An outdoor play park, with a green slide, red monkey bars and yellow pillars.

News: Scotland's play spaces to undergo major changes, with new reforms and funding

Posted 28 March, 2023 by Nina Joynson

The Scottish Government has announced new planning reforms and funding to support children and young people’s outdoor play opportunities.

Local authorities will be encouraged to support applications to develop new play spaces, parks and sports facilities under the terms of a new policy.

The policy is included in the fourth iteration of the National Planning Framework, and gives young people more opportunities for play, recreation and sport through planned development and greenspaces.

The government is enacting the changes as a commitment to incorporate children and young people's rights into Scottish law and practice.

Alongside the new planning reforms, regulations will be introduced that require councils to assess current play spaces and consult with local children and communities on their adequacy, so local authorities are better informed when providing future play opportunities.

Tom Arthur, Minister for Public Finance, Planning and Community Wealth, said:

“Much clearer and stronger policy together with these new requirements will give more children and young people opportunities to spend time outdoors, supporting their wellbeing and fulfilling the Scottish Government’s commitment to incorporate children’s rights into law and practice.

“The Scottish Government is requiring planning authorities across the country to consider play provision when preparing their local development plans.

“By working together through planning policy and practice, we will make Scotland a better place to grow up.”

Funding play parks

The new policy comes as COSLA and the Scottish Government also announce a £50 million investment to refurbish and maintain Scotland's existing play parks.

The 2021 Programme for Government set out £60 million in funding for local authorities to renew public, free-to-access play parks.

£5 million was provided towards this commitment in 2021, and £5 million in 2022.

The additional £50 million will be allocated over the course of this Parliament, with £10 million in 2023/24, £15 million in 2024/25, and £25 million in 2025/26.

Play parks are eligible for the refurbishment funding if they are owned, managed or maintained by local authorities, are designated for play, and free and open to all.

Minister for Children and Young People Clare Haughey said:

“Playing outdoors has huge benefits for children’s physical and mental wellbeing, and play parks ensure children can access high quality safe environments free of charge as families grapple with the cost of living crisis.

“This funding will support local communities to take forward their plans to improve play parks for children in their area.”

News: Programme launches to engage youth workers in STEM and build wellbeing

Posted 21 March, 2023 by Nina Joynson

Science Ceilidh is launching a new project to explore the impact of STEM on both youth work and on young people’s confidence and wellbeing.

The two-year Curiosity In Action programme will explore the use of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) in youth work by building an evidence base and country-wide network.

The project is facilitated by Science Ceilidh in partnership with YouthLink Scotland, with funding from the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC).

The project is now looking for ten youth groups to pair with STFC researchers in a collaborative research process. The groups will investigate ways in which participatory STEM activities can support youth work and enhance young people's confidence, resilience and wellbeing.

Learning from the research phase will shape free training opportunities and resources for science educators and community learning and development (CLD) practitioners.

Working from evidence

The programme was born from research for Education Scotland on structural barriers to STEM engagement in schools, highlighting that youth workers lack confidence in teaching with STEM.

The research found that challenges to education include levels of scientific literacy, a need to connect STEM to other parts of the curriculum and how STEM relates to the real world and societal challenges.

Building a network

An event will take place next week to launch the wider Curiosity In Communities network, to bring science educators, researchers and CLD practitioners together to connect and share learning.

The 28 March event will introduce the programme with a panel discussion and workshops, with all network meetings and training opportunities free to access through STFC funding.

A Curiosity In Action steering group member said:

“We hope to make youth workers feel more comfortable using creative STEM in their work, without feeling intimidated because of them not being a “specialist” in it, and to be able to support young people's wellbeing.

“Youth workers will no doubt already be using STEM in their practices without realising it - this project will hopefully just show them that STEM is everywhere.”

Click here to learn more about the programme

Click here to learn more about the launch event on 28 March, 10:30-16:00, Edinburgh

News: Undergraduate students will receive greater financial support, starting with Autumn 2023 uplift

Posted 14 March, 2023 by Nina Joynson

The Scottish Government has announced an uplift to both SAAS loan funding for undergraduate students and the bursary that helps care-experienced learners to access higher education, amidst cost-of-living pressures.

