CORONAVIRUS UPDATE 1st April 2021

Firstly, my apologies for not sending out an update last Friday. This was due to an IT issue which was not resolved until Tuesday 30th March.

Covid test kit supply issues

There have been issues with supply of the test kits to businesses who registered with the Scottish Government, we have been raising this weekly with Food Standards Scotland.

We have received the response below from the Scottish Government: –
“We are aware that companies have been facing many issues once we pass them on to be registered on UK Government systems. We have been highlighting and escalating these to our UK Government contacts as they come in. Thanks to companies reporting issues, those relating to receiving order registration details and confirmations for ordering test kits have been linked to a general issue with the UK Government systems which we have now been assured is resolved. We sent an email out to all businesses that might have been impacted by this ordering issue at the start of the week asking them to report to us if they had not received confirmation etc and have been following up on these as they come in. We have also been provided with a new contact at the Department of Health and Social Care and we met with him yesterday to further highlight the issues that companies have been having.
These steps will hopefully have some positive impact on businesses joining the testing programme. However, I am aware that in general the time taken to receive responses to issues from the DHSC technical teams can be considerable (around 4-5 working days) and sometimes the response provided is not satisfactory. We will continue to raise these issues with our UK Government contacts to push for improvements however I am aware that to a certain extent these issues are being caused by the sheer volume of requests being received by the technical teams in question and that companies in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are also encountering the same issues.”
We will continue to highlight issues and push for whatever improvements we can and more than happy to discuss further if helpful. For any businesses on the scheme and facing issues or interested in more information I would advise that they get in touch via [email protected] and we will be happy to assist in whatever way that we can.

Apprentices Digital Product Evaluation
(entries close Tomorrow, Friday 2nd April)

Is your apprentice up for the challenge of producing an innovative new product?
The Butchers Battles (The Apprentices Clash) is open for entries until the 1st of April 2021.

There is no charge for entry and the prize for the winning entries in each category is £250.

There are 2 ways to enter, either create a short video of how to make the product, including cooking advice OR prepare a step by step guide using photographs.

An example of how to put the step by step guide together is in the entry form previously issued and also available on the members only website!.

A good example of a video is on the Scottish Craft Butchers website below:-

https://craftbutchers.co.uk/story.php?t=Butchers_Battles_(Trainee_Edition)&ID=2662

Route out of Lockdown produced

It is expected that non-essential travel across mainland Scotland will be possible from 26 April. The hope is that travel across the Scottish-English border will also be possible soon after that date, a crucial element to the tourism season in Scotland.
On international travel, it is clear that this is at the heart of the 'trade-offs' in opening up the economy and society in Scotland. It is feasible that, come Autumn, life in Scotland could be close to normal, subject to the vaccine rollout continuing its incredible run and no third wave or problematic new variants emerging.
However, the signals are that the price of this will be tight borders when it comes to international travel for at least the rest of the calendar year. There is more detailed guidance due to be published soon on the amended levels system that will restart from 26 April. There is also a decision to take about whether the islands join the same level as the mainland after 26 April.

Key upcoming dates
April 5
Stay at home restrictions will be lifted
Final phase of the return to school

• Communal worship can resume
Six people from two households can meet together outdoors

• Extension of 'essential' retail and click and collect can reopen

From 26 April:
• Outdoor hospitality open, with alcohol, until 10pm (groups of 6 people from 3 households)
• Indoor hospitality open, without alcohol, until 8pm (groups of 4 people from 2 households)
• Tourist accommodation to re-open (self-catering accommodation restricted in line with rules on indoor gathering)
• Travel restrictions within Scotland lifted (no change to international travel rules, that is subject to further discussions)
• Weddings and funerals for up to 50, but without alcohol
• 6 people from up to 3 households can gather outdoors (12-17 year olds can meet 6 from 6)
• Remaining shops can re-open and mobile close contact services can resume
• Gyms, libraries, museums, galleries and swimming pools can re-open for individual exercise
• Still no meeting in other people's houses

From 17 May:
• Indoor hospitality can open, with alcohol, until 10.30pm (4 people from 2 households). Probably restricted to two hour booking slots
• Small-scale indoor and outdoor events can resume (number limits to be decided)
• Cinemas re-open subject to capacity constraints
• Adult contact sport returns, more students back at college/university for blended learning

Meat Managers Hygiene and HACCP Course

It is a legal requirement to make sure that our businesses have an operational and auditable food safety management system in place.
We have traditionally held our Meat Managers Hygiene and HACCP courses in one location on one day. These have been held throughout the country and have proven very popular and useful in the development of individuals within the business who are required to take responsibility for the implementation of the HACCP system.
The courses have been delivered by Verner Wheelock.
Paul Bache has presented these courses for many years on behalf of Scottish Craft Butchers and the certificates issued are recognised by the local authority environmental health officers.
Due to the current restrictions, we cannot hold face to face courses.
Therefore, we have decided to offer the course online during video meetings in April and May
The dates we have arranged for the course are:-

Each delegate must complete all 3×3 hour sessions. There is a maximum of 7 delegates per course. The cost is £250 per delegate.

COURSE 1- 19/20/21st April 2021 3pm to 6pm each day. (3 x 3hour sessions) FULL UP!!
COURSE 2- 26/27/28th April 2021 3pm to 6pm each day. ” ONLY 4 SPACES LEFT!
COURSE 3- 10/11/12th May 2021 3pm to 6pm each day. ” ONLY 3 SPACES LEFT!

The format will be 3 x afternoons (3 hours each session) on a Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with a maximum of 7 places. Each candidate will have to attend all 3 sessions!
If you would like to find out more or register yourself or someone in your business on the course, please contact Claire on 01738 637785 or e-mail [email protected]

New National Minimum Wage Rates.

Rates from 1 April 2021
These rates are for the National Living Wage (for those aged 23 and over) and the National Minimum Wage (for those of at least school leaving age) from 1 April 2021.
23 and over 21 to 22 18 to 20 Under 18 Apprentice
April 2021 (new rate) £8.91 £8.36 £6.56 £4.62 £4.30
Previous rates
The following rates were for the National Living Wage (for those aged 25 and over) and the National Minimum Wage (for those of at least school leaving age) from April 2016.
25 and over 21 to 24 18 to 20 Under 18 Apprentice
April 2019 to March 2020 £8.21 £7.70 £6.15 £4.35 £3.90

The Scottish Craft Butchers office in Perth is now closed following government guidelines.
We will be available to our members to answer any queries via email or by mobile phone and will be available out of office hours for any members wanting to contact us.
Our contact details are below

Gordon King: [email protected] 07917524313
Bruce McCall: [email protected] 07834490922