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Having acted as Interim Chief Officer of the ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute Health and Social Care Partnership since May 2021, Fiona Davies has now been appointed as the permanent HSCP Chief Officer. Here Pippa chats with Fiona about her career, her priorities as Chief Officer going forward, and the HSCP budget consultation.

Free period products such as tampons, pads and reusable products will soon be more widely available for anyone in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute who needs them.  In this week’s podcast, Pippa speaks with Amy Bruce about the Free Period Products initiative, the survey which was open for comments until 4th March 2022, and how Amy came to be the Period Products Project Lead for ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute.

To celebrate Scottish Apprenticeship Week (7th – 11th March), Pippa chats with five of our current/former modern apprentices – Cameron Allen, Cameron Bonnar, Cameron McCallum, Tom McLaughlin and Mitchell Robertson – about their experiences of working and learning with the Council. Also participating in the conversation are Rebecca Guy and Fiona McBride, who speak about the different avenues through which young people can access apprenticeship programmes, and Bob Miller who describes the benefits of supervising apprentices.

In this week’s podcast Pippa chats with Mary Louise Howat, one of our Senior Development Officers in the Development and Economic Growth team, about some exciting ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute projects that have recently been successful in receiving UK Community Renewal funding, part of the UK Government’s levelling up agenda. Listen out for the guest appearance of Mary Louise’s dog Heidi!

Events such as what we have experienced with Covid over the past two years, and now the war in Ukraine, can cause a lot of anxiety and take their toll on our mental wellbeing.  Pippa speaks with Dr Anne Grieg and Chulainn Ledsom from our Educational Psychology Service (EPS) about mental health support in our schools and how to talk to children and young people about war and world events.  You can also find some useful resources on the Council Website and on the .

Are you worried about the rising cost of living and how you are going to pay your bills?  Listen here to Pippa in conversation with people and organisations that are there to help.  We have Fergus Walker from the Council’s Revenues and Benefits team, Dr Lynda Mitchell from , Jen Broadhurst from , Julie Semple from and Mary McGinley from .  More information about help with rising costs can also be found here on the Council's Website.

Have you ever wondered what a Lord-Lieutenant is and does?  Here, Pippa has the pleasure of speaking with Jane Macleod about her role as the current Lord-Lieutenant of ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute, the Honours system and celebrations for the Queens Platinum Jubilee.  You can also find out more about the Lieutenancy of ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute at the - @lord_lieutenant_argyllandbute.

As you are probably well aware by now the elections took place this week, which will see our new elected members in place. Our teams have been busy with staffing the polling stations and counting votes. For many people, an election is just about turning up at the polling station on Election Day to cast a vote, or marking a ballot paper to put in the post. Back in March, Pippa spoke with members of the Council’s elections team – Tricia O’Neill, Sandra Campbell and Melissa Stewart – about just how much work goes into organising elections in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute, with its 23 inhabited islands, and the logistics of bringing all the votes to a central location for counting, while ensuring that all legal requirements and timescales are met.

Following on from the recent podcast offering advice for people struggling with the rising cost of living, in this week’s podcast Pippa speaks with Jackie Westerman, the Council’s Home Energy Efficiency Project Officer, and Brian Barker from Home Energy Scotland, about what households can do to reduce energy costs and improve energy efficiency. There is also information about renewable energy sources for homes and what financial assistance is currently available. For more information, please also see the Council’s home energy efficiency webpage or visit the website.  You can also call the Home Energy Scotland helpline on 0808 808 2282.

The holiday season is well underway again in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute and this year we are even more prepared than ever before for our visitors.  Here Pippa catches up with the Council’s tourism officer Zalina Dzhatieva and staycation officer Nathan Gallogley, along with the GRAB Trust’s Christina Saunders, about the facilities in place for visitors and how you can find all the information you need for a great holiday in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute on our website.  Hear also about the experiences of staycation wardens from our own Graeme MacPherson.