People across Scotland have come together in their thousands to take positive action as part of Keep Scotland Beautiful’s annual Spring Clean.
Between 15 March and 28 April more than 45,000 people from every local authority area across Scotland joined forces to take part in litter picks, gather data and to raise awareness of our litter emergency.
In total there were 3,564 litter picks registered, showing that people really do want to play an active part in improving the places they live, work and visit.
Across Scotland the volunteer efforts included:
567 litter picks with businesses
357 litter picks on beaches, rivers and canals
967 litter picks led by community groups.
399 litter picks involving schools, young people and educators.
Barry Fisher, KSB Chief Executive, said: “Although 90% of people agree litter is a problem across our beautiful country, what is inspiring is just how many thousands of people have played their part and enthusiastically joined a litter picking event during #SpringCleanScotland – an increase in 15,000 people from last year.
“I’d sincerely like to thank everyone who took part, giving up their time and showing just how much they care about keeping Scotland beautiful. Your commitment to tackling the litter emergency is extremely appreciated.”
Spring Clean Scotland is KSB’s annual challenge to tackle Scotland’s litter emergency, and follows the publication of the Scottish Litter Survey which found that seven in 10 people believe litter is a problem locally and 85% of people want to see more efforts to prevent litter in their area.
We’re delighted to also share our 2024 Spring Clean report, showcasing the amazing achievements of this year’s campaign.
Learn more about our work to tackle the litter emergency on our litter page.
A national programme of engagement will take place over the next year to inform Scottish Government plans for health and social care reform.
Through a series of direct engagements with the workforce, service leaders, royal colleges, third sector groups and the people of Scotland, the Scottish Government will collect views on how best to transform services to meet changing demands.
This is alongside work already being carried out through the Scottish Partnership Forum to gather views from NHS staff.
Health Secretary Neil Gray announced the plans as he outlined to Parliament the Scottish Government’s overarching vision for NHS reform which focuses on key areas including; improving population health, prevention and early intervention, providing quality services and maximising access.
He also confirmed that, as part of on-going work to improve population health, five Scottish institutions will share £5 million of funding to conduct major research programmes.
This includes research into improving rural healthcare, managing gestational diabetes in pregnant women and informing how unscheduled care services might better meet people’s needs.
Mr Gray said: “Scotland’s NHS is an institution of national pride and the principles of a health service free at the point of need, must always be protected.
“Significant transformation to how our health services operate has never been more urgent and our vision for reform focusses on changes within current NHS structures to deliver for Scotland.
“I want to give our workforce the voice they deserve, and I am fully committed to listening and speaking with our amazing health workers who will inform our future plans.
“The Scottish Government’s national engagement will gather insight from clinicians on how best to respond to health demands and hearing the experiences of those who care for people in Scotland is paramount.
“I am also pleased to announce five Scottish institutions – the Universities of Aberdeen, Edinburgh, St Andrews and Strathclyde, as well as Public Health Scotland, have been awarded £1 million of funding each through the Chief Scientist Office to conduct major research programmes into areas of population health.
“These five programmes have the potential to make a significant impact and can play a vital part in our on-going work in this field.”
Five institutions will share funding of £5 million to conduct research programmes with a high level of impact to address important Scottish population health and/or NHS challenges with up to £1 million available per programme of up to five years in duration:
– University of Aberdeen – research to improve rural health and healthcare outcomes for people living in rural areas.
– University of Edinburgh – research to improve the management of gestational diabetes for mothers and their babies.
– University of St Andrews – research to improve unscheduled care for people in the last year of life.
– University of Strathclyde – research to reduce the negative impacts of justice on people’s health and increase opportunities to improve health and wellbeing in disadvantaged communities.
– Public Health Scotland – to support research to improve pregnancy and newborn screening.
After all the recent rain, we were thankfully blessed with calm seas and brilliant sunshine for Gala Day last weekend.
The Queen was crowned, the bands played, hundreds of visitors enjoyed the festivities and activities outside and a good time appeared to be had by all.
