Applications due by 5pm, Saturday 19 October 2020

APPLY HERE

Craft Scotland has an exciting opportunity for 3-4 makers, curators and craft industry professionals to join its Advisory Group.

The Advisory Group advises the Craft Scotland team and Board twice yearly on new developments and more. The Advisory Group is separate from our Board and members participate on a voluntary basis for a two-year term.

Craft Scotland is keen to have as broad a representation of the sector as possible the group will be representative of lived experiences, gender, disciplines/practice and geographical spread.

Applications due by 5pm, Friday 2 October 2020

APPLY HERE

MAKE and Craft Scotland are looking for researcher(s) to work on a research paper for MAKE | Learn, a new project focusing on craft education in Scotland.

MAKE | Learn is designed to strengthen Scotland’s craft sector, raise the profile of Scotland’s craft sector and develop engagement with Scotland’s craft sector by a diverse audience and user group.

This work is expected to take place from November 2020 – June 2021. Please read the full information pack before applying (link opens PDF).

The Scottish government has updated its guidance for manufacturing businesses.

The guidance sets out the Scottish Government’s expectations on the steps manufacturing businesses will take before and after reopening. It is provided as guidance only and does not amount to legal advice. Businesses may wish to seek their own advice to ensure compliance with all legal requirements.

The guidance is available here.

Businesses affected by the temporary measures in place in Aberdeen will be able to access grants of up to £1,500 and includes £100,000 of discretionary support for sectors not required to close by the regulations. The fund will be administered by Aberdeen City Council.

Small and medium sized businesses will have access to grants of up to £5,000 to help them access new technology as well as professional, legal, financial or other advice to help them get back on track.

Grants will be available to help businesses access specialist professional advice such as HR, accountancy, legal, financial, IT and digital, and to purchase minor equipment to adapt or adopt new technology in order to continue to deliver business activity or diversify.

The grants will be administered by the Growth Hubs run by your Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

Find your local LEP here.

UKFT and Textiles Scotland are establishing a joint steering group for textile, leather and apparel skills in Scotland to review existing Scottish Vocational Qualifications and develop new ones.

UKFT led a review of the Manufacturing Textiles Products; Footwear, Leather Production and Leathergoods; and Manufacturing Sewn Products National Occupations Standards (NOS) suites earlier this year, which have now have been approved and published on the NOS portal.

UKFT has now been commissioned by Skills Development Scotland to review the existing SVQs in Manufacturing Textile Products, Leather Production at SCQF Level 5 and create for the very first time in Scotland a brand new SVQ in Manufacturing Sewn Products at SCQF Level 5 that will offer training for sewing machinists, sewing alteration hands, materials cutters, tape sealers, pressers and other related roles.

Help shape the Scottish skills landscape in our industry

UKFT would like to hear from Scottish stakeholders in the relevant sectors including employers, organisations, training providers and individual specialists to contribute to the review.

Work will begin from September and with current Covid-19 restrictions, there will be a more imaginative approach to consulting which will include more online discussion and virtual meetings to cut down travel time.

If you are interested and want to get involved, please contact john.west@ukft.org

UKFT is the government-appointed Sector Skills Body for UK fashion and textiles, working to ensure the skills and productivity of people working in our industry of the highest level.

Last year UKFT led a review of the Manufacturing Textiles Products and Manufacturing Sewn Products National Occupations Standards (NOS) suites. The reviewed suits have now have been approved and published on the NOS portal.

John West, Director of Skills and Training at UKFT, said: “Thank you to everyone who contributed to the successful reviews, which will be the benchmark for all training provision in these areas for the next five years.”

UKFT put together national steering groups for the sector areas which reviewed, informed and updated the current competencies needed to carry out the manufacturing process for the industry. This will upskill the workforce and ensure the UK remains competitive against global competition in these vital areas.

The groups included representatives from leading employers and stakeholders in Scotland, Wales, England and Northern Ireland including O’Neills, Hunter Apparel Solutions, Mulberry, John Smedley, Melin Tregwynt, Lochcarron, British Footwear Association, John Lewis, Barrie Knitwear, First Corporate Clothing, Schuh, House of Bluebell, Alex Begg, Bute Fabrics, Johnstons of Elgin, Bow Leather and Muirhead.

To view the new Standards please visit https://www.ukstandards.org.uk/EN and search under the Business Sectors (Suite) tab.

XpoNorth’s FREE virtual conference takes place on 24-25 June, with a series of live talks encompassing global speakers in Film, Music, Writing, Heritage, Textiles, Trend Forecasting & Digital delivered over the two days. The event it is free and open to all, but registration is required.

Visit https://xponorth.co.uk/festival-programme for the full programme.

Highlights include:

As it enters its sixth year, XpoNorth, Scotland’s leading Creative Industries conference and support network, has been reimagined as an immersive digital edition, but while the setup has changed, the high calibre of speakers has not.

Read the full details on the 2020 digital edition here.

The Small Business Grant Fund is now available to companies who occupy certain types of shared space but do not pay rates directly. You will be eligible for a grant of up to £10,000 if your business occupies office space, business incubators or shared industrial units and you lease the space from a registered, rate-paying landlord.

To be eligible you must also:

•      be a registered business or partnership
•     have a lease signed before 17 March 2020
•    employ at least one person
•    have a business bank account

To apply for a grant please contact your local authority.

The Small Business Grant and Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant schemes will close for new applications on 10 July.

Full details here.

Textiles Scotland members and manufacturers can apply for 50 free face masks per company as part of a UKFT scheme to help the UK fashion and textile industry return to work.

The masks have been kindly donated by the Istanbul Apparel Exporters Association (İHKİB) and the Istanbul Textile and Raw Materials Exporters Association (ITHIB) as a gesture of goodwill and solidarity from one of our closest sourcing markets.

Nigel Lugg, Chairman of UKFT said: “We are grateful to our Turkish friends for this kind gesture. I know the industry is keen to get back to work and hopefully these masks will help manage that process.’’

Mustafa Gültepe, chairman of IHKIB, and Ahmet Öksüz, chairman of ITHIB, said: “As the COVID-19 Pandemic is affecting the lives of world’s people and harming the economies, please accept our donation of facemasks for your member companies as an expression of our solidarity with British companies. Being a partner to the same value chain of apparel and textile, we attach great importance to co-operate in all issues that the industry faces mutually.

“We believe, our deep and long-lasting business relations in fashion and textiles will enable us to recover these unprecedented days of the pandemic quickly.”

The masks are not PPE and have not met any performance testing. However, they are suitable for general protection at work.

The UK government says face coverings do not need to be worn in the workplace but employers should support their workers if they choose to wear one. You can find government guidance on face coverings here.

The masks will be distributed on a first come, first served basis, with preference given to Textiles Scotland and UKFT members. Please email info@ukft.org to apply.