Road Safety event for sixth year pupils – Edinburgh Reporter Rewards – By Election Date set – Children’s Panel roadshow comes to Edinburgh – Today at The Filmhouse
There is a road safety event being held at the Corn Exchange this week. The photo shows the slide by which teenagers can be shown the impact of a car at less than 10 mph. The idea is that they should be shown it is best to wear a seatbelt. They are usually given a plastic cup of water to hold which is a graphic demonstration of an impact at even very low speed.
All schools in Edinburgh have been invited to the event organised by Streets Ahead. Read more here.
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In August 2013 The Edinburgh Reporter hit a huge milestone. The number of hits on our site went through the roof. To thank those of you who are our regular readers we have some Edinburgh Reporter Rewards to hand out over the next while. Today you will find the rewards in articles under our Culture Section……You just need to look around – as there may be more than one….(In fact there are two!)
Good Luck! The reward must be claimed by email before 14 September 2013 at 5:00pm.
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The vacancy caused by former MSP Bill Walker resigning on Monday will be filled next month. The Dunfermline by-election will be held on Thursday 24 October, it has been announced.
Under the Section 9 of the Scotland Act 1998, the date of the poll is fixed by the Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament.
Presiding Officer Tricia Marwick has this morning written to Steve Grimmond, Chief Executive of Fife Council, as Returning Officer, to confirm her choice of date and ask for arrangements for the by-election to be put in place.
Section 9 of the Scotland Act 1998 refers:
9 Constituency vacancies
(1)Where the seat of a constituency member is vacant, an election shall be held to fill the vacancy (subject to subsection (4)).
(2)The date of the poll shall be fixed by the Presiding Officer.
(3)The date shall fall within the period of three months—
(a)beginning with the occurrence of the vacancy, or
(b)if the vacancy does not come to the notice of the Presiding Officer within the period of one month beginning with its occurrence, beginning when it does come to his notice.
(4)The election shall not be held if the latest date for holding the poll would fall within the period of three months ending with the day on which the poll at the next ordinary general election would be held (disregarding section 2(5)).
(5)For the purposes of this section, the date on which a vacancy is to be treated as occurring shall be determined under standing orders.
(6)A person may not be a candidate at such an election if he is a member of the Parliament or a candidate in another election to fill a vacancy.
Here in Edinburgh the vacancy caused by the death of David McLetchie was filled without the need for a by-election. As Mr McLetchie was a list MSP the vacancy was filled by the next person available, Cameron Buchanan who took his seat at Holyrood last week will now represent Lothian for the Conservative and Unionist Party.
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CHILDREN’S PANEL VOLUNTEERS SOUGHT AS NATIONAL TOUR HITS EDINBURGH
Search underway for the 50 new panel members needed in capital
People in Edinburgh who think they can help young people in need of care are being urged to find out about becoming a Children’s Panel member as a tour visits the city from tomorrow.
Over the next three days, locals will be encouraged to sign up as the tour hits Edinburgh’s Omni Centre (12 September), Gyle Shopping Centre (13 September) and Ocean Terminal (14 September).
Panel members and staff will be on hand to explain what the role involves in a bid to find the 50 volunteers needed to ensure the Children’s Panel offers the best possible support to vulnerable children and young people living in Edinburgh.
Scotland has a new single national Children’s Panel, made up of 2,500 volunteer panel members who regularly attend hearings to address the needs and behaviour of children and young people who face serious problems in their lives. Problems which can include being abused, failing to attend school, parents having difficulty looking after them, or committing an offence.
New volunteers are needed every year and the national tour is part of a three week long recruitment drive, led by Children’s Hearings Scotland (CHS), to attract people from all walks of life to this unique role.
Existing panel member Kingsley Dawson, 62 from Edinburgh, has been a Children’s Panel member since the beginning of 2013.
Backing the campaign, he said:
“I think the ideal Children’s Panel member would be a compassionate person who is able to make a child feel comfortable in what is often a daunting environment. The most important thing is that the children involved in a panel are listened to – we are there for the children, not the adults and this should remain at the centre of what we do.
“When it comes to volunteering, people often have more to give than they think and get more out of it than they expect. This has certainly been the case for me with the Children’s Panel and it’s good to be part of something so meaningful and worthwhile. I would definitely encourage others to think about getting involved.”
Bernadette Monaghan, National Convener, Children’s Hearings Scotland, said:
“The Children’s Hearings System has the best interests of Scotland’s children and young people at heart. As this national tour gets underway, we’re appealing to those who want to help improve the lives of vulnerable children and young people to consider becoming a panel member.
“Having served on the Children’s Panel for nine years, I know from experience the valuable role the 2,500 volunteers play in helping children at risk out of dark places. It’s a unique role, and a unique system which ensures children in need or at risk are heard, respected, valued, cared for and, above all, protected.
“It won’t just change a child’s life, it’ll change yours too.”
The deadline for applications is Friday 27 September. To find out more about becoming a panel member, call 0844 848 3407, text CHILD to 61611 or visitwww.childrenspanelscotland.org.
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A host of films on offer at The Filmhouse today including What Maisie knew (we told you about this yesterday) and a single showing of a documentary film called Nostalgia for the Light which the cinema describe as follows:-
Master director Patricio Guzmán travels 10,000 feet above sea level to the driest place on earth, the Atacama Desert, where atop the mountains astronomers from all over the world gather to observe stars. The Atacama is also a place where the harsh heat of the sun preserves human remains of political prisoners ‘disappeared’ by the Chilean army after the military coup of September 1973. So while astronomers examine the most distant and oldest galaxies, women, surviving relatives of the disappeared whose bodies were dumped here, search for the remains of their loved ones.
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Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
