Engage Update - 28 July

  

DigiKnowVember is back for 2025 - and this year, it’s set to be bigger and better than ever!
We’re reaching out to invite your organisation to be part of this fantastic initiative. DigiKnowVember is a month-long campaign running throughout November, bringing together local partners to deliver digital inclusion activities that help people across Renfrewshire build skills, boost confidence, and get connected.

From drop-ins and workshops to info sessions and signposting, there are so many ways to get involved - whether you already run digital activities or are looking to try something new. It’s a brilliant opportunity to support your community, strengthen local connections, and help make digital inclusion a reality for everyone across Renfrewshire.

 Interested in taking part?
Register your interest and planned activity using the form: https://forms.office.com/e/5gJZyP8BQw
Please note that the deadline for this form is Friday 08 August 2025.

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch at: digital-inclusion@renfrewshire.gov.uk

Let’s work together to make a real impact this November. We’d love to have you on board!

Drugs and Alcohol Knowledge and Skills Framework and Learning Directory

To help ensure consistent, high-quality services, the Scottish Government has published the Drugs and Alcohol Workforce Knowledge and Skills Framework. This guide outlines the knowledge and skills expected of those working in the sector. Complementing the Framework, the newly launched Drugs and Alcohol Learning Directory offers a broad range of learning opportunities to support development of the skills and knowledge identified.

Guiding Principles: Supporting Staff with Lived and Living Experience and Employability Toolkits

The Scottish Government has published Guiding Principles for supporting employees with lived and living experience of problematic substance use outlining best practice advice for employers on how to realise the value of staff with lived and living experience of substance use.

Additionally, Scottish Government has published two employability toolkits. The Pathways to Employment: Your guide to a career in substance use services supports people with lived and living experience of substance use looking to pursue careers in the drug and alcohol sector. The Pathways to Employment: supporting people with lived and living experience of substance use in to work provides employers and employment specialists with advice on how to attract, recruit and support staff with lived experience of substance use.

Public Health Scotland survey

Employers invitation to complete a Public Health Scotland survey to help address workplace health actions - good population health is good for business

Link to a short survey Here

Scotland is facing significant public health challenges. Life expectancy is declining, and health inequalities are widening. An ageing working population combined with a rise in long-term health conditions is driving rising levels of economic inactivity due to ill health. Work is a key building block of health and employers play a pivotal role. Providing work that is good for health is good business, benefitting individuals, employers, and the wider economy.  A healthy economy depends on a healthy and diverse workforce.

In supporting the Scottish Government, Programme for Government and to learn more about the role of employers in improving health outcomes, Public Health Scotland is undertaking a range of employer engagement activities in the coming months.

They would like your support in this endeavour and invite you to complete a short survey Here to help gain direct feedback on employer capability, opinions and challenges. Please also share this more widely across your networks. The survey is accompanied by a two-page briefing document (attached) to help focus contributions.

The results from the survey will help inform discussions and the development of a Scottish Health and Work Action Plan, which is a formal commitment in the Scottish Population Health Framework published in June 2025.

Public Health Scotland’s engagements with employers will include 1-2-1 engagements, smaller group meetings and workshops. If you or your network would like to be more involved in these sessions, please contact Robert.atkinson@phs.scot

Free Tree Packs

The Woodland Trust want to make sure everybody in the UK has the chance to plant a tree. So they’re giving away hundreds of thousands of trees to youth and community groups. Applications  are now open for tree packs to be delivered in November.  Applications will close on 28th August.

Apply here