Safer Communities Scotland Podcast
By Scottish Community Safety Network
Safer Communities Scotland PodcastFeb 20, 2024
Violence Reduction: with Jimmy Paul, Head of the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit
In our latest Safer Communities Scotland Podcast episode, we spoke with Jimmy Paul, Head of the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit.
In a wide ranging discussion we spoke to Jimmy about the history of the Violence Reduction Unit and violence reduction in Scotland. We also discussed recent increases in youth violence and their causes, the changing nature of youth violence and how public health and trauma informed approaches help to reduce violence.
You can find out more about some of the items discussed in this Podcast episode below:
- Scottish Violence Reduction Unit
- Safe Space? The past, present and future of violence reduction in Scotland
- Imagine A Man Toolkit
- Love Letham
Product Safety: with Sarah Smith OBE, Deputy CEO, Office for Product Safety and Standards
In this episode, recorded just before Christmas 2023, we were delighted to speak with Sarah Smith OBE, Deputy CEO of the Office for Product Safety and Standards.
Sarah leads the UK Government’s approach to product regulation and market surveillance, and legal metrology, including administering new sovereign functions such as designating standards and operating regulatory approvals processes and leading the programme on ports and borders interventions.
Our National Development Officer Kevin Chase spoke to Sarah about all things Product Safety, including enforcement, online market places and shopping safely at Christmas.
Visit the Office for Product Safety and Standards website at: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/office-for-product-safety-and-standards
Climate Change & Community Safety: with Stuart Stevens, Deputy Chief Officer, Scottish Fire & Rescue Service
For our latest Safer Communities Scotland Podcast, we were delighted to welcome back former SCSN Board Member Stuart Stevens, Deputy Chief Officer of the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service.
The Scottish Fire & Rescue Service has already begun to see the Climate Crisis impact on their work - in particular via sizeable increases in flooding and wild fire incidents in Scotland.
We discussed the impact the climate crisis is already having on community safety in Scotland, what further impacts might come & how we can work together to adapt and respond to current & future impacts of our changing climate.
Read about the SFRS commitment to Net Zero here.
View the SCSN Climate Change & Community Safety Zine and Jamboard.
Working Together to Prevent Suicide: with John Gibson, CEO, The Canmore Trust
For the latest episode of our Safer Communities Scotland Podcast, we were delighted to speak to John Gibson, CEO of the Canmore Trust - a suicide prevention and support charity.
John founded the Canmore Trust after losing his son Cameron (an anagram of Canmore) to suicide in 2019. Struggling to cope, John made an attempt on his own life in 2020.
However, John is now in recovery and now uses his experience of suicide to help others, especially encouraging men to talk about feelings of suicide.
In this episode, we discuss John’s story, the Canmore Trust, the latest stats and research on suicide and more.
Visit the Canmore Trust website.
If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can contact the Canmore Trust 24/7 by texting CANMORE to 85258.
You can also call the Samaritans on 116 123 anytime day or night.
Visit the Samaritans website at: www.samaritans.org/scotland/samaritans-in-scotland/
Thinking about Hope and Community Safety: with Prof. Niven Rennie, Chair of The Hope Collective
We’re delighted to welcome back Professor Niven Rennie to the Safer Communities Scotland Podcast, in his new role at the head of the recently established Hope Collective.
Niven previously appeared on our Podcast in his former role as head of the Scottish Violence Reduction Network.
In this episode we chat about the work of the Hope Collective, of which SCSN is a member, why hope is so crucial to our lives and societies and what we can do to foster hope locally, nationally and internationally.
Find out more about The Hope Collective at https://www.hopecollectiveuk.com/
The Scottish Violence Reduction Unit
Inclusive Home Adaptations: with Dr Vikki McCall, University of Stirling
Our latest Safer Communities Scotland Podcast episode saw us sit down for a chat with Dr Vikki McCall of the University of Stirling, to discuss her work and some of the latest research on inclusive home adaptations.Kevin Chase, our National Development Officer and Home Safety Scotland Lead, joined the Podcast to lead the discussion with Vikki on how we can best design homes and other spaces to be inclusive, acceptable and safe for children, older and disabled people.
About ISPA - ISPA - Inclusive Design - Design - Topics - Resources - Housing LIN
Wisdom of Trauma Film Screening Panel Discussion
On 29th March 2023, the SCSN held a film screening of the documentary movie 'The Wisdom of Trauma: with Dr Gabor Mate'.
