With the holidays almost upon us the Total Craigroyston team has produced a useful guide to what’s on for children and families across North Edinburgh during the Easter break.
To find out what’s on, where and when, click on the link below:
Category: Leith
New lease of life for Leith Custom House
The City of Edinburgh Council has reached an in-principle agreement with the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust (SHBT) to lease Leith’s Custom House from next month. The final terms of the agreement between SHBT and the Council will be put to the Finance & Resources Committee for consideration in May.
The venture will see the Trust, which already operates Riddle’s Court, work in tandem with the Council and local community organisations to restore the building as a hub in the heart of the community.
Initial repairs and cleaning inside and out of the building will take place over the course of Spring 2015 to prepare the venue for public access. A feasibility study will be commissioned in due course to also consider the long-term use and development of Custom House.
Last month, the Council announced that it had successfully purchased the historic building, after submitting an offer to the National Museums Scotland late last year.
Councillor Richard Lewis, Convener of Culture and Sport for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “This is an important step in the journey to open up Custom House to the Leith community, as well as Edinburgh residents and visitors, and an exciting development as the Council edges closer to taking ownership of the building in April.
“It is such a significant historic building and I’m delighted we have been able to save it for the people of Leith and Edinburgh. It is the oldest of its kind in Scotland having been built in 1812, and we will continue to speak with potential partners about subletting the venue in the short-term, as bigger scale developments take shape, so that public can access and explore the venue as soon as possible.
“The next steps are for the Council to receive the keys and take ownership of Custom House in April and for missives to be signed by SHBT.”
Chair of the SHBT Board of Trustees John Campbell, said: “Although we are a small charity, we have a strong track record in saving important buildings at risk for communities across Scotland and we are delighted now to be involved in securing a future for the Customs House.
“Our first priority will be to make some repairs to the building and spruce it up so that pretty soon members of the public will be able access it. Its various rooms will be available for use whilst we develop the capital project from feasibility study through to completion.
“This is a very exciting project that will deliver a vibrant mixed use hub for the benefit of the people of Leith and beyond. A key element will be the presentation of selected artefacts and interpretation displays to highlight the historic importance of Leith as the gateway to Edinburgh and Scotland. Other uses may include offices, workshops and public rooms for meetings and events.”
Elected members and community representatives from 15 different Leith groups are being informed at each stage of the project, and an update on the long-term lease of the building is due in May when a report goes before the Council’s Finance & Resources Committee.
A sporting first at Trinity Academy
TRINITY ACADEMY SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR AWARDS
The inaugural Trinity Academy Sports Awards that took place on 25 March can be labelled a resounding success with over 170 pupils and parents turning out to celebrate sporting achievements at Trinity (writes S6 student Ryan Crombie).
Guests enjoyed a captivating evening during which a whole range of sports were recognised, ranging from Tae Kwon Do to Sailing! Those who attended were also treated to musical performances from Hayley Scott and Charlie West throughout the night.
A special thanks has to go to our guest, former boxer Alex Arthur MBE, (above) who was kind enough to present all of the awards to the respective winners and made what was already a great night that bit more special.
Carol Graham, Depute Head Teacher and Allan Spencer, Curriculum Leader for PE were also individually rewarded on the night for their many years of hard work and dedication to Hockey and Rugby respectively.
Congratulations goes to all of the winners for the various awards, the nominees and of course the winner of the Trinity Academy Sports Personality of the Year, Eartha Cummings for her achievements with the U-17 Scotland Football team (pictured top).
Article by Ryan Crombie (S6)
Nominate your inspiring volunteers
Inspiring Volunteering Achievement Awards 2015
Edinburgh’s Volunteering Ambassador the Lord Provost Donald Wilson will honour some of the dedicated volunteers who give their time, energy and commitment to the people of Edinburgh at a special awards ceremony to take place on Tuesday 16 June at The City Chambers.
Now nine years old, Edinburgh’s Inspiring Volunteering Achievement Awards reflect the exceptional range of organisations and individuals working in the city’s vibrant charity and non-profit sectors.
Nominations are now invited for this year’s awards, and can be submitted online here:https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/IVA2015
Organisations are welcome to nominate up to three individual volunteers and one team of volunteers.
