20/03/2012 – The NEN – North Edinburgh News

Getting Connected …

With unemployment figues continuing to climb, Ann Confrey reports on a local initiative:

Part of Four Square, a voluntary [sector] organisation that provides accommodation, services and support to homeless people and other vulnerable groups in Edinburgh and the Lothians, CONNECTED is an employability service helping unemployed people and vulnerable individuals to overcome barriers, develop their confidence and skills and look for and find work.

They have a broad client base and work throughout Edinburgh with unemployed people who have multiple barriers to employment. This includes people with low levels of confidence and skills and/or a background of homelessness, substance misuse, health issues or offending. Referrals come to CONNECTED through self referral or referral from front line health, homelessness and social care services, Jobcentre Plus, Skills Development Scotland, social work and criminal justice services and other employment intermediaries. Four Square also runs a range of accommodation services for homeless young people and some of the clients come through the hostels.

CONNECTED has a range of services to suit the individual.

Amy Butler runs the courses;

Jumpstart: a young person’s work preparation course which runs for 13 weeks. It is for young people aged 16-30 who lack confidence or skills or have limited or no previous experience of work. The programme combines accredited core competencies and skills training with a structured voluntary work placement and practical team project of community benefit.

Personal Effectiveness and Career Planning: this is for clients of any age over 16 and is particularly aimed at those who have low confidence, who have been out of work for a long time or never worked at all. The course helps to increase confidence and assertiveness and help clients work out what they want to do next.

Gwen Rowland can meet people on a one to one basis to offer support with job search, college applications creating or updating CV’s, and helps clients access funding such as Individual Learning Accounts (ILA). Gwen also runs the CONNECTED work club at Leith Community Centre every Wednesday between 1pm – 4.30pm. Gwen also runs outreach surgeries around North Edinburgh so if you can’t make it to our offices you can contact her to see where else you can see her.

CONNECTED operates jointly with EFI Superstore re-use furniture business, as Four Square Social Enterprise. It provides a broad range of skills, training opportunities and practical work and volunteer placements in a range of roles. EFI Superstore is a huge warehouse full of amazing furniture and sells the goods in the warehouse store to the general public and offers EFI Assist 25% discount cards for people on benefits or low income. EFI does free uplifts of furniture suitable for re-use.

CONNECTED provides skills training and support to all of the people on work and volunteer placements within the superstore.

JP Case Study

JP met Kirsten from Connected at the Get On drop in at Leith Community Centre. Kirsten noticed that JP was incredibly nervous and anxious. JP commented that “after a lot of shaking Kirsten managed to calm me down and advised me that she worked for Connected and was here to help me”.

Kirsten referred JP to Connected’s Developing Personal Power and Effectiveness course and on the first day of the course JP again was very nervous “I will admit I was terrified, all I wanted to do was run. I walked around the building not knowing where I was going then I found the room where Michelle was. She saw I was very distressed and calmed me down enough to take a seat. That first day I shook, felt like crying but I stayed as I knew I had to do it, I had to get back to my old self and after that first day was over I felt OK.”

JP worked through the course working on her confidence, self esteem and motivation and with every session JP demonstrated improvement in these areas. The other members of the group supported her and the course content helped her come out of her shell. Towards the end she had become an effective member of the group and contributed greatly to the course and helped support others.

When the course finished JP continued to meet with Michelle on a one-to-one basis where JP indicated that although she had moved on a lot she would still find it hard and be very anxious to go into a new group of people. However JP’s aim was to move back into employment and particularly into Admin work (which she had done before.) A part time voluntary position was available at EFI Superstore, (who share the same office as Connected) which LL successfully applied for. This meant that she could continue to make progress with her development but not have to suffer the anxiety of an entirely new group as Michelle and other familiar faces from Connected would be right there in the office.

JP began volunteering 2 days a week and quickly found her feet. Matt, the project manager, was very impressed with her work and she soon became an asset to the team. JP volunteered with EFI Superstore for 5 weeks and made such an impact that she was offered a part time paid post. JP now works 3 days a week with extra work at the weekends.

JP states “I feel I have learnt more here with Connected in three months and moved further along my route back to work than over a year spent with other services”

Michelle comments “the difference between the woman I met on the first day and the one I now see practically running the office is incredible. She has come on such a long way and hopefully has further to go. It is fantastic to see someone develop themselves with our help. It was down to her own hard work and commitment that she is where she is today.”

