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support for elderly and disabled people in Shetland


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"The days of anybody running a youth club are thankfully in the past."

 

Why "thankfully"?  

In my younger days, I helped run a village youth club and, fwiw, we deliberately went out of our way to include handicapped and otherwise disabled youngsters with 'special' needs.  No one trained(?) us and no one suggested that we couldn't "do the job".

Oh, and no one got paid either.....

 

As for the invitation to "Google Thomas Hamilton", what was that about and, why do you think that it is relevant?

 

From memory;

Thomas Hamilton was a nutter who opened fire on Dunblane Primary School and, not a youth club.

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Whatever happened to the days when youth clubs and play schemes were run by volunteers not social workers and "the state" was not expected to "finance" everything?

All youth clubs and play schemes in Shetland are now largely run by volunteers again. Disability Shetland has to employ a social worker because they work with vulnerable people and the law says that appropriate supervision must be in place. The days of anybody running a youth club are thankfully in the past. Google Thomas Hamilton.

 

It's not a "social worker" they employ. I'm not even sure it's a legal requirement. Everybody does have to go through a PVG check but once that's out the way I'm not aware of any more stringent requirements. To my knowledge, Disability Shetland could run a club entirely voluntarily, it'd just be very difficult to do so to the same standard as they currently achieve by employing experienced Leaders.

 

 

As for the invitation to "Google Thomas Hamilton", what was that about and, why do you think that it is relevant?

If you had followed MuckleJoannies advice and Googled Thomas Hamilton perhaps you would understand.

 

If you had read Colin's post fully perhaps you would have noticed that he knows who Thomas Hamilton is without Google's help. I'd agree with him in finding it a bizarre thing to bring up. Presumably the reference is to his days as a Scout leader, but while he was barred from the group I highly doubt that was a standalone catalyst for updates to child protection laws.

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If you had read Colin's post fully perhaps you would have noticed that he knows who Thomas Hamilton is without Google's help. I'd agree with him in finding it a bizarre thing to bring up. Presumably the reference is to his days as a Scout leader, but while he was barred from the group I highly doubt that was a standalone catalyst for updates to child protection laws.

I did read the post fully. I presume MJ is referring to the fact that in days gone by entirely inappropriate people were allowed to run youth clubs. Hence the reference to Thomas Hamilton is quite understandable.

 

There had been a number of complaints to police regarding Hamilton's behaviour towards the young boys who attended the youth clubs he directed.

I have not read all of Lord Cullens report from the inquiry into the massacre but I expect that it certainly did make a number of recommendations for updates to child protection laws.

 

The report also recommended changes in school security[13] and vetting of people working with children under 18.

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It seems Cullen's Report did recommend enhanced vetting procedures, but he was simply adding to dialogue that had come strongly before him, and that those measures were likely to be introduced anyway. But Hamilton is a peculiar case and it seems he did run a number of youth clubs even after complaints about his character. 

 

The problem is, if before his dismissal from the Scouts Hamilton hadn't acted wrongly around children, there's not much vetting you could do to prevent him being around children at that point. If his wrongdoings have happened for the first time while in the role of youth leader, a PVG check isn't going to make a blind bit of difference, and never will unless we someday predict the future. That's a risk that'll always be there whatever our security measures. Thankfully the new measures would flag up his earlier dismissal and prevent him from future youth work. 

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How match will Shetland disabled and elderly lose out if we let some Syrians come here? I feel sorry for them, but Shetlands money should just be for our own, its morally wrong anything else, that should be up to individuals if they want to spend their money differently. The Syrians that the uk is taking will trump any money anyone's sick elderly relation or disabled relation should be due. It's not right that our people lose out just so some people can feel good for helping some foreign people, it's morally wrong.

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Its a bit ironic to say the least, to see all these comments about disabled youg folk going without due to funding cuts, when you consider that Shetland is usually pretty high up the ranking table for donating to "bairns" charities, like Children in Need, the Carnival etc.

 

Is this another time where despite being willing to help other folk, when the time comes nobody is willing to step up to the plate and help us? Or worse, despite being willing to help strangers, we aren't willing to help our own? Maybe when reaching for their plastic in response to the latest high hype "appeal", folk would be better served to remember the old adage, "charity begins at home".

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How match will Shetland disabled and elderly lose out if we let some Syrians come here? I feel sorry for them, but Shetlands money should just be for our own, its morally wrong anything else, that should be up to individuals if they want to spend their money differently. The Syrians that the uk is taking will trump any money anyone's sick elderly relation or disabled relation should be due. It's not right that our people lose out just so some people can feel good for helping some foreign people, it's morally wrong.

What a load of tripe. Disability Shetland have run very successful fundraising appeals over the summer, despite people's generosity also extending to their many fellow humans displaced from their homes in war torn countries. I can only laugh at somebody preaching about what is morally wrong while speaking in such a hateful manner about people in some of the most desperate situations imaginable.

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