Resilient Scotland’s main investment programme – Making Enterprise Happen

Making Enterprise Happen will initially offer flexible grant and loan investment packages of up to £500K for sustainable community regeneration. At least half of each investment will be a repayable loan with a negotiable repayment period. We want to help organisations make the most of market opportunities, using their local know how to solve local issues in a sustainable way.

We recognise that our client group may be those that are furthest from the market so we want to create a space to develop innovative finance models that will suit their needs, offering finance and support where others have failed to show faith, or where restrictive practice has been a barrier.

We will nurture resilience by investing in and building the capacity of enterprising community organisations in some of Scotland’s poorest and most disadvantaged communities to develop sustainable enterprises, services and facilities. We will seek out investment opportunities from communities that will make a key difference to peoples lives, help them to reduce their reliance on grant income and help them to become more enterprising and sustainable.

We want to enable enterprising organisations to achieve Resilient’s outcomes, contributing to more sustainable communities across our eligible areas

 Outcomes

• Community organisations improve their social, economic and environmental future and become more sustainable

• Communities are more resilient and empowered to promote their own regeneration

• There is increased awareness and understanding of effective approaches to sustainable community regeneration

To learn more about Resilient Scotland click here

Article from the Black Bitch – Linlithgow’s community magazine

To see e-flier for event click here

Big Vote website (launching Monday 16th September) www.thebigvote.org

Speaking recently at the Edinburgh International Book Festival on the independence debate, broadcaster Andrew Marr expressed concern at what he feels has been the very aggressive tone in which some of it is being conducted.  “Whatever happens next year, everyone is going to have to live together afterwards”.   

These sentiments chime very closely with the thinking behind a new national initiative called The Big Vote  – coordinated by the Scottish Community Alliance – which is going to kick off in Linlithgow on September 17th in the Burgh Halls. The big idea behind The Big Vote is to shift the focus of debate away from the politicians, out of the TV studios and put it into the hands of local people. The event later this month, organised by the Scottish Community Alliance assisted by members of various local organisations, will be the first of many such events around the country.  Although local representatives of both Better Together and YES campaigns have been invited to attend, the event is really an opportunity for the local community to begin to talk about some of the big questions they have about Scotland’s future. 

As well as having representatives of the two main campaigns on hand to input their suggestions for a successful future, the meeting will hear the thoughts of one or two specially invited speakers whose job will be to provoke discussion and new thinking amongst the audience. Invitations have been issued to a range of high profile speakers who will attend the different events across the country including journalists and broadcasters Lesley Riddoch, Iain McWhirter and Joyce MacMillan, Robin McAlpine (Jimmy Reid Foundation) , Andy Wightman (land reform campaigner), Malcolm Fraser (architect) Dave Moxham (STUC) and Peter Kelly (Poverty Alliance). 

A crucial ingredient of the Big Vote events is the idea that everyone’s views should be respected and listened to – this is absolutely not an opportunity to shout people down. As Andrew Marr pointed out, “Nobody deserves to be criticised or denounced for holding a particular view”.  

Linlithgow’s Big Vote event is being held on Tuesday, 17th September at 7.30pm – 9.00pm in Linlithgow Burgh Halls.

This is an important event on the road to the Referendum, the first of a series in Scotland and should not be missed if you’d like to be better informed.

To register your attendance email “book me my place at The Big Vote in Linlithgow” to: big.vote@scottishcommunityalliance.net and confirm numbers in your party.

No need for food banks in the new Scotland was just one of the big changes flagged up by Nourish Scotland’s enquiry into our future food system, which took place at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh on 3rd and 4th September. 

Delegates from across Scotland, from farmers and crofters to people tackling food poverty in their own city communities, set out an ambitious blueprint for doing better with food. 

The enquiry heard testimony from 15 expert witnesses covering everything from the experience of living in food poverty to the economics of short supply chains, from new food technologies to the impact of diet on health.     

They called for a change in overall government focus from measuring gross domestic product to focusing on well-being; and for Scottish citizens to have the right to affordable healthy food.  Delivering this would require new policies on land, on advertising and on food pricing – plus strategic investment in closer connections between existing farmers and citizens, in new training programmes and in a national network of new small urban and rural farms.  These changes would lead to the creation of thousands of new skilled jobs in the food sector from growers, cooks, and bakers to community food brokers.

In the short term, participants want to see a number of ‘food towns’ across Scotland given a delegated budget and powers to change their food system from the bottom up – and, as part of the 2014 Commonwealth Games legacy, a ‘House of Food’ drawing on Copenhagen’s experience in transforming public food.

