Councillors have today unanimously agreed to award the contract for the delivery of Edinburgh’s world-famous winter festivals for the next three years.
Subject to a ten-day standstill period, the contract will be awarded to a consortium led by Edinburgh-based event producers, Unique Assembly.
The contract covers the production and delivery of Edinburgh’s Christmas for 2024/25 and then for Edinburgh’s Christmas and Hogmanay festivals until 2026/27, with the opportunity for two optional twelve-month extensions. The delivery of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay for 2024/25 was already agreed in June 2022 and will also be undertaken by Unique Assembly.
The procurement process followed a ‘lessons learned exercise’, which led to a renewed focus on bid quality and enhancements to the sustainability, environmental, and community impact requirements of bids.
Council Leader Cammy Day said: “I’d like to congratulate Unique Assembly following today’s unanimous decision by councillors. They bring decades of experience in delivering major events, including our own Winter Festivals, and I’m confident that they’ll provide a fantastic service to the city over the next three years.
“The festivals occupy a central element in the cultural calendar of our city and delivering them well for our residents and visitors remains a key priority for us – not least given the huge enjoyment they bring each year.
“They also deliver substantial economic benefit for the city and for Scotland more widely, supporting jobs and businesses in many sectors most notably tourism, hospitality, and leisure.”
Proposals which will help to protect people against the threat of ticket touts at UEFA EURO 2028 are the focus of a new consultation launched today.
Glasgow is one of 10 host cities for EURO 2028 and an expected three million tickets will go on sale for the whole tournament, allowing more fans than ever before access to a UEFA EURO tournament.
As part of the consultation, stakeholders are invited to share their insights about how effective the measures implemented during UEFA EURO 2020, which took place in 2021, were for both supporters and local businesses.
Europe Minister Kaukab Stewart said: “Glasgow has become one of the world’s top cities for staging major sporting events, and EURO 2028 will follow in the footsteps of the recent World Athletics Indoor Championships – these matches belong to everyone and it’s important we ensure tickets are accessible.
“This valuable consultation underlines our commitment to protecting Scottish people from the threat of ticket touts, ensuring fair and equitable access to EURO 2028 games in Scotland.
“I would encourage everybody with an interest in this eagerly awaited event to share their views and help to shape legislation ahead of EURO 2028 happening in Glasgow.”
The consultation period closes on 26 July and provides an opportunity for people to share their views to shape robust protection measures for those fans planning on attending the matches staged in Scotland.
The next major phase for the replacement Liberton High School has been marked by a special groundbreaking event on the site yesterday (Tuesday 30 April).
Head Teacher Alison Humphreys was joined by current high school pupils and primary school pupils who will be educated at the new school. They were joined by Education Convener Cllr Joan Griffiths, Jenny Gilruth, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills at the Scottish Government, and Hector MacAulay, from contractors Balfour Beatty as Managing Director of their regional business in Scotland.
The construction of the school is due to be completed by early 2026 and has been funded from the Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Investment Programme and the City of Edinburgh Council.
Once pupils and staff have moved into the new building, the second phase will be the demolition of the old school which is due to be completed within a year.
The plans for the school, which will have capacity for 1,200 pupils, will consist of a variety of inspirational and inclusive spaces for learning. Classrooms, studios, workshops and science labs will connect and work with shared collaborative areas and breakout spaces, providing learners with more personalisation and choice over their learning environment.
Sports facilities include a floodlit multi use games area, basketball court and athletics facilities. The current tennis and beach volleyball courts and mountain bike trail will be retained as will the sports block.
A new fitness suite and dance studio will be provided to complement the existing sports facilities. There will also be outdoor learning spaces and a grassed amphitheatre.
A key part of the new school will be the community campus features as it will include non-educational facilities such as a café, library and flexible workspaces.
The school will also be constructed to Passivhaus standards designed to meet the city-wide aspirations for our schools to be as energy efficient as possible in response to the climate emergency and net zero targets.
The building has been designed to be energy efficient and will utilise high-performance windows and doors, and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery to reduce carbon emissions, improve indoor air quality and decrease heating bills.