Many took advantage of the occasion to venture inside the Heart where they were greeted by tours, teas and interesting table displays.
Thank you to you all for coming and enjoying yourselves and a huge thank you to the volunteers who helped make it all happen.
See you next year.
Art in healthcare – The Landscape has changed.
Come in and visit our new exhibition which features artworks from the Art in Healthcare collection.
It’s a selection of works that celebrate people and place and in particular draws on themes of communities that grew from fishing villages, living by the sea and coasts.
Some of the works have been selected by local people through a series of workshops, and artworks have been added and expanded. This began with identifying local artists and works that came from the Newhaven, Leith and then expanding to wider Edinburgh areas.
You’ll find it all the way up the red stairs in the Heart if the stairs are difficult there is a qr code at the bottom which allows you to see a virtual version. Come in and enjoy.
Grow
Gentle reader, after all the stimulation and hearts beating in expectation, it’s official and we can now tell you more about the recent filming in the Heart.
Sky has confirmed that GROW will air on the Sky Cinema channel next year. Bridgerton star Golda Rosheuvel leads in the family comedy about pumpkin-growing, neglected youngster Charlie (played by Priya-Rose Brookwell) and well-known British actors Nick Frost, Tim McInnery, Jane Horrocks and Alan Carr will also appear.
Golda Rosheuvel’s character, Dinah, finds Charlie, her lost niece, at an orphanage, aka the Heart, and takes her to her farm where she, and a field of pumpkins blossom.
Director John McPhail says “Grow is a joyous comedy about growth, nurturing and family, set in a world of pumpkin-obsessed, madcap characters but grounded in real relationships.”
We can’t wait!
Little Free Library
Our very own bookbinder, Cass (aka Bookbinding with Cass), has recently led an initiative to install two Little Free Libraries at The Heart of Newhaven, one for youngsters and one for adults. She had plenty of help from our other creatives so this has been a project with real, creative collaboration at its heart!
Leith Men’s Shed built and installed the library box structures, Susan Thomson, member of The Edinburgh Book Arts Group (which meets monthly at The Heart), worked with Cass to decorate the children’s book box and a mix of residents and members of the local community helped paint the black and white mural backdrop.
The community garden volunteers got involved with the design and Lorna Brown (Ik on Mesh) printed the design onto the box. The final step will be establishing a growing roof using donated plant cuttings inspired by the Sir Patrick Geddes quote – ‘By leaves we live’.
Cass would like to thank all those involved and give a special shout out to local resident Shona Littlejohn for her generous donation which covered the materials for this project.
Both Little Free Libraries have been created for you to use so we encourage you to take a book, read a book, exchange a book and/or donate a book – you can find out more about the Little Free Library network here, which currently includes over 175,000 Little Free Libraries in 121 countries!
If you’d like to get involved at the garden you’re very welcome to drop in on Mondays from 4-6pm or Thursdays 10.30am – 12.30pm. You can either dig in with the rest of the volunteers or you might just fancy finding out a bit more about what we have growing.
If you’d like to find out more please contact Hayley at :
The potatoes were sown in the community garden last month so mark your diary and come along on the 21st September for Tattie Fest. Expect creative activities, family friendly fun and lots of tatties!
Volunteers needed for a new project at The Heart
Our schooldays – memories and legacies Heritage tales from Newhaven, Trinity and Leith Harbour
The project will use the theme of ‘school days’ to connect via a series of workshops and events, people of different ages, ethnicities, and backgrounds to learn more about each other, and the changing local area by sharing their learning experiences.
A programme of activities will explore and creatively share these experiences. Participants will include pupils from our local schools and other community groups based around or within The Heart.
We will be working with highly experienced resident artists within The Heart, to deliver and develop these workshops, community events and a touring exhibition.
We are looking for volunteers for this project over the coming 18 months who would be interested in supporting this project specifically through:
Helping to evaluate the project through information gathering from project participants and through your observation of workshops and events. This could include using recording equipment and interviewing participants. Full training and support would be given throughout the project.
