Hanover (Scotland) Housing Association has launched a new Facebook group for their residents, their friends and relatives to share news, views and useful tips and to ask any questions they may have about Hanover’s services.
‘Hanover Blether’ went live on Monday 29 August 2016 and was made a reality after a resident suggested it would be beneficial to have an online ‘hub’ to connect with other Hanover residents and to share their experiences, news about the local community, events and group activities as well as allowing their friends and family to easily interact with their loved ones.
The group is thought to be the first of its kind in Scotland and although it is maintained jointly by Hanover staff and Hanover residents, the group is completely independent and residents are encouraged to share their views on the organisation and about life in Hanover properties, good or bad.
The group also provides another, more informal, way for residents to get in touch with Hanover directly and to ask anything about the organisation and their tenancy. Hanover noted that the group was not to be used in emergencies or to report a repair, when the usual channels should be used.
Hanover resident, Patrick O’Shea, the brains behind the group said: “I thought it would be a good idea to give Hanover residents a platform to raise issues that they may have and to find out about the problems and experiences of other residents. I also felt that there are many good reasons for staying in Hanover and we should talk about those as well.”
Helen Murdoch, Hanover (Scotland) Housing Association Chief Executive, said: “I’m absolutely delighted Hanover Blether is up and running and look forward to seeing the tremendous benefits it will bring to both ourselves and to our Facebook users.
“Resident engagement is a key strategic priority for Hanover. More and more of our service users, their carers and their relatives are online, and Facebook is a great way to communicate, which will in turn help us to work closely with those people we engage with to improve our services. It will also provide a great forum for our residents to share tips and get to know each other.”
Scotland’s new social media platform goes live at midday
‘Think and Do tank’ Common Weal launch their new social media platform today. Two years in the planning, organisers say the space offers opportunities for debate, discussion and ideas about Scotland’s future.
In an email issued to supporters yesterday, Common Weal said:
When Common Weal first started, it was suggested to us by many that what we needed most was a space to bring everyone together, to stay connected, to share ideas and plan for our future. Well, nearly two years later, we’ve finally done it.
Because of the investment from our partners – our regular donors – we have been able to take all the great things about social media and create a space where we can come together, to discuss the immense challenges we face in our social, political and economic future. It is a place for debate, to learn and educate, to share our experiences, and plan and strategise.
Making change isn’t easy. It takes hard work. But isn’t that the most exciting part? The more effort we put in now, at a grassroots level, the greater the results will be. The wealth of knowledge in Scotland is astounding, but it’s frustrating when we don’t know how to put that knowledge into action. Let’s become the media, become the experts, let’s be the powerful ones shaping our future.
I hope you will join us on by setting up a profile for the launch tomorrow – Saturday 13th August. We created it together. Let’s utilise it in the best possible way.
Edinburgh College gives budding digital creatives the chance to make it with BBC scheme
Edinburgh College is giving creative young unemployed people who love likes, hashtags and telling stories online the chance to take the first steps towards a digital industry career.
The college’s eight-week BBC Make it Digital programme will teach skills to unemployed young people including: digital storytelling, building a website, planning a social media campaign, shooting and editing a film and learning how to pitch creative ideas to business.
The training programme was designed by the BBC Academy and is open to unemployed people between 16-24. It will take place at the college’s Milton Road Campus, where students will work with industry-standard software. The course will start on 2 November.
Taking part in this programme does not affect benefits and those between 16 and 18 on the programme will receive £55 per week Training Allowance. Travelling expenses are also part of the support.
Students will spend three weeks on work placements with local employers, who will ask them to design a social media campaign.
Make it Digital is a national scheme but the programme in Scotland has the added benefit of a recognised SQA qualification – the National Progression Award in Enterprise and Employability.
Trainees will also take part in a Radio 1 challenge based in London, where the best entries will be shortlisted into the final recruitment stages for a year-long Radio 1 Apprenticeship.
As well as new digital skills, students will also learn employability skills including business networking, CV and interview tips, budgeting, project management and creating an online portfolio. By the end of the training, participants will greatly improve their chances of finding a job or a modern apprenticeship.
Jon Buglass, head of Creative Industries at Edinburgh College, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for young people to start to develop the skills they need to make it in the creative digital industry. The digital sector is one of the fastest-growing industries in the UK at the moment as businesses now rely on an online presence to survive. We’re excited to be working with the BBC Academy and Skills Development Scotland to give unemployed young people the chance to build digital and employability skills to help them make their way back into the workplace.”