Councillor Joan Griffiths, Education, Children and Families Convener at the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “It was great to join pupils at the groundbreaking event for the replacement Liberton High School yesterday.
“Our new school campuses are innovatively and sustainably designed so they are inspirational places for learning for the next generation of young people creating a vibrant and thriving learning environment.
“The Liberton Community Campus is a really exciting project which provides an amazing opportunity to create a community lifelong learning and sports hub to replace the existing school. This means public services can be co-located with links to active travel networks, green infrastructure and public transport networks.
“Our Community Hub vision for the building to be ‘more than a school’ aligns with our 20 Minute Neighbourhood Strategy – to localise and co-locate services, making them more accessible for communities and to improve the experiences and outcomes for everyone.
“This is all part of the Council’s plan to support the wellbeing of everyone and end poverty and isolation in Edinburgh.”
Jenny Gilruth, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, said: “The Liberton Community Campus is another example of the Scottish Government working together with local authorities to provide learning environments which are both modern and state-of-the art.
“The Scottish Government will invest over £21 million in the Campus and I am grateful to the Council for providing me with the opportunity to get a glimpse of how our support will be of significant benefit to pupils and their families in the local area.
“Right across the country, we are continuing to invest in Scotland’s schools through the £2 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme. Thanks to direct investment from the Scottish Government, the quality of our school estate has improved from 61% of schools in good or satisfactory condition in 2007, to 90.7% in 2023.
“We will continue to work with local authorities, who own school buildings, to drive improvements across the school estate.”
“Many of our future pupils are currently at these primary schools, so it was very important to us that they played a part in the special event yesterday to celebrate the work on the site.”
Alison Humphreys, Headteacher at Liberton High School, said: The Liberton High School community, and our wider learning community including Craigour Park, Gilmerton, Liberton and Prestonfield Primary Schools, are very excited about the creation of our new Liberton Community Campus.
“Many of our future pupils are currently at these primary schools, so it was very important to us that they played a part in the special event yesterday to celebrate the work on the site.
“In addition to a new secondary school with state-of-the-art facilities for learning, the building will also include a community library, community cafe, partner agency spaces and community fitness facilities.
“This is something that we are really looking forward to as it will bring so many opportunities for the wider public to use the space as a hub for accessing supports, learning, and fitness, and for socialising too.”
Hector MacAulay MBE, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s regional business in Scotland, said: “It was an honour to join with colleagues and pupils from Liberton High School today to mark this important occasion.
“As we embark on the next phase of the project with construction now underway, we remain committed to delivering a modern, safe and sustainable learning estate that will enhance and support communities and improve the lives of families in the local area.”
A consultation on replacing the UK Government’s Industrial Injuries Scheme in Scotland has been launched.
Views are sought on how the Scottish Government’s planned Employment Injury Assistance should be delivered and on the next steps for introducing this benefit.
The consultation is the first step in considering how the replacement benefit can better meet the needs of the modern workforce and be more reflective of occupational health and employment.
Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “The Industrial Injuries Scheme was introduced in 1948 and it does not account for many of the injuries and diseases common in the modern workforce.
“We know that the outdated eligibility criteria for the Industrial Injuries Scheme does not account for the injuries and illnesses that are most likely to affect people today. This is especially true for women, young people, and people from an ethnic minority group.
“We want to hear a broad range of views on the approach we should take to delivering Employment Injury Assistance, and I would encourage individuals and stakeholders to respond to our consultation.”
The consultation will run for 8 weeks and will close on 24 June 2024.
Scotland’s largest health and social care unions protested outside the Scottish Parliament on Thursday to demand the return of the ‘missing millions’ cut from the Scottish Government’s Budget for social care workers.
Information from the Scottish Trades Union Congress’ ‘Missing Millions’ campaign has shown that £38 million of ringfenced funding for maternity, paternity and sick pay for social care workers in Scotland was secretly cut from the latest Scottish Government budget.
Workers from Scotland’s three biggest social care unions, UNISON, GMB and UNITE will protest outside the Scottish Parliament to demand the return of the cash with workers accusing the Scottish Government of “betraying” social care workers.