From the beginning of the 2023-24 academic year, all undergraduate students will be offered an additional £900 as part of their financial support package.

This means that the maximum package, available for estranged students in higher education and other undergraduate learners on the lowest household income bracket, will increase to £9,000 per year (from £8,100).

Minister for Higher Education and Further Education Jamie Hepburn said:

“This rise in support will help to alleviate the financial pressures facing many students as we grapple with the cost-of-living crisis.

"This is the next step in delivering our commitment to providing a total package of student support equivalent to the living wage."

Supporting students with care experience

The non-repayable Care Experienced Bursary will also increase to £9,000 for eligible students in higher education, with a £900 increase also added to the maximum bursary rate for those in further education.

The bursary is available for students who have experience of being in care, including in settings such as foster or residential care, or under a compulsory supervision order or kinship care arrangement.

The increases will be available to students who already attend further or higher education, as well as new students beginning studies in Autumn 2023.

Louise Hunter, CEO of Who Cares? Scotland, said:

"It’s great to hear news of the £900 increase in financial support available to students in Scotland. I’m sure this will be welcomed by many students who are struggling to balance their education and finances during the cost-of-living crisis.

"Raising the Care Experienced Student Bursary to £9,000 per year responds to the specific challenges this group can face. For many Care Experienced people without family to rely on for support during their studies, they can face greater barriers in realising their lifelong right to education."

News: Research reveals young people's support for extending free school meals and reducing stigma

Posted 7 March, 2023 by Nina Joynson

New Scotland-wide research shows that 76% of young people would eat more lunches at school if free provision was extended to all pupils.

The Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) has published findings from a nationwide survey in the Young People's Right to Food report.

In late 2022, SYP asked young people about their access to food and improvements they think could be made to uphold their right to food.

The project received 846 online responses from people aged 12-26, from 26 local authorities in Scotland.

The results highlight experiences around access to food at home and in school, and stigma associated with asking for help.

Encouraging school lunches

86% of young people thought that extending free school meals was crucial to upholding their right to food, and 76% said that they would be more likely to eat lunch at school if free meals were provided.

Additionally, 70% said that a better eating environment and/or involving young people in decision-making about school meals would make them more likely to eat lunch at school.

Stigma around asking for help

Nearly half of respondents (47%) believe that there is a stigma associated with needing support to access food.

Young people came up with a number of suggestions on how this stigma could be reduced, such as using more inclusive, non-targeted language and challenging wider structural barriers.

Ensuring that people know where they can get help to access food was also suggested, an issue highlighted by the report's finding that only 40% were aware of the support available in their community.

Normalising conversations about food struggles was also highlighted as important. On the lack of conversations around food insecurity, one young person commented:

"If you're well-off, which I am (relative to where I live anyways), when I think about food banks, I think about helping out, volunteering. I don't think about what it's like to actually be someone requiring that help, or someone that needs to think about asking for it because they're struggling."

The report makes five recommendations on how to improve and uphold young people’s access and right to food in Scotland, as voiced by young people:

Free school meal provision should be extended to all secondary school pupils
Young people should be meaningfully involved in decision-making about the content and quality of school meals and in making improvements to the eating environment
Greater efforts must be made to eliminate the stigma associated with asking for help to access food
Local government must raise awareness among young people about local programmes that support food access
Scottish Government must bring the UNCRC Incorporation Bill back to Parliament.

Click here to read more about SYP's Right to Food report

News: Study finds social work interventions vary widely by Scottish local authority

Posted 2 March, 2023 by Nina Joynson

New research has found that, nationally, 26.5% of children were referred to social work before the age of five, but figures are not consistent across Scotland.

A new study provides a longitudinal view of Scotland’s social work interventions in the first five years of a child’s life.

From data on children born in year ending 31 July 2013, 13,784 were found to have been subject to social work referral due to welfare concerns before their fifth birthday, a rate of 26.5% of children.

One in 17 (5.9%) children had been subject to a child protection investigation, and one in 26 (3.8%) had been placed on the Child Protection Register.

