News

As a result of COVID-19, Doors Open Day 2020 will take place mostly online, allowing people across Scotland and the world to safely explore Scotland’s buildings, spaces and places. Venues and groups are producing a wide range of online offerings, including: Facebook and Instagram Live guided tours, recorded oral histories, webinars, 360-degree tours, virtual exhibitions, and live Q&A sessions.

The Royal Voluntary Service (RVS) has launched the Virtual Village Hall, a new programme of online activities to join in with at home. Live and pre-recorded sessions take place daily, featuring themed video sessions led by tutors, TV and radio personalities, and RVS activity co-ordinators and volunteers. Sessions include (amongst others): exercise and dance, music and singing, relaxation and meditation, arts and crafts, cooking and baking, technology skills, and gardening.

Our colleagues at Stirlingshire Voluntary Enterprise (SVE) and Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector (GCVS) are hosting a FREE online Risk Assessment Training Course, taking place Tuesday 11th August, 1:20pm – 3:30pm, via Zoom. The course aims to provide guidance, practical exercises and case studies surrounding Risk Assessment in organisations, and will be useful for those third sector organisations and groups looking to re-open their premises, or re-start their activities, after lockdown.

Forth Valley Developing the Young Workforce’s (DYW) next “Scotland’s Biggest Parent’s Evenings” (SBPE) online event takes place Tuesday 4th August, 7pm – 7:30pm. “#NoWrongPath to Industry” takes place on Scottish Exam Results Day, and is part of  DYW’s wider #NoWrongPath campaign, which aims to highlight the options that are available to young people and to show that exams results are not necessarily the key to unlocking future success. The event provides attendees an opportunity to hear from keynote speaker, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, along with a range of experts, employers and young people.

Recovering Justice is holding a free online workshop, “De-Mystifying Decriminalisation” on Friday 31st July, 2:30pm – 4pm. The workshop will explore the why, what and how of decriminalising drugs, aiming to provide participants a chance to examine and discuss the issue, and develop a broader understanding of the different options available in drugs and drug use regulation.

PLUS Forth Valley is holding family support Zoom calls for parents and carers this week, with the next session taking place on Thursday 30th July, 2pm – 3pm. The sessions offer parents and carers the opportunity to spend time together online, catch up, and share ideas and suggestions for PLUS sessions going forward.

Scottish Families Affected by Drugs and Alcohol (SFAD, or Scottish Families) is holding an online Summer Festival: the Connect, Communicate, Learn and Thrive Festival (#CCLT2020). The next sessions include a screening of Scottish Families’ new animation, “Love Makes You Family”, taking place 2pm – 3pm on Wednesday 29th July, and an additional Communications Workshop next Tuesday 4th August, 6:30pm – 7:45pm, as well as Kid’s Tent craft and story sessions.

Social Investment Scotland (SIS) has launched a new series of 9 online workshops, taking place over the summer to look at what’s involved when raising investment. These will featire input from entrepreneurs who have raised social investment within their specific sector, including retail, tourism, rental, and health and social care, amongst others. Each workshop is 2 hours long, focusing on raising investment for the first 90 minutes, which is then followed by 30 minutes covering crowdfunding and community shares. The first workshop, Raising Investment – Food and Drink Services (with Fiona Allan, Chair, Fly Cup Catering) takes place Tuesday 21st July, 2pm – 4pm.

Children in Scotland (CiS) is looking for 2 individuals with appropriate experience and knowledge of financial management and of digital operations to join its Board of Directors. Please note that these positions are non-remunerative and ask for a commitment of approximately one day per month. The Board meets 5 times per year, including the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in November. A term on the Board is 4 years. The deadline for applications is 5pm on Wednesday 29th July.