Cabinet Secretary Richard Lochhead MSP who addressed the enquiry held at Queen Margaret University commended Nourish Scotland on setting up the event and said he looked forward to reading the full report, which will be finalised by enquiry members working together online over the next few weeks.

Expert witness Rachelle Faroul who spoke about her work linking upstate farmers to low-income communities in New York said:

“What really excites me about taking part in this enquiry is that this is about working with the strengths and assets within people and within communities: it’s not about doing things to them.  You’ve got a unique opportunity in Scotland to do amazing things.”

Author: Lesley Riddoch

This book should be of interest to folk in housing, rural housing and community development, the women’s movement, nature and hutting, culture, language and health  – there are chapters on housing, land, access to natural resources, language, women, culture and local life.  Here’s a wee extract;

 “Blossom is an account of Scotland at the grassroots through the stories of people I’ve had the good fortune to know – the most stubborn, talented and resilient people on the planet. They’ve had to be. Some have transformed their parts of Scotland. Some have tried and failed. But all have something in common – they know what it takes for Scotland to blossom. We should know too. So this book poses a question as important as the one Scots must answer on 18 September 2014. Why is Scotland still the most unequal society and sickest man (and woman) of Europe despite an abundance of natural resources and a long history of human capacity? Facts and figures are a vital part of any story. But they don’t bring Scotland’s dilemma alive. They don’t explain why people with choices act as if they had none. They don’t explain why Scots over the centuries have put on weight, not democratic muscle. They don’t explain why cash and socialist tradition have failed to shift poverty. They don’t explain why some Scots trash Scotland while others tiptoe round the place like it’s only rented for the weekend. Why don’t ordinary Scots behave like the permanent, responsible owners of this beautiful country? Is it because we are not the owners – and never have been?

“Imagine Scottish culture as a beautifully-knitted, warmth-providing, well-constructed and substantial jumper snagged on a bit of barbed wire. Its wearer tries to move forward – but cannot. A pause is needed to lift the garment clear. Scotland is thus snagged. And no amount of pulling away at the problem will get us off this stubborn, progress-inhibiting hook.

Devolved or independent, Scotland must belong to its people – to have, hold, inhabit, farm, walk, plant, hunt, develop, mine, explore and even accidentally damage – not to small, self-selecting social groups. The bad news is that such change runs counter to some inherited outlooks. The good news is that it can be done.”

Blossom describes the pioneering community buyout on Eigg; the brave decision by West Whitlawburn tenants to take over their crumbling hi-rise estate; the 20 year project by Perthshire ecologists to prove arid, sporting estates can become verdant woodland, the unconventional methods used by obstetrician Mary Hepburn to reach Scotland’s sickest, drug-using mothers, the story behind the Scotswoman & Harpies and Quines and much more.  Weaving in comparisons with the Nordic nations, I’m trying to show that ordinary Scots have demonstrated their capacity to run their own lives time after time – yet Scotland remains a remarkably elitist, top-down, centralised, “stand there till we fix you” sort of society.

The book’s official launch is Sept 4th, Jam House, Queen St, Edinburgh – tickets are free via http://riddochblossom.eventbrite.co.uk/ and there is a bar and (modest) swally.

Do come along if you can and let others know.

I’d be very grateful.

Yours aye

Lesley

Author: BBC Scotland

The number of people living on Scottish islands has risen by 4% to 103,702, according to the latest census figures.

According to the census, which took place on 27 March 2011, islanders represented 2% of the population.

The largest numbers could be found on Lewis and Harris, which recorded 21,031 residents – an increase of more than 5.5% since 2001.

The census is carried out every 10 years. In 2011, Scotland’s population stood at 5.3 million.

Continue reading the main story

Where island populations rose

• Lewis and Harris – up 6%

• Shetland mainland – up 7%

• Orkney mainland – up 12%

• Skye – up 8%

A total of 110 islands are classified as “inhabited” for official purposes, with 17 having no residents on 2011 census day.

Fifty islands saw an increase in population between 2001 and 2011 – including three which had been zero in 2001.

Danna, Eilean da Mheinn, Inchfad, Inner Holm and Soay were each recorded as having just one resident.

Registrar General Tim Ellis said: “The population of the Scottish islands has increased over the last 10 years, however much of this increase is a result of the sizable population increases in Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles.

“Some of the other larger islands such as Bute, Arran and Islay have seen population decrease over the decade.”

Author: Dundee Evening Telegraph

Gardeners are in a stand-off with the council as they face eviction from a Dundee plot.

The group have barricaded themselves inside their Charleston community garden to prevent the local authority from bulldozing the land.