If you are interested in this voluntary role and would like more information, please leave your contact details if you visit The Heart or email the school days Project Co-ordinator, Simone via email: simone.kenyon@heartofnewhaven.co.uk
Heart Dementia Meeting Centre Update
The Heart Dementia Meeting Centre enjoyed a delicious bread making session recently, led by a member who is a keen and experienced baker. We are also excited to play host to the exhibition, now up in the lounge, from a collaboration betweenEdinburgh University and QMU celebrating five years of being bold: Bringing Out Leaders in Dementia. The nine panels on display show a range of poetry and images created in response to each creative session.
If you are awaiting a diagnosis, have recently been diagnosed with dementia or are living with mild to moderate dementia then the Heart Meeting Centre is for you!
June is Dementia Awareness Month and Meeting Centre manager Jan Brown will be hosting a Curiosity Café every Tuesday Morning from 11-12 noon in the Lounge for carers and families of people living with dementia and for folk who are curious about brain health in general and how to top up their cognitive reserves.
Finally, we’re celebrating the one-year anniversary of the Edinburgh Local Heritage Network (ELHN). The network was launched on the May 10, 2023 and was attended by HONC along with 16 representatives from a variety of other local community groups and now has 30 members.
The Lord Provost Robert Aldridge is Honorary President and the purpose is to develop and maintain partnerships between local heritage groups and with Council services, chiefly Archives, Libraries, and Museums and Galleries. Currently, the key focus of the ELHN is collaboration on the Edinburgh 900 programme with a focus on supporting local communities to celebrate this anniversary.
In connection with ELHN, the Heart was represented at the recent royal visit of the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Edward, and his wife, Sophie. They were treated to a grand reception in the City Chambers and we were able to chat about our plans for celebrating Edinburgh 900.
We’re finalising these ambitious plans, centred on the history of Newhaven now, and will update everyone after the summer, when the real work will begin in earnest. Watch this space.
In the meantime, here’s a photo of the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh in the City Chambers, listening to Shionka Kamikaji-Inkster, who played the clarsach at the end of the event and another of some of the ELHN members at the event.
Inspiring interviews with acclaimed authors and insightful panel events on accessibility and representation
Calibre Audio is a pioneering audiobook charity celebrating its 50th Anniversary and working towards an inclusive future where everyone has the right and the opportunity to read
Upcoming author interviews include:
Mat Osman (The Ghost Theatre)
The Magazine Girls (Authors of a new book on their journalistic experiences on popular magazines in 60s-80s)
Roger Moorhouse (Author and historian)
Lisa Jewell (None of This is True)
Jenny Ireland (Winner of PRH’s WriteNow competition)
Candy Gourlay (Bone Talk and Wild Song)
Philip Reeve (Mortal Engines)and Sarah McIntyre (Adventure Mice)
Joe Haddow (Art Is Everywhere)
Calibre Audio, the pioneering audiobook charity, is celebrating 50 years of making reading accessible to everyone.
Marking the occasion in a programme of celebratory interactive activities, Calibre Audio has launched Calibre Conversations, a new online book festival featuring acclaimed author interviews and panel discussions available now through the Calibre Audio website.
The Festival launches with a filmed interview with author and Suede musician Mat Osman. Mat will discuss his book, The Ghost Theatre, a wild and hallucinatory reimagining of Elizabethan London.
Later this month, The Magazine Girls will be sharing their fascinating experiences of working for popular magazines from the 1960s to the 1980s including Rave, Mirabelle, Valentine, Loving, Petticoat, and 19.
Famous names The Magazine Girls interviewed included David Bowie, David Cassidy, Marc Bolan, Elton John, The Who and Bob Marley, amongst others. The Magazine Girls went on to become high-profile fashion and beauty editors, PRs, stylists, features and showbiz writers, working on best-selling women’s magazines such as Woman’s Own, Woman, and Good Housekeeping, Hello! and national newspapers.
