10 weeks, 23rd Jan to 27th Mar 2025 from 6:30 – 8:30pm
Join us to explore and elevate your portrait drawing skills in this engaging and supportive class!
Price: £96.60 for 10 sessions (two hours each)
Course Overview:
Open to anyone aged 16 and above, this Portrait Drawing class focuses on capturing faces from life. Whether you’re a beginner or looking to refine your skills, you’ll receive expert guidance to build confidence in your artistic style.
Participants will learn essential techniques, including facial proportions, capturing expressions, and understanding the nuances of posture and emotion.
Join us for our annual wassailing celebrations in the Granton Castle Walled Garden orchard on 19 January from 1-3 pm.
The wassailing, or blessing of the fruit trees, involves drinking and singing to the health of the trees in the hope that they will provide a bountiful harvest in the autumn.
We love this tradition and are delighted to have Penny Stone join us for the afternoon. Penny will be leading us in traditional and contemporary Wassailing songs.
Apple-based food and drinks will be available by donation. No need to book, just turn up. All welcome.
Our Open Music Space sessions resume for the new year next Friday – 10th January!
People are welcome to attend one session, a few, or all. The sessions are relaxed and informal, and no previous experience of making music is required.
People can book a place on a session by going to the Wellbeing section of the Hospice website, by phoning the Hospice, or by talking to a member of staff!
Sessions take place between 11 & 12 in the music studio, and this block will run until 14th March 2025.
The newly built 1.2 hectare park has six different zones including three play areas with a wide range of play equipment. For those out to explore the new outdoor space there is an inner ring walk going round the outer edges of the frame with a range of places to sit and relax. An informative outdoor exhibition has also been created which showcases the history of Granton gasworks as well as the restoration process which has just taken place.
Large Hollywood style lettering denoting ‘Gas Holder 1’ can be seen at the entrance, making for a great photo opportunity. In Spring 2025, there will be a celebration to officially open the park when the ‘art zone’ will become home to the winner of the community led art piece, and we will provide more details on the winning artist for that in the New Year.
“I’m really excited we’ve reached this milestone before the year ends and look forward to the official opening of the park next year. It’s now open so I’d encourage local people to go and check out this fantastic new green space for the area as well as ‘Gas Holder 1’, which will light up the sky for everyone to enjoy in time for the festive season.
Investment Minister Tom Arthur said: “This project demonstrates the benefits of regenerating derelict sites into places people can visit and enjoy. The new park will offer a vibrant and accessible space for the local community which will attract more visitors into Granton to support local spend.
“To help communities prosper we have allocated an extra £62.15 million towards regeneration in next year’s draft Budget. This will benefit people throughout Scotland by supporting projects including the revitalisation of green spaces, town centres and derelict sites.”
Graham Brown, Senior Contracts Manager at McLaughlin & Harvey, added: “We’re delighted to have completed this unique restoration project and handed it over to our client, The City of Edinburgh Council.
“In deconstructing the old bell, refurbishing the listed steel structure, and repainting the frame, we have solved complex engineering challenges by using our vast civil engineering experience and successfully collaborating with our client and supply chain partners.
“We are looking forward to joining the official opening celebrations next year.”
Thanks to everyone who has given us feedback so far by completing our survey!
GIC are passionate about providing the best possible service to our clients and we are delighted with the results and the many positive comments we’ve received since April:
You are welcome to join us for a Granton Heritage Walk on Saturday morning 14th December. We will leave from Granton:hub (Madelvic House, at the end of Granton Park Avenue, EH5 1HS) gathering at 10.15am for a 10.30am start, and returning to the starting point at 12 noon.
We will be following part of the Curious Edinburgh Walking Tour and going by Granton Station, Saltire Square, Caroline Park, Granton Castle Walled Garden Doocot and new mural, Forthquarter Park and the Gas Tower.
This walk is on pavements and is suitable for buggies, wheelchairs and people of all ages including those with dogs (on a lead please). Please wear suitable clothing and shoes for the weather and bring some water with you.
After the walk, participants will be invited inside Madelvic House for refreshments and to view the community consultation exhibition organised by Edinburgh College of Art as part of their ‘Heritage on the Edge’ research project. More details on this event will be available later.
The tour will have a maximum of 15 people. Headsets will be used to ensure everyone can hear the commentary.
On arrival, all particpants will receive a brochure with full details of the walk.
