We know it’s nice to have a day out now and then, or do something a little different. Be it alone, or with family and friends, there are many things on around Scotland all year round. We’ve collected some of the most recent events and days out below to help you decide what to do with your spare time:

The Trimontium Museum, located in the heart of Melrose in the Scottish Borders, explores the story of Roman and Iron Age Scotland, a truly turbulent time in Scottish history. Awarded as a 5-star visitor attraction by Visit Scotland, Trimontium Museum displays one of the largest collections of Roman military artefacts in Britain, together with stunning immersive interactives that help bring the story to life.

The site oft he fort, which predates Hadrian’s Wall lies close to the nearby village of Newstead and is one of the largest Roman forts in Scotland, lying at the very edge of the Roman Empire. ‘Trimontium’ was the name given to the site by the Romans themselves, meaning ‘place of the three hills’, referring to the iconic Eildon Hills, a notable landmark of the central Scottish Borders. This group of hills was home to a large Iron Age native hillfort, high up on the slopes, overlooking Trimontium.

Previously lost in the mists of time, the fort of Trimontium was excavated between 1905 and 1910 by local solicitor, antiquarian and amateur archaeologist Dr. James Curle. Over 100 pits and wells were discovered containing a wealth of Roman material, including domestic items, cavalry and military equipment. Curle wrote a detailed and beautifully illustrated report, A Roman Frontier Post and its People’, first published in 1911, summarising his fantastic finds – and theorising why the fort had been abandoned by the Romans at least twice during its existence. Over the following decades, additional investigations and archaeological digs have taken place at the site, revealing further hidden secrets and adding new details to Trimontium’s story.

In 1989, a museum was established by the Trust to tell the story of Trimontium and bring its history to life.  In recent years, the museum has undergone a major refurbishment – thanks to support from the National Heritage Lottery Fund, South of Scotland Enterprise Partnership, National Museums of Scotland, LIVE Borders, Scottish Borders Council and Museum & Galleries Scotland, the new Trimontium Museum opened at the Ormiston building in Melrose, in August 2021, with a greatly expanded gallery and collection, featuring items from the Newstead/Trimontium collection from the National Museums Scotland, as well as artefacts on loan from private collections. An official opening event took place in 2022 with the Duke of Gloucester, patron of the Trust, in attendance. In the Spring of this year an extension to the museum was completed, which is dedicated to education, research, community archaeology and digital technologies.

With one of the finest displays of Roman military objects in Britain, a beautiful shop, guided walks to the fort site, children’s activities, a series of talks, workshops and a myriad of community and outreach events, Trimontium has something for everyone.  

Come and see for yourself and learn more about life at the very edge of the Empire. The museum is fully accessible and dog friendly.

Shambellie House

Shambellie is a Scottish Baronial style house built for the Stewart family in the 19th century.  It is now a creative centre for arts, heritage and wellbeing courses and activities.  Set in the historic village of New Abbey, Dumfries, the home of Sweetheart Abbey and New Abbey Corn Mill, it has panoramic views across to the Solway coast and the magnificent hill of Criffel. 

At Shambellie House we offer workshops and courses delivered by experienced tutors eager to share their knowledge and skills.  All courses benefit from the wonderful location and Shambellie’s retreat-like nature, with stunning views, glorious grounds and an abundance of flora and fauna which can’t fail to inspire.  You can unleash your creative potential with courses in art, textiles, photography, writing and storytelling, or relax with some yoga, meditation or pilates.  The workshops run year-round and new subjects are being added all the time.  There is also an exciting programme of tours, trails, talks, concerts, exhibitions and family friendly workshops and events to inspire you.  Set in ancient woodland, Shambellie has some great walks and trails to help you observe its rich ecosystem with many of the activities on offer making use of both the beautiful indoor, and the fabulous outdoor spaces. 

So, whether you want to learn how to make your mark in drawing, try your hand at playing the harp, be creative with animation, paint, sew, write, there is something for everyone at Shambellie House.

For details of our programmes visit shambelliehouse.org

Business Scotland:

From the energy sector all the way through to healthcare providers Scotland is open for business!

With farming and agriculture driving the economy in rural areas and the ever-expanding renewables sector fast approaching the size of the oil and gas industry, the nation is in very good health indeed. Here we look at and focus on the businesses driving the Scottish economy forward into the future.

Your 2020/21 tax return and Covid Grants – a warning for the self-employed

With HMRC beginning to send out Tax Return requests for 2020/21 you need to be aware of how any grant monies you may have received impacts on your tax bill.

This particularly applies to those of you who are self-employed or in a partnership.

Your business profits are taxed in the year in which your year end falls.

For example, if your year end is 31 May 2020 then those profits are taxed in 2020/21 (because it lands between 6 April 20 and 5 April 2021)

What you may not realise is that not only are the May 20 profits taxed but HMRC have stipulated that you must also include any SEISS grants you may have received up to 5 April 2021 even though most of the grant monies will be included in your May 21 results.

It could mean that May 20 was for the most part a normal year (apart from April and May) and that this year your profits are much lower because of lockdown going on for much of the year.

But if you have to add in to your May 20 profits the SEISS (Self Employed Income Support) grant monies it could possibly put you into the Higher Rate tax bracket when you are not normally in that position.

Then when you submit your May 21 results for 2021/22 and you take out this year’s SEISS monies (even HMRC don’t tax you twice) you have little or no profit left and therefore a much smaller tax bill – if any.

There are two new boxes on returns this year just to record SEISS grants. One to record grant monies received correctly and the other for incorrect claims. You need to exclude your SEISS monies from your accounts schedules and show them instead in the relevant SEISS box.

With one hand the taxman gives and with the other…..

