Name a Guide Dog Puppy and help Guide Dogs and Comic Relief!
Sainsbury’s Blackhall customers and colleagues have now raised enough funds for a third Guide Dog puppy and would like to invite the community to help name the puppy – customers can enter their nomination instore until Friday 15 March (Red Nose Day).
Guide Dog puppies Jasper and Sandy, will also be in-store on Monday 4th and Friday 15th of March to show their support!
Donations will be split between Guide Dogs and Comic Relief – £15,904 has been raised so far, and Sainsbury’s Blackhall colleagues are supporting Red Nose Day by taking part in fundraising and selling the official Red Nose Day merchandise.
We wanted to share our latest news regarding Dads Rock Fife, our new South Edinburgh venue, 1st Birthday Party, and our short film. The film was made to show what Dads Rock is all about; please take a few moments out of your day to watch it and feel free to pass it on..
Neil Forbes, Scottish Chef of the Year 2011, met up with the women of PCHP’s Use Your Loaf group last week. The women are making bread and organising this years Yummy Food Festival on Friday 15 March. Neil will be there on the big day too, joining local people to do a cooking demonstration and workshops.
It’s often a worry for parents when their wee ones make the step up to ‘big’ school, but even more so for the parents who choose to send their child to a school outside their catchment area. It’s not always possible to get a place at the school you’ve chosen for your child, and many face an anxious wait over the coming weeks …
The City of Edinburgh Council is warning parents who have applied for primary school places outwith their catchment that they may not be met due to the pressure of rising rolls.
A report to the Education, Children and Families Committee on Tuesday (5 March) will list the schools where placing requests may not be met.
The number of P1 registrations has increased by 3.5 per cent on last year to 4632 and the Council has received more than 700 placing requests so far for the next school year.
There has been a decrease in the number of these requests following a concerted campaign to encourage parents to learn more about their local catchment school and the benefits of their child attending there. This has led to a 15 per cent reduction on the number of requests received last year.
Councillor Paul Godzik, Education Convener, said: “Parents who have submitted a placing request should be prepared for the fact that they may not get the place they were hoping for and recent experience has been that appeals are unlikely to be successful. However, their child will be registered with their local catchment school and will start next August alongside other local children.
“Historically, Edinburgh has had a high rate of placing requests when compared with other parts of Scotland. However, since I became Convener of Education I have met a number of parents who faced similar situations in the last few years. Happily, they report things have worked out and that their local catchment school is providing very well for their child. I would encourage all parents who are thinking about placing requests to reconsider their catchment school and perhaps pay it a visit, as it is becoming clear many requests will be refused this year.”
To help ensure there are enough places for catchment children, planning permission has now been received for extra classrooms at three city primary schools – Wardie, Trinity and Granton, all of which need of more classroom space due to the large number of registrations. These extensions will be in place by August, and a planning application for new classes at Victoria Primary is also being considered.
A working group made up of parent, officer and school representatives has been set up to look at the challenges facing city schools in light of rising rolls and an increase in population.
On 28 February Forthview Primary’s I-BIKE crew organised a Superhero Day as part of the The Big Pedal, a national competition to see which schools in the UK bring the most bikes and scooters to school.
There will be three Big Pedal days at Forthview, where the numbers of children, parents and staff bringing their bikes and scooters to school will be recorded. Superhero Day was the fantastic first day, and this will be followed by further Big Pedal days on Friiday 8 March and Wednesday 20 March.
Primary 7 pupils from Davidsons Mains Primary School were delighted to show some of the equipment that the school bought with vouchers from the Sainsbury’s Active Kids 2012 scheme.
Active Kids is a voucher collection scheme that enables nurseries, schools, Scout and Guide groups and sports clubs to collect vouchers and redeem them for sports, cooking and gardening equipment and active experiences.
Vouchers can be earned for every £10 spent in main stores, in petrol stations and when you buy groceries online and for every £5 in convenience stores (exclusions apply). Vouchers will be issued until 22 May.
David Bainbridge, Sainsbury’s Blackhall Store Manager said: “It’s important to help keep children enthused about all different kinds of activities – from play to sport – and we’re confident that Active Kids 2013 will help achieve this goal.”
