Engage Update - 23 March

Scottish Parliament Election Information 

The Scottish Parliament Election will be held on Thursday 7 May 2026, with the count taking place at Braehead Arena on Friday 8 May 2026. 

 
Key changes for this election 
 
Two of our three constituencies have been renamed so for this election and will be called: 

• Renfrewshire North and Cardonald (formally Renfrewshire North and West) 
• Renfrewshire West and Levern Valley (formally Renfrewshire South) 

The full Cardonald ward moves from Glasgow City Council to Renfrewshire Council 

Langbank moves into the Renfrewshire North and Cardonald constituency 

Glasgow Airport moves back to the Paisley constituency 

In Ward 12, voters in polling district NN14 (previously NN21) will vote at Barsail Primary School rather than Erskine Baptist Church. This change is recommended as the location of the Church can be challenging for voters with access requirements

All changes to polling districts or polling places will be outlined on poll card letters issued to voters. 
 
Key dates

Deadline for delivery of nomination papers - Wednesday 1 April 2026 (4pm) 

Deadline for withdrawals of nomination - Wednesday 1 April 2026 (4pm) 

Deadline to register to vote - Monday 20 April 2026 

Deadline for receiving new postal vote and postal proxy applications, and for changes to existing postal or proxy votes - Tuesday 21 April 2026 (5pm) 

Deadline for receiving new applications to vote by proxy (not postal proxy or emergency proxies) - Tuesday 28 April 2026 (5pm) 

Publication of final election notice of alteration - Wednesday 29 April 2026 

Polling day - Thursday 7 May 2026 (7am to 10pm) 

Last time for re-issue of spoilt or lost postal votes - Thursday 7 May 2026 (5pm) 

Deadline for emergency proxy applications - Thursday 7 May 2026 (5pm) 

Last time to alter the register due to clerical error or court appeal - Thursday 7 May 2026 (9pm) 

 
More information on registering to vote: 
https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/council-and-elections/elections-and-voting/elections/register-vote

If you need any more information, you can contact: 
Electoral Registration Officer  
Renfrewshire Valuation Joint Board  
Renfrewshire House  
Cotton Street  
Paisley  
PA1 1BF 
ero@renfrewshire-vjb.gov.uk 
0300 300 0150

Whole Family Wellbeing Fund

A £20 million fund for charities to deliver help that is tailored to the specific needs of families living in poverty or at risk of poverty. This will help them connect with the services and support in their communities that can make a difference.
 

The third Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan, 'Bringing Hope, Building Futures', sets out that Whole Family Support means making sure families get the right support:

• when they need it
• where they need it
• for as long as they need it

Third sector organisations or partnerships can apply for a share of £20 million in funding for 2026/27. We expect that funding will continue and move to a multi-year basis from 2027/28, subject to future confirmation.

Applications close at midnight on Thursday 7 May.

Find out more

Billy McClean
Chief Officer, Renfrewshire Health & Social Care Partnership

In this week’s Vlog, I talk about:

• The SMT governance meeting and our approach to risk management and risk appetite.
• Reflections on how we address ongoing challenges and what our services might look like over the next 10 – 15 years.
• World Social Work Day earlier this week.

Workplace wellbeing, what works?

24 March 10-11.30am (Microsoft Teams)

This workshop is an excellent starting point for those who feel that wellbeing is not a focus at work and also for organisations who maybe started with good intentions but plans but have lost momentum. 

We will discuss what wellbeing actually is and look at effective roles and structures. 

We will include the ask of employees who have had poor mental health that was not supported in previous employment. 

The changing attitudes & expectations in work about staff wellbeing. We will look at the cost of doing nothing . We will also talk about the very real five stages of burnout. 

We will introduce the PERMA model which is a theory of wellbeing that can be used to help workplaces understand what everyone's drivers and responsibilities are when we talk about wellness at work. 

We will also discuss a successful wellbeing conversation tool that can help managers and colleagues. 

There will also be information on organisations who can support employers to help change their culture and embed wellbeing at the centre of all that they do. 

Register Here: https://form.jotform.com/251663611002343

A series of SURF Award Shared Learning Workshops will take place on the 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th May.

At these events attendees will have the opportunity to learn from SURF Award winners and highly commended projects, before opening to a wider policy discussion with national partners. 

The 4 workshops are now open for bookings: 

• Removing barriers to employability (7th May, Edinburgh)
• Housing led regeneration initiatives (14th May, Edinburgh)
• Place-based regeneration approaches (21st May, Govan)
• Taking a creative approach to regeneration (28th May, Glasgow)

All of the events are listed on the SURF website events page.

OSCR

On 9 March 2026, OSCR introduced some important changes to the information we publish about charities on the Scottish Charity Register.

This will be the final set of changes resulting from the Charities (Regulation and Administration) (Scotland) Act 2023, which aims to strengthen oversight and public trust in the charity sector.
From 9 March 2026:

• The first and last names of charity trustees are now displayed on the charity's Register entry.
• Every accounts document submitted to OSCR from 9 March 2026 as part of a charity's online annual return will be published in full, without any redactions, on the Scottish Charity Register.

 Read more about the changes
 

The Scottish Third Sector Tracker is a growing community of voluntary sector organisations from across Scotland who regularly share their insights, challenges, and support needs through a short survey twice a year.

By taking part, your organisation helps build a powerful, collective picture of the sector – one that directly informs national decision making and ensures the voices of charities, community groups, and social enterprises are heard.

SCVO and our funding partners, in collaboration with DJS Research, are now recruiting new organisations to join the Tracker community.

Register your interest today by completing this short form.

To learn more about the project – including FAQs, previous findings, and how your participation makes a difference – please visit SCVO's website.

 

Ask OSCR with ICO 

• Wednesday 25 March 2026
• 1pm - 2pm
• Online
• Sign up now

OSCR’s next Ask OSCR webinar will take place on Wednesday 25 March at 1:00pm, in partnership with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)

During this free online event, you’ll hear from the ICO, who will provide an overview of data protection law, including the new marketing rules and where to find resources to support your organisation. The ICO will also cover key data protection principles, such as retention policies and privacy notices, individuals’ information rights, and how to respond to a data breach.

Register now to attend.