Scottish Government publishes Equally Well Review 2010

Equally Well Review 2010 is the newly published report on the implementation of Equally Well, the Early Years Framework and Achieving Our Potential and finds that these three social policy frameworks remain the best approach to deliver long term improvements.

The report recommends a shift in resources towards early intervention and this will happen alongside consistent and meaningful community engagement. The Scottish Government has committed to provide continued support to build capacity in both communities and public services to promote the community-led health approach and the involvement of third sector organisations.

The reports aspirations are laudable and the cohesive working that it advocates is a positive step forward.

However, the challenge will be in the implementation and VHS will continue to both follow and support its progress.

The Equally Well Review 2010 can be accessed here.


NHS inform to launch soon

NHS inform – the new national health information service for Scotland - is set to launch this summer.

The new service will in the first instance provide the public, patients and carers with a wide range of quality-assured health information online (www.nhsinform.co.uk), on the telephone (0800 22 44 88) and face- to-face. It will be the first time all of this type of information has been brought together in one place.

NHS inform is a developing service and will be launched in phases with the telephone and online services, provided by NHS 24, the first to go live on August 3rd.

The NHS inform team, headed by Lynne Huckerby, has been working alongside other NHS partners, as well as with charities and other groups, to identify and agree content for the service.

Lynne said: This has been a challenging project as we have been working with a broad range of stakeholders to bring together a range of quality assured information in one place which is really unprecedented in Scotland.

By working in close partnership with partners, the inform team have succeeded in shaping a service that, when fully operational, will be arguably one of the best health information resources available in Scotland today.

The website will draw on information from NHS24.com, NHS Choices, and a number of approved external resources, to one central, easily accessible point, for the people of Scotland.

At launch, the site will feature elements such as:

• An updated and expanded Health A-Z
• Common health questions
• Links to local information across Scotland
• Behind the headlines feature – looking at the health issues making the news and the truth behind the claims
• The site will also link with Health in My Language www.healthinmylanguage.com a portal to translated information about health and health services in Scotland

You may be aware that the Home Office has announced a review of the vetting and barring scheme that covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

This is to let you know that the Scottish Government is proceeding as planned to implement the Protecting Vulnerable Groups Scheme (PVG Scheme) which has been the subject of extensive consultation and engagement with people who work with children and protected adults in Scotland.

The continued interest and views of stakeholders have helped the Scottish Government to shape a system that strikes the balance between robust regulation and proportionate protection, without compromising on the need to minimise bureaucracy.

The PVG Scheme only applies to people who work with vulnerable groups and it does not apply to personal arrangements that people make with friends or family, or to work positions where there is no opportunity to cause harm to vulnerable groups.

The PVG Scheme will be phased in over a four year period to ensure that the administrative burden on groups and organisations that work with vulnerable groups is minimised. It is expected to commence at the end of 2010 and an exact commencement date has still to be announced by Scottish Ministers.

The Scottish Government welcomes the review of the VBS which provides an opportunity to bring the VBS closer to the PVG Scheme in scope and proportionality. For more information on the PVG Scheme visit the Scottish Government website here.

Meet the Scottish Political Party Leaders

The Long Term Conditions Alliance Scotland (LTCAS) hopes you will be able to join them to meet the party leaders.

This will help LTCAS inform them about the issues that affect people who live with long term conditions.

• Scottish Liberal Democrat Leader Tavish Scott MSP - Thursday 26 August (11am - 12.30pm followed by lunch)
• Scottish Labour Party Leader Iain Gray MSP - Wednesday 1 Sept (11am - 12.30pm followed by lunch)

(Dates for other political parties will be confirmed shortly)

These events will be held at LTCAS, Venlaw Building, 349 Bath Street, Glasgow G2 4AA.

If you would like to come to one or more of these events please email victoria.eastwood@ltcas.org.uk or call Vicky on 0141 404 0231 for more information.

New survey highlights overwhelming demand for access to depression prevention programmes for people in Scotland

Depression Alliance Scotland asked over 600 adults in Scotland about the prevention of depression. The survey results were published on 16th June alongside the launch of a new Mood Matters campaign to mark National Depression Week 2010.

89% of survey respondents believed that in some cases it was possible to prevent depression. When asked who should be responsible for making this happen, people highlighted a range of groups.

