A reminder of two local fundraisers taking place this weekend:
There’s a table top sale at Old Kirk & Muirhouse Church in Pennywell Gardens tomorrow from 10am – 1pm. Tables still available, £5. Come along and grab a bargain!
Also tomorrow, LifeCare in Cheyne Street is the place to be to pick up some early Christmas gifts – they are holding a Craft Fair from 10.30 – 4.30pm, and there’s soup, rolls and snacks too.
Happy bargain hunting!
A man will appear in court today following an alleged sex attack on a woman in Canonmills.
Police confirmed a suspect aged 35 is being held in connection with the attempted rape of a 21-year-old woman near Smithies pub in Eyre Place.
He is expected to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court today.
The victim was said to have been subjected to a serious sexual assault at about 4am on 8 October.
United Nations chief Ban Ki-Moon has urged the world to do more to help the West African countries stricken by the Ebola virus outbreak. He has launched another urgent appeal for funds to help fight Ebola after a United Nations drive for donations fell far short of its target.
The UN chief said a $1bn trust fund he launched in September has received just $100,000 (£62,000) so far. Despite pledges, only Columbia has paid in full – although donors have given over £250 million to other UN and aid agencies.
Mr Ban said it was time for the countries “who really have capacity” to provide financial and other logistical support, and former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan told the BBC’s Newsnight he was “bitterly disappointed” with the international community’s response. “If the crisis had hit some other region it probably would have been handled very differently, ” he said. “In fact when you look at the evolution of the crisis, the international community really woke up when the disease got to America and Europe”.
Both UK and Scottish governments have supported financial appeals and they continue to closely monitor the situation.
The Prime Minister chaired a COBR meeting on Ebola yesterday to discuss the situation on the ground, the UK response and domestic preparedness. In a statement, a Downing Street spokesperson said:
The Prime Minister chaired a further COBR meeting on Ebola this afternoon (Thursday 16 October). The attendees included the Foreign Secretary, Home Secretary, Health Secretary, Transport Secretary, International Development Secretary and Armed Forces Minister.
The meeting covered the situation on the ground, the UK response and domestic preparedness for potential cases of ebola. The advice from the Chief Medical Officer is that the risk to the UK from the disease remained low.
The International Development Secretary updated the meeting on the UK aid response and how the UK is leading the international response in Sierra Leone. The package is focussed on improving facilities, training staff and supporting the Sierra Leone government. This included the building of 6 new Ebola Treatment Facilities, local community care units and specific training for health workers, all of which remain on track.
The Armed Forces Minister set out that the military deployment continued to move forward with speed. RFA ARGUS would depart Falmouth tomorrow, taking 3 Merlin helicopters, and would stop in Gibraltar to collect 39 DfID vehicles. It is expected to arrive off of Freetown at the end of the month. Today, just over 100 members of 22 Field Hospital had deployed to commence establishing an Ebola Viral Disease Treatment Unit in Kerrytown. A number of engineers on the same flight will commence development of the Ebola Training Academy, with the first course delivered by the end of October.
There was a discussion over the need for the international community to do much more to support the fight against the disease in the region. This included greater co-ordination of the international effort, an increase in the amount of spending and more support for international workers who were, or who were considering, working in the region. The Prime Minister set out that he wanted to make progress on these issues at the European Council next week.
There was a detailed update about plans for protecting the UK against Ebola. The Health Secretary set out that screening was up and running across all Heathrow terminals and would be in place at Gatwick and St Pancras during the next week. There was a discussion regarding screening across Europe and the Prime Minister made clear other countries needed to do more and introduce their own checks if we are to strengthen protection across the board.
The Health Secretary set out that the national exercise to test UK preparedness had gone well. The system had responded well to two separate test incidents taking place at the same time. Contingency planning would continue and further advice is now being distributed to GP surgeries and other NHS institutions to ensure staff were fully aware on what to do if they suspected a patient may have Ebola.
The Scottish Government Resilience Committee (SGoRR) met on Wednesday evening to discuss the latest developments in Scotland’s response to the Ebola outbreak in west Africa.