Contacts: Gwen Rowland: 0131 557 7912

Amy Butler: 0131 557 7913

www.foursquare.org.uk

Ann Confrey

Twenty's plenty for Drylaw residents

Easter Drylaw Residents Association is stepping up their campaign for safer streets by calling for drivers to be more aware of speed limits in the area. The group is concerned that inconsiderate motorists are ignoring 20mph speed limits in an area with a high population of older people and schoolchildren.

EDRA chair Eileen Brash said: “A number of our members have reported cars speeding on Easter Drylaw Drive – that’s a particular concern as there are often cars parked on both sides of the street and visibility can be restricted. There are similar problems across other parts of Drylaw too – some drivers either don’t see or just ignore the 20mph signs. We will be working with police and the council to see what we can do to tackle this issue before there is a serious accident”.

Twenty’s plenty for Drylaw residents

Centipede Project's got legs!

Around 25 people attended the initial meeting of the Muirhouse Centipede project in Muirhouse St Andrew’s church hall last week, and participants have come up with a number of ideas that could help to rebuild community spirit in the area.

A wide cross-section of groups and organisations from across the area attended the ‘blue sky thinking’ event – with a handful of ‘visitors’ from Drylaw and Pilton too!

Muirhouse St Andrew’s locum Minister Linda Dunbar said: “We were pleased to see so many enthusiastic people attend the event. They came up with some great ideas and at least two of these will be taken forward. Fablevision’s Liz Gardiner, who facilitated the day, is currently writing up a report and we will take it on from there. Time is a factor and our plan is to submit our project proposals to church authorities next month and then consult more widely on how we take these ideas forward. It was certainly a very productive first session and we’d like to thank everyone who participated on the day”.

Centipede Project’s got legs!

A wide cross-section of groups and organisations from across the area attended the ‘blue sky thinking’ event – with a handful of ‘visitors’ from Drylaw and Pilton too!

Local pupils carry Olympic Torch!

North Neighbourhood Active Schools Mini Olympians!

The Mini Olympians project has been developed and delivered by the North Neighbourhood Active Schools Team and runs from February until May. The project is engaging P3 or P4 pupils per primary school. A total of 17 classes from 12 school are taking part, with representation from four clusters (Craigroyston, Trinity, Drummond and Leith). The aim of the project is to raise awareness of the Olympics and Paralympics among young children and to encourage these pupils to become more active and involved in sports, right through to the Commonwealth games in 2014 and beyond. It is hoped that by keeping Olympic awareness and excitement levels high the North Neighbourhood Team will create their own local legacy, which we hope will be of More Active Children!

Our very own Olympic torch started its journey in the Craigroyston Cluster in February and was passed on to the Trinity Cluster last week. Pirniehall passed on the North Neighbourhood Torch to Craigroyston pupils, Craigroyston to St David’s, St David’s to Forthview and Forthview then passed the torch on to Wardie. Each participating class will do a mini project around the time of their scheduled visit and pupils can follow the torch virtually and link with other mini Olympians via a Glow page.

Each participating class has been allocated an Olympic/Paralympic sport which the school has researched prior to their torch visit. Project topics have included stars of the sport, history of the sport, Olympic/Paralympic values, etc. Also each class pupil will create their own hand made torch, which they will exchange with a mini Olympian from another school.

The lay out of the sessions have looked something like this:

Arrival and welcome

Host class presentation to visiting school

Exchange of mini torches with new friends

Introduction to sport

Sports event (45 – 60 minutes)

Exchange of North Neighbourhood Torch

The first session took place on Tuesday 21 February where Pirniehall delivered the Torch to Craigroyston. The children at this session had so much energy and enthusiasm! Craigroyston welcomed Pirniehall by decorating their gym hall in handmade Olympic and Paralympic pictures, and they also staged a fun and informative presentation. The sport for this session was hockey and we were elated to have former Olympian and current Scotland international hockey player Graham Moodie. Graham was a member of the Great Britain and Northern Ireland squad that finished ninth at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens and he was also part of the Great Britain training squad for the Beijing games in 2008. Graham wore his team GB Athens Olympic kit, which caused quite a stir with the children. He spoke proudly about his involvement in the Olympics and generated a lot of interest from pupils who asked some exceptional questions about his experience. After the presentation, pupils then played games and brushed up their hockey skills before Pirniehall presented the torch to Craigroyston Primary. The session had a buzz around it leaving everyone involved with a happy glow!