Everyone has a role in creating wellbeing. People clearly recognise this, with 79% agreeing that society as a whole has a responsibility to prevent depression.

People were asked what interventions they felt would be best for preventing new cases of depression. Respondents recognised that supporting vulnerable groups of people like new mothers and people who were unemployed might prevent depression.

Importantly people also picked free or low cost activities like exercise, access to green space and healthy eating as beneficial.

Minister for Public Health Shona Robison said:

National Depression Week is a great opportunity to raise awareness and help address the stigma associated with experiencing depression.

The Scottish Government is committed to raising awareness of depression through partner organisations such as Depression Alliance Scotland, ‘Breathing Space’ and ‘see me’, as well as looking at ways to prevent depression.

Across all areas of public health, not just mental health, we are committed to improving the wellbeing of our nation. That means supporting measures that prevent ill health, as well as providing appropriate treatment to people who are ill.

Ilena Day, Chief Executive explains:

It is important to realise that given the opportunity we can all take responsibility for addressing early signs of stress and depression to help us to feel better, cope better, and live better.

In hard financial times it is more important than ever to assist people with depression to recover, and to work where possible to prevent the episodes of poor mental health we can all experience becoming more serious episodes of depression.

It is well known that at least one in four adults will experience a mental health problem at some point in their lives. For many people, depression is likely to be the mental health problem with which they are most familiar and most likely to experience or come into contact with.

Against the backdrop of recession, it is vital that services think about how best to deliver effective support to reduce impact of low mood and depression on our ability to be healthy and productive. Investing in people’s own abilities to manage mood could well be a cost effective way of empowering people and working smarter to reduce the level of need for more complicated and expensive services.

For more information please visit the Depression Alliance Scotland website here

SCVO training programme 2010 - 2011

It has never been more important to make sure our skills are the best they can be. These are challenging times and the need for a strong voluntary sector, with well-developed, up-to-date skills, is key to SCVO delivering the quality of services their members and stakeholders expect of them.

However, the SCVO Training Team appreciate that people are dealing with many competing demands. Maintaining an appropriate skill set is sometimes easier said than done. Therefore, in this year’s programme SCVO have particularly focused on offering options that make it as easy as possible for you to access training in the skills you need.

Do you have limited time?
SCVO offer training in sessions from as little as two hours in length. You’ll find a host of practical two hour sessions delivered by SCVO staff and members of other sectors, notably the legal profession.

Do you have limited resources?
You may be eligible to open an Individual Learning Account (ILA), which can be used to pay for SCVO courses. The ILA scheme is for people who have an income of £22,000 a year or less, or who are on benefits. For more information on the ILA scheme visit www.ilascotland.org.uk

SCVO also offer:

• discounted training rates for Grassroots members
• in-house training at a location and time of your choosing
• video conferencing for a number of the two hour sessions available at the SCVO Inverness and Edinburgh offices
• learning blocks are available at your workplace in IT subjects and can last as little as two hours
• distance learning providing the opportunity to learn exactly what you want, when you want and where you want (at home, or in the workplace)

For information on all SCVO training courses please visit here


A Guide to Implementing Getting it right for every child

Adam Ingram MSP, Minister for Children and Early Years, launched the Guide to Implementing Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) at The Children's Summit on 23rd June.

The Guide draws on examples of best practice and experience to date, and sets out what has worked well in pathfinder and learning partnership areas where the Getting it right approach has already been rolled out.

It can be used by strategic / operational managers and practitioners as part of their own training and implementation plans and help them identify their local priorities for action. It will help them build on existing good practice.

People can use it in conjunction with other tools and resources already available on the Scottish Government GIRFEC webpages.

• A Guide to Implementing GIRFEC
• GIRFEC overview
• A Guide to GIRFEC for practitioners
• GIRFEC publications
• GIRFEC Partner Newsletters
• GIRFEC Learning Community

If you are a voluntary organisation seeking advice or support in implementing GIRFEC, contact Claire Stevens in the Scottish Government GIRFEC team.
Gender diversity in the workplace: demonstrating dignity and respect in our work with trans people

A training session on 1st September at Carronvale House in Larbert addressing gender diversity in the workplace.