Are you working on your business or in it?

Mention the words Human Resources and you get a variety of reactions.   But most business owners have the same need – they should be working on their business, not in it.    This is where Kea HR Partnerships adds so much benefit, its all about focusing on building solid business plans and relationships by applying pragmatic commercial expertise. 

SME’s who don’t warrant a full time HR resource

I designed my business to fill a gap in the market, all those SME’s who don’t warrant a full time HR resource and businesses who don’t have access to an HR expert.  And I love what I do! 

The minute you start employing people, there’s the requirement to adhere to all sorts of legislation and Acts.    Get it wrong and it can cost you in terms of reputation, customers and ultimately your bottom line takes the hit.

Throw Covid-19 and Brexit into the mix and you know only too well what an absolute minefield running your business can be.  That dream of your own engineering, freight or home fragrance business can suddenly seem a far cry from what you initially envisaged.

Kea HR Partnerships provides realistic solutions tailored specifically for your business

Whether you’re a small business that’s just starting to grow or, an established one, working with me can free you up to do what you do best.  I take the pressure off you by:

•             Placing the right people in the right jobs

•             Providing Strategic & Operational people solutions

•             Providing a common sense approach to performance challenges

•             Enhancing and building the leadership skills of your team

•             Helping you define and grow a healthy, high performing culture – a place where people want to be and thrive in their jobs

It’s people who will ultimately drive a thriving business or, cause it to stagnate.

I bring a fresh approach to your unique HR needs and together, we can achieve your business goals. Every business is different because people are different.  And it’s people who will ultimately drive a thriving business or, cause it to stagnate.

By working with you one on one, to identify your critical success factors, we can unleash your team’s potential and create a dynamism which is unique to your business.  I make HR work for your business. 

My sole purpose is to add value to your business by delivering to an agreed outcome.  And this generally means rolling my sleeves up and getting stuck in.

Together we will explore your business goals and tease out the fishhooks. By taking a systematic approach to identified challenges, I help you build a solid bedrock on which to foster the power of your team’s potential.

From fresh threads to some rather quirky accessories, take a look below to see if you can find the right thing to cure your retail woes:

Be it a shopping centre or boutique retailer we have you covered, Scotland is a hotbed of different fashions and styles and this is reflected in its high street and even side streets. To assume there is a singular style synonymous to the country would be selling it short, along with contemporary retailers there are a myriad of traditional tweed and tartan designers selling there styles up and down the nation.

Luckily in Scotland if you love art or are a collector of anything antique you are well catered for. With a selection of fantastic galleries including the National Galleries of Scotland (Edinburgh) to view art there are also literally 100s of dealers from Dumfries all the way to Inverness.

Out with the old, in with the holiday

You’re bound to have heard the name Vintage Cash Cow somewhere on the grapevine, whether on TV, radio or Facebook. They’ve become an internet sensation, but unlike most fads, this one isn’t going away. Keep reading to learn how and why they’ve become the nation’s favourite way to declutter – or, if you ask their customer, Maureen, she can give you seven hundred and forty reasons.

Vintage Cash Cow sprang into action in 2015 as a team of five independent experts. Led by co-founder Antony Charman, a prolific antique dealer, they sought to pay people a fair price for their unloved items, so their customers could spend their money on the things that truly matter.

Today, the company proudly occupies a 39,000-square-foot, purpose-designed facility in Leeds, West Yorkshire, with an ever-evolving team of 170+ people. Together, they value thousands of antiques daily, including jewellery, cameras, binoculars, militaria, coins, vintage toys and games, fountain pens and sunglasses.

Fancy cashing in your unloved items?

To get started…

·         Visit VintageCashCow.co.uk/go/scottish to get your free and insured postage labels.

·         Find a sturdy box and fill it with your unloved antiques in any condition.

·         Take your box to a local Post Office or request a free home collection.

·         Wait for your no-obligation offer. They’ll call you within three working days of receiving your box; you can accept the offer and receive a cheque or bank transfer; decline the money, and have your items returned for free; or ponder your offer for up to 28 days.

Discover what their customers think…

Very polite and professional

“The young man I spoke to on the telephone was very helpful, explained everything clearly and was very polite and professional. I received my cheque two days after, which was great, and I am very pleased with the amount offered, which will go towards my cat’s veterinary bill.”

Lou Lou

An incredibly efficient, friendly, fast service

“I used it to clear out various items from my deceased parents’ house and was very pleased with the explanation about how some items would be re-purposed, and others sold. Very happy with my offer – it would have taken me ages to sell/recycle the items individually and may or may not have achieved the same amounts on eBay etc.”

Fiona

I couldn’t be happier!

“I had loads of old things up in my loft that I’d been thinking about getting rid of. Then I heard of Cash Cow on the radio, saying they accepted things in bulk, and the rest is history. Three days later, I received a phone call with an amazing offer – £740! So, I’ve put that towards a two-week holiday in Barcelona, a pottery course, and a pottery wheel!”

Maureen

A new way to sell your old things

Join Janice and over 100,000 happy customers who’ve decluttered their homes with Vintage Cash Cow.

“For years I had a box of costume jewellery, old watches I never wore, a camera I never used and old toys taking up space in a cupboard…. I was so happy to get the offer and it was in my bank within days. Brilliant!”

Janice

Selling your valuables couldn’t be easier. No fuss, no fees.

✅ Fill any box with your unwanted valuables

✅ Post for free or arrange a home collection

✅ Receive your cash offer within 3 days

But first, request your free postage pack at vintagecashcow.co.uk

To get your declutter started, receive an extra £20 on your offer when you sign up with code SCOTTISH.

Box it, send it, sell it.