News
Celebrating Long Service
63 colleagues with an incredible 1400 collective years of continuous service attended a special celebration to recognise their contributions to our council and East Lothian's communities.
The Long Service Awards saw colleagues from a wide range of services come together at the Corn Exchange, Haddington, to reminisce on their careers and the changes they have witnessed.
Chief Executive Laurence Rockey and East Lothian Provost John McMillan welcomed attendees and also presented everyone with a certificate to
mark 20, 30 or 40 years of service.
"Quiet warriors making a difference"
Speaking at the event, Laurence reflected on the value of public service, describing it as “an army of quiet warriors making a difference to people’s lives. Not seeking acclaim or the spotlight but doing your bit to make your county, your country and your world a little bit better.
“From early years services to burials, what we do affects everyone in East Lothian at some point in their lives,” he said. “It’s an amazing job and one that the public don’t always see. Today has really shown how much we all come to work with a sense of making a difference and I encourage you all to hold on to that as I do. Your collective service is an incredible achievement.”
Sharing memories across the decades 
Colleagues were invited to share their reflections across the decades from their personal and professional lives as well as world events.
Memories ranged from the introduction of computers into the organisation and, later, whiteboards in classrooms, to the impacts of covid on wedding services.
New services were introduced along with new buildings – George Johnston Centre and John Gray Centre opening in 2012 and 2014 respectively – changes to roles, workplaces and practices were mentioned alongside happy occasions such as first jobs, new homes, weddings, children being born and sporting successes!
"Utmost admiration"
Closing the celebration, Councillor McMillan highlighted attendees’ roles in bringing our council values of Enabling, Leading and Caring to life, saying: “Many of you take the lead quietly, making that difference, caring for customers, our villages and towns, young people and old people. You deserve the utmost admiration and respect and we are all grateful for your professionalism, care and, above all, decades long commitment to making a difference in East Lothian. Thank you.”
20 years service
30 years service
40 years service
If you'd like a copy of one of the group photos, please email inform@eastlothian.gov.uk
Congratulations to all Long Service Award recipients.
Blindwells Primary School marks 100 pupil days with community celebration
Blindwells Primary School has marked its first major milestone since opening in August, celebrating 100 pupil days with a vibrant, community‑centred event that brought together learners, families, partners and local organisations.
Kindness, respect, and celebration
The day opened with a Bike Breakfast, delivered in partnership with the Outdoor Learning Team and Cycle Scotland. Families gathered for a healthy breakfast while pupils’ bikes received safety checks - an activity that set the tone for a day rooted in wellbeing, connection and active learning. From Early Learning and Childcare to Primary 7, pupils demonstrated the school’s core values of kindness, respect and celebration as they welcomed visitors and took part in activities.
A wide range of community partners joined the festivities. Local Firefighters and Community Police Officers offered pupils an insight into their roles and responsibilities, sparking conversations about safety and citizenship. I&H Brown provided an opportunity for children to explore the site vehicles involved in building the Blindwells development, linking learning to the evolving local landscape.
Activity and creativity
Physical activity and creativity were integrated throughout the day. Pupils took part in dance workshops with Sarah Huguet from HB Arts, tried martial arts, developed teamwork and motor skills with Active Schools and enjoyed their first rugby taster session with Preston Lodge RFC.
The Pennypit Family and Learning Centre added additional fun and surprises with alpacas, a disco, party games and prizes - a highlight for many pupils. And, as with any good celebration, a special cake brought everyone together.
Strong sense of community
Since opening, Blindwells Primary has welcomed children from more than 19 different schools and numerous nurseries. The school’s vision - to be a place where everyone belongs, every voice matters and every moment counts - was clearly reflected throughout the day. Pupils engaged confidently with visitors, asked thoughtful questions and embraced new experiences, from learning how to join the emergency services to discovering how to care for alpacas.
Feedback from the day captured the enthusiasm and pride felt across the school community. Pupils shared comments such as:
“This has been the best day at Blindwells!”
“I love Blindwells!”
“We are a great big team – how lucky are we!”
Visitors praised the children’s respect, confidence and curiosity, while staff reflected on the joy of seeing learners so animated and engaged:
“It was wonderful to see how animated and engaged our learners were throughout the day in the range of activities.”
“There was something for everyone.”
“Children felt included and supported to be involved.”
Headteacher, Gemma-Rose Lansdown said: "The celebration not only marked 100 pupil days but also highlighted the strong sense of community already forming around Blindwells Primary. With such a positive start, we look forward to many more milestones as we continue to grow at the heart of this new and developing community."
Support for colleagues living with domestic abuse and gender-based violence
A package of support has been agreed for colleagues experiencing domestic abuse and gender-based violence.
Our Domestic Abuse and Gender-Based Violence Policy was approved at a Cabinet meeting last month. It includes:
- paid time-off work to support people living with these issues to attend appointments to access housing, solicitor and legal support, counselling and to work with agencies offering professional help
- practical measures such as access to offices and other safe spaces and discrete ways to alert colleagues to domestic abuse
- awareness-raising and guidance for employees and managers to spot signs and respond appropriately
- a commitment to provide support to perpetrators who wish to address their behaviours through official programmes
It applies to all employees regardless of gender.
The updated policy has been developed to create a supportive working environment that allows all council employees to feel safe at work and when seeking help. It was created in consultation with staff and trade unions and in line with the Scottish Government’s Equally Safe Strategy and delivery plan to prevent and end violence against women and girls.
More information
Saving for the future: Shared cost AVCs
We are partnered with My Money Matters to offer staff the opportunity to give up some of their gross salary (before tax) to invest in additional voluntary pension contributions. Shared Cost Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVC) are a tax-efficient way to save for your retirement. Shared Cost AVCs allow you to save National Insurance Contributions in addition to Income Tax on the contributions you pay. They provide an opportunity to supplement your Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) and build up an additional retirement fund. You could take this as a tax-free lump sum, or it can be used to help you retire early.