The meeting was attended by First Minister Alex Salmond, and Health Secretary Alex Neil, along with experts in infectious diseases from Health Protection Scotland and senior officials from the Scottish Government.
Ministers were updated on the latest situation in the three affected countries of Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia. They were also given updates on how Scotland’s health service is preparing for a possible case, and steps being taken by the oil industry to protect workers who are returning from west Africa.
The First Minister said: “The Scottish Government’s approach to Ebola is two-fold. First and foremost, we must make sure that Scotland is as prepared as possible to deal with the risk of an Ebola case appearing on our shores. Secondly, we must do all we can to help with the situation in west Africa to try and contain this infection and ultimately bring it under control. We have already donated £500,000 to help the World Health Organisation’s efforts to combat Ebola and we stand ready to provide further assistance as and when required.
“The risk of an Ebola case in Scotland remains low. However, we are far from complacent, and I am confident that Scotland’s health service is well prepared to deal with any suspected Ebola cases. We will continue to closely monitor the situation to ensure that all appropriate checks are in place to protect the people of Scotland.”
Mr Neil said: “Scotland has four infectious disease centres which are ready to deal with any suspected cases of Ebola-type diseases. We have ensured that guidance has been issued to health professionals to ensure that they are well equipped to know how to deal with any suspected cases, and we are well stocked with all the necessary protective equipment.
“Scotland has dealt with infectious diseases in the past, including swine flu and a case of viral haemorrhagic fever, similar to Ebola, in 2012. I am fully confident that we have the systems and expertise in place to cope well in this instance if required.”
The disease has killed around 4,500 people so far, mostly in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.
Port of Leith Housing Association (PoLHA) has been awarded a prestigious Investors in People (IIP) Gold Accreditation – the most successful framework for business improvement through people in the UK.
The award represents a true commitment to employees and demonstrates a solid foundation of good practice which remains challenging and aspirational for many organisations – and achieving the Gold level puts PoLHA in the top seven per cent of all IIP Accredited clients.
Keith Anderson, Chief Executive at PoLHA, said: “We are delighted to be recognised in this way for the skills and commitment of our staff and Board members to continuous improvement for both its customers and as a great place to work. This has also given us a better understanding of how we can further improve our services in future.”
Peter Russian, Chief Executive of Investors in People Scotland, said: “This is a fantastic achievement for PoLHA. Investors in People offers a flexible, practical and easy to use business improvement tool designed to help organisations and their people achieve their objectives.”
PoLHA was also awarded a Bronze re-accreditation from Healthy Working Lives.
The Association’s Healthy Working Lives group is made up of volunteer members of staff and to gain the award they undertook a number of initiatives to support and encourage all staff to adopt a healthier working practice which has led to improved performance and enjoyment in their work.
Margaret O’Connor, Chair of PoLHA, said: “As an organisation, we are committed to getting the best from and giving the best to our people as we know they underpin our success and the service we deliver to our tenants.”
Mark Lazarowicz MP has highlighted progress in Edinburgh to make cycling safer and more attractive but stressed much needs to be done if the UK is to emulate countries like the Netherlands or Denmark.
The North & Leith MP spoke in a Westminster debate on cycling policy yesterday. He said: “The Pedal on Parliament each year shows just how much enthusiasm there is here in Edinburgh for cycling and the City Council deserves praise for its commitment through funding and other initiatives.
“There is still a long way to go however with cycling only making up 2% of all journeys in the UK each year compared to 27% of those in the Netherlands and 19% of journeys in Denmark.
“Cycling has real benefits to offer, it’s healthy, cuts the number of cars on the roads and with it pollution and accidents but we need to integrate it fully into transport infrastructure and make sure funding is there to do it.”
In 2012 City of Edinburgh Council made a commitment to increase cycling’s share of the transport budget by 1% each year and it has stuck to it: from 5% two years ago it now stands at 7%. The city council is also consulting on the extension of 20mph zones in Edinburgh.
Mark Lazarowicz’s speech can be found in full here.
