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As Scotland enters a new phase of its recovery efforts and lockdown measure begin to ease, we at CVS Falkirk are also focusing on recovery and how we can best support our local third sector going forward.
Our theme for this period is "Review, Revive and Thrive": a chance to evaluate and adapt as we plan how best to go forward, how to make the "new normal" even better than what came before.
This week's e-bulletin will focus primarily on resources for children and young people and their families, including childcare, further and blended education, mental health, and online safety.
For further information, please stay tuned to the CVS Falkirk website, or continue reading this e-bulletin.
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At the start of July, the First Minister announced changes to requirements for physical distancing amongst young children who are not shielding.
As Scotland is now in Phase 3 of recovery, children under 12 years old can now play with their friends without having to social distance, or keep 2 metres apart. They also do not need to keep 2 metres apart from older children or adults outside of their household.
Children can now meet up to 15 friends from up to 4 households outdoors, or up to 8 friends from up to 2 households indoors.
For further information, please click on the above title.
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On Tuesday 23rd June, Deputy First Minister John Swinney spoke before the Scottish Parliament and announced plans to re-open Scottish schools 7 weeks later, on Tuesday 11th August.
Scottish schools closed in March as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown procedures. Mr Swinney noted that while the plan is to re-open Scottish schools fulltime, this has to be achieved safely, and remains conditional and dependent upon ongoing scientific and health advice, as part of a wider approach.
To read Mr Swinney’s statement in full, please visit the Scottish Government website.
The Scottish Government COVID-19 framework is also available to view online, along with the Strategic Framework for Re-Opening Schools, Early Learning and Childcare Provision.
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With funding from Scottish Government’s Wellbeing Fund, Children in Scotland is running a series of webinars throughout the summer for parents and carers on supporting children and young people with additional support needs (ASN).(Professionals are also welcome.)
The next sessions are:
Tickets for each session are free, though there are options to add donations.
For further information, including how to book a place at any session, please click on the above title.
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Forth Valley Developing the Young Workforce’s (DYW) next “Scotland’s Biggest Parent’s Evenings” (SBPE) online event takes place Tuesday 21st July, 7pm – 7:30pm.
“Vocational Pathways to Industry” is aimed at parents and carers whose young people have just left school; these young people are also encouraged to attend.
The event is designed allow attendees to hear from a range of speakers from different organisations across sectors and industries, and will provide information on the vocational education opportunities within colleges, as well as Foundation, Modern and Graduate Apprenticeships.
For further information, including how to book your place, please click on the above title.
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FastForward is running a series of free interactive webinars, “Young People and Gambling Harms”, with the next session taking place on Thursday 23rd July, 10am – 12pm.
The webinars are specifically designed for practitioners who work with parents, carers and families across Scotland, exploring current issues surrounding gambling and young people.
Participants will have the opportunity to share concerns and best practice around online gambling amongst children and young people, especially with the current COVID-19 pandemic where many are spending more time online.
To book your place, or for further information, please visit the Eventbrite page.
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Inclusion Scotland has launched their new follow-up survey on social care support during COVID-19.
The previous survey in April found that many disabled people had lost social care support during COVID-19; this follow-up aims to understand and build an accurate picture of why this happened.
The survey is anonymous; Inclusion Scotland may share your words with officials to make sure improvements are, but will not share anything that would identify you.
The deadline for responses is 12pm on Monday 27th July.
To submit your response, please visit the SurveyMonkey page.
For further information, or to download any of the alternative versions of the survey (including Easy Read and Plain Text versions), visit the Inclusion Scotland website.
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Lead Scotland is hosting free short classes via Zoom over the coming months to help people to use the internet confidently and safely, with the next class taking place on Monday 27th July at 1pm.
The classes are 45 minutes long, and all cover the same material and resources, so participants only need to attend one. Everyone is welcome to attend.
The online classes aim to cover the basics of how to protect against hackers by using strong passwords, how to tell if a website is real or not and how to avoid email and social media scams.
For further information, including how to book your place, please click on the above title.
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Strathcarron Hospice’s Compassionate Communities team is offering telephone befriending to anyone who is feeling lonely or isolated, or who could benefit from a regular chat with the same person around once a week.
