Pre-order ahead of 2nd December publication date

‘Deeper cultural and psychological forces have clearly been at work in Scottish society like an undertow, pulling against every surface political current. The genius of the Centre for Confidence and Well-being was to see that and to act on it.’

William Storrar

THE CENTRE for Confidence and Well-being was born in 2004 into a culture of optimism. These early years of the twenty-first century felt like an auspicious time for the foundation of such an organisation. The Scottish Parliament had been ‘reconvened’ in 1999 after nearly 300 years and this was also the time when confidence and personal development issues were part of the zeitgeist, even in Scotland – a place that had not traditionally been influenced by such ideas. The Centre was ideally placed to become a focus for anyone who wanted to see substantial cultural, personal and organisational change.

A Time of Hope covers twenty years in the work of the Centre. Its achievements recounted in these pages are significant – in education, training, health and the development of ideas and lateral thinking over many topics in both public and private sectors. The book particularly focuses on the way Scotland’s punitive culture has traditionally mistreated children.

Having spent these decades as a leader and practitioner in organisational, group and personal training and having worked with countless thousands of Scots expressing their innermost views, Carol Craig writes engagingly with knowledge and originality. She is well placed in a final section to reflect and analyse what makes Scots and Scotland tick at every level, historical, social, personal and political.

Carol Craig founded the Centre for Confidence and Well-being in 2004 and has been its Chief Executive for the past twenty years. Prior to this she was a personal development trainer and worked for BBC Scotland as a tv current affairs researcher and education officer. She has a BA in politics from the University of Strathclyde and a PhD from the University of Edinburgh. This is her sixth book. She has two sons and four grandchildren and lives outside Glasgow.