As part of Calibre Audio’s Children’s Festival in July, Children’s authors and illustrators will take to the online stage to speak about their work and offer insights into their creative processes. Authors include winner of PRH’s WriteNow competition Jenny Ireland whose book The First Move explores her own personal experiences by featuring a character who has arthritis.
Candy Gourlay who writes about the history of the Philippines and American invasion in late 1800, will speak about her books Bone Talk and Wild Song. Mortal Engines’ writer Philip Reeve will be joined by author and illustrator Sarah McIntyre to talk about their book series Adventure Mice. Author, radio producer and podcast host, Joe Haddow will discuss his first book for children, Art Is Everywhere.
July will also see a panel event onaccessibility and representation in Children’s books with more details on this and in-person author panel event at the Library of Birmingham in October being released soon.
In August, author and historian Roger Moorhouse will talk about his work researching acclaimed books including The Forgers: The Forgotten Story of the Holocaust’s Most Audacious Rescue Operation.
Rounding up the online aspect of the Festival in September will be an interview with Lisa Jewell, author of debut novel Ralph’s Party, which she wrote after accepting a challenge from her friend to write three chapters of a novel in exchange for dinner at her favourite restaurant.
Novels such as Thirtynothing, After The Party, Then She Was Gone, The Family Upstairs, Invisible Girl and The Night She Disappeared followed along with her latest book None of This Is True.
Emma Scott, Director of Commissioning and Editorial has said: “Accessibility is at the heart of what we do at Calibre Audio. Our new Calibre Conversations Festival aims to reach as many people as possible and create new ways to discuss and interact with a brilliantly exciting array of writing talent and much loved authors.
“In a world that assumes everyone can read, Calibre Conversations is there for our members to provide an access point where other literary Festivals may prove a challenge to engage with.
“Alongside our Inclusive Voices, short story competition, we look forward to welcoming people to the Calibre Conversations Festival as part of our 50th anniversary celebrations.”
Calibre Audio has also recently launched ‘Inclusive Voices’, a new competition which encourages everyone to share original stories of 550 words or less that feature a character with a print disability.
Writers can enter a story or a poem written down or recorded as a video or voice message with prizes including the winning story recorded as an audiobook.
Entries close on 31 August and can be made through the Calibre Audio website here
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine is urging whoever forms the next Westminster Government to ensure the Scottish executive has sufficient funding for Emergency Medicine as the country’s A&E crisis continues.
The call comes after the latest Emergency Department (ED) performance data for Scotland was released today (4 June 2024).
Published by Public Health Scotland, the data shows that in April:
112,005 people visited a major Scottish ED (down 4.6% on March 2024)
64% of those people were treated, discharged or admitted within the target time of four hours
14,237 people waited more than eight hours (12.7%) and 6,412 (5.7%) patients had to endure waits of more than 12 hours
This represents the worst four-hour, eight-hour and 12-hour performance for any April since records began in 2011.
The number of patients who were unable to leave hospital despite being well enough to do so – which is a key contributor to overcrowding in Emergency Departments – was up 12% on the same month the previous year.
Dr John-Paul Loughrey, Royal College of Emergency Medicine Vice President for Scotland, said: “Extreme waits in A&Es are degrading and dehumanising and critically they are dangerous.
“We must not allow this vitally important message to be drowned out by the posturing and political coverage which naturally comes ahead of an election.
“The crisis in our departments continues and whoever forms the next Westminster Government must be pragmatic, proactive and provide adequate resources so the devolved governments including here in Scotland can really address this issue.
“It is nothing less than our members and their patients deserve.”
A graphic illustration of the data can be found here. The full data can be found here.
Scotland’s first inland surf resort which will open in Edinburgh in September has begun building their team ahead of its launch.
Lost Shore Surf Resort is hiring for a number of unique roles in surfing operations, including surfing instructors and lifeguards who can earn up to £12.74 per hour working at the state-of-the-art wave pool.
The resort will be the home of Europe’s largest wave pool with luxury lodges and premium pods, wellness treatment studio, waterside restaurants and shopping, all making it one of the most hotly anticipated tourism openings anywhere in the world this year.