The research was carried out by Emeritus Professor Andy Bilson and independent researcher Marion Macleod at the University of Central Lancashire. They used data collected from Freedom of Information requests relating to child protection information systems from all 32 local authorities in Scotland.

Disparities in intervention

In 2020, the Independent Care Review in Scotland called for fundamental changes to child welfare services. The Scottish Government issued new national guidance on child protection as a result, with the objective of promoting greater consistency across Scotland’s support and protection for children and families.

However, the study found large disparities in referrals across local authorities. For example, 18.5% of children were investigated for child protection in Clackmannanshire compared to 2.1% in Aberdeenshire.

It shows that there is considerable progress to be made to create greater consistency in what families can expect from welfare services.

The likelihood of investigation was largely unrelated to levels of social deprivation. Four of the five local authorities with the highest referral rates were in the least deprived half of all authorities (Dumfries & Galloway, Falkirk, Midlothian and South Ayrshire).

Independent researcher Marion Macleod said:

“There are huge financial and emotional implications for families involved in social care child referrals and once they are caught up in the system, they are swallowed up by the whole bureaucratic process.

“Local authorities in Scotland are being put in an impossible position by the Government and are bound by statutory legislation that isn’t tailored to the needs of the local area. Instead, what is needed is more investment into early years, mental health services, community groups and improved parent advocacy so that the families can get help instead of being victimised.”

Click here to read the full paper

News: Number of school leavers in positive destinations reaches record high

Posted on 1 March, 2023 by Nina Joynson

Latest figures published by Scottish Government show a record number of 2022 school leavers are in work, training or further education, with the proportion in unemployment at its lowest.

Scotland's Chief Statistician has released new statistics on the destinations of 2021-22 school leavers from publicly funded schools.

The statistics on Attainment and Initial Leaver Destinations show that 95.7% of young people who finished school in the last academic year have progressed in their studies or careers within three months of the academic year end.

Positive destinations include Higher and Further Education, employment, training, personal skills development and voluntary work.

The figure is up from 95.5% in the 2020-2021 school year.

School leavers in employment increased to 25.1%, from 22.6%. Those in Higher Education decreased to 41.2%, from 45.1%. This is in line with figures prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The new statistics also show that unemployment amongst school leavers is at its lowest since 2009-10 with 3.9% unemployed three months after leaving school, down from 4.2% in 2020-21.

The gap between school leavers in positive destinations from the most and least deprived areas has also narrowed to 4.4 percentage points – a gap that has reduced by two-thirds since 2009-10.

Shirley-Anne Somerville, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, said:

“This highlights the achievements of Scotland’s learners – making the transition from school can be a daunting time, so it’s great to see a record number of young people progressing in their studies or careers after leaving school.

“Closing the deprivation gap remains a top priority for us and these statistics show we are continuing to make progress, with the gap between school leavers from the most and least deprived areas in work, training or further study down to a record low.”

News: Dance film created by 17-year-old choreographer in response to the climate crisis

Posted on 28 February, 2023 by Nina Joynson

Dance film 'elemental' explores our interaction with the natural elements in a narrative on climate change, choreographed by a young person supported by the Access All Arts Fund

As a response to the climate crisis and a way to encourage boys and young men to pursue dance, young neurodivergent choreographer Ross Hoey created the dance film with filmmaker Lewis Landini.

elemental shows the character of Human, as they meet and bring harm to the Earth’s elements, before finding out that they have not been completed destroyed. This leads to repercussions for Human as the elements resist.

The film is accompanied by an educational resource for teachers and dance instructors. It includes discussion and movement activities that relate to the performance, and provides information for young people to learn more about the climate crisis.

Ross' dance film was produced by Overdrive Dance Company, a community-based organisation that was established for male-identifying young people.

Overdrive works to address the stigma of boys’ participation in dance and overcome the financial barriers that people often encounter across the arts.

Funding creativity

Ross was a successful applicant to the Access All Arts Fund, a fund managed by Children in Scotland. The film was supported by investment from Creative Scotland as part of its youth arts initiative.

