternoon’s Stage 1 Debate for the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill. He said:

“We know every community in Scotland has different needs, and that we all have our own ideas about how we can make our areas better.

“This Government recognises that by giving communities the power and confidence to shape their own futures, we can tackle poverty and address inequalities more effectively.

“Through the People and Communities Fund we will provide money direct to community groups to help them tackle local issues on their own terms.

“This new money will support the aims of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill, which will give people a stronger voice in the decisions that matter to them and will help communities who wish to take over public land and buildings.”

Since PCF launched in 2012, 156 projects have received funding worth £18.3 million those projects include the Broomhouse Health Strategy Group which was awarded almost £30,000 to run cookery and exercise sessions which encourage local people to make healthy lifestyle choices.

The sessions have helped increase self-esteem and confidence among local people, many of whom had never cooked a meal from scratch before, and it has supported their skills development with some developing the confidence to move into local volunteering roles.

Lucy Aitchison, from the Broomhouse Health Strategy Group said: “It’s been great to develop our health and wellbeing services, and you can see them making a real difference to people’s lives.

“To give people the skills to be able to look after themselves and their family more healthily is really significant. We’re so pleased to have the support to be able to address these local needs.”

For more information about the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill visit:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/engage

Details on The People and Communities Fund can be viewed at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/regeneration/community/pcf

Righting a wrong? Poll Tax debt to end today

Councils to stop collecting the debt from 1 February

From February 1, 2015 the liability to pay ‘Poll Tax’ arrears in Scotland will end, subject to final approval of the Scottish Parliament later this month. John Swinney says Holyrood has acted ‘to right a historic wrong’.

The Scottish Government brought forward the bill to bring an end to collection of debts under the Community Charge, the discredited tax which was abolished in 1993 after four years in operation in Scotland.

The issue was brought to the fore following the independence referendum, amid reports that the expanded electoral registers could be used to identify and pursue Poll Tax debts at a time of record democratic engagement.

The amount of Poll Tax arrears collected by local authorities across Scotland has fallen in recent years to less than £350,000 in 2013-14, and some local authorities have ceased recovery of debts altogether. Nonetheless, the Scottish Government will cover the cost to local authorities of the Poll Tax debt that they would have expected to recover under existing arrangements.

This week parliament agreed to the general principles of the Bill and also approved a timescale that will see the Bill complete its parliamentary passage by 19 February.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney said: “The Scottish Government has acted act expeditiously to address the use of information gathered from voter registration to pursue historical debts from a tax that is discredited and which has not been operational in Scotland for more than 20 years.

“The amount of Poll Tax arrears which have been collected by councils across Scotland has fallen to near negligible levels in recent years, from around £1.3 million in 2009-10 to less than £350,000 in the most recent financial year.

“We will ensure that local authorities are properly compensated in line with current collection rates in respect of outstanding amounts and ensure that they are not out of pocket.

“The poll tax is a defunct tax, but it has left a bitter legacy in Scotland – the Scottish Parliament has acted to right a historic wrong.”

Recovery? What recovery?

Latest statistics show sharp rise in number of hard-pressed households receiving help

The experts tell us the recovery’s underway, but many ordinary Scots families are still feeling the economic pain – the number of households applying for welfare assistance has risen by a third in the last year, according to the latest statistics.

Scottish Welfare Fund Statistics to 30 September 2014 show that during the most recent quarter (July to September 2014):

52,400 applications were made to the Scottish Welfare Fund, an increase of 33 per cent on the same quarter last year;
25,800 Crisis Grants were awarded, 32 per cent more than the same quarter last year. These were predominantly for food, heating costs and other living expenses, with an average award value of just over £70;
11,200 Community Care Grants were awarded, 51 per cent more than the same quarter last year. These were predominantly for home furnishings and white goods, with an average value of just under £600.

Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice Alex Neil said: “That anyone should be live in poverty in a wealthy country is completely unacceptable and we’ll continue to tackle poverty and inequality to create a more prosperous and fairer society.

“Scottish Welfare Fund grants are a lifeline for people in crisis to buy the everyday items, or cover basic living costs that so many of us take for granted. This is why we are taking steps to establish the Fund in law through the Welfare Funds (Scotland) Bill.