Some lucky nominees will be invited to accept their award at the City Chambers, others will receive a certificate in the post. ALL nominated volunteers will receive a certificate either in person or in the post.
Eligibility criteria for 2015:
· The Awards are only open to people volunteering in the City of Edinburgh
· There are no age restrictions.
· Volunteers must have volunteered for at least six months with your organisation before being eligible to be nominated.
· If they have previously received an “Inspiring Volunteering Certificate” at the City Chambers they should not be nominated again.
· Only fully completed nominations will be considered for individuals or teams, and we will quote from these statements when presenting the awards.
Shortlisted nominations will be considered by the Lord Provost for the ‘Lord Provost of Edinburgh’s Inspiring Volunteer of the Year Award 2015’.
Special recognition categories to highlight some of the diverse areas of volunteering across the City of Edinburgh include:
· A Young Volunteer (aged between 11 and 25 years old)
· Long Standing Contribution to Volunteering Award (an individual who has volunteered for 10 years or more, and has made an outstanding contribution)
· Charity Shop Volunteer
· Fundraising Volunteer
· Trustee Volunteer
· Health & Social Care Volunteer (volunteers engaged in health and social care, including support work, befriending or projects which reduce social isolation and help assist independent living)
· Sports Volunteer (volunteers actively involved in supporting sports in their communities).
· Environment & Conservation Volunteer (volunteers engaged in environmental activities including education, conservation or gardening).
· Arts, Culture & Heritage Volunteer
· Housing / Tenant participation champion *** Introduced in 2014 ***
The Awards Ceremony usually takes place during Volunteers Week – which runs every year from the 1– 7 June, however in 2015 it will be take place on the later date of Tuesday 16 June. Nominations will close on 1 April 2015 at 8pm.
We also encourage volunteer involving organisations to organise their own recognition events during Volunteers’ Week, whether that be their own mini awards ceremony, coffee morning, lunch or social activity that recognises and celebrates the contribution of their volunteers. It’s a great opportunity to do something to say thank you, and show your volunteers that they are valued and appreciated.
Lord Provost Donald Wilson, said: “There are thousands of dedicated and inspiring volunteers in Edinburgh selflessly giving up their own time to help and support others. These awards are simply one way of recognising some of their tremendous work, and their contribution to the wellbeing of our city’s residents cannot be overstated.”
Kris Von Wald, Convenor of Volunteer Centre Edinburgh, said: “The Lord Provost has agreed to present these awards because he recognises how important volunteers are to Edinburgh and its residents. The Awards seek to acknowledge the hard work, commitment, energy and positive difference that volunteers make”.
Read all about it: local Forum lifts literary prize!
We-CTV Award for North Edinburgh Young People’s Forum
North Edinburgh Young People’s Forum (NEYPF) has won second prize in a national competiton organised by the Scottish Youth Parliament. Josh, Laura and Brandin’s entry was the only submission from Edinburgh to win an award at this week’s presentation ceremony (writes Dave Pickering).
Launched last June, the We-CTV Competition asked young people to address issues of interpersonal violence in communities. Groups were asked to produce a piece of creative work on themes like knife crime, abuse and online bullying in one of three categories: Art (drawing, painting, textiles), Literary (creative or discursive writing) or Multimedia (video or audio).
NEYPF decided to take part in the competition and agreed to write a piece on bullying.
It’s been a long process. Entrants were first asked to submit an expression of interest by the end of August 2014. The creative concept deadline was 31 October and a National Creative We-CTV Production Day took place on 11 November, giving entrants an opportunity to meet with creative experts and share ideas. The final submission deadline for ‘creative solution’ entries was 16 January and this was followed by an online vote.
The group has had an anxious wait since voting closed on 8 February, but the NEYPF were rewarded for their hard work when they were announced as runner-up in the Literary category at Wednesday evening’s awards which were held in Glasgow’s Film Theatre.
Josh Ward (13), Laura Hulbert (14) and Brandin Sharpe (13) – all of whom took part in a training session with NEN last Autumn – attended the gala event with NEYPF youth worker Danielle Ward and were delighted to win second prize in their category. As well as the Award, each team member received a certificate and vouchers from Pizza Express and Vue Cinemas.
