A new £15 million fund has been launched to improve the resilience of communities across Scotland most at risk from flooding.
Funding will be provided to local groups, communities and local authorities to help them improve their flood resilience and preparedness.
The funding will support sustainable drainage, including natural features like green spaces and planting, to reduce flood risk and future proof existing flooding infrastructure. Coastal communities will benefit, with support available for innovative coastal resilience projects to replenish sand dunes and reduce flood risk in towns like Montrose.
Additional support will be available for communities recovering from the impact of recent flooding, while Public Health Scotland will develop a new interactive tool combining flood risk data with population and demographic data to help identify communities and groups most at risk in the future.
A new Flood Advisory Service will support local authorities in delivering major flood protection schemes more efficiently, reducing delays and improving value for public money.
Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action Gillian Martin said: “Climate change means, globally, we are facing an increasing flood risk, and Scotland is not immune to that. We are determined to take action now to protect people, homes and livelihoods.
“This £15 million package delivers on our 100 days commitment to invest in flood mitigation and prevention, with support targeted where it is needed most. By working closely with communities, local authorities and expert partners, we are investing in practical measures that will strengthen resilience and adapt to the challenges of the future.
“From community-led projects and nature-based solutions to better data, improved infrastructure and more effective flood protection schemes, this investment complements our wider Flood Resilience Strategy to help build a safer, more resilient Scotland.”
Around 6.50am on Tuesday, 23 June, 2026 police received a report of a man having taken unwell whilst on a bicycle within St Marks Park, Warriston Road.
Emergency services attended and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
A post mortem examination will take place in due course to establish the exact cause of death which police are not treating as suspicious.
Officers would like to speak to anyone who was within the park at this time, especially the two passers-by who assisted until paramedics arrived, to contact them on telephone number 101 quoting incident number 0556 of 23 June, 2026.
Foundations have been laid on the next phase of the Powderhall regeneration, marking significant progress in delivering new homes and an educational facility as part of the long-term transformation of the former waste transfer station, bowling greens and adjacent stables sites.
Above-ground construction is now underway on the former bowling greens site, where contractors CCG (Scotland) are installing substructures, foundations and drainage.
This phase will deliver 27 council homes for older people alongside a 128-place early years centre and improvements to St Mark’s Path which is part of QuietRoute 20. The homes will deliver much needed affordable housing in the city centre including 19 wheelchair adapted homes which there is an acute shortage of across the city.
The new nursery, which will be managed by Broughton Primary School, is part of the city’s expansion of early learning and childcare provision and will increase the accessibility, affordability, flexibility and quality of funded early learning and childcare places to meet the needs of the local community.
The regeneration of Powderhall also includes the restoration of the historic Powderhall Stables into flexible workspace and artist studios, which is due to open soon, and upgrades to the Broughton Road and McDonald Road junction.
The final phase of the project will redevelop the former waste transfer station site where over 200 new affordable and private homes, as well as a new civic square on Broughton Road, will be built.
The complete redevelopment of Powderhall will create a new residential neighbourhood alongside community facilities, green space and improved walking and cycling routes completing the transformation of Powderhall into a vibrant new neighbourhood.
The development received a £1.4m funding boost from the Scottish Government through the Vacant & Derelict Land Investment Programme.
Councillor Tim Pogson, Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener, said: “This is a very exciting moment for the Powderhall regeneration. Seeing foundations now laid for the next phase marks real progress in delivering more homes our city urgently needs.
“I am looking forward to seeing the new affordable homes and early years centre take shape. Once all phases of Powderhall are complete there will be more than 200 homes alongside new community facilities and green space. This development will create a vibrant and inclusive new neighbourhood for people to live and thrive in.
“Two years on from declaring a housing emergency, we know we must keep pushing forward with solutions to deliver more housing at pace. Plans to regenerate city centre brownfield sites such as the former waste transfer station will form part of this.”
CCG Managing Director, David Wylie, said: “Powderhall will soon become a valued asset for Canonmills. Not only will it help to address the growing demand for amenity housing and nursery spaces, but its delivery will also help to create a lasting positive legacy for the wider community, far beyond bricks and mortar.
“Six new jobs, one trade apprenticeship and 13 work placements are set to be created, alongside £7,500 of investment and a commitment to undertake 50 volunteering days in support of Broughton Primary School.