They have spent nearly two years painstakingly creating a garden and roundhouse on the disused council-owned land behind the Whip Inn on Liff Road.

But last week they received a letter warning that council workers would be called in to clear the site.

Lewis Brady, who is behind the project, said that the group want to expand the garden so that more of the community can get involved.

He said: “It was about the start of last year that me and a couple of friends came down to start this, on a big patch of concrete and five feet of rubble. We cleared it all up and recycled the rubble into planters and a clay roundhouse.

“The field has been derelict for as long as anyone can remember, but now the council is saying they want us to get off the land.

“Our plan is to not let them on to the land until we can get some legal support and hold them off. This has been a big project for everyone and it could be really nice. We want to do something good for the community.”

The land has planters being used for organic vegetables, as well as a small building made mainly using mud and clay.

The group have set up a petition that has gathered more than 300 signatures protesting against the council taking the site. They have also barricaded gates and fencing to prevent access and staged a sit-in.

Photographer Chris Scott, 43, said: “We want to stop this by peaceful measures. The council wants to come in and destroy it for no reason — they aren’t coming in to destroy it for housing or anything like that.

A spokesman for Dundee City Council said: “Officers have visited the site on a number of occasions and the council is in the process of taking the appropriate steps.”

Funding to help local residents to make their communities better places to live has been announced by Planning Minister Derek Mackay.

£100,000 is being made available for planning authorities to run community participation projects which will create visions for the future of their communities.

The cash will support design projects, known as charrettes, where local residents and businesses work with expert teams to create ideas for the future of their local area. The charrettes are part of a process to simplify and modernise the planning system and will inform future planning projects through Local Development Plans.

Previous funding generated town masterplans for Wick and Thurso, a strategic plan for the long-term future of communities in Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park and a strategy for planning housing development in the South Wishaw area.

Funding is available for up to half the cost of projects taking place before the end of March next year.

Mr Mackay said:

“Local communities are the bedrock of our society. It is only right that in designing our towns and neighbourhoods we involve those who know them best – the people who live there.

“£100,000 funding is being made available to help create proposals for the future of towns and villages, with the promise of more to come.

“This support ensures that everyone can be involved in having their say on the long- term future of their community.

“The previous Scottish Government funded projects have helped energise communities and create a momentum for change from Caithness to Dumfries, Tyndrum to Lochgelly and Johnstone to Aberdeen.

On Monday evening at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, ERS Scotland launched its final report, ‘A vision of a good Scottish democracy’.  

The Electoral Reform Society Scotland has outlined a series of recommendations stemming from members of the public who participated in their 13-month Democracy Max inquiry. 

These ideas are aimed at improving Scottish democracy in the context of the independence referendum. 

The key recommendations of Democracy Max are:

 • ‘Mini-Publics’ – deliberative local groups working alongside representative democracy and empowering people to run their own towns and villages

• A Citizens’ Assembly – a chamber of citizens, possibly selected like a jury, to check and challenge elected politicians

• Party funding reform – parties funded in transparent ways other than through big donations from organisations or rich individuals

• Better media – as traditional business models struggle and press barons are exposed, our participants suggested ways for a greater number of voices to be heard and for media to operate more explicitly in the public interest

• Openness and transparency – an assumption that information should be publicly available and a requirement to make the case as to why any information is not

• Lobbying reform – a statutory register of lobbying which sets out who is lobbying whom and why

• Constitutional clarity – a written set of principles for Scots to unite around, setting out who we are and by which rules we wish to be governed

• An inbuilt system to review and advise on how the Scottish Parliament and Government are faring in abiding by these principles

Scotland is mulling its political and constitutional future against a backdrop of growing distrust and disengagement in politics. In this context, the Electoral Reform Society Scotland has been asking the question: ‘What would make a good Scottish Democracy?’

The process began in July last year when the ERS Scotland brought together a cross-section of over 80 Scots from a range of places and backgrounds to a day-long ‘People’s Gathering’ and asked them what was wrong with politics and democracy and what could be made better. Over the last year they have taken the findings of that People’s Gathering and discussed them with experts, academics, campaigners, activists and others in roundtable sessions, each followed by a public meeting.

Willie Sullivan, ERS Scotland Director, said:

 “We believe that the Scottish independence referendum debate is an opportunity to challenge our political system to change, to confound the low expectations voters have of politics, and to deliver on the high hopes they still hold for democracy.

 “We started from the position that politics is too important to be left to politicians. So we asked our People’s Gathering to tell us what they thought was wrong with democracy and what could be made better. But we didn’t just take them at their word. Instead we continued to discuss, question and delve in order to understand more fully what was not working and to make sure the solutions we suggested were credible and workable.