Their certificates read: ‘Their contribution helped raise awareness of interpersonal violence against young people‘.
Prizes aside, the highlight of the event for the Forum members was meeting Sanjeev Kohli, Still Game’s Naveed, who was MC for the evening! His quote: ‘I am just a monkey in a suit’ was the group’s favourite.
The final words, quite rightly, go to the NEYPF members. “It was an emotional rollercoaster!” said Brandin, while Josh added: “It was fun and I met Navid and we came second!”
Short and sweet but says it all! Well done, NEYPF!
Just capital! Free wi-fi in Edinburgh this Easter
Connected Capital: Enjoy free wi-fi this Easter
Edinburgh residents and visitors are to benefit from free wi-fi in 70 public buildings across the city as part of the City of Edinburgh Council’s Connected Capital Programme.
Attractions such as the majority of Edinburgh Leisure centres and the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh Zoo and Dynamic Earth, will be live in time for Easter and the rest will come on line in the coming weeks and months.
Those travelling on Edinburgh’s trams and Lothian Buses are already benefitting from free wi-fi as the project is rolled out across the city.
Edinburgh is one of 22 cities across the UK benefiting from the Government’s SuperConnected Cities £150m Programme, which is being delivered through Broadband Delivery UK.
Councillor Frank Ross, Economy Convener, said: “This is great news as the new service will mean that everyone will be able to get free access to the latest information on their favourite apps and websites while out and about and when going to the gym, taking in some art or when taking their children to one of Edinburgh’s many museums. It is also great timing as some of the attractions gearing up for Easter crowds already have public wi-fi installed.
“This project is central to the Council’s plans for growing the city economy, and encouraging residents and visitors to stay longer and increase their spend.”
Edinburgh Leisure, ICT Manager Stuart Fairbairn, said: “Edinburgh Leisure is delighted to offer free wi-fi in 13 of its venues thanks to this funding from the UK Government via our partners at The City of Edinburgh Council. It will allow us to provide our busy customers with a great opportunity to stay connected while working out or relaxing in these venues, giving them yet another reason to stay healthy and active with Edinburgh Leisure.”
Hugh Wallace, Head of Digital Media, National Museum of Scotland, said: “We’re already seeing a healthy level of uptake, and people connecting to the service are then linking to museum-based material on our website (what’s on information, downloadable apps, e-newsletter sign-up). When we fully promote the service we will encourage the sharing of content, engagement with the museum’s collections, and offer further downloadable options – something we hope will provide a real step change for our visitors.”
Culture Secretary Sajid Javid said: “I’m delighted Edinburgh took up the challenge to become one of the UK’s Superconnected Cities as part of the Government programme. It’s vital that our cities have the digital infrastructure like superfast broadband and wifi in place to deal with the demands of the digital age. Our investment in Edinburgh has delivered a welcome boost to the local economy, and is all part of our long term economic plan.”
Buildings that currently have free wi-fi include:
- Edinburgh Zoo
- National Museum of Scotland
- Dynamic Earth
- All Edinburgh Leisure centres with the exception of Warrender Swim Centre and the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena (EICA)
Buildings which will go live at some point in the next few months:
- Queen’s Hall
- Nelson Monument
- People’s Story Museum
- The Lyceum
- Festival Theatre
- King’s Theatre
- City Art Centre
- Edinburgh Festival Fringe
- Scottish Poetry Library
- Out of Blue Drill Hall
- Museum of Edinburgh
- Museum of Childhood
- The Writers’ Museum
- Museum Collections Centre
- Lauriston Castle
- Old City Observatory and the Dome
- Trinity Apse
- The Church Hill Theatre
- Usher Hall
- Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
- Traverse Theatre
- Warrender Swim Centre and the EICA (EICA)
Free wi-fi is also being installed in a number of the Council’s community centres, care homes and young people’s accommodation.
Tierney Award for Susan – Leader of the Pack!
Susan Jeffrey received Drylaw’s Thomas Tierney Award for Good Citizenship at a packed Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre last night. Susan was joined by friends, family and colleagues at a reception organised to mark the annual award that celebrates our unsung local heroes (writes Dave Pickering).
