Blinded by the light?

Definitely not sweetness and light: new street lighting gets thumbs down from local residents 

4

Some images of the new ‘eco lights’ in operation in Easter Drylaw – that’s them peeking out behind the ‘old’ street lamps!

Which do you think is the more effective?

4

3

2

1

The new lights don’t seem to be lighting up the lives of local residents. Comments so far include:

‘I’m a car owner. I don’t have a garage or a drive in so I have to park on the street. My car has been vandalised three times in the last year- if it wasn’t that I need my car to get to work I would have got eid of it ages ago. These new lights will make it even easier for the neds to run wild.”

‘They are not bright at all. It’s very scary coming home when it’s dark. There’s not much light – I think they should be brighter for everyones’ safety’

‘They are not bright enough’

‘It looks really nice but it’s also very scary and dangerous at night when walking home alone’

‘I am always careful about letting my children out after tea in the evening. That won’t be happening at all now, not until the clocks go forward. It’s a disgrace.”

‘These lights are nowhere near good enough – the streets are far too dark and pity help any kid who tries to cross a local road in the evening. It’s plain dangerous’.

‘I don’t like them. The streets look darker now unless you are standing directly under the lights. There are spots in which the light doesn’t hit. I think it’s a bad choice and I won’t be surprised if the crime rate increases.’

‘I don’t like the new lights and I think the council should go back to the ones we had. There have been a lot of break-ins in Drylaw and I think these lamps will just make things even easier for the criminals to get away’

‘I know the council is trying to save money but they are cutting the wrong things. They have got a duty to keep people safe. These lights are a bad idea.’

‘I don’t know if it’s just this part of the town or not, but I will bet my last penny that they won’t be putting up with this sort of crap in Corstorphine or Morningside. It’s a disgrace’

No doubt there will be more to follow …

Warm welcome at The Pregnancy Cafe

pregnant-woman-child

Are you pregnant? Live locally? Come along to the

PREGNANCY CAFE

at The Haven, next to Craigroyston Primary School

Every Tuesday 10.0 – 11.30

Tea

Friendly company

Help and advice

Pregnancy information

Freebies

Baby stuff

Interested? Ask your midwife or call Jo 537 4230 Julie 332 9269 or just turn up! 

Circle Scotland’s Haven Project, Craigroyston Primary School

Muirhouse Place West, EH4 4PX

 

 

ADHD Support Group at Muirhouse Library

adhdAn informal parents and carers support group for children with ADHD and Autistic spectrum disorders (it doesn’t matter whether your child is diagnosed or not)

*** Every first Wednesday of the month ***

Drop in between 10.15-12pm at Muirhouse Library

Tea, coffee & biscuits will be available

For more details please contact:

Karma (email  karmalennon@hotmail.com)

or Jamie on caitlinkal2003@gmail.com

adhd support group

Community anger over poor street lighting

100_4101Concern is growing over the poor quality of new street lighting in North Edinburgh. New ‘green’ low-energy lights have been installed over the weekend but residents say the lights are too dim and will encourage more crime and antisocial behaviour.

The energy-efficient LED bulbs are expected to save nearly 40 per cent on the £3m spent lighting the city each year, but for some residents in North Edinburgh the lights just aren’t bright enough. They say that the dark streets will encourage more crime – in an area that has been blighted by crime and antisocial behaviour over recent months.

Local resident Lorraine McTigue said: “These lights were installed yesterday in my street, I thought there had been a blackout; the place is almost pitch black other than house lights now … terrible.”

Another said: “This is crazy. When there is already a huge problem with kids running wild and vandalism nearly every night, why reduce the power of the street lights? Is this all about the council saving money? Well, they might save on the lighting bill but they’ll be paying out a lot more to repair damage caused by vandalism. They just don’t care about the people who live here who will be frightened to go out at night, and it will be us who will have to find the money to get our vandalised cars repaired. Things are bad enough as it is, but this will make things even worse down here.”

Will the council see the light? We’ll keep you posted …

New ‘what’s available’ guide for Parents and Carers

PACS imageAn updated programme of activities and groups for parents and carers has been produced in a handy booklet format.