“120,000 households in Scotland, one in twenty, have now been helped by the Scottish Welfare Fund in its first 18 months of operation. The increase in applications over the last year is due, in part, to work done by local authorities and advice services to raise awareness of the Fund.

“We have allocated £33 million a year to the Scottish Welfare Fund to make sure that we continue to reach out to households in the most deprived areas – around half of awards are made to applicants in the 20 per cent most deprived areas of Scotland. Many families are paying a heavy price for the UK Government’s welfare reforms and this investment will help to mitigate the effects of these cuts on some of our most vulnerable households.”

Move to turn empty shops into new homes

Empty shops and properties which are blighting Scotland’s town centres could be transformed into affordable housing thanks to a new £4 million fund.

The Town Centre Empty Homes Fund will provide grant and loan funding to help increase the supply of housing in Scotland’s urban and rural towns.

The Fund, which will open for bids shortly, will offer funding to regenerate both homes which have been lying empty for long periods of time, and to convert empty commercial spaces into residential accommodation. The properties will then be available for affordable rent or sale.

It comes on top of the work of the Shelter Scotland managed Empty Homes Partnership which recently had its funding doubled and received a three year extension, to help bring more private sector empty homes back into use.

Housing Minister Margaret Burgess announced details of the new Fund at the Shelter Scotland Homelessness Conference. She said:

“Making sure everyone has access to affordable homes where they can feel safe and warm, is a priority for the Scottish Government. But it’s not just about building new homes, we need to make better use of our existing housing stock and properties.

“It makes absolutely no sense for us to have more than 30,000 homes lying empty when homelessness still exists in Scotland.

“Empty shops and flats can be an eyesore in our communities, devaluing our properties and even encouraging anti-social behaviour.

“Bringing these empty properties back into use is a cost-effective way of increasing the supply of housing available to families across Scotland and it also aides community regeneration.

“By transforming derelict shops and flats into new homes, we will be able to inject some life back into our town centres and make them attractive places to live and work.”

Higher and Higher: Ms Constance comes to Craigie!

Minister welcomes increase in provisional entries for Highers

Education Secretary Angela Constance called in at Craigroyston Community High School this morning and welcomed news that a record number of students will be sitting Highers this year.

Ms Constance was welcomed to Craigroyston by senior students Donna Cheyne, Joe Dudgeon, John Gallacher and Rebecca Morton before meeting staff and pupils to hear about the progress being made in introducing new qualifications as part of Curriculum for Excellence.

The introduction of new qualifications is progressing well, with provisional entries for Highers indicating a record high number will be sat this year.

The figure, which follows on from last year’s record number of passes at Higher, was welcomed by the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning during her Craigroyston visit.

New Highers have been introduced this year, alongside the existing Higher qualifications for this year only. School departments are able to use this flexibility to phase in the new qualifications in the way that best serves the interests of the pupils. From the 2015/6 school year onwards, all pupils will be studying the new Highers.

The total figure of 217,976 provisional Higher entries this year (across S5 and S6, and including both new and existing Highers) is five per cent up on the corresponding figure from this time last year. This figure comprises 120,557 provisional entries for new Highers, and 97,419 provisional entries for existing Highers.

Ms Constance said: “The ongoing reform of our education system is preparing our young people for the world of work and further and higher education. Scottish education now offers more flexible learning opportunities for our young people and new National qualifications, which were introduced at the beginning of the 2013/14 school year, are now well established.

“In August last year we saw a substantial increase in the number of both Higher entries and Higher passes. I am very pleased that we are again seeing a substantial interest in provisional entries for Higher. It is very positive to see greater numbers of young people aspiring to higher levels of qualifications in our schools.

“This shows that ambition, more than ever, is alive and well in classrooms across Scotland, in no small part thanks to the work of teachers who continue to do an excellent job. This bodes well for Scotland’s economic future.

“We know from provisional entry data from the Scottish Qualifications Authority that significant numbers of those pupils taking Highers this year have been studying the new Highers. We listened to schools who requested flexibility, and we acted. I have seen today how schools are making good use of this flexibility, to phase in the new qualifications in a sensible way.”