Taking the lead Doing our bit for the environment
On Sunday it was World Mental Health Day and it’s something we should all care deeply about as mental health issues can impact anyone at any time.
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted just how important our mental health and well-being is and that was one of the many reasons why we set aside £2.7million to tackle inequalities felt across our communities, including £250,000 of increased funds for children and young people’s mental health.
Our well-being can be impacted by lots of different things, such as money worries or concerns about losing a job, especially with the furlough scheme now having come to an end.
We know just how troubling a time it can be and that’s why we’re funding Renfrewshire’s Citizen’s Advice Bureau to deliver a programme called Fair Work Renfrewshire.
It’s there to give Renfrewshire residents help, support and advice on employment matters including redundancy and help people understand benefit entitlements if their employment status has changed.
The dedicated and knowledgeable staff are also on hand to help with debt and money advice and all the advice is free, confidential and impartial.
If you think Fair Work Renfrewshire can help you, call the Renfrewshire Citizen’s Advice Bureau on 0141 889 2121 or visit www.renfrewshirecab.org.uk
October has also seen the launch of a brand new council campaign called #YouDecide where we give local communities control of part of the council’s infrastructure budget.
Maybe it’s a road safety initiative, an outdoor gym or a new walking route, whatever the idea, this is your chance to make suggestions that make your community a better place to live, work and visit.
Make sure you get your ideas in by November 14, either by going online to www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/YouDecide or at post boxes in libraries, leisure centres and Morrisons supermarkets across Renfrewshire.
Tackling climate change is rightly at the top of the agenda, with world leaders and political figures descending on Glasgow next month for the UN Climate Change Conference COP26.
This conference aims to get agreement from every country on how to tackle climate change, a huge task and COP26 has a unique urgency to it, now a hugely important global priority.
We are determined to do all we can locally to play our part and are striving to make Renfrewshire carbon neutral by 2030.
Recently we added new electric vans and buses to the Renfrewshire Council fleet, the zero-emission vehicles able to cover 200miles per charge, taking us to almost one-third of our vehicles now fully electric.
It’s a step in the right direction, and on a bigger scale, Glasgow Airport welcomed a ‘flying laboratory, the eco-demonstrator Boeing aircraft flying in on a 50 per cent blend of sustainable fuel.
Boeing are the world’s largest aerospace company and I had the pleasure of meeting Sir Martin Donnelly, president of Boeing Europe and managing director of Boeing in the UK and Ireland, as he opened a brand new research facility here in Renfrewshire at our innovation district AMIDS.
Renfrewshire is synonymous with manufacturing innovation and so it’s hugely exciting to see Boeing and colleagues from the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland working together at the metallics research centre to consider how to reduce waste and improve productivity.
Another important step in our recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, bringing skilled jobs and opportunities to the area, I am looking forward to hearing all about how the centre progresses in the future.