Click on the link below to find out the full range of activities available across North Edinburgh and beyond:

PACS-North-Booklet

Screen Education Edinburgh rolling out new Cashback projects

intro

Screen Education Edinburgh are running the next round of CashBack for Creativity film projects, with the first target areas being North Edinburgh and West Edinburgh …

Aged 14-19? Interested in learning how to make your own short film?

This 8 week course will introduce you to the basics of storytelling, camera, sound, acting, directing and editing. You will then have the opportunity to shoot your own short film using professional cameras and with the support of our filmmaker tutors. No previous experience is required and it’s free to take part!

This course is accredited with an Explore Level Arts Award (eqv. to SCQF Level 3)
Any questions? Contact Laura McBride – laura@screen-ed.org – 0131 343 1151


Taster Sessions

Come and find out more about the course, meet others who are interested and have a go at writing, shooting and editing a 1 minute film in a 4 hour taster session.

  • Edinburgh North and Leith
    • Friday 6 March – 2pm-6pm @ Out of the Blue
      36 Dalmeny Street, Edinburgh EH6 8RG – Click HERE for directions
    • Saturday 7 March – 1pm – 5pm @ Screen Education Edinburgh
      30 Ferry Road Avenue, EH4 4BA – Click HERE for directions
  • Edinburgh West
    • Friday 6 March – 2pm – 6pm @ Venue in Gorgie TBC
    • Saturday 7 March – 1.30pm – 4.30pm @ Wester Hailes Library
      1 Westside Plaza Edinburgh, Midlothian EH14 2ST – Click HERE for directions

Further dates will be announced for Edinburgh East and Central, Edinburgh South, East Lothian, West Lothian, Midlothian and Forth Valley. Sign up below and we’ll get in touch when we’re in your area!

Get Involved!

For more information and to sign up to register your interest, go to: http://screen-ed.org/filmintro/

PEP’s minibus fleet attacked by vandals

window

Drivers turned up at Pilton Equalities Project’s yard for work this morning only to discover the organisation’s minibus fleet had been wrecked by vandals overnight. 

Minibuses were broken into and goods were stolen during the incident. At least three minibuses are now off the road awaiting replacement back windows – drivers and volunteers have made running repairs to others to ensure essential pickups can go ahead today.

PEP manager Helen Tait said: “I am angry and I am upset. This is so pointless, there is nothing to be gained by doing things like this. We now have to get three buses out to Newbridge today to get their windows replaced – if we don’t, we will be forced to cancel jobs and let people down next week.

“As well as the inconvenience, there is the cost involved – like all voluntary organisations money is tight and this is expenditure we could well do without. We’re now forced to spend a lot of money – hundreds of pounds – on repairs, that’s money that should have been spent on improving services for our clients. It’s sickening.”

If you have any information on the incident please contact Police Scotland on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Sessional work with Total Craigroyston

tc

We have a part time  temporary vacancy for a sessional worker to help us develop our Community Leadership College. I’d be grateful if you could circulate this information to any local staff or volunteers whom you think might be interested.

vacancy flyer

Christine Mackay

Manager – Total Craigroyston

Childcare Academy: recruiting now

CA

We are now recruiting  for the new Childcare Academy, which starts on Monday (23 February). 

I have attached a poster and standard information for display and distribution.

Childcare Academy Standard Information

February 2015 CA Publicity Poster 16

Audrey O’Neill, 

Training Administrator, North Edinburgh Childcare

Telephone: 0131 311 6931

www.northedinburghchildcare.co.uk

Community Chat Cafe opens next week

communiyt chat cafeThe Community Chat Cafe invites you to share food, language and culture. Join us for our free, friendly, sociable lunches and practice your English – all welcome!

Wednesday 25 February

Wednesday 11 March

Wednesday 25 March

12.30 – 2pm at Pilton Community Health Project, Boswall Parkway

A creche is available but must be booked by calling Rachel: on 07891 525663 or Julie on 07958 540 438.

chat cafe poster

Community Chat Cafe is organised by the Living in Harmony Group and North Edinburgh Timebank