The Community Advice and Listening Line (CALL) is open to all members of the community who would like to talk to a friendly volunteer. There is no need to have a connection with the hospice to call.
CALL volunteers are available open 7 days a week, 9am – 7pm, by phone: 01324 827383.
The team aim to ensure people who call are matched with someone who lives close by, where possible.
For further information, please click on the above title.
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Education Scotland and e-Sgoil will provide new support to increase the availability of online learning across different subjects and support digital inclusion throughout Scotland.
The support aims to develop a strong national e-learning provision, with a number of additional teachers from local authorities trained to provide online lessons. These lessons are designed to help support and augment the work of classroom teachers for schools re-opening on Tuesday 11th August.
All local authorities and schools in Scotland will be able to access live lessons on a range of subjects, and will take shared ownership for delivering these.
For further information, please click on the above title.
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To offer a route to buying Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for private, voluntary and independent early learning and childcare services (including childminders and out-of-school care), Scottish Government has set up a framework agreement with third-party supplier Lyreco.
The products offered via the framework include face masks, aprons, gloves, visors, hand sanitiser, goggles and safety glasses. All products are subject to availability and prices are updated regularly on the Lyreco website.
Please note that this is a “pay for” service, and the childcare provider will be responsible for paying for any products purchased from Lyreco under this agreement.
For further information, including how to open an account with Lyrceo, please visit the Care Inspectorate website.
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The HMP and HMYOI Polmont Prison Visitors Centre has released its Summer 2020 newsletter.
This edition’s main focus is that, now Scotland has entered Phase 3 of recovery, the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) is planning to look at re-opening face to face visits.
In the meantime, virtual visits are now running at Polmont, allowing visitors to see their loved ones for possibly the first time since lockdown, and mobile phones have been given out, with every phone loaded with 300 free minutes each month. Prisoner voicemail is also live.
The newsletter also features wellbeing tips, activities and recipes.
To view or download the newsletter, please visit the CVS Falkirk website.
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A safety message from Police Scotland's Safer Communities Cybercrime Harm Prevention Unit on the "Send Me A Pic?" trend, and resources to help parents, families and carers teach their children and young people about the risks and support available:
“Sharing photos and videos online is part of daily life for many people. Regrettably, amongst our children and young people there is a common trend of sharing sexual imagery of themselves on messaging apps. This is a concerning issue; the second anyone posts anything online, they lose control over what happens to it.
We must have that conversation about the dangers of nude pics and sexting, and to share concerns.
CEOP and Thinkuknow have launched a new resource to assist parents, carers and professionals with support on this issue: Send Me A Pic, 3 sessions for 12 - 14 year olds on issues around sharing nude images.”
To read Police Scotland’s full message, including additional resources, please click on the above title.
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Scottish Government’s Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) department has funded Living Classrooms CIC to deliver a Virtual Nature School (VNS) programme for the ELC sector.
The programme is designed to help practitioners support children who cannot attend their setting during COVID-19. All practitioners receive training on the method and practice of outdoor play. This is then put into practice with practitioners delivering nature-based play sessions, via an online platform, to a group of children and families.
The VNS can support up to 2,000 practitioners and 20,000 families over 2 cohorts between until Friday 18th September.
For further information, please visit the VNS website.
Alternatively, contact the ELC team by email: outdoorELC@gov.scot
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The COVID-19 Children & Families Collective Leadership Group has considered the Scottish Government COVID-19 framework, and produced a route map specifically related to services for children and young people.
The group endorses the intent of Scottish Government’s framework map to support Scotland’s children and families, as part of the continued commitment to “Getting It Right For Every Child” (GIRFEC).
The children and young people’s services route map covers Phase 2 to 4 of Scotland’s recover; there might be further updates.
To view or download the COVID-19 Children & Families Collective Leadership Group’s route map, please visit the CVS Falkirk website.
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The Junior Award Scheme for Schools (JASS) is an accredited learning programme which acknowledges the wider achievement of young people.
JASS offers recognition in 4 key areas: regular physical activity, exploring a personal interest, working for the good of the community or the environment, and completing an outdoor activity or challenge.