Skills Development Scotland is funding the programme through the Employability Fund. Contact the Edinburgh Skills Development Scotland Careers Centre on 0131 718 2040 or speak to a Jobcentre Work Coach to find out how to apply for this course.
Muirhouse Housing Association tenants have an opportunity to brush up their technology skills at event at Muirhouse Millennium Community Centre tomorrow (writes James McGinty):
Come and find out more about using phones,tablets and computers with the M.H.A. Team at Muirhouse Millennium Community Centre (Lounge/Cafe area) on Tuesday (9 June) from 11am – 1pm.
This is an event for M.H.A.Tenants only.
An expert from the field of computers will be there joining the Team and if you attend your name will be entered to a lucky dip to win a tablet!
Chromosome disorder charity uses social media to ensure to ensure people get the support they need
Social isolation is a huge problem for many parents of disabled children. Throw in a rare chromosome disorder, often a disorder that has no name, just a long, unfathomable code of letters and numbers, and the problem increases.
The everyday challenges which follow, the never-ending worries about the future, constant battles to make professionals and even your friends and family understand, leave parents feely confused and very alone.
To help raise awareness of these issues, Unique is running a Chromosome Disorder Awareness Week from 7 -13 June.
Unique is an UK charity supporting families affected by rare chromosome disorders. A spokesperson explained: “The aim is to spread the word to ensure nobody affected is left feeling isolated and alone.
“Everyone needs their friends around them for support, no one should have to feel so desperately alone and yet hundreds of parents with children affected by a chromosome disorder are facing the hardest time of their lives on their own, being rejected by those they trusted most.”
One ‘Unique mum’ said: “When my son was first diagnosed, friends suddenly stopped contacting me. I would see pictures appear on Facebook of the things they had got up to, things that before that point I had done with them.”
Unique, The Rare Chromosome Disorder Support Group, has set up a confidential Facebook group ‘Cafe’ which has grown rapidly to over 3,000 members.
It’s a virtual place where parents can ‘pop in for a cuppa’, vent, ask questions, gain support and also celebrate their child’s achievements.
The Unique spokesperson added: “There is nothing like feeling understood and heard by a community of people who have shared similar experiences.
“It has become a lifeline to parents who feel invisible to the rest of the world, giving them a support network of friends who understand, don’t judge and help them make sense of what is happening to them.
“One mum recently told us: ‘I’ve found that I’ve lost a lot of old friends because they just don’t understand or want to understand my situation. I have made lots of valuable friendships since having my daughter and that’s what counts. The Unique Facebook Cafe group became my lifeline, my access to a wealth of knowledge and my greatest source of support. I soon became friends with three of the mums, we quickly realised we had the same sense of humour and shared a common bond… WE LOVE CAKE! These three women are my bestest, most-treasured and trusted friends!’”
School pupils from all corners of the Capital have created a mini-map of Edinburgh with a series of tweets about the city’s streets.
The ‘Tweet Your Street’ project, being announced tomorow (Monday 1 June) at the Central Library, sees the launch of an online map where children have started ‘pinning’ poetic tweets about where they live. A selection of tweets will also be on public display within the children’s area of the library.
The map is a result of a series of poetry workshops with P3-S1 pupils from across the Capital and the Edinburgh Makar Christine De Luca.
From the apple trees in Hope Terrace and the cobbles of St Vincent Street, to the cats that stroll along Easter Drylaw Place and the excitement of hearing the jingle of an ice cream van, the map of tweets reveals the essence of living in Edinburgh as a child.
“Walking past running cats
Lovely gardens outside flats
Everyone is full of grace
On Easter Drylaw Place”
(Age 12, Forthview Primary School)
Councillor Richard Lewis, Culture and Sport Convener, said: “These snippets of poetry provide a sweet and honest view of Edinburgh’s communities in the eyes of its youngest residents. In Edinburgh we have a long and proud interest in literature and poetry and it is great to see our pupils’ own writing talent thanks to this project.
“The memories of the street you grow up on stay with you. ‘Tweet Your Street’ captures these memories in a way that will hopefully spark other pupils and residents to view their own communities in a new light and maybe even tweet about it. The Edinburgh Makar Christine De Luca and these pupils have produced a brand new way of mapping Edinburgh and getting students interested in poetry.”