It is looking to fill over 100 roles, including therapists, food and beverage team members, with other roles in maintenance and landscaping, marketing, security and visitor experience.
Lost Shore Surf Resort will be a Living Wage Employer and although the resort does not open until September, many roles will start well before then for staff training and familiarisation.
Based just ten minutes from Edinburgh Airport, less than half an hour by car to the centre of Edinburgh, and around 45 minutes to Glasgow, Lost Shore is well connected and within easy commute of many.
In total, around 100 roles are currently on offer with a range of work schedules and hours available. People interested in working at Lost Shore Surf Resort can visit https://www.lostshore.com/careers for more information.
Andy Roger, new Chief Executive of Lost Shore Surf Resort, said: “Lost Shore Surf Resort is going to make a huge splash when we open in September.
“Being a Living Wage Employer we are committed to building a fantastic team to help us deliver our vision for Lost Shore Surf Resort. The opening of any new business is an exciting moment.
“The build up to the first day is part of that journey with the new team learning about the resort and becoming well placed to deliver for our visitors from the day we open.
“We have a number of dream roles for those who love surfing, but you don’t have to surf to work for us. We have lots of different roles available and we are looking for passionate and motivated individuals who will be excited to be part of one of the most unique openings anywhere in the world this year and thrive in a diverse and inclusive work environment. If you think that is you then please get in touch.”
Full list of roles available:
F&B Team Leader
F&B Team Member
Kitchen Porter
F&B Team Member (events)
Duty Manager
Head Coach
Head Lifeguard
Surf Instructor
Lifeguard
Surf Desk Team Member
Visitor Experience Team Leader
Visitor Experience Team Member (front & back of house)
Male sexual abuse charity, We Are Survivors, has launched its brand new quarterly magazine, Beyond The Silence, with the help of the creator of the Netflix international smash hit Baby Reindeer, Richard Gadd.
This is the first ever magazine from the organisation and has been created to ensure that space is created for the important discussion on male victims / survivors of sexual abuse, rape and sexual exploitation.
Magazine Editor, Grahame Robertson, said: “Whilst the newsletter format served us well, our organisational vision is for a society where NO male survivor is left behind and with such a bold vision, we need an equally bold way to get the UK talking.”
This first edition is packed full of the latest news from the sexual violence sector; the lowdown on the organisation’s two new digital campaigns that look at ChemSex and being the best survivor ally you can be; and even takes the reader on a tour of the amazing new community space.
But is the issues cover star that we’re most excited to present. For around a decade now, writer, comedian, actor and now creator of the biggest Netflix series – Baby Reindeer, Richard Gadd has been an ambassador of the organisation and stood with us as a male survivor and in support of male survivors.
Talking exclusively in the magazine, Richard talks about the positive effect Baby Reindeer has had and why he is such a proud supporter of We Are Survivors.
In the interview, Richard describes how talking about using his lived experience as a survivor has been cathartic and how that conversation with the charity’s founder, Duncan Craig OBE, helped him see how vital the support for male survivors is from a first hand perspective.
Campaigners respond to annual Scottish child poverty reports
Child poverty campaigners respond to latest child progress reports from Scottish Government and independent Poverty and Inequality Commission.
One in four children still living in poverty, against 2030 target of less than one in ten.
“Reports are crystal clear that progress has stalled” say campaigners.
John Dickie, Director of the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) in Scotland, has responded to the publication of the Scottish Government’s sixth Annual Tackling Child Poverty Progress Report and the Poverty and Inequality Commission independent scrutiny report.
The annual report is a statutory requirement under the 2017 Child Poverty (Scotland) Act and sets out the progress made towards meeting legally binding child poverty targets. The Act requires Scottish Ministers to consult the Commission in preparing its report.
Mr Dickie said; “We have seen very real action on child poverty in Scotland, not least the roll out of the Scottish child payment, but today’s reports are crystal clear that progress has stalled and that the policies in place are not enough to meet statutory targets. If child poverty really is the First Minister’s number one priority, then investment decisions need to back that up.”