“We thank the City of Edinburgh Council for their continued support, and I look forward to seeing how construction will take shape in the months ahead.”
NEN PUBLISHED OUR FIRST BLOG POST ON THIS DAY IN 2011
The very first NEN blog post was published on this day in 2011. The post read:
Hello, and welcome to the brand new NEN blog.
For those of you not already familiar with the newspaper, we are a local community paper serving the North Edinburgh community. We’ve been here for over thirty years.
This blog, along with our new Facebook page and Twitter stream, represents our first foray into the world of social media. We really want to encourage more participation, more questions and ideas from the North Edinburgh community – both online and offline – and hope that these new tools will help us to do that.
We already have a good website, where you can always find the latest edition of the printed newspaper. The blog won’t be replacing that, but will instead be there to show people the latest news about the area, and also to help us cover the current funding crisis we are facing as an organisation.
Above all, we want to include your input on the blog – be it ideas for stories, comments, pictures and events. So get in touch!
The NEN’s website was sadly deleted when funding ceased but our social media presence continues on both Twitter and Facebook and the blog is still going strong with 10 – 12 posts daily.
2025 was the NEN blog’s busiest ever year with 36,000 visitors. As I write this we’ve published more than 38,000 posts – all of these remain accessible online – and we’re currently on a run of publishing on 2749 consecutive days.
When the NEN office in Crewe Road North closed much of the NEN archive material was lost, but thankfully some of our picture library was salvaged and can now be found at granton:hub (Madelvic House), where the volunteer archive team has also collated all remaining hard copies of the North Edinburgh News newspaper.
Hopefully, between the physical archive and the NEN blog, you can find all you need to know about our community’s rich history – and we’re adding to that history every day!
Whether you’re looking for quality pre-loved furniture at great prices or just fancy a browse, a cuppa and cake, pop along to our Furniture Centre next Saturday for our exclusive discount day!
Every penny raised through the sale of pre-loved goods goes to support vital hospice care in our community.
POLICE are appealing for information after a man was assaulted in Edinburgh.
Around 1.20pm on Tuesday, 20 May, 2025, a 76-year-old man was walking on Broughton Road near to Tesco when he was approached by a man and assaulted.
The man did not require hospital treatment.
The suspect is described as being between 60 and 75 years of age, around 5ft 10in in height, of slim build and bald. He was wearing light coloured clothing and has a distinctive crouched walk.
Constable Nina Zielke said: “The area was busy at the time and I am appealing to anyone who witnessed the incident to contact us.
“I would also appeal to anyone who was in the area around the time and who may have dash cam footage to contact us.”
Anyone with any information is asked to contact 101 quoting reference 1758 of 20 May, 2025. Alternatively, Crimestoppers can be contacted on 0800 555 111 where anonymity can be maintained.
We’re delighted to be hosting our next Pub Quiz on Thursday 26th June at The Orchard Bar Canonmills! They’ll be offering 10% off food, and a welcome drink included in the price.
Expect all the usual quiz-tastic fun you love from Goose’s Quizzes, plus the chance to take home some fab prizes from our raffle and tombola.
On Sunday 29th September, #Leith#NECPT officers will be carrying out BikeRegister bike marking at Canonmills Path, beside Tesco between 11am – 1pm and Shore, at Sandport Place between 2 – 4pm.
Please bring your bike along for free marking and registration.
Canonmills is set for further residential expansion with the submission of plans to redevelop a light industrial unit at 26 Dunedin Street into student housing.
Again led by O’DonnellBrown and HUB the latest plans call for more urban massing to frame the street with ground floor amenities, with gridded accommodation arranged around a central core.
A landscaped amenity space is proposed on a set-back upper floor with the front door recessed behind a landscaped frontage to sit better within the local context.
Specifying a mix of ‘earthy’ brick and metal cladding to reference the previously industrial character of Canonmills the project includes a landscape plan developed by MRG Studio that includes planting along Dunedin Street and Beaverhall, leading to a hard landscaped ‘makers yard’ to the east.
In a planning statement, the architects wrote: “The changing local context provides an opportunity to create and reinforce meaningful connections and new focal points.
“Alongside the proposed Beaverhall House scheme to the east, 26 Dunedin Street has the opportunity to contribute to the changing character of the Beaverhall / Dunedin Street junction, establishing a new key node in the city.”
Studio apartments range from standard 22.3sq/m to larger accessible rooms of 27.2sq/m.
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