Some Sainsburys colleagues took part the Kilt Walk on Sunday (11 May). We have raised almost £1,000 between us for childrens charities and Maggies Centre.
Pictured: James Stewart, Estelle McLous, Chris Markham, Gail Wilson, Fiona Forrest and Andy O’Dea.
Gail Wilson
Don’t miss ‘Embodiment’, local artist Alan Lennon’s latest exhibition which opens at North Edinburgh Arts next week.
“Continually fascinated and inspired by the human form and relationships – people connecting or not connecting. Many paintings portray the juxtaposition of a strong exterior presence but unmasking the soft vulnerability beneath”
The exhibition runs until 26 June – and it’s free.
Broughton High School pupil Anna McLuckie was the star attraction at a charity event held to support the OneCity Trust at the City Chambers last week.
The fundraising dinner, hosted by the Honorary President Lord Provost Donald Wilson, celebrates 10 years since the Trust’s inception and was attended and supported by key businesses in Edinburgh including Qatar Airways and Petroleum Experts.
Guests were entertained by compere Grant Stott, and teenage harpist Anna McLuckie. Anna, who’s from Stockbridge, made her public debut at the Lord Provost’s annual garden party and made a huge impression across the country when she appeared on BBC One’s The Voice earlier this year.
The mission of the OneCity Trust is to promote equality of opportunity and a sense of community throughout the capital. The OneCity Trust funds and manages projects that help advance, facilitate and promote social inclusion and the tackling of poverty in Edinburgh communities.
As part of the Trust, the Lord Provost’s Rapid Acton Fund supports smaller community group projects that require urgent help through grants.
The Trust places great emphasis on bringing together different groups to work together in innovative and creative ways to tackle the problems of social exclusion, and is this year funding initiatives for the allotment group Piershill Plotters, Edinburgh’s Northwest Foodbank Warehouse, and the Edinburgh Garden Partners SOS Programme which helps disabled and older people care for their gardens*.
The Lord Provost, Donald Wilson, said: “On becoming Lord Provost it was clear to me that the role had great fundraising potential and my objectives chime identically with the OneCity Trust. As the Honorary President, I am delighted the fundraiser has received so much support from Edinburgh based businesses.”
“The money raised will go directly the Trust’s continued promotion of community initiatives in the city, and will enable us to support even more worthy projects that tackle poverty and inequality in Edinburgh. I’d like to extend my sincere thanks to everyone who has shown support for the OneCity Trust and all of those who have worked so hard make this fundraiser such a success.”
Matthew Haggis, Chair of the OneCity Trust, said: “Edinburgh is a divided city, and perhaps always has been, with wealth and privilege rubbing up alongside poverty and deprivation. The OneCity Trust attempts to bridge those divides, bringing many parts together for the benefit of all.
I hope that the dinner has not only raised money, but raised awareness. And that some of the companies who supported us will seek ways to tackle social exclusion in the city themselves, with or without the help of the Trust.”
The OneCity Trust also sponsors the prestigious Edinburgh Lectures Series 2014 which is running throughout May and June. For details and tickets, please visit
If you have an interest in applying for funding or supporting the Trust, please visit www.onecity.org.uk
John Swinney launches new £16 million fund at Spartans
Cabinet Secretary John Swinney and Social Investment Scotland (SIS) visited The Spartans Community Football Academy on Thursday to formally announce the launch of a new £16m Social Growth Fund.
The Social Growth Fund, run by Social Investment Scotland (SIS), brings together an investment of £8m from the Scottish Government and a further £8m from Big Society Capital, the independent financial institution set up to develop social investment in the UK.
SIS is using the fund to expand existing investment activity within Scotland’s third sector, and to launch a new risk capital product for the Scottish social investment marketplace. This will provide long-term finance from £10,000 to £1m with repayments tailored to each organisation’s needs.
Alastair Davis, chief executive of SIS, said the new fund will enable it to provide considerably more support to social enterprises and community businesses across Scotland.
He said: “This funding support will in turn help these local organisations improve the lives of people within their communities by making them much more self-sufficient and sustainable.”
John Swinney said Spartans, which currently receives SIS support, is a good example of how this kind of funding works to better communities.
The Cabinet Secretary said: “I am delighted that the new Social Growth Fund for Scotland is now open for applications. This is an exciting opportunity for third sector organisations in Scotland, allowing them to continue their vital work within our local communities.
“Today I have seen the great work that has been achieved by the Spartans Community Football Academy in the local area, with police and youth groups noting a huge reduction in call outs and antisocial behaviour. The facilities here at Spartans show what can be done with the type of funding the Social Growth Fund will provide.
“Through schemes such as this, social enterprises will be able to have a greater role going forward, bringing more benefits to the communities they serve.”