Following the screening of the film, we held a panel discussion with expert panellists - Aidan Martin, author of Euphoric Recall and CEO of The Scheme Livi; James Docherty of the Violence Reduction Unit and Katy MacCleod of the Scottish Drugs Forum.
We're pleased to bring you this panel discussion as a Podcast!
N.B. As SCSN is a small organisation with limited budgets, please note the sound quality may vary at times throughout the Podcast. We apologise where this is the case.
You may be interested to watch the movie 'The Wisdom of Trauma: with Dr Gabor Mate'. You can view the film online for a small donation at: https://thewisdomoftrauma.com/
You can follow The Scheme Livi on Twitter at: twitter.com/TheSchemeLivi
Find out more about the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit at: www.svru.co.uk
Find out more about the Scottish Drugs Forum at: www.sdf.org.uk
Safer Communities Scotland Podcast: A Trauma Informed Society - with Aidan Martin
For our Safer Communities Scotland Podcast this month, we’re delighted to be speaking with Aidan Martin, author of the book ‘Euphoric Recall’ and CEO of The Scheme Livi.Aidan will be one of the panellists at our Wisdom of Trauma with Dr Gabor Mate screening in Glasgow on 29th March.We sat down with Aidan to discuss his book, his lived experience of trauma and what it’s taught him, his work at ‘The Scheme Livi’ and his general thoughts on the importance of and progress towards Scotland being a trauma informed nation.
Follow 'The Scheme Livi' on Twitter at @TheSchemeLivi
Follow Aidan on Twitter at @AidanAuthor
You can view the Wisdom of Trauma for a small donation online at: https://thewisdomoftrauma.com/
Watch 'Scotland's Stories: Let's Talk About Trauma' on STV Player with Aidan Martin at: https://player.stv.tv/summary/scotlands-stories
Aidan Martin's book is titled 'Euphoric Recall' and is available at good book stores and online sites.
Thinking about Cyber Security - with Kirstie Steele and Mike Smith, Cyber and Fraud Centre
In this latest edition of the Safer Communities Scotland Podcast, we sat down with Kirstie and Mike from the Cyber & Fraud Centre (formerly the Scottish Business Resilience Centre) - to talk about cyber security, why it’s important & what we can do to protect ourselves.
Below you can find links to some useful Cyber Security resources, including those mentioned in this episode.
- Cyber & Fraud Centre - https://cyberfraudcentre.com/
- Exercise in a Box - https://cyberfraudcentre.com/event-type/exercise-in-a-box
- CyberScotland Partnership https://www.cyberscotland.com/
- Sign up for CyberScotland bulletins
- National Cyber Security Centre: https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/section/information-for/small-medium-sized-organisations
- Cyber Incident Response Plan https://www.cyberscotland.com/incident-response/cyber-response/
- Certification: https://www.cyberscotland.com/advice-and-guidance/certification/
- CyberScotland Week https://cyberscotlandweek.com/
#FireworkSafety: Gilly Mendes Ferreira, SSPCA
In this episode, we sat down for a chat with Gilly Mendes Ferreira, Head of Innovation & Strategic Relations at the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA). SCSN is once again backing the SSPCA #FireworkSafety campaign in 2022.
We discussed the campaign, recent changes to the law in Scotland around fireworks purchasing & control zones - and the impact fireworks can have on people and animals.
You can find out more about the SSPCA #FireworkSafety campaign at: www.scottishspca.org/firework-safety
You can read about the changes to fireworks legislation in Scotland at: www.gov.scot/news/making-fireworks-safer/
Keeping the Peace: Mark Nicol, Community Improvement Partnership Lead, Wheatley Group
In June 2022, we sat down with Mark Nicol, Community Improvement Partnership Lead at the Wheatley Group, to discuss their newly launched ’Keeping the Peace’ campaign.
This campaign takes a pro-social, early intervention and prevention approach to anti-social behaviour.
We discussed what a pro-social approach to anti-social behaviour looks like, what anti-social behaviour is - and also looked at some other Wheatley Group campaigns designed to improve their communities wellbeing.
You can read about the 'Keeping the Peace' campaign/initiative in the June 2022 edition of our Safety NETworks newsletter.