The programme aims to provide an integral part of the recovery process within youth organisations and schools during the recovery and renewal phase of COVID-19, by supporting blended learning and increased communication between schools and families, amongst other efforts.
For further information, please click on the above title.
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Stop It Now! Scotland is a child protection charity dedicated to preventing child sexual abuse. Since 2008, they have been providing confidential support services to individuals and families to protect children from harm, and help prevent child sexual abuse.
To enhance this work, Stop It Now Scotland have created an Upstream Prevention pack.
These free resources are designed to be distributed to all audiences and across multiple platforms, including social media. The pack contains practical advice for professionals, individuals and families.
For further information, including how to access the Upstream Prevention pack, please click on the above title.
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Youth Scotland has developed a guide to help youth groups and organisations to plan for re-opening post COVID-19.
The “Post Lockdown Readiness Guide” aims to support groups and organisations and offer practical advice for re-opening. There is also a detailed summary of Scottish Government’s Framework, and which areas apply to youth groups and organisations, including physical distancing in youth work premises, and hygiene and infection control measures.
To view or download the guide, please visit the Youth Scotland website.
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Disabled Living has published their latest blog post, “10 Wellness Tips for Older People to Improve Overall Wellbeing”.
The post lists options involved in helping people keep healthy as they age, including:
- dentist appointments
- staying active and interacting with others
- mental health
- adequate sleep
- proper use of prescriptions and medication
- healthy eating
To read the full blog post, please visit the Disabled Living website.
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An Independent Advisor Group (IAG) has been set up to review Police Scotland's use of new temporary police powers to tackle COVID-19. They are looking to gather feedback from as many people as possible on their experiences.
Understanding and listening to the views and experiences of those impacted by use of the powers is central to the work of the IAG, which is keen to involve the voices of community and grassroots representatives and any groups that may be most impacted or disadvantaged by the use of these temporary powers.
The initial deadline for responses is Tuesday 1st September.
For further information, including how to submit your response, please click on the above title.
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During the current COVID-19 pandemic, all third sector forums held at our office are cancelled until further notice.
Instead, the next meeting of the online COVID-19 Third Sector Response Forum takes place on Thursday 23rd July, 1pm – 3pm, and can be accessed via the Zoom link, or with the meeting ID: 968 735 400.
The meetings are currently focusing on recovery and renewal. Minutes of previous meetings are available on the dedicated forum webpage, along with any additional documentation.
For further information, or be added to the COVID-19 Third Sector Response Forum mailing list, please contact Scott Malcolm by email: Scott.Malcolm@cvsfalkirk.org.uk
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Emerging Minds is a research network aiming to reduce the prevalence of mental health problems experienced by children and young people.
They have launched the “COVID-19: Supporting Parents, Adolescents and Children During Epidemics” (Co-SPACE) and “COVID-19: Supporting Parents and Young Children During Epidemics” (Co-SPYCE) studies to track mental health throughout the current pandemic, and hope to hear from as many families as possible.
The results will help build a more accurate image of how families are coping during the pandemic, what helps children's mental health and what parents and carers can do to support their children at this time.
For further information, including how to take part, please click on the above title.
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The Organised Outdoor Community Play Fund closes for applications at 11:59pm on Monday 20th July.
Managed by Inspiring Scotland, the fund has been set up to support children’s health and wellbeing through outdoor play.
Play, and in particular outdoor play, has been recognised as an aid for children in their recovery (through being more physically active, engaging with friends and improving their sense of wellbeing) and in building their resilience.
Grants of up to £25,000 is available for eligible Scottish registered charities delivering organised outdoor play-based opportunities for children. Successful applicants will be able to access wider support from Inspiring Scotland’s Professional Specialist Volunteer Network.
To apply, or for further information (including eligibility criteria), please visit the Inspiring Scotland website.
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Scottish Government’s Access to Childcare Fund, managed by Children in Scotland, is now open for applications from groups and organisations.
The fund supports solutions to the barriers parents and carers experience in accessing childcare.