In tandem with this new funding, SIS has also launched a Great Social Enterprise Tour – visiting five cities in five days next week – to raise awareness of the Social Growth Fund amongst local social enterprises across Scotland. The events will provide social enterprises with a chance to speak directly to an investment manager about how social investment can support the sustainability of their business.
Monday 12 May – Glasgow: The Lighthouse, 10am till 12pm
Tuesday 13 May – Edinburgh: Out Of The Blue, 10.30am till 12.30pm
Wednesday 14 May – Inverness: The Spectrum Centre, 1 – 3pm
Thursday 15 May – Aberdeen: Transition Extreme, 12.30 – 2.30pm
Friday 16 May – Dundee: The Factory Skatepark – 12.30pm till 2.30pm.
Alastair Davis, Chief Executive of Social Investment Scotland, added: “The Social Growth Fund will enable us to provide considerably more support to social enterprises and community businesses across Scotland. This funding support will in turn help these local organisations improve the lives of people within their communities by making them much more self-sufficient and sustainable.
“However, we also recognise that applying for funding can be a daunting prospect for many organisations, as it frequently represents a change in the way they do business, moving from grant dependency to a mix of income streams. Our Great Social Enterprise Tour is aimed at addressing this uncertainty by providing social enterprises with the answers they need to start moving their organisations on to the next level to create longer lasting social impacts.”
Nick O’Donohoe, Chief Executive of Big Society Capital, added: “Social Investment Scotland is a leading example of how regional social finance managers can play an important role in helping charities and social enterprises to access social investment, through their deep knowledge of the needs and challenges of a local area. They have an exceptional track record of delivering social investment support to organisations in Scotland, and we are pleased to have been able to help them to continue doing this.”
Big Society Capital’s investment in Social Investment Scotland is the first of its kind in Scotland since its formation last year, and will increase Social Investment Scotland’s funds under management by a third. It is the largest investment in SIS for twelve years and the largest ever investment by an external organisation.
Organisations who are looking for investment should call a member of SIS’ investment team on 0131 558 7706 to discuss possible funding or support.
Case Study: Spartans Community Football Academy
The Spartans Community Football Academy is a social enterprise and charity located at Ainslie Park in North Edinburgh which uses sport to deliver social change. Their local community includes some of the most deprived post codes in Scotland. With support from Social Investment Scotland, the Spartans have invested £4.5m in the last 5 years to build first class facilities and services which generate commercial income, the profits from which are re-invested to deliver their charitable objectives.
In the past 15 months, Spartans business has continued to grow, enabling them to increase their social impact. Some recent highlights are:
A top music engineer who worked with David Bowie, The Beatles and Pink Floyd to create some of the most iconic albums of all time visited Edinburgh College on Thursday to share his sound desk secrets with students.
Ken Scott, who produced Bowie albums including The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars and engineered The Beatles’ The White Album, visited the college to pass on some of his skills to HND Sound Production students.
Ken gave a talk about his incredible 50-year career and answered questions from students before conducting a stdio workshop to demonstrate how he mixed some of his classic tracks, using the college’s state-of-the-art equipment in the CRE:8 studio.
Ken was one of only five engineers to record The Beatles over their entire career, initially working with them as part of his first engineering job on the Liverpudlian beat wizards’ A Hard Day’s Night album. Since then, he has worked with Pink Floyd, Elton John, Duran Duran, Supertramp, Jeff Beck, Devo, Lou Reed and many more, and is still recording music.
In 2012, he released a memoir, Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust: Off The Record with The Beatles, Elton & So Much More, which was crammed full of stories about his time working with some of the most legendary figures in music.
Jon Buglass, head of the Centre for Creative Industries at Edinburgh College, said: “Ken has been an integral part in creating some of the most groundbreaking and revered music of the last 50 years and it’s a privilege to have him here. Our students were delighted to get the chance to hear his trade secrets and learn from someone who really has seen and done it all.
“Sound engineers are crucial in allowing artists to achieve their vision in the studio and the likes of Bowie, Pink Floyd and all these other massive stars Ken’s worked with couldn’t have expressed themselves so fully if he hadn’t been in charge of the mixing desk.
“It’s a tricky job as you have to juggle the artists’ ambitions for their music, which can be pretty demanding, with the practicalities of actually getting it all to sound coherent. Ken is obviously a master of the technical side as well as the art of working with musicians so he’s a genuinely inspirational figure and the students learned a massive amount from him. It’s no exaggeration to call him a legend in the field.”
Ken said: “I was lucky enough to be a part of what I consider to be the best training ever, thanks to what is now known as Abbey Road Studios. If I can pass along one iota of what I learned then and subsequently throughout my career, I must try to do it. I cannot explain the feeling I get when a student approaches me after one of my talks to thank me for showing the passion and understanding for all they are going through and will continue to go through during their entire career.”