The ‘Missing Millions’ campaign was launched last week during STUC Congress. A Freedom of Information request has shown that the £38 million cut was pulled directly from the Scottish Government’s Fair Work in Social Care terms and conditions workstream in September 2023.
Commenting, STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer said: “Cutting the budget to improve the terms, pay and conditions of Scotland’s social care workers is, quite frankly, unforgiveable.
“This was a sleekit move from the Scottish Government with no transparency, no accountability and worse, no promise of restoring the funding.
“These were the front-line workers that cared for those most in need during the pandemic. Some even paid with their lives protecting the vulnerable and our communities from the virus.
“For the Scottish Government to cut the dedicated funding that would, in part, seek to implement Fair Work within the sector, with improved sick pay and conditions, is nothing short of betraying the workforce.
“We call on all those who stand alongside our social care workers to join us outside Parliament.
“We’re sending a clear message to all politicians, especially the Scottish Government, that social care workers are demanding a return of the missing millions and a quick U-turn to this ill-judged budget cut.”
Efforts to boost affordable housing supply by acquiring properties to bring into use for affordable housing and help reduce homelessness will be given an £80 million uplift over the next two years.
The funding, announced by First Minister Humza Yousaf on a visit to Hillcrest Housing Association’s Derby Street development in Dundee, will increase the Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget to nearly £600 million in 2024-2025.
Investment will help reduce the time spent in temporary accommodation, including by children, and will also accelerate discussions with COSLA in relation to the number of local authority void properties.
The First Minister, who faces a vote of confidence at Holyrood next week, said: “Housing is essential in our efforts to tackle child poverty and reduce inequality across Scotland, and it supports jobs and growth in the economy. Providing good quality, affordable housing is at the very core of what my Government is doing to make Scotland a better place.
“While there is a single person homeless in our country, it is simply not acceptable to have houses sitting empty – so I am determined that we remove the barriers, and provide the money that will enable councils to buy properties so they can become affordable homes again.
“This £80 million will build on the success of our National Acquisition Programme which I announced last year, which spent more than £60 million and delivered more than 1,000 affordable homes. This is one of a number of actions we are prioritising to help to reduce the number of households in temporary accommodation.
“We will also accelerate discussion with COSLA in relation to the number of empty council homes.”
Independence would enable Scotland to take its own decisions to address issues such as drugs and gambling, and increase cooperation with international justice partners, according to a new paper published by Justice Secretary Angela Constance.
‘Justice in an independent Scotland’, the 13th paper in the ‘Building a New Scotland’ series, sets out the Scottish Government’s intended approach for the justice system following independence, including aspects which are currently reserved to the UK Government.
It also outlines how Scotland could, through cooperation with international partners and – through European Union membership and representation on the Council of Europe, United Nations and Interpol – play a full part in addressing global issues including cross-border crime, serious organised crime and cyber-crime.
Proposals in the paper include:
restoring police and prosecutors’ access to measures like the cross-border European Arrest Warrant, which were lost following Brexit, in line with the government’s commitment to rejoin the EU as an independent country
extending the public health approach being taken to violence reduction into the currently reserved areas of drug policy reform and gambling
full incorporation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Scots law to further enhance children’s rights
a framework for human rights law to protect and promote fundamental freedoms, including those in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
https://twitter.com/i/status/1783541535247651124
Ms Constance said: “Scotland’s justice system has a long and distinguished history and I am proud of the work we have done over many years to strengthen and modernise it.
“The level of recorded crime has fallen to near 50-year lows and homicides are at their lowest levels since comparable records began. We are also building a trauma-informed approach to our justice system.
“However, there is more we could do with independence. Scotland’s police and prosecutors would regain access to tools to pursue criminals across borders which were lost following Brexit, such as the Schengen Information System and the European Arrest Warrant.
“These are essential to combatting sophisticated criminal networks and helping victims get justice even where a perpetrator resides outwith Scotland.