The Access to Childcare Fund focuses on projects and services supporting the 6 priority family groups set out in the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan:
- lone parent families
- families which include a disabled adult or child
- larger families
- minority ethnic families
- families with a child under one year old
- families where the mother is under 25 years old
The deadline for applications is 5pm on Monday 27th July.
For further information, including how to apply, please click on the above title.
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The Women’s Fund for Scotland has launched 2 new funding programmes in response to COVID-19. Grants of up to £5,000 are available through both grant schemes.
The Emergency Response Grant is available to support women’s organisations, equipping them to deal with changes required due the COVID-19 pandemic while delivering services.
The Resilience and Recovery Grant is available to help women’s organisation to adapt their normal working practices to conform to any Government guidelines relating to COVID-19, whilst continuing to meet the needs of the women and girls they work with.
The deadline for all applications is 4pm on Monday 10th August.
For further information, including how to apply, please click on the above title.
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NHS Forth Valley’s Health Promotion Service has grants of up to £500 available.
The COVID-19 Response Grants supports organisations to do one or all of the following:
- health and wellbeing activities in response to COVID-19 addressing a reduction in health inequalities
- piloting new ideas and initiatives or adapting previous activities
- development of employees, volunteers or clients directly relating to the funded programme
- purchase equipment relating to the programme’s work
Ongoing support will be offered, and a guidance document is available online for potential applicants. It is anticipated that allocation decisions will be made quickly.
For further information (including how to apply), please click on the above title.
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The COVID-19 Falkirk Volunteer Expenses Fund has been set up to support community groups and voluntary organisations which operate in Falkirk and District, and whose volunteers provide support through community activities during COVID-19. CVS Falkirk will be administering the fund.
Expenses will be reimbursed directly to volunteers in order to reduce organisational time and resources required to administer additional or increased volunteer activity.
All COVID-19-related volunteer-involving groups and organisations are eligible to use the fund. For the full eligibility criteria and details on what can be reimbursed, please view or download the guidance document before registering.
The deadline for registrations is Friday 31st July.
To register, groups and organisations should download and complete the registration form.
For further information, please contact CVS Falkirk by phone: 07872464215, or email: volunteer@cvsfalkirk.org.uk
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Children in Scotland (CiS) is looking for 2 individuals with appropriate experience and knowledge of financial management and of digital operations to join its Board of Directors.
Please note that these positions are non-remunerative and ask for a commitment of approximately one day per month. The Board meets 5 times per year.
Both Directors should have a broad understanding of governance issues, responsibilities and regulatory requirements, and an interest in improving the lives and childhoods of all children and their families. Previous experience of committee work is advantageous.
The deadline for applications is 5pm on Wednesday 29th July.
For further information on this opportunity, including how to get involved, please click on the above title.
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Are you in need of social investment, but not sure where to look?
Social Investment Scotland (SIS) has launched a new series of 9 online workshops, taking place over the summer to look at what’s involved when raising investment.
The Raising Investment workshops will cover the range of options and social investment providers operating in Scotland. Each workshop is 2 hours long, focusing on raising investment for the first 90 minutes, which is then followed by 30 minutes covering crowdfunding and community shares.
The first workshop, Raising Investment – Food and Drink Services takes place Tuesday 21st July, 2pm – 4pm.
For further information, including how to book your place, please click on the above title.
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Scottish Government’s Towns and BIDs Resilience and Recovery Fund supports immediate concerns and actions to help prepare towns, their communities and businesses for the gradual easing of lockdown rules.
Managed by Scotland’s Towns Partnership (STP), the fund aims to help resource project delivery, where a recovery strategy for the town has been agreed with the local authority.
The fund is open to constituted groups with suitable governance controls.
The deadline for applications is 5pm on Friday 24th July.
For further information, including eligibility criteria and how to apply, please click on the above title.
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As the Third Sector Interface for the Falkirk Council area, we're a local, independent charitable company which exists to promote, develop and represent the third sector and volunteering. We provide a range of services predominantly to volunteers and third sector organisations, but also provide support and assistance to statutory partners to engage better with the third sector.
Our e-bulletin articles are linked to our website which will provide you with further information, simply click on the article title to open the full article in a new window.
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