The Olympic Torch project will come to an exciting finish when each school class involved will participate in an Olympic-themed Festival at the end of May. The project ties in various elements of the curriculum for excellence, including Health and Wellbeing, Technologies, Social Studies and Literacy.

Ricky Keroyan

Active Schools Coordinator

Community concern over Mosque plans

Over 150 people crammed into Blackhall Mosque recently to hear plans for the upgrade of the building. Local residents were assured that mosque leaders will work with their neighbours to address their concerns but some believe the plans will bring more traffic misery to a quiet residential area.

Blackhall Mosque opened in September 2009 and has quickly grown to become the most popular mosque in the city. As well as being a place of worship, the former church is the base for over 200 students who regularly attend classes there and the Mosque also provides a variety of educational and social activities for groups, families, women and young people.

The popularity of the Mosque has brought problems for both Muslims who use the building and for their neighbours, however. For worshippers, the current layout of the building is inadequate to meet their needs while the local community has voiced concerns about traffic levels and inconsiderate parking around the Mosque.

Mosque leaders organised the public meeting to talk about their plans for the refurbishment of their building and to give local residents an opportunity to ask questions and raise concerns over the proposals. Local councillors and Western MSP Colin Keir joined Muslim worshippers, students and local residents to participate in the discussion.

Architect Thom Pollock outlined plans for the upgrading of the building. He said: “The plan is not to provide for a greater number of people, simply to provide much better facilities and improve what is not the most beautiful building in the world. Hopefully, create a more fitting quality of building for the area”.

He said that a tower or minaret proposed for the building is not essential. “I’m not hell-bent on the tower – it’s a symbol. If there is a huge counter-feeling against the tower I would not be particularly bothered. We are not trying to create a pastiche mosque here – the building will be of the same bricks as it currently is and will fir in with the surrounding area”. Mr, Pollock stressed that extensions to the building would be minimal. Internal alterations would introduce another level within the existing building, allowing additional space for a womens’ balcony, classrooms and storage facilities. Better use of existing ground floor space would see improvements to lavatories and washing areas and the addition of a mortuary and a new kitchen. Improved security measures are also included in the proposals, along with lift access to the upper floor and improvements to entrances.

Muslim students gave testimony to the importance of the building in their own personal development. One young man explained: “We need the Mosque to develop if we are to develop as people and as students – not only as Muslims but as active members of our communities”

Following the presentations the meeting was thrown open to questions and discussion of the proposals. Concerns were raised over the likely increase in numbers using the refurbished building – with resultant increase in car parking problems – and the size of the new building. One woman asked whether costs associated with the upgrade would impact on funds for other local services, while another sought assurances that local residents will be kept informed about activities at the Mosque.

A local resident received the biggest round of applause of the evening when he said: “Car parking is having a major impact on our lives, seven days a week. As this place is so unfit for purpose, have you not considered moving to somewhere else more suitable? There must be many disused school buildings available. While we are delighted to see the church building being used, this is a residential area and most of the former congregation walked to the church. This is most definitely not a religious argument – the parking and traffic problems are affecting the way we live our lives”.

Imam Sohail Asfhaq (pictured below) said: “This building cost £550,000 to buy and we raised this money ourselves. It is our obligation and duty to raise funds for our place of worship and this would be the case with our refurbishment. We have been working hard to address parking issues and we will continue to work with the authorities and the local community to resolve problems. We have no plans to expand – we simply don’t have the capacity to do that – and what we want is to provide the best possible educational facilities for our existing students by making our building fit for pupose”.

Councillor Lesley Hinds, who chaired the meeting, summed up: “It’s clear that people recognise the work that goes on here, but legitimate questions have been asked and it’s about getting a balance. Traffic and parking issues are still a concern and need to be addressed, and questions have been raised over the outside appearance of the building – will it look out of place? Questions remain over the tower, and residents want clarification on the actual size of the new building and more information about the mortuary. It’s also clear that the local community would also like more information about the range of activities that take place in the Mosque”.

She concluded: “Communications is the key. This has been a genuinely listening meeting and it’s important to keep that dialogue going and continue to treat each others’ views with respect”.

The local EH4 Residents Group has since detailed their concerns in a letter to local politicians and officials. Mosque leaders are expected to respond later this month.