“With the power to take our own decisions, we could also enhance and further embed our public health approach to justice issues, extending this to addiction such as drugs and gambling.
“This would enable future governments to consider measures that would better address the specific needs and circumstances of people in our communities, such as safer drug consumption facilities, raising the legal age of gambling, and strengthened firearm licensing.
“Combined with the broader economic, employment and social security powers that would come with independence – as set out throughout the Building a New Scotland series of papers – we could take a more effective approach to improving justice outcomes, reducing burdens on the justice system and further reducing the number of victims of crime.”
MSPs have backed Stage 3 of the Children (Care and Justice) Bill, enshrining in law age-appropriate care and justice for vulnerable young people across the country.
As part of wider work to embed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in law and to Keep the Promise, the Bill contains a series of measures to improve children’s experiences of the care and justice systems, whether victims, witnesses or children who have caused harm.
It ensures children are kept out of prison, ending the placement of under 18s in Young Offenders Institutions, with secure accommodation being the normal place of detention instead.
The Bill also provides new reforms to support victims, including providing a clearer understanding of their right to request information from the Children’s Reporter and a new single point service for victims in the hearings system.
Further measures include:
strengthened referral arrangements between courts and children’s hearings
enhancements around secure and residential care, including secure transport
improved regulation for cross-border placements, to ensure that these happen only in exceptional cases where a move is in the child’s best interests
enabling secure care to support a young person past their 18th birthday, in appropriate circumstances
Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise Natalie Don said: “Scotland is taking a big step forward in embedding UNCRC principles and Keeping the Promise by passing this Bill.
“It contains wide ranging measures to ensure age-appropriate justice is delivered, ensuring children in Scotland are kept out of prison and supporting safe, proven care-based alternatives.
“The integrated, welfare-based, Kilbrandon ethos of our children’s hearings system is something Scotland can rightly take pride in and all children – whether in need, at risk or in trouble – deserve our concern and support. This Bill will help ensure they get it. It equally provides a robust package of support for victims and their families, strengthened during Stage 2 and Stage 3 of the Bill.
“This landmark Bill is proof of the progress Scotland is making to Keep the Promise by 2030 and will be transformational for the most vulnerable children and young people in the country.”
The Promise Scotland Chief Executive Fraser McKinlay said: “The Promise Scotland is pleased that the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill has passed the final stage of parliamentary scrutiny. Effective implementation of the Bill will be critical. It must be accompanied by significant support for the workforce, along with adequate investment and resourcing.
“These important changes represent a significant step forward in Scotland’s efforts to Keep the Promise by 2030. It is clear that Scotland’s approach to care and protection must be based on early help and support alongside a more progressive, rights-based approach to youth justice that builds on the Kilbrandon principles, upholding children’s rights and increasing access to Scotland’s unique, welfare-based Children’s Hearings System.”
Children and Young People’s Centre for Justice Director Fiona Dyer said: “This is a momentous day for children in conflict with the law in Scotland.
“It marks the culmination of years of hard work and campaigning from many across the sector, including from children and young people themselves, to rightly recognise all children under 18 in the care and justice systems as children, in need of care and support.
“Nearly all children who harm have also been the victim of significant harm themselves and this Bill guarantees a compassionate, trauma-informed, and rights-respecting approach to ensure they are given the support needed to prevent future offending.”
£11 million grant funding confirmed for public sector bodies
Leisure centres, schools and university campuses will be transformed by a government fund designed to accelerate the decarbonisation of public sector properties, the Scottish Government announced yesterday.
The University of Edinburgh, Fife Council and Edinburgh Napier University are among the first seven projects to share grants for clean heating and energy efficiency improvements totalling £11 million from the £20 million Public Sector Heat Decarbonisation Fund.
The funding, to support the ambition to reach net zero by 2045, is the first time direct grant awards have been made to public sector bodies instead of loans.
A recent Scottish Government consultation on proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill asked for views on a possible requirement for all buildings owned by a Scottish public authority to move to clean heating systems by the end of 2038. There are currently around 23,000 buildings in public ownership.