Christine De Luca became the Scottish Capital’s poet in residence, the Edinburgh Makar, and promotes Scottish writing and the Capital’s status as a UNESCO City of Literature locally and around the world. She was appointed as the city’s version of ‘Poet Laureate’ in 2014, and initiated ‘Tweet Your Street’.
Edinburgh Makar Christine De Luca said: “This has been a fun project to do. I’ve really enjoyed working with a group of committed, enthusiastic teachers. Writing a very short poem which captures something about your street isn’t easy, but reading the children’s poems proves it’s possible. Do read them and pass on the link to family and friends. The Central Library has been a great partner.”
All tweets will be available to view online at the Edinburgh Makar website from 11:30am tomorrow. Here’s a flavour of what to expect:
Young people take the lead in nationwide Safer Internet Day campaign
Young people across the UK are joining together to create a kinder online community today,Safer Internet Day 2015, as a new study into Friendship in a Digital Age reveals that 30% of young people have been on the receiving end of mean online behaviour in the past year.
The research comes as official organisers of the day, the UK Safer Internet Centre, launch #Up2Us, a new film made by over 150 schoolchildren about their online experiences – both good and bad – with the aim of inspiring young people across the UK to do something kind online this Safer Internet Day. The film will be premiered at events across the UK today, attended by government Ministers and young people.
Celebrities, including young stars such as Britain’s Got Talent finalists Bars and Melody, and Olympic gymnast Beth Tweddle, have backed the campaign. Beth and other celebrities feature on Safer Internet Day TV, which is hosted by CBBC Friday Download presenters Molly and Harvey, and will be available online today from 11am and 2pm, with a social media takeover by Bars and Melody at 8pm.
They join hundreds supporting the #SID2015 social media campaign to ‘share a smile online’, which is set to reach over 1.5 million in a mass tweet at 8am today, along with over 800 organisations that have pledged their support for Safer Internet Day 2015. High profile partners including the BBC, CEOP, Disney, the FA, Facebook, Google, Lloyds Banking Group, Microsoft, NSPCC, Twitter and the UK Government, as well as hundreds of schools and other organisations, are all coming together to deliver a range of inspiring activities across the UK.
Friendship in a digital age
According to the online study of more than a thousand 11-16-year-olds conducted by ResearchBods, more than three quarters (78%) believe that young people have the power to create a kinder online community. The majority (88%) of the young people questioned say they always try to be kind in their online interactions.
The study reveals the huge role that technology plays in supporting young people’s friendships, with over half (55%) saying they interact online with their closest friends several times an hour and 63% saying they are closer to their friends because of the internet. Reassuringly the internet is a positive place for the majority of young people surveyed. When questioned about their time spent on social networks and messaging apps, the majority of 11-16s (63%) felt that people were kind to them on the internet most of the time.
However, some young people face negative experiences online. Almost a third (30%) of young people said that someone had been mean to them in the last year, with 1 in 20 (5%) saying that people were mean to them most of the time on the internet.
Many of these young people are taking positive steps to tackle these negative experiences, with three-quarters (75%) of young people who experienced mean behaviour saying they have blocked someone in the last year, while 68% said they have supported someone else who was being targeted online. More positively, 64% of young people said they felt able to cope with anything negative that might happen online and 81% said they know what to do if someone is abusive towards them online.
An additional survey of UK adults by ComRes demonstrates that this isn’t just an issue for children. 45% of adults who use social networking and messaging apps said they occasionally see people on their social networks and messaging apps posting unkind, negative or upsetting content. People sharing gossip and rumours has occurred for three quarters (72%) of adults using social networking and messaging apps, while around three in five (59%) have experienced people posting things that attack a certain group (e.g. racist, sexist or homophobic comments).
That’s why everyone is being encouraged to play their part in creating a better internet.
Will Gardner, Director of the UK Safer Internet Centre, said: “It’s heartening to hear that the majority of young people are finding the internet a positive place on the whole, but there’s more to be done to make sure that’s the experience for everyone. We’re encouraging everyone to take action today – whether that’s sharing a smiley face or making a promise about your online behaviour. It really is up to us to make the internet a better place.”
For more information on the activities taking place to celebrate Safer Internet Day, visit the UK Safer Internet Centre website.
