All posts by Lesley Forrest
Letter to parents and carers from NHS Lothian
Dear Parents/Carers,
Thank you for everything you are doing to help keep your school safe, open and COVID free.
The measures your school has in place are necessary to protect children, staff and you as parents/carers. We must continue to work together and support our school staff in making the school as safe as possible, even if this feels difficult at times.
Staying two metres away from people who are not in your household will help to limit the spread of coronavirus. This is just as important outside. I wanted to highlight the importance of keeping a two metre distance from others at the school gates. If you can, please wear a face covering to help limit spread of the virus. Face coverings help reduce the spread of droplets, and so help limit the spread of coronavirus. Whilst we appreciate this is a difficult time and these measures can be trying, if we keep working together and do our best now to stop COVID-19, for example by not gathering at school gates and by wearing face coverings, we will get through this with fewer people becoming unwell.
The new restrictions announced by the First Minister include not having family and friends who don’t live with you inside your house and you not visiting other people’s houses. Having visitors and visiting other people’s houses has been the source of many COVID cases in recent weeks. This means that if we avoid having visitors and visiting others, we will all help limit the spread of coronavirus across households at this difficult time whilst cases are rising. This will help us to keep our schools and other services open.
Finally, please remember if your child or anyone in your household has one or more symptoms of COVID-19 (a new, continuous cough, a high temperature/fever, or loss of, or change in sense of smell or taste) you should ALL stay at home and the person with symptoms should get tested. Find out how to organise a COVID test on NHS Inform or phone 0800 028 2816. Please contact your school or local authority if you feel you may need help with self-isolation.
This has been a hugely difficult time for us all, and there are trying times ahead. However, everyone can make a difference, and by working together and following the FACTS we can help limit the spread of the virus, keep our schools open and our communities safe.
F – Face coverings
A – Avoid crowded places
C – Clean your hands regularly
T – Two metres distance
S – Self-isolate and book a test if you have symptoms
Yours sincerely
Alison McCallum
Director of Public Health and Health Policy
COVID-19 FAQ’s for parents and carers
S5/S6 – University Scholarship for pupils hoping to study law – entries open until 22 July 2020
CMS is the 6th largest law firm in the world and has recently been named in The Times Top 100 Graduate Employers. As well as supporting students in their university applications, our Law Scholarships offer students a chance to develop a relationship with us and start their journey into the legal profession. We hope a CMS Law Scholarship is a great opportunity for a school pupil hoping to go on to study law.
Who can apply?
We are looking for two S5 or S6 state school pupils, hoping to go on to study law, to become our next CMS Law Scholarships winners for Scotland. The winners will receive £2,500 per year, for each year of their law degree, together with mentoring support and paid work experience with the firm. This is now our sixth year of awarding the scholarship in Scotland and previous winners have gone on to study law at Aberdeen, Glasgow and Strathclyde.
How do pupils apply?
To enter the competition, we ask for a short essay and application form, which is to submitted by Wednesday 22 July 2020. You can find full details of the CMS Law Scholarships and how to apply on our website.
You will see that there are certain financial and academic criteria to be met in the competition – we will be happy to receive queries from pupils to confirm their eligibility, if they are unsure about this.
Brightest Watts eWeek July 2020 – Heriot-Watt University
Although the global situation means that we are unfortunately unable to run our Brightest Watts Summer Week in the usual format. Over the past few weeks, we have taken time to consider the options available and are now very excited to announce the updated Brightest Watts programme for 2020/2021 S5 pupils.
This programme is comprised of three parts:
- Brightest Watts eWeek – Monday 27 – Friday 31 July 2020
- Brightest Watts eWeek masterclasses – three dates throughout the year
- Brightest Watts eWeek Residential – Monday 12 – Wednesday 14 July 2021 (3 days and 2 nights)
The Brightest Watts programme aims to provide new S5 pupils with a motivational insight into university life. The atmosphere is friendly and supportive and the emphasis is on meeting new people, learning new skills and boosting confidence.
All activities on the Brightest Watts programme are free. We expect pupils to commit to taking part in all three parts of the programme.
Pupils who are interested in taking part in the programme can find further information and an application form at www.hw.ac.uk/summerweek. Places are limited and although we welcome all applications, we will prioritise pupils with care experience, those with caring responsibilities and those from schools with low progression rates to higher education. The deadline for application is Monday 6 July.
University of Glasgow Open Day – Tuesday 23 June, plus HE Fair & Girls into Geoscience
The University of Glasgow will be hosting a Virtual Undergraduate Open Day on Tuesday 23rd June, 9-6pm for students interested in applying to any of our undergraduate degree programmes for 2021 entry. Teachers and parents will be very welcome too! www.gla.ac.uk/explore/visit/undergraduateevents/opendays/
In addition to Open Day we will also be represented at the UK University Search Virtual Fair, 17 June, 12 -6pm
www.gla.ac.uk/explore/visit/undergraduateevents/exhibitionswebinarsschoolvisits/
For any senior girls who are considering a degree in Geoscience, the Girls into Geoscience event on Monday 6 July, 9.30-4pm, will be an excellent introduction. Further information here:
www.gla.ac.uk/explore/visit/undergraduateevents/exhibitionswebinarsschoolvisits/
Survey of 8-14 year old’s in Scotland
The Children’s Parliament is engaging children in conversations about their experience of Coronavirus and the lockdown. They have launched a survey for 8-14 year olds and are hoping that parents and carers will help direct and support the children to take part. They would like to reach as many children as possible and are asking people to spread the word about this.
If this is something you can fill in please see the link below.
Our lives have changed because of Coronavirus. Children’s Parliament want to find out how it is for children. Can you help your children to get involved in the national survey for 8 to 14 year olds How are you doing? bit.ly/Coronavirus_Kids (by 21 May)
A short report on early findings from the Children’s Parliament How are you doing? Survey, completed in April by 4,000 children; is also available via the same link.
M&G 2020 Apprenticeship Programme Applications
Good Morning,
We are pleased to announce that applications for the M&G 2020 Apprenticeship Programme are now open.
We have a selection of Business and Tech roles and apprenticeships available in our Edinburgh and Stirling offices.
Candidates who wish to apply for the Business Apprenticeships – please apply via the following microsite
Candidates who wish to apply for the IT / Technology roles and apprenticeships – please use the following links:
We look forward to seeing your applications.
M&G Apprenticeship Team