Zero Carbon Buildings Minister Patrick Harvie (well, he was until this morning, anyway – Ed.) said: “Heat from our homes and buildings is responsible for around a fifth of Scotland’s overall emissions so there is no route to delivering Net Zero by 2045 without tackling this.
“Not just our homes but our schools, universities, offices, hospitals and libraries also need to improve their energy efficiency and make the move to clean heating.
“We are absolutely committed to addressing Scotland’s reliance on direct emission heating systems that produce greenhouse gas emissions when we use them, which is why we have consulted on ambitious proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill which we intend to bring forward during the current Parliament.
“We have made clear that we want all public sector buildings to have moved to clean heat by the end of 2038. We expect the public sector to demonstrate leadership in this area and I am therefore very pleased to be able to confirm these first awards from the Fund. Further awards will be confirmed shortly.”
The funding is part of £200 million already committed to the public sector for energy efficiency and renewable heating over the next five years – part of the wider plan to spend £1.8 billion during the current parliamentary session on decarbonising Scotland’s buildings.
The University of Edinburgh will receive £2.08m to support the reduction of heat demand at its King’s Buildings campus, home to the College of Science and Engineering, including through fabric insulation and pipework insulation upgrades.
The project will also take steps towards the decarbonisation of heat supply. A heat recovery pump will recycle waste heat from one of the University’s data centres and upgrade it for use within a local district heating network.
Catherine Martin, Vice Principal Corporate Services, University of Edinburgh said: “The climate crisis is one of the greatest challenges we are facing.
“The University of Edinburgh has a clear commitment to take positive action to address our impact on the climate and ultimately reach our institutional goal of being net zero by 2040.
“We need a coordinated approach to these activities and the funding from the Scottish Government will support our efforts to generate solutions and sustainably adapt the way we operate.”
Grants have been confirmed for the following projects:
Recipient
Grant awarded
Project
University of Edinburgh
£2,079,459
King’s Buildings campus – to support the reduction of heat demand and take steps towards decarbonisation of heat
Fife Council
£2,404,911
St Andrew’s RC High School and Beacon Leisure Centre – installation of a combination of air-to-water heat pumps and water source heat pumps as the primary heat source for both, plus heat demand reductions at St Andrew’s RC High School
Scotland’s Rural College
£387,130
Barony Campus, Dumfries – retrofitting insulation including on the grade II listed Kirkmichael House
Perth & Kinross Council
£324,546
Auchtergaven Primary School, Bankfoot – upgrading the existing heating supply via the installation of two air source heat pumps and the installation of a building management system
North Lanarkshire Council
£2,345,176.00
Strathclyde Park Watersports Centre – whole building retrofit, redesign and extension as part of revelopment into Net Zero Health Hub
Edinburgh Napier University
£1,241,966.00
BE-ST A Lab – Removal of gas-based fossil fuel heating system as part of retrofit including Mechanical ventilation and heat recovery, a sustainable innovative curtain wall system, a solar PV integrated roof system and a sustainable LED ready lighting control system
Dumfries and Galloway Council
£2,500,000
Dumfries Ice Bowl – replacement of the mains gas system with a low emission water source heat pump with heat recapture technology to allow heat generated from the refrigeration system to be recovered, plus energy efficiency measures
Police are appealing for information following the serious assault of a 70-year-old man, which took place in West Granton Road.
The incident was reported to police on the evening last night (Wednesday, 24 April), having taken place around 4.10pm that afternoon.
The victim exited his black Renault Scenic and was attacked by a member of a group of six men.
Members of the public came to his assistance and he was driven to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh for treatment, after which police were contacted.
Detective Sergeant John Dunn said: “We are appealing for anyone who witnessed the incident, or may have been in the area on the afternoon of Wednesday, 24 April, to come forward.
“We are particularly keen to trace the man who drove the victim to the hospital, as he may be able to assist our enquiries. He is described as an Irish man, who went by the name ‘Paul’. If you are this man, or believe you know him, please get in touch.
“You can contact police on 101, quoting incident 3511 of 24 April, 2024. Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, if you wish to remain anonymous.”