Responding to the Cabinet Secretary’s statement to Parliament yesterday in which she said it had “not been possible to invest in all of the actions the government would have wished“, Mr Dickie said: “The failure of the 2024/25 Scottish budget to fully fund the childcare, employment and housing actions in the government’s own plan must never be repeated. The Scottish government’s child poverty delivery plan needs to be turbocharged, not underfunded.
“All political parties need to act at every level of government to deliver the economic, tax and spending plans that will ensure every family has the resources needed to protect their children from poverty. Here in Scotland the first step needs to be an immediate real terms increase to the Scottish child payment, and a commitment to ensure it reaches £40 per week by the end of the Parliament.
“At UK level all parties must commit to scrapping the poverty producing two-child limit and to increasing child benefit by £20 per week.
“Our children deserve nothing less.”
The Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017 requires Scottish Ministers to ensure less than less than 10% of children are living in poverty by 2030.
The latest official statistics (for 2021 to 2023) show that 24% of children (250 000 children) were living in poverty in Scotland.
As Taylor Swift arrives in Scotland to kick off her long-awaited UK Eras Tour at Murrayfield, Scottish Swifties have the chance to get Ready for It at St James Quarter, Edinburgh – whether they have a ticket or not.
The Quarter is calling on all Swifties to Shake it Off ahead of the big event on 7th, 8th and 9th June with a free Bejewelled bracelet making station. Fans can make their very own beaded creations, complete with song title, lyrics and phrases, ready to swap with other fans at the concert. 30 minute slots are bookable from 11am – 4pm each day on the St James Quarter website.
Fans can find the finishing touches to their Eras outfits in the Galleria, and on Level 1 at a pop-up beauty bar, makeup artists from MAC and Urban Decay in Boots are on hand to offer touch-ups or recreate Taylor’s signature red lip.
Over the weekend, the Quarter will be filled with feel-good tracks including Taylor’s top hits, performed by a live singer.
If you’re grabbing something to eat before the big event, there’s plenty of choice in the Quarter from Eras themed cocktails in Duck & Waffle to brunch and live DJ sets in The Botanist. The Alchemist, Ka Pao, Gordon Ramsay Street Burger and Bonnie & Wild will also be embracing the Swiftie spirit.
Susan Hewlett, St James Quarter Brand and Marketing Director, said: “Swiftie fever has well and truly taken over the city and the Quarter, with fans coming to find the outfits that represent their ‘Era’.
“We’re excited to be part of the action, offering a Taylored weekend of fun and creativity before guests head to Murrayfield. And for anyone who didn’t manage to get their hands on a ticket, they can still come to meet like minded fans, make friendship bracelets and soak up the pre-concert atmosphere.”
Swifties are invited to join in the fun on Level 1 of the Quarter from 11am on 7th, 8th and 9th June.
Bracelet making is free, however timeslots are limited and should be booked in advance on the St James Quarter website:
Road policing officers are appealing for information following a fatal collision in Edinburgh.
Around 9am on Saturday, 1 June, 2024 officers were called to reports of a single vehicle crash on the A1 at the Newcraighall junction involving a silver Ford C-Max.
The driver of the car, John Fairgrieve, 75, was taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh where he later died.
John’s family have released the following statement via Police Scotland:
“While we’re grateful that no one else was injured in the incident, we’re deeply saddened by the loss of a much loved husband, father and grandfather.
“We would like to give our thanks to all the emergency services for the care and support they provided and also to those that stopped to help at the scene.”
Enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances of the crash.
Road Policing Sergeant Louise Birrell said: “Our thoughts remain with John’s family and friends as they continue to try to come to terms with what has happened. We’ll support them and keep them updated as our investigation progresses.
“We would like to thank the members of public who stopped at the time to help Mr Fairgrieve and those who have come forward with information so far.
“We’re keen to speak to anyone else who saw what happened or has dashcam footage from the area around the time.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact Police Scotland on 101 quoting reference 1099 of 1 June, 2024.