“It was clear from the investigation that formal politics is in trouble and, rightly or wrongly, people blame political parties for much of that. If trust is to be returned to politics some fundamental changes are required.

 “I am delighted to say the participants in our investigation have suggested a number of thought-provoking ideas. Many of them are not new, but they do have a renewed relevance at this time. We have weighed up the pros and cons of each in our discussions and feel they deserve consideration as interventions to improve our democracy. We suspect some of them are more vital than others and so should be acted on quickly.

 “There are some big ideas for political reform here, such as a Citizens’ Assembly as a second chamber of parliament, selected like a jury, and Mini-Publics where people can run their own communities. It may seem strange that an organisation that has campaigned for fairer elections for over 130 years is saying that we require more involvement of ordinary citizens rather than elected representatives in decision-making and scrutiny. However our belief in the importance of representative democracy has led us to realise that in a time of untrusted elites, social media and ‘big data’ we need to evolve our political system to keep pace with the 21st century. The involvement of people who are not primarily concerned with power or with winning elections means that representative democracy can be given a new legitimacy by having the right checks against the powerful. This is not an alternative to elections but a way to return legitimacy to elected representatives.”

Scotland has a problem. It’s the economy.

• At the moment the wealthiest households in Scotland are 273 times richer than the poorest.

• There are 8 people on unemployment benefit for every full time vacancy advertised.

• Only 22% of Scots feel like they can influence decisions in their local area.

Oxfam Scotland’s Our Economy report is a blueprint for a new kind of economy that is the servant of the people and meets the needs of everyone in Scotland.

Click here to help us place Our Economy at the top of the political agenda in Scotland!

For too long, we have been obsessed with economic growth, without asking about the quality of that growth, and who benefits from it. That’s led to massive and growing inequality.

We have a jobs crisis. There simply isn’t enough employment for people. And it’s not just about the number of jobs – it’s about the quality of the work on offer. Too many people are working uncertain hours that make family life impossible. And too many are on low-wages, which mean that work is no longer a guaranteed route of poverty.

Top-down models of economic regeneration have left too many communities without a real say – with poorer people and women being left out especially.

Scotland is working towards a low-carbon economy. That’s a good thing, but most poorer communities are unable to take advantage of the cash benefits of renewable energy.

Our Economy shows that none of this inevitable. It proposes a whole series of policies, on jobs, on community regeneration, on ethical business practices, on the environment, on tax, on the welfare state, and on community participation. Taken together, they point the way to a new kind of economy, where everyone can participate, and from which everyone will benefit.

We launched Our Economy at our partners, The GalGael Trust in Govan.

GalGael provides practical training that offer purpose and meaning to people. It provides a space that serves as a safe harbour for those whose lives have been battered by storms such as worklessness, depression or addiction.

These inspiring people are proof that the biggest problems in the existing economy don’t lie with individuals – they lie with an economic system that shuts people out and doesn’t allow them to participate properly.

Together, we can build a new prosperity that everyone in Scotland can share in.

Extract from COSLA’s vision for stronger local democracy in Scotland.

To see a full version click here

Local democracy is weak compared to Europe

Our starting point is to develop a new understanding of how all parts of government should work.

Scotland is one of the most centralised countries in Europe. It is no coincidence that our European neighbours are often more successful at improving outcomes, and have much greater turn out at elections.

We cannot hope to emulate the success of these countries without acknowledging that they have more local councils, local elected councillors represent fewer people, and that these councils and their services are constitutionally protected and their funding secured by law, even with regard to national policy making.

We should seek the same benefit, and the same independence that local government has in most western democracies.

Outcomes not size should drive decision making

Some might speculate that only a smaller number of larger councils can deliver this scale and strategic importance.

That asks the wrong question. Not only are many of Scotland’s councils large by international comparison, but the record of our smaller councils already speaks for itself. In addition, where it makes sense, councils already operate jointly to deliver services. But that must be a local decision, driven by the local needs of local communities.

Local democracy has a price, but it also has a value which is worth paying for. In fact, too many public services have little or no local democratic control through Scotland’s councils, such as public health, economic development and the welfare system. The real focus should be on bringing power closer to communities, not the size of councils.

Devolution does not stop at Holyrood or with councils

Our vision for local government is not a one way street. Just as we believe that national government can be distant, and prone to centralising rather than devolvingsome may think the same of us. If we want empowerment for local government, we must empower communities too. Local people must be valued, they must be engaged and they must have a real say in how services are designed and delivered.

What local government does should be as well understood, protected and supported as the role of national government, but that means that local people and communities should be empowered just as much in local policy making.