The project was one of 106 funded in 2021-22. Earlier this month it was announced that the second phase had gone on to support a further 162 young people with their creative pursuits.

The fund was established to help children and young people who experience barriers to accessing creative opportunities to support their wellbeing. The first phase was focused on young people with disabilities or additional support needs.

On the film’s release, David Mackay, Access All Arts Fund project lead and Policy & Projects Manager at Children in Scotland, said:

“The Access All Arts Fund supported Ross to create this wonderful new film and stretch himself as a choreographer, which is great to see. We know that many young people face barriers to taking part in the creative arts – whether it’s simply for their own enjoyment or to realise ambitious creative projects.

“We must ensure that we open up arts opportunities for children and young people, because everyone has a story to tell.”

Click here to watch the film

News: Climate-conscious theatre performance tours Scottish schools

Posted 22 February, 2023 by Nina Joynson. Photo credit: Andrew Perry

Activism and the climate crisis is the focus of 'Maya and The Whale', a new theatre production touring Scottish schools in February and March.

Aimed at upper primary and lower secondary classes, Maya and The Whale follows a young climate activist who comes face-to-face with a dying whale.

Creator Hazel Darwin-Clements plays Maya the teenage activist while the school audience takes on the role of the whale, creating an interactive experience for pupils.

First shared during COP26, the play is a response to the youth climate strikes and explores activism and the climate crisis as experienced by young people.

The creators are also providing schools with learning resources and contacts for local projects to encourage them to continue discussions on and engagement with climate resilience after the performance.

The play is suitable for P6-7 and S1-2 and performances are taking place in Edinburgh, Glasgow and the Lothians until Friday 3 March, before the show tours more widely across Scotland until the end of March.

Produced by Theatre in Schools Scotland – the schools touring project managed by National Theatre of Scotland and Imaginate, the show is created and performed by Hazel Darwin-Clements with live music from Nik Paget-Tomlinson.

Climate-minded touring

The climate crisis is a central theme of Hazel Darwin-Clements' work, prompting her to develop a more sustainable way of touring her theatre performances.

All props and costumes for the show have been borrowed or bought second-hand with consideration of ethical supply chains and product longevity.

The performer and accompanying musician are also travelling to schools exclusively by e-bike and public transport, and the play was written to be performed without a stage set or lighting so that time usually spent in set-up can be given to longer travel times, and equipment doesn't need transportation.

Everything for the performance is small and light enough to fit in bike panniers or a backpack.

The company is also booking dates in Scotland with travel and distance in mind, to reduce the tour's carbon impact.

Early reviews

Having started its tour on Monday, Corstorphine Primary School in Edinburgh has been one of the first to see Maya and the Whale.

"I thought it was amazing how the actor told the story using all the different characters!", one P5 pupil said.

While Tanya McLaughlin, a teacher at the school, said:

"The show deepens the impact of the curriculum and the children's learning about climate change and its impact on the world in an engaging, entertaining way.

"It captured the imagination of all the children and allowed them to access their learning out of the classroom."

Click here to learn more about Maya and the Whale

News: Research shows failures of Curriculum for Excellence, especially for pupils in high deprivation areas

Posted 21 February, 2023 by Nina Joynson

New research from the University of Stirling has found that current outcomes for pupils are contrary to the aims of Curriculum for Excellence

Researchers state that Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) has led to a "culture of perfomativity", due to continuous pressure on teachers to raise attainment levels.

The study found that pupils now face a narrowed choice of subjects at assessment level, while performance and outcomes for higher education also highlight weaknesses in the curriculum.

Dr Marina Shapira, Associate Professor in Sociology and the project’s Principal Investigator, said:

“The research reveals the pressure on teachers to raise attainment, which can lead to decision-making that is contrary to the purposes and principles of CfE.

This narrow focus on what is assessed for National Qualifications can be argued to be counter-educational, limiting young people’s opportunities to develop the knowledge, skills and attributes that are essential for successful transitions beyond school and for adult life.”

Studying the curriculum

The research, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, took place over three years and has been labelled as the most comprehensive study on Scottish secondary school curricular provision to date.