In a modern Scotland we know that there is no place for discrimination. Changes in legislation and the continuous push to move our society further toward being an equitable yet diverse environment have definitely started to impact on the historical acceptance of prejudice in its various forms.

Most public sector workers demonstrate a willingness to improve their working practice so as to reduce discriminatory practice in their own organisations. So we have seen a gradual improvement in the way that language is used and services are designed alongside the equalities agenda being more prominent.

There’s a long way to go though, particularly in the area of discrimination against transgender people, whose experiences often reflect a real lack of understanding on the part of society in general, and services in particular, of how to treat trans people with dignity and respect. Trans people report frequently being dealt with in a way that makes it difficult to use services, talk to professionals, and access support that they have a right to.

Workers often feel that they could do better in their dealing with trans services users, but are lacking in the confidence, skills and knowledge to implement such a change. This course aims to fill this gap by helping participants understand issues of discrimination faced by trans people and examine behaviours which ensure the promotion of good practice in the workplace.

For more information or to register your place on this course please contact Tim Street on 07944 420321 or email tim@timstreet.org
British Heart Foundation Scotland – public meeting information

Beating heart disease together: Wednesday 22nd September

12.30 - 4.15pm
The Lighthouse, Glasgow

You are invited to BHF Scotland’s public meeting

Come and hear BHF Medical Director Professor Peter Weissberg talk about their exciting plans to beat heart disease through pioneering research

Learn more about how to look after your heart and put your burning questions to the experts

Find out about BHF's vital work to keep local hearts beating and how they can work together to save the life you love

To book your place call 0131 555 5891 or email scotland@bhf.org.uk
Job Opportuinities at HIV Scotland

HIV Scotland – helping to build a society which is well informed about HIV, devoid of HIV related stigma and discrimination, and where everyone living with HIV has access to and helps shape excellent services.

Strategic roles working with key partners in a new phase for HIV Scotland in supporting the delivery of Scotland’s HIV Action Plan to address challenges in prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care.

Senior Policy Officer
Salary: £29,259 - £31,761

Learning Development Officer
Salary: £26,331 - £28,680

Both posts based in Edinburgh, 35 hours per week.

Closing date 19th July

Interviews provisionally set for 4th August (Senior Policy) and 18th August (Learning Officer).

HIV Scotland are looking for experienced specialists capable of providing high quality advice and learning to policy makers, professionals and agencies engaged at all levels in the promotion of standards, effective interventions and co-ordination in HIV.

For the Senior Policy post you will have a strong understanding of Scottish Government and Parliamentary structures, knowledge of current HIV related policy, and a track record in achieving change.

For the Learning Development post, you will bring experience of communicating knowledge, and of supporting standards, evidence-informed practice, and innovation to engage diverse public and professional audiences.

Full details of these posts and application packs are available on the HIV Scotland website, e-mail info@hivscotland.com or call 0131 558 3713.
Call for images from SCVO

We all appreciate the importance of using the correct imagery in our organisations’ publicity. At SCVO, it is a particular challenge as our membership – and of course the sector at large – is so incredibly diverse. We wouldn’t want it any other way, however representing that in a positive and meaningful fashion can, at times, be hard to achieve.

We are committed to constantly improving the way we portray the work of the charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises we represent. And we want you to be a part of that. We want to literally put you in the picture!

So, what we need is simple – images of all the fantastic work you do. We know you have some great stuff, and we would like to be able to use some of it in our own publicity materials. It doesn’t matter what it is – if you feel it represents the work you do well and there are no reasons why the shots can’t be used for this purpose then SCVO would love to hear from you. And we promise to recognise your contribution by crediting you wherever appropriate.

If you want to contribute, please email John Ferguson, Communications Officer at SCVO, with whatever you have or call him on 0131 474 8047. Naturally, the sharper and bigger the images are, the better. Electronic formats (high resolution jpg and pdf are the best) are preferable to hard copy images – although if that’s all you have and can send us those, we’ll gladly accept them by post.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions about any aspect of the project.

© 2010 Voluntary Health Scotland
35 Melville Street, Edinburgh EH3 7JF
Tel: 0131 225 7290

Company reg number SC267315
Scottish Charity number SCO35482

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