The latest stories from Inspiring Scotland and our partner charities.
After five years in the making, the Inspiring Scotland Thrive Outdoors fund team gathered in Glasgow last month for the International Play Association (IPA) Triennial World Conference 2023. Â Hosted at Glasgow Caledonian University, the conference brought together 550 delegates from more than 40 countries including New Zealand, Hong Kong and the rest of the
Read MoreThe intandem team at Inspiring Scotland had a celebratory day at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s Edinburgh Zoo on Saturday 4 March 2023.  Joined by more than 100 children and young people, mentors, charity partners, funders and the Minister for Children and Young People, Clare Haughey The occasion was to celebrate the second
Read MoreToday is Care Day (17 February 2023) which aims to champion children and young people with care experience and tackle misconceptions.  All families need a helping hand to navigate tough times, such as chronic illness, mental health problems or a bereavement. It is during these tough times when parents can struggle without a solid support
Read MoreScottish play charities will share a ÂŁ550,000 funding boost to help get children and families out to play in their local communities. Creative outdoor play sessions, active play, and nature spaces for local communities are just some of the brilliant initiatives being supported by the Scottish Government Outdoor Community Play Fund aimed at improving the
Read MoreAn award of ÂŁ450,000 from The Robertson Trust will enable Inspiring Scotland to expand intandem, the national mentoring programme for children and young people looked after at home, to include 8-14 year olds living in kinship care arrangements across Scotland. intandem recognises that young people looked after while living at home can experience challenging circumstances.
Read MoreThe new Outdoor Community Play Fund was announced by Children’s Minister, Clare Haughey on Tuesday 12th April 2022. This funding will support charities providing outdoor community play opportunities for children and families experiencing disadvantage, as defined by SIMD. Up to ÂŁ15,000 can be applied for by registered Scottish charities meeting the criteria. Funded by Scottish Government,
Read MoreInspiring Scotland works with some of the most innovative charities in Scotland today. This Mental Health Awareness Week focuses on the power of nature – so we’re sharing our key learnings from the projects we work with on how to use nature to improve mental health and wellbeing of new parents, children, young people,
Read MoreAs part of the Scottish Government’s commitment to improving perinatal and infant mental health, a Small Grants Fund will open for applications in May 2021 for third sector organisations and local groups that support the mental health of parents, carers, and infants.
Read More**PLEASE NOTE: Applications for this fund have now closed. To find out more about Thrive Outdoors and how we can help you, please visit this page. New £1 million children’s winter clothing fund. New funding of £1 million will mean more children can reap the benefits of outdoor play and learning, whatever the
Read MoreCharities providing counselling, peer and parental support are to share funding to help improve the life chances and wellbeing of pregnant women, new mums and their families. The Perinatal and Infant Mental Health fund will provide annual funding of up to ÂŁ1 million to help third sector organisations deliver vital services.
Read MoreThe national position statement on outdoor play and learning hits its 2 year anniversary this month – and the number of signatories signing up to this collective ambition has more than doubled. Two of the latest signatories, Scottish wildlife Trust and Clackmannanshire Council join over 100 organisations who recognise playing and learning outdoors as an
Read MorePlease note, this funding round (2020) is now closed, but you can find more information about the current fund here. Inspiring Scotland is seeking applications for the Organised Outdoor Community Play Fund, funded by the Scottish Government and set up to support children’s health and wellbeing through outdoor play. The Scottish Government is providing £380,000
Read MoreInspiring Scotland are delighted to support the Scottish Government to launch the new Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Third Sector Fund. Directed at improving mental health care for new mums, infants and families, the fund will open to applications on the 5th May 2020 and run between August 2020 and March 2023, subject to annual
Read MoreThousands of children will be out playing in their communities across Scotland this summer after local charities received funding to run Play Rangers in their neighbourhood. 15 charities have received money to increase outdoor play opportunities through Inspiring Scotland’s Thrive Outdoors community play programme, which is funded by Scottish Government. Thrive Outdoors supports Scotland’s children
Read MoreScottish wildlife filmmaker and television presenter Gordon Buchanan – best known for his close encounter with a curious polar bear on BBC’s The Polar Bear Family and Me – has added his name to a growing list of people and organisations committed to getting kids out to play. The raft of pledges will be announced
Read More50 people and organisations sign up to national pledge on outdoor play and learning Playing and learning outdoors will be a fundamental part of growing up in Scotland, following a national commitment from 50 people and organisations across the country. Alongside the Scottish Government and Inspiring Scotland, bodies as diverse as the Royal Zoological Society
Read MoreInspiring Scotland’s Thrive Outdoors team has begun work with eight local authorities to encourage and support greater use of outdoor play and learning in the early years. Inspiring Scotland was awarded funding from Scottish Government earlier in 2018 to increase the delivery of outdoor play and learning opportunities as part of the expansion of the
Read MoreInspiring Scotland has partnered with Care Inspectorate to produce a How-to guide for establishing outdoor nurseries in Scotland. Karen Quinn and Donna Conroy from Care Inspectorate will work alongside Inspiring Scotland’s Thrive Outdoors team for the rest of the year and will support development of the guide, focusing on how to ensure safe, high-quality
Read MoreMinister for Childcare and Early Years, Maree Todd, has announced the number of hours nursery children spend outdoors is set to increase, and Inspiring Scotland will play a key role in encouraging and supporting greater use of outdoor learning in the early years. Ms Todd made the announcement during a visit to City of Edinburgh
Read MoreOutdoor play and learning was given a boost when Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, John Swinney officially launched the Welly Wanderers outdoor nursery in Glasgow’s Castlemilk woods on World Children’s Day, 20 November 2017. The Welly Wanderers is one of three outdoor nurseries being established in Glasgow under a partnership
Read MoreInspiring Scotland supports Scottish Government in its commitment to improving the quality of Early Learning and Childcare through the publication of it’s Quality Action Plan. Through the work of the go2play fund, Inspiring Scotland has championed and encouraged play-based outdoor learning in Scotland’s communities, schools and natural spaces since 2010. We are pleased to see
Read MoreLeaders of Scottish bodies from health, education and natural heritage have backed the #AwayandPlay campaign highlighting the benefits of outdoor free play for young people and children. Senior figures including the Deputy Chief Medical officer and representatives from bodies such as Glasgow City Council, Historic Environment Scotland, Forestry Commission Scotland, Care Inspectorate, Scottish Natural Heritage
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