Edinburgh College’s dazzling creative students are about to light up the city with a two-month celebration of their luminous skills!
The Let’s Glow festival will give Edinburgh the chance to enjoy performances and exhibitions from students covering everything from music, theatre and dance to photography, sculpture, illustration and much more.
The programme (see below) shines a beaming light on the inspirational talent of the Edinburgh College students and is a glowing testimony to the outstanding work they have accomplished this year.
Let’s Glow runs from 15 May to 18 July, with events taking place at venues across Edinburgh and some students taking their work down to exhibit in London.
Sainsbury’s staff – or ‘colleagues’ – are encouraged to help in the community and are rewarded for their services.
The Blackhall store’s Gail Wilson volunteers at Edinburgh Athletics Club, where she is a volunteer official at athletics meetings and also helps with fundraising – and Sainburys has awarded her charity £200.
LOCAL HEROES: Pictured above are Edinburgh A.C. sprinters Craig Knowles, Gabriella Vita, Salvano Marcantonio, Gail Wilson, Michael Fernie, Chris Kelly and Sam Revie.
Blackhall Horticultural Society are holding their annual plant sale tomorrow (Saturday 10 May) at St. Columba’s Church Halls on Hillhouse Road.
The Society plan to have an excellent range of plants for instant colour in your garden as well as some ‘home grown’ perennials, and there will be free advice on hand from time-served experts too.
Last year’s sale made over £440 and the group hopes to beat that total this weekend so get there sharp for the bargains – doors open 10am!
Former Children’s Laureate Julia Donaldson, creator of the much-loved Gruffalo and other brilliant children’s books, was a welcome visitor at Forthview Primary School yesterday. Julia worked with P3 classes during her visit to promote Reading Culture, a new initiative to encourage families to enjoy reading together.
Forthview is holding a series of reading events this month in a bid to encourage both pupils and their parents to read. The school has been working on the development of a Reading Culture, involving school pupils, parents, the local public library and the wider community.
The project aims to encourage children to read for pleasure and to involve parents in the hope that they will also be encouraged to read to their children and read for their own enjoyment. This work is funded by The Scottish Government as part of The City of Edinburgh’s involvement in the South-East Scotland Inter-authority Literacy Hub.
Edinburgh author Lari Don has agreed to be the school’s Patron of Reading. There was a day of events to launch this last week followed by author visits and library visits for every stage, as well as the setting up of a parents’ book group.
Other authors confirmed so far to take part in the Scottish Book Trust Live Literature funded sessions are Simon Puttock, John Fardell (who will also work with the school’s fathers’ group), Joan Lennon, Barry Hutchison and Roy Gill.
Mind you, Forthview parents have a proud record of writing stories themselves – remember the Pathway to Pilton project in 2012 (pictured below)?
25,000 young people set to benefit from seized proceeds of crime this year
The Scottish Government has announced that more than £2 million is to be invested to create life-changing opportunities for vulnerable young people.
The CashBack for Communities funding will be invested by national youth work agency, YouthLink Scotland, over the next three years in projects that will empower and guide Scotland’s young people towards a more positive future.
It’s estimated that around 25,000 young people will be able to access new opportunities in each of the three years as a result of the new funding. This will continue the support of the youth work that has already provided 330,000 opportunities for young people and created a 73,000-strong army of volunteers and workers.
Minister for Children & Young People Aileen Campbell welcomed the news yesterday when she visited the Green Shoots project – on the same day the recently-published National Youth Work Strategy Scotland was debated in the Scottish Parliament.
Green Shoots – a 12-week programme that gives young people at risk of becoming involved in antisocial behaviour or alcohol and drug dependency the opportunity to take part in community-based environmental volunteering – is a great example of criminals’ ill-gotten gains being used for the benefit of communities.
Ms Campbell said: “Youth work is a hugely effective force for good for hundreds of thousands of people and the perfect way to reinvest the CashBack for Communities funding. This money will help offer activities, skills and training opportunities and, most importantly, a place to turn for many young people facing difficulties or at a crossroads in their lives.
“Investment in youth work is not just the right thing to do; it is the smart thing to do. I am lucky to have seen first-hand the difference youth projects make in giving young people confidence to make their voice heard, seize the opportunities in front of them and make the right decisions for themselves and their families.”
Jim Sweeney, CEO, YouthLink Scotland, said: “Over the last five years, CashBack for Communities has created a generation of local superheroes, giving power back to young people and their communities by using the cash seized from criminals as a force for positive change.
“This money has helped young people access life-changing youth work opportunities which has given them more optimism for the future and has proved to many young people that they can achieve their ambitions despite difficult life circumstances.”
Since 2007, over £74 million of money seized through the Proceeds of Crime Act has been put to excellent use through CashBack for Communities, funding around 1.2 million activities and opportunities for young people.