Mark Lazarowicz, MP for North and Leith, visited a ‘pop-up’ food bank outside the Houses of Parliament this week, and earlier today he at the Kirkgate collecting signatures for a petition to highlight the issue of growing poverty and the increased reliance on food parcels across the UK.
Mr Lazarowicz said: “Hundreds of thousands of people in the UK are now forced to get support from food banks. Leith is the latest area where a food bank is being set up. I have enormous respect for the dedication of staff and volunteers who are helping through food banks to meet the growing need for food aid but that need is a clear sign of Government failure.
“The depressed state of the economy combined with cuts in welfare support have led many people, both in and out of work, to turn to food banks as a last resort. The growth of food banks is stark evidence of the failure of Government economic and employment policy. Food banks show just how much people in our community care for the most vulnerable but they shouldn’t have to be a substitute for Government action. That’s why I am supporting this petition, which calls for the government to ensure there is an accurate count of the number of people using food banks in Scotland and for Government action to ensure that no families in the UK go hungry.”
Before Christmas, the North and Leith MP took part in food collection drives at local supermarkets and he recently attended a meeting at South Leith Parish Church Halls to look at setting up a food bank in Leith.
Britain’s largest network of food banks, the Trussell Trust (which is involved in the proposal to set up a food bank in Leith), estimates that they will need to support in excess of 260,000 people over the next year.
Police in Edinburgh are appealing for witnesses following two bogus caller incidents in Marine Drive yesterday (Wednesday 27 February).
The first incident happened around 12.45am, when the suspect called at an address in Marine Drive and asked for a drink of water. She pushed her way into the premises and was given a drink, before leaving empty-handed.
The next incident happened ten minutes later, at another address in Marine Drive. This time, the suspect asked to use a phone to call a taxi, and was allowed into the premises. She appeared to use the phone, and then made her way to the homeowner’s bedroom where she began looking through several trinket boxes before leaving, again empty-handed.
The suspect is described as white, 28 to 35-years-old, 5ft 5ins tall, stocky build, with light brown hair, wearing a dark jacket with hood, and carrying a tan coloured handbag. She spoke with a local accent.
Detective Constable Gavin Watson, from Lothian and Borders Police, said: “While no items were stolen in these incidents, it is likely that the suspect had called at these addresses with the intention of stealing any items of value that she could. We want anyone who received a similar call at their home address yesterday to contact police, and if anyone recognises the description of the suspect then they should also get in touch.
“At this time we would urge anyone who receives an unsolicited call at their home address by anyone asking for access to the property to refuse, unless they are completely satisfied that the caller is genuine. Anyone who has any suspicions over the intentions of any cold caller should contact police immediately.”
Anyone with any information should contact Lothian and Borders Police on 101, or Crimestoppers and complete anonymity on 0800 555 111.
Residents from Port of Leith’s Jameson Place sheltered housing complex and pupils from St Mary’s Primary school have been treated to a play presented by Citadel Arts Group. ‘Granny was a Rock Star’, written by Jim Brown, highlights the importance of recycling and community responsibility.
The cast of Andrea McKenzie (wee Donny), Iona Soper (her big sister Sandy) and Corinne Harris (Kath, the former rock star) raised laughter and tears in this heart-warming play.
St. Mary’s P5 pupils will now go on to explore some of the play’s themes. Working with Citadel Arts Group, the children will devise their own play and perform it for the Jameson Place residents after Easter.
Liz Hare Artistic Director at Citadel Arts Group, said: “The play looked at exploring green issues in a fun and informative way. The pupils liked the songs and thought it was a great way of getting across important issues. We’re very much looking forward to working with the pupils and helping them come up with their own play.”
Elaine Edwards, Scheme Co-ordinator at the Port of Leith Housing Association’s Jameson Place Sheltered Housing Complex, said: “It is a nice treat for the residents to have a fun-filled afternoon and there was a lot of laughter. The children are also so good, always polite and helpful. It means a lot to the tenants here.”
The project is funded by Foundation Scotland, Leith Benevolent and Age Scotland.
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