Celebrating 25 Years: In Conversation with Shirley McLaren
In September 2022, we celebrated 25 years of Community Safety Partnership work, and SCSN, in Scotland. We held a parliamentary reception at the Scottish Parliament sponsored by Clare Adamson MSP.
Prior to that event, we sat down with three community safety experts and former SCSN board members to discuss the last 25 years of Community Safety work in Scotland.
Here we chat with Shirley McLaren of Edinburgh Council and former SCSN board member.
Celebrating 25 Years: In Conversation With...Liz Lumsden, RoSPA
In September 2022, we celebrated 25 years of Community Safety Partnership work, and SCSN, in Scotland. We held a parliamentary reception at the Scottish Parliament sponsored by Clare Adamson MSP.
Prior to that event, we sat down with three community safety experts and former SCSN board members to discuss the last 25 years of Community Safety work in Scotland.
Here we chat with Liz Lumsden, Community Safety Manager at RoSPA and former SCSN board member.
Celebrating 25 Years: In Conversation with...Ian Hanley, former SCSN Chair Person
In September 2022, we celebrated 25 years of Community Safety Partnership work, and SCSN, in Scotland. We held a parliamentary reception at the Scottish Parliament sponsored by Clare Adamson MSP.
Prior to that event, we sat down with three community safety experts and former SCSN board members to discuss the last 25 years of Community Safety work in Scotland. In this episode, we chat with Ian Hanley, formerly of Inverclyde Council and ex Chair Person of the SCSN Board of Directors.
We discussed Ian's memories of the major developments in community safety over the past 25 years, how community safety policy & practice has evolved over that time, the role SCSN has played - and looked to what lies ahead for community safety.
Drug Prohibition: Does it really make our communities safer?
In this episode, we chat with Simon McLean, head of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) Scotland.
Against a background of the newly published drug deaths figures for 2021, the Drug Deaths Taskforce Final Report, and newly announced plans by the Home Office to further penalise drug users, we discuss whether our current drug laws make communities safer or more dangerous places; what law enforcement officers think about their role in prosecuting the failed War on Drugs; and what effect drug laws have on corrupting our democratic institutions and affecting public confidence in the police. We also discuss the impact and costs faced by law enforcement officers in prosecuting the war on drugs.
Simon is author of 'The Ten Percent: The truth, the whole truth and something like the truth'. A memoir about his time working in the Police described as 'a hugely entertaining read'. Find out more about the book or purchase it via Ringwood Publishing.
Follow LEAP Scotland on Twitter and Facebook.
You can take part in the Drug Death Prevention Bill Survey, discussed in the Podcast, here.
You can also find out more about the Violence Reduction Unit on their website here.
You can follow the work of Peter Krykant by following him on Twitter.
Recorded in August 2022.
Distant Voices: Professor Fergus McNeill
In this episode we talked to Fergus McNeill Professor of Criminology and Social Work at the University of Glasgow where he works in the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research and in Sociology (SCCJR).
Prior to becoming an academic in 1998, Fergus worked for a decade in residential drug rehabilitation and as a criminal justice social worker. His many research projects and publications have examined institutions, cultures and practices of punishment and rehabilitation and their alternatives.
Fergus works on ‘Distant Voices: Coming Home’ which is a major, multi-partner Economic and Social Research Council/Arts and Humanities Research Council project exploring re-integration after punishment through creative practices and research methods. His most recent books include ‘Reimagining Rehabilitation: Beyond the Individual’ (with Lol Burke and Steve Collett) and ‘Pervasive Punishment: Making sense of mass supervision’.
Follow Fergus on Twitter: @Fergus_McNeill
Water Safety in Scotland: Carlene McAvoy, RoSPA/Water Safety Scotland
Carlene McAvoy works as Leisure Safety Manager with RoSPA Scotland and is also secretariat and founder of Water Safety Scotland.
In this episode, we discuss how community safety partnerships can engage with Water Safety Scotland, what we can learn from other countries approaches to water safety, impacts of climate change on water safety in Scotland & what people can do to stay safe around water.
Find out more about RoSPA by visiting - https://www.rospa.com/about/around-the-uk/scotland
Find out more about Water Safety Scotland by visiting - https://watersafetyscotland.org.uk/
Community Safety Scotland Podcast Trailer
A very brief introduction to our new Community Safety Scotland Podcast.