The Granton Walking Tour is also available in Polish and Arabic. Please contact tamsinlgrainger@gmail.com for more details.
For any specific queries about the walk please contact tamsinlgrainger@gmail.com.
Tamsin Grainger is a Paths for All walk leader.
We charge a small fee which contributes towards our operating costs
The Pitt officially reopened its doors on the Granton Promenade, welcoming over 2,000 visitors in its first weekend.
Edinburgh’s newest community, enterprise and social hub, The Pitt is more than twice the size of its previous location on Pitt Street.
Featuring a permanent global street food market, retail units, a large and heated indoor seating plaza, family and community spaces, two permanent saunas from Soul Water Sauna and a 700 capacity events space all from a spectacular location on the Firth of Forth.
Hal Prescott, Chief Executive of the Granton Project which owns and operates The Pitt said: “We’re absolutely delighted to be open, and despite the storm attempting to throw a spanner in the works we’ve had thousands of people through the doors with initial feedback being fantastic.
“But this is very much the beginning of the journey for us, The Pitt isn’t a static space it will continue evolve with the community we’re part of and the community we build.
“We have so much more to come in the new year, so watch this space.”
Resident foodies will be:
Choola: Nepalese street food with a Scottish twist Fire Bowl: East Asian style street food Buffalo Truck: Delicious fried chicken with all the added delights Social Bite Does dessert: amazing sweet treats and lots of custard Lazeez: Authentic Lebanese delights (fully halal) and shish Pulp Friction: Seasonal fresh fruit infused drinks, from mulled sangrias to frozen margaritas Barney’s and Newbarns: supplying the best locally brewed beers Serving up Williams and Johnson coffee, savoury and sweets will be Long Shot Coffee.
The Pitt also has two saunas from Soul Water Sauna, a weekly local produce market from Granton Community Garden, community and family areas, a co-working space and one of the best views in Edinburgh across the Firth of Forth.
This project, a collaboration between Universities in Edinburgh, Paris, and Madrid, in addition to granton:hub and Edinburgh World Heritage, explores:
-How we can balance new development with the protection of cultural heritage.
-How local people make cultural heritage.
-How this making can improve lives.
-How the edges of cities hold them together.
The days leading up to the event, a wide range of community representatives will share views on why and how these ‘elements’ are valuable – as heritage in Granton, but also to the city of Edinburgh and the world beyond.
In addition, school teachers, after-school providers, and workers in further and lifelong education, will also explore their contribution to local learning.
On Saturday 14th December, we shall be sharing our discussions with the general public through an exhibition.
We would like to invite anyone to come along and share their views.
A NEW website has been launched for those interested in living, working in or visiting the ‘new sustainable’coastal town’ being created at Granton Waterfront.
It includes plans for 847 ‘net zero ready’ homes (with 45% being affordable) and capacity for a new primary school and a low carbon heat network. There will also be commercial units, active travel routes and other sustainable transport infrastructure as well as attractive public and open space all being delivered from 2025 to 2032.
The website (grantonwaterfront.com) guides you around the new neighbourhood with information on the partners we are working with to deliver new homes to rent or buy, parks and green spaces, things to do, where to visit, cultural activities, learning and commercial opportunities as well as providing all the latest news about the area.
Council Leader Cammy Day said:“We’re starting to see many early projects on the ground making great progress in Granton Waterfront now. The first tenants have moved into the 75 affordable homes we’ve built at Granton Station View, with hundreds more in the pipeline at nearby Western Villages and Silverlea.
“The gasholder restoration is almost complete and we’re lighting it up after dark as a permanent feature later this month. The new park at ‘Gas Holder 1’- new name for the gasholder – will open at the same time. Across the road, the former Granton Station building, with its new public square, has been beautifully restored.
“It’s important we bring all of this activity to life for those interested in the area and I hope the new website acts as a helpful guide.
“You will see from the website we have ambitious plans to create a new neighbourhood, well connected to existing communities there, and I’m really excited about seeing all of these communities grow, thrive and welcome visitors to the area in the years to come.”
Whether you’re looking to develop your skills and shape your future on the stage or behind the scenes, come along to our Performing Arts Open Days to find out more about courses starting in August 2025!
Whether you’re looking to develop your skills and shape your future on the stage or behind the scenes, come along to our Performing Arts Open Days to find out more about courses starting in August 2025! 