Researchers analysed data from the Scottish Government, and generated new data from surveys, interviews and focus groups involving school leaders, local authorities, teachers, young people and parents.

Findings

One of the original purposes of CfE was to broaden the secondary school curriculum.

This new evidence reveals that S4 students are studying fewer subjects now than before it was introduced, and enrolment in non-compulsory subjects such as Modern Languages and Expressive Arts continues to decline.

Studying fewer National 5 subjects was associated with a lower pass rate on those qualifications, contrary to expectations that concentrating on fewer subjects would lead to higher achievement.

While curriculum narrowing was evidenced across all socio-demographic factors, students studying in areas of high deprivation were most adversely affected.

The results suggest that pupils at schools with a more limited curriculum may have poorer choices of positive destinations, such as Higher Education after school.

Students in high deprivation areas were also more likely to postpone National 5 qualifications until S5, and Highers until S6 (rather than S4 and S5, respectively).

Click here to read the full report from the University of Stirling

Young people’s creative pursuits supported by national arts funding

16 February 2023

Following a successful second phase of the Access All Arts Fund, 162 young people have been awarded grants towards creative projects and experiences.

The Fund, which is managed by Children in Scotland, received applications from 340 people across the country in the 2022-23 round.

The Fund was open to all young people who have experienced barriers to the arts and creative experiences. These include factors such as having a disability, living in poverty, having poor mental health or being a young carer or refugee.

Young people aged 11-25 could apply for up to £1,000 to try a new arts activity or develop their existing creative interests to support their wellbeing.

The £86,000 being distributed amongst successful applicants is an increase on last year's figure, with both phases funded by Creative Scotland as part of its youth arts funding.

The first round received 236 applications, distributing £68,000 between 106 young people for a wide range of projects including visual arts, music, film and TV, and creative writing.

Across both phases, children and young people were recruited to design and develop the fund. One of the panel members, Ethan, said of the experience:

"Working as a member of the panel was great. I know what it’s like to receive Access All Arts funding, so it was fantastic to return the feeling to other young people.”

As a panel, the children and young people played a major role in choosing successful applicants from the large number of submissions.

On finding out that she had been awarded funding, one young person said:

"Thank you so so much! I'm absolutely delighted to have received this funding and am feeling incredibly lucky. This is going to have such a huge impact on my craft and is so so so exciting."

The parent of another successful applicant said:

"Thank you so so much for this wonderful news! As Kieran's* mum I’m so grateful to you for the funding as this means he’ll be able to get back to his drumming lessons which he’s missed so much.

"Money is just so tight I’ve been unable to pay for any lessons for him so this is very welcomed news... He’ll be over the moon and, like me, will be so grateful to you."

* Name has been changed for anonymity.

Access All Arts Fund

The fund helps young people in Scotland to access creative arts opportunities to support their wellbeing

Click here to learn more

Year one success

106 young people took forward arts projects as a result of Phase 1 funding (Image by AAA awardee)

Click here to learn more

Partner: Creative Scotland

The Access All Arts Fund is part of Creative Scotland's Nurturing Talent Fund New Route Programme

Click here to learn more

News: Scotland's play spaces to undergo major changes, with new reforms and funding

The Scottish Government has announced new planning reforms and funding to support children and young people’s outdoor play opportunities.

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News: Programme launches to engage youth workers in STEM and build wellbeing

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News: Undergraduate students will receive greater financial support, starting with Autumn 2023 uplift

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News: Research reveals young people's support for extending free school meals and reducing stigma

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News: Dance film created by 17-year-old choreographer in response to the climate crisis

Dance film 'elemental' explores our interaction with the natural elements in a narrative on climate change, choreographed by a young person supported by the Access All Arts Fund

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News: Climate-conscious theatre performance tours Scottish schools

Activism and the climate crisis is the focus of 'Maya and The Whale', a new theatre production touring Scottish schools in February and March.

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News: Research shows failures of Curriculum for Excellence, especially for pupils in high deprivation areas

New research from the University of Stirling has found that current outcomes for pupils are contrary to the aims of Curriculum for Excellence

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