£60 million for newly self-employed, close contact businesses and driving instructors. Two funds to support people whose livelihoods have been affected by the pandemic are now open to applications Grants will be available for mobile and home-based close contact service businesses – such as make-up artists and hairdressers – as Read more…
£542,200 PAID TO FAMILIES IN DUNDEE CITY FROM SCOTTISH WINTER HARDSHIP FUND 5,422 FAMILIES RECEIVE £100 WINTER PAYMENT 5,422 families in Dundee City have received a £100 COVID winter hardship payment to support them through one of the most difficult winters in living memory. New figures show that the SNP Read more…
Payments to start from late February. More than 77,000 Scottish Child Payment applications have been received since Social Security Scotland started taking applications on 9 November. The new benefit, which is unique to Scotland, will give qualifying parents and carers £40 every four weeks for each child under six. The Read more…
786,427 people have received first dose. A total of 786,427 people have now received their first Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination in Scotland, including 93% of over-80s living in the community. Some 99% of older adult care home residents have received a first dose, along with 89% of staff in older adult Read more…
Almost £1 million to support people into work. Funding to help more vulnerable young people across Scotland into work has been announced by Economy Secretary Fiona Hyslop. Part of the Scottish Government’s Young Person’s Guarantee, the £986,702 investment will provide specialist pre-employment support for an additional 1,300 16 and 17-year-olds. Read more…
Supervised quarantine and expansion of testing as gradual schools return announced. A series of new measures aimed at driving down coronavirus (COVID-19) rates in Scotland have been announced. Current restrictions, including the ‘stay-at-home’ requirement, are set to remain in place until at least the end of February and schools will Read more…
Record funding to deliver Scotland’s green recovery. The Scottish Government will invest a record £1.9 billion in tackling climate change and creating good, green jobs in 2021/22. Delivery of a ground-breaking £1.6 billion investment to transform heat and energy efficiency of buildings will get under way, directly supporting up to Read more…
Increased Budget investment for a Fairer Scotland. Tackling deep-seated poverty and inequality will be supported by increased funding from the 2021-22 Scottish Budget. To ensure all children have the best start in life, £68 million will be invested in the Scottish Child Payment, and £53 million will fund universal Free Read more…
Investing in jobs and skills. Supporting people into employment and equipping them with skills they need will be at the heart of the economic recovery, backed with £1.1 billion of investment under the proposed Scottish Budget 2021-22. Additional investment of £125 million will go towards the Young Person’s Guarantee, the Read more…
COVID support for teachers. Hundreds of teachers who are new in post, or working in pastoral or child protection roles, are to be offered support to manage the challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Education Scotland and the General Teaching Council for Scotland have partnered with social enterprise organisation KnowYouMore Read more…
£7.3 million for travel agents, brewers and indoor football centres. Three new funds to support businesses uniquely affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic will launch this week. From today, local authorities will start to approach brewers, travel agents and indoor football centres inviting them to claim grants of £10,000 or Read more…
£30 million of additional funding. Students experiencing hardship as a result of coronavirus (COVID-19) will be supported by £20 million of Scottish Government funding. A further £10 million has also been allocated to universities and colleges for income lost in providing rent rebates. To complement the additional £30 million, the Read more…
Increased fund to go live this week. A £25 million fund to support the wedding sector and its supply chain will open to applications this week. In recognition of the ongoing challenges faced by the sector, a further £10 million has been added to the £15 million announced in December. Read more…
Additional £750,000 investment will help people take a break from caring roles. An investment of £750,000 in local carer centres will increase support for unpaid carers of all ages, helping them to take a break from caring and access other much-needed help. This recognises some of the challenges faced by Read more…
Additional capacity to ensure urgent treatment continues. Five independent hospitals are supporting NHS Scotland with elective care from this week, to ensure clinically urgent patients can continue to be seen and treated. This additional support comes on top of the extra capacity already being provided by NHS Golden Jubilee and Read more…
Measures to maximise the impact of lockdown. Further measures to help stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and limit non-essential contact will be introduced this weekend. Nobody who lives in a Level 4 area should leave or remain outside their home except for essential purposes. Working from home arrangements will Read more…
More teachers, digital devices and support for families. A new package of £45 million will help local authorities to provide support to schools and families as they deal with the challenges of remote learning during lockdown, Education Secretary John Swinney confirmed today. Councils may use the funding – sufficient to Read more…
January grants top-up announced. A significant top-up to the grant support available for hospitality, retail and leisure businesses across Scotland closed by level 4 restrictions will be paid following an announcement by Finance Secretary Kate Forbes. In addition to the grants businesses receive through the Strategic Business Framework Fund, eligible Read more…
Guidance for teachers and families published. Guidance for teachers and families to support remote learning in schools has been published by Education Scotland. It has been created in partnership through the Education Recovery Group and sets out a shared understanding of the key principles of remote learning, the support and Read more…
Support for new parents. More than 40,000 Baby Boxes have been delivered to expectant parents this year. It brings the total number delivered since the start of the scheme in August 2017 to 163,397. The most recent available figures indicate that around 93% of expectant parents are taking up the Read more…