NOTE: If you’re interested in cycling, walking and sustainable transport issues don’t miss Inverleith Neighbourhood Partnership’s community conference on Thursday 30 October. Details below:
A-Team need a Coalhouse, can you help?
A-Team Productions, a not-for-profit youth musical theatre organisation based in North Edinburgh, are desperately seeking a young man to play the lead character Coalhouse in their 2015 run of ‘Ragtime the musical’.
A-Team’s chairman Sean Quinn explained: “We are looking out for a black male between the ages 16-22 who has a background in singing and acting. This is a key role and we are looking to cast as soon as possible. Rehearsals take place on Wednesday and Sunday evenings in Leith, the production itself runs from the 18-21 February at The Pleasance Theatre.
“It is important that we find Coalhouse soon, this is an incredible part to play in a wonderful show. We already have a terrific cast but we need the final piece to complete our puzzle. Time is on our side however we are having trouble finding anyone who fits this character profile. Please spread the word, this is a huge opportunity to work with a amateur production with a professional approach”.
Interested? For more details contact ateamproductionschair@live.co.uk
Please have a look around our website www.a-teamproductions.org and our
Facebook page www.facebook.com/ateamproductionsedinburgh
Charity catwalk event raises over £3400
Broughton High School student KATHERINE WRIGHT volunteers at the Cancer Research UK charity shop in Stockbridge. The charity stages an annual fundraising fashion show – here’s Katherine’s take on this year’s event:
Cancer Research UK held its fifth annual ‘Charity Chic’ fashion show and pop up shop on Friday 10 October. The event was organised by the local Stockbridge shop where I currently volunteer, a worthwhile and rewarding experience. It was held in the City Art Centre and aimed to both raise money for the charity and bring together customers and friends of the shop. The money raised – a whopping £3413 – will go towards funding ground-breaking research, clinical trials and clinical research nurses, all of which are vital to the fight against cancer.
On arrival, ticket holders received special goody bags filled with treats generously provided by the companies ‘Glow’ and ‘Ilumi’, who sponsored the event. Volunteers at the reception area donned orange tutus and red wigs, and their enthusiasm immediately set the tone for a fun-filled night ahead.
The ‘Commonwealth Catwalk’ was the theme of the evening, showcasing a great variety of clothing and accessories donated to the shop and celebrating the fashion of Commonwealth countries. The audience clapped along while a young woman walked the catwalk in a black sparkly dress, playing the popular hits ‘We will Rock You’ and ‘Five Hundred Miles’ on her set of bagpipes.
The models, all volunteers and friends of the shop, wore a variety of different outfits and confidently strutted their stuff along the catwalk. Elegant dresses, jewelled clutch bags and colourful fascinators were all on display, and the audience enthusiastically clapped and cheered the models on. Eighty-one year-old Betty (below), a cancer survivor herself, was the oldest person to walk the catwalk and described it as “great fun, and a good way to meet some nice people.”
After the fashion show, a selection of pop up stalls gave people the opportunity to buy some of the garments they’d seen on show; as well as a huge variety of other clothes, bags, shoes and accessories. Home-made cupcakes and an assortment of sweet treats were also on sale, and a raffle with generous prizes including a meal at Nandos and a Kenwood ice cream maker proved very popular.
Elaine Lennon (pictured above, left), the organiser of the event and assistant manager at the Stockbridge shop commented: “It’s not just about making money. There’s a real community feel.” Indeed, the open plan room allowed people to mingle and chat, sharing laughs and asking for advice on clothes to buy. Many commented on how well organised the event was, which would not have been possible without the tireless work of an ‘amazing group of volunteers.’
One of the ‘browsers’ was Jill Macgregor, the founder of Glow, a fitness and nutrition company that runs exercise classes across the country. Glow sponsored the event – t’s well known that leading a healthy lifestyle can greatly reduce the risk of cancer, and Jill is passionate about helping people to do this. Jill has also experienced cancer – she was diagnosed last November and finished her treatment in June. Arms laden with shopping bags and champagne glass in hand, she summed up the evening: “It’s been absolutely fantastic. A great night for a great cause.”
Pictures by GAV YOUNG