You can take advantage of your this tax-efficient employee benefit today by applying for a Shared Cost AVC scheme here. Registration can be completed using your work or alternatively your personal email address. If you want more information about how the scheme works there is lots of helpful information and webinars available on the My Money Matters website.
If you’ve already got a Shared Cost AVC plan, the run-up to the end of the tax year is a great time to review your contributions and make sure you’re making the most of your allowances. You can manage your contributions here.
My Money Matters is also hosting exclusive webinars in the run-up to the tax year’s end, to help you prepare for the end of the tax year, make the most of this year’s allowance, and do more for your future.
To book:
Wednesday 4 February 2026 2:30pm to 3:15pm
Friday 13 February 2026 10:30am to 11:15am
Key change from April 2029:
Act early to make the most of National Insurance savings. Beginning 6 April 2029, the UK government will introduce a £2,000 annual cap on the amount of salary‑sacrificed pension contributions that are exempt from National Insurance.
What employees say:
“My independent financial adviser recommended making additional pension contributions through my employer as the most effective way to enhance my retirement savings while retaining the option of taking a tax‑free lump sum.”
“The Shared Cost AVC scheme is highly flexible, allowing me to increase or reduce contributions as needed, depending on my circumstances. By using salary sacrifice, my pension contributions cost me less than the amount I put in.”
“I’ve been very satisfied with the service, the simplicity of setting everything up, and the reassurance that I’m taking positive steps to plan for my future.”
“I contribute £83.33 a month but it only costs me £60 due to the tax and NI savings.”
“It was easy to set up my AVCs through My Money Matters website. I’m in the last few years of working before I retire so want to maximise my pension fund. The Shared Cost AVC scheme is a tax efficient way for me to do this. It is also very easy for me to update my plan online.”
Welcome to the council
Welcome to the council induction sessions are run for new employees to meet senior management, learn more about our organisation and our plans for the future.
On 22 January Lesley Brown (Depute Chief Executive - Children and Communities) and Councillor Shamin Akhtar (Depute Leader of the Council) met with colleagues representing a wide variety of services in Haddington's Corn Exchange and responded to excellent, thought-provoking questions. Earlier in the session Chief Executive, Laurence Rockey shared his thoughts on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing our organisation.
The next session is on Thursday 14 May 2026 at John Muir House, available to book on learnPro by using the apply for events button at the bottom of your learnPro homepage. A great opportunity for new employees to learn more about our council and ask questions.
Automatic deletion of Objective Connect files on 27 February: what you need to know
Objective Connect files and folders that have not been accessed in over six months will be automatically deleted on 27 February unless workspace owners download them ahead of time.
The move is to maintain information security and reduce the number of connections on the system, which is costly to maintain, ahead of our license renewal in April.
About Objective Connect
Objective Connect is a secure and efficient way to work with external organisations on projects, making it easy to share content outside our organisation with a secure, private area, known as a workspace.
It is intended for short-term secure file transfers between our organisation and third parties, it must not be used as a permanent file store.
To maintain security, reduce storage costs, and ensure our shared workspaces remain up to date, IT services will be performing a clean-up of all outdated content.
Any files stored in Objective Connect that have not been accessed in six months or more will be permanently removed.
Action required:
- if you have files that you still need, please ensure you download them before the scheduled clean-up takes place on 27 February
- review your Objective Connect workspaces regularly and remove any material that is no longer needed. This helps us maintain compliance and ensures only current, relevant information is retained. You can also schedule a workspace closure at any time to automate this process for you. A full guide to Objective Connect can be found on the Intranet (IT Service Desk homepage)
- If you have files that are being shared internally, SharePoint or OneDrive is a great alternative, information and guidance is available here: https://eastlothiangovuk.sharepoint.com/sites/M365
More information
If you have any questions or need help, please contact our IT Service Desk.
Extra sign-up window for garden waste collection permits
An extra sign-up window for the 2025/26 garden waste collection service opened on Monday, 2 February.
Permit applications can be made using a myeastlothian account on our council’s website until the window closes at 4pm on Monday, 16 February.
This opportunity has been created to allow anyone who didn’t sign up during last year’s window - which operated from 12 May until 4 July - to join the current service.
Those signing up will benefit from fortnightly collections operating until 28 August 2026 at a cost of £35 for a permit.
They will have to sign up again for the 2026/27 service when the standard window opens in May for all residents, including paying for a new permit.
Permit stickers will be delivered to households signing up during the February window showing the address and permit number for the registered property. Collection crews will only empty brown bins with a valid sticker clearly displayed and they will check the sticker details match the address. There is a strict limit of one brown bin per household.
Residents will also receive a calendar with the permit pack displaying the day and week of their bin collection.
Visit our website for more information.
Vivup: Employee benefits
Did you know you that as well as getting access to 24/7 confidential support, advice and counselling services, you can also access a range of lifestyle savings and all of our employee benefits schemes through the Vivup portal?
Registering is simple - you can sign up using either your council email address or your personal email address - register or sign in here or scan the QR code below:
Register before 31 March for the chance to win a £100 gift card, and sign in today to explore the Vivup portal and discover the full range of savings and employee benefits available to all staff, including your Employee Assistance Programme (Your Care Wellbeing), all in one place.
Employee Consultation: Time off for trade unions duties and activities policy
Employees are invited to review and feedback on the council’s draft Time off for trade unions duties and activities policy. The consultation opened on Wednesday 21 January, and is available online here. The consultation will close on Friday 13 February 2026 and all feedback is welcomed.
Time off for trade unions duties and activities policy consultation