Welcome to All Things Scotland – A Feature from Moray Council and Eyes on Egypt at COP27
This week LGIU Scotland reviews useful content and everything local government related in Holyrood and relevant new reports.
As COP27 kicks off in Egypt, check out the Improvement Service’s Elected Member induction on Climate Change. A collaborative effort from the Improvement Service, COSLA and Sustainable Scotland Network, this briefing provides an introduction to the critical role elected members have to play in tackling climate change and what this looks like in practice.
Invitations for Scottish Local Government
This week, the LGIU is happy to share that the virtual partnership conference between Germany-British cities on “Urban Diplomacy in times of multiple crises”. The Urban Diplomacy Exchange (UDE) project is commissioned by the German Federal Foreign Office and carried out by Engagement Global and its Service Agency Communities in One World in cooperation with the Association of German Cities.
The event will take place on 7 and 8 December 2022 via Zoom platform and local governments interested can use the following Online Registration – SKEW (engagement-global.de).
Also upcoming is the Royal Society of Edinburgh’s independent and evidence-based inquiry which will scrutinise whether Scotland’s forest expansion campaign is being effectively delivered to produce positive outcomes for Scotland’s environment, economy and society. Click here to find out more and to get involved.
LGIU Scotland
As always, this week LGIU Scotland has tailored a selection of briefings that are particularly useful for understanding and informing local government in November.
- Autumn parliamentary summary: all you need to know from Holyrood and Westminster. The purpose of this briefing is to provide an update on the progress of key legislation currently passing through Holyrood that is of relevance to local authorities.
- Stepping forward: how councils are responding to the cost-of-living crisis. This briefing looks at what local authorities are doing to help residents through the cost-of-living crisis. Councils have devised, or are backing, schemes that help people to keep warm, save energy, and feed themselves and their families.
- Moving the reform of children’s social care from rhetoric to action. This briefing sets out the current context and challenges while highlighting a range of innovative solutions that local authorities could prioritise. It will be of interest to everyone working the social work and education services.
- Working at home or in the office? The growth of hybrid working in local government. This briefing looks at home and hybrid working, exploring how it has evolved over the past two years and includes examples from local authorities who have risen to the challenge.
Reports and updates
Boundaries Commission Scotland published revised proposals for new UK Parliamentary constituencies in Scotland as part of 2023 Review. Entering into the final round of consultation, the proposed includes areas surrounding Glasgow, the Highlands and Moray. You can find the full list of changes here.
Mull and Iona Ferry Committee (MIFC) is considering a community-owned alternative to the service provided by the state-owned ferry operator. Highlands and Islands Enterprise has given £15,000 for a feasibility study. Find out more here.
A revised draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) sets out sustainable policies against which planning applications would be assessed for the next decade. The revised draft is now expected to be considered by the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee and you can find NPF4’s proposals here. Further detail will be included in the next edition of the housing and planning round up.
A multi-agency taskforce will develop a new approach to helping prevent homicides in Scotland where domestic abuse is suspected. Partners including COSLA, Police Scotland, social work, Scottish Women’s Aid, Health Boards and victims’ representatives will work together to create Scotland’s first domestic homicide review system.
Carnegie UK’s latest report called for the National Performance Framework to become Scotland’s Wellbeing Framework. Click here to find the five steps the Scottish Government must take to put wellbeing at the centre of policymaking in Scotland.
Holyrood
Centre ground in the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee was the ongoing National Care Bill. The Committee took evidence on the Bill from East Ayrshire Council, Argyll & Bute Council, Glasgow City Council, Dumfries and Galloway Council and Edinburgh City Council. Watch the full committee session here.
First Minister Sturgeon was witness to the Public Audits Committee as they considered “New vessels for the Clyde and Hebrides: Arrangements to deliver vessels 801 and 802”. The full report is here.
Social Justice and Social Security Committee released a report scrutinising the 2022-23 budget.
LGIU Scotland’s Council Spotlight
A new feature in our All Thing’s Scotland, each week the LGIU will take an in-depth look at what our Scottish Council members are up to.
Starting us off, our first Scottish Council spotlight takes a look at Moray Council, in the North East of Scotland. Producing more malt whisky than the rest of the world combined, Moray is well known for its outstanding natural resources, renowned brands, world famous coastlines and high standard of living.
Recently in Moray…
- Moray Council has submitted a bid to the second round of Levelling Up Fund. If successful the bid will transform Elgin into a healthy, active, vibrant urban hub that will enable the region to attract and retain high productivity businesses and the knowledge workers who drive them. Together the three projects are expected to generate additional economic activity with a value of £79.0 million and support 2,950 additional years of employment over a ten-year period.
- A 10 year £100m Moray Growth Deal was signed with the Scottish and UK Governments in December 2021 that aims to make social and economic improvements through the delivery of eight projects across the region. Interventions seek to generate high value aerospace skills, expand affordable housing, generate digital solutions to manage health conditions at home and improve mobility (contributing to social isolation and barriers to employment) through expanded on demand public transport services. The overall vision for the Moray Growth Deal has been summarised as Innovation from Tradition. For more information go to My Moray.
- £2.1 million was allocated to Active Schools and Community Sport in Moray. Over 2021/22, there were 3218 participants in Active Schools Programmes involving 62,000 visits and encompassed 26% of the total school roll in Moray.
- £881 100 was received from the Scottish Government as part of a 10-year programme to reduce the use of fossil fuels. Five interlinked Moray projects will be covered by the funds: Buckie Harbour Feasibility Study; Blackhillock Masterplan, by Keith; Hydrogen Feasibility Study; Carbon Offset Feasibility Study; and Vacant Land Development Feasibility Study.
- Moray Libraries are taking part in a national Memories Scotland reminiscence project with taster sessions of a new Memory Group at Elgin Library. The Memory Group, which is aimed at over 60s, will provide a welcoming social forum for people to share memories and enjoy each other’s company over a fly cup.
- A new online cost of living hub has launched in Moray, which provides support and guidance on issues affecting residents this winter. The webpage provides information on services available to assist with money worries, business support, energy saving, waste reduction, avoiding cost of living scams and more.
Next week stay tuned for a bumper edition of our Global- Local newsletter “The Knowing Doing Gap” this edition puts local government delivery in the limelight as we think global and act local and includes an in depth look at energy issues from a local perspective. In addition, we will cover air quality issues.
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