Susan was the unanimous choice of Drylaw Telford community members for her incredible contribution as a volunteer with the Brownies at Drylaw Parish Church – Susan has been with the pack on a Monday evening for thirty years!
Presenting the award, Councillor Lesley Hinds said: “It’s really nice to see such a big crowd here tonight and it’s particularly good that Mrs Tierney has joined us once again.
“The community council received four every strong nominations this year ans it says a lot that Susan was the unanimous choice of the community council for her thirty years service with the local Brownie Pack, but also in recognition of her work as a fundraiser with Drylaw Church, where she chaired the fundraising committee.
“Presenting the award gives me particular satisfaction this year as I am an ambassador for the local Girl Guiding movement and I know just what a difference people like Susan can make to young people’s lives. I wonder just how many girls and young women have been influenced in a positive way over those thirty years? Susan has been described as a ‘warm, caring person’ and while she may be quiet and reserved she has made a great contribution to community life here in Drylaw.”
Susan said: “I would like to thank everyone – my friends and family – who have helped and supported me. I don’t know if I will manage another thirty years but we will see how things go!”
Speaking after the presentation Guide Leader Elizabeth Martin, ex-Commissioner of Raeburn Division (which covers Pennywell District, of which Drylaw is part) said: “It was an honour for me to present Susan with her 30 year knot at 170th ‘B’ Brownies in January, my final role as Division Commissioner for Girlguiding Raeburn.
“Susan has seen many girls go through Brownies and some have even become leaders within Girlguiding and Scouting. She always encourages the girls to do their best along with encouraging the volunteers she has had over the years to take a full part in the unit. Susan runs a very full programme of activities for the girls and plans the unit meetings with her other leaders. Congratulations, Susan on your Award.”
If you’d like more information about Girlguiding – perhaps your daughter is interested in joining or you’d like to find out about volunteering with the organisation, visit www.girlguiding.org.uk
Susan is the fifteenth recipient of the annual award – and the women have forged into a clear lead! The tally now stands at 9-6 in the girl’s favour, so come on Drylaw boys – get out and support your community!
Thomas Tierney Award for Good Citizenship Award Winners:
2000 Harry MacDonald
2001 David Pickering
2002 Anna Aitken
2003 Alexander Sandilands
2004 Emma Robertson
2005 Florence Atkinson
2006 Evelyn Crawford
2007 Jackie Brown
2008 Eileen Outterson
2009 Margaret Robinson
2010 Henry MacDonald
2011 Ian Moore
2012 Alex Dale
2013 Mhairi Curren
2014 Susan Jeffrey
More pictures from last night’s event:
Dave Pickering
Edinburgh Police Choir on lookout for new members
The Edinburgh Police Choir is looking to recruit new tenors to its ranks. We are arguably the most exciting and innovative contemporary choir in Scotland, made up of police officers, support staff and members of the local community.
The choir started in 2008, and has performed at some cracking venues, including the Festival Theatre, Usher Hall, the SECC, Scottish Parliament and as far afield as New York. More recently the choir finished in 6th place at the 2014 BBC Choir of the Year adult category, and in 2nd place at the Manchester Amateur Choral Competition last month, although most of our performances raise money for charity.
If you can hold a tune, don’t mind working hard and would like to perform great material in some fabulous venues, then get in touch to arrange to meet the choir. We rehearse in north-west Edinburgh on Sunday evenings.
email us at edinburghpolicechoir@gmail.com
check out our website at www.edinburghpolicechoir.com
or ring 07971920435
Soapbox: Fixing North Edinburgh
Muirhouse man and award-winning film maker Garry Fraser gives his take on his community’s current problems …
It’s kinda ironic that the police put out their chopper every night and day, costing some were like £400 grand per month. The aim of this chopper is to catch the young team in their stolen cars and bikes. A’m sure the figures are out but North Edinburgh has the highest crime rate in Scotland. They have evicted folk, jailed folk, issued community sentence orders and then cut off another generation to jail as they are too old.
None of their policies work, which leaves the System scratching its head wondering ‘what are we doing wrong?’ You have a massive college in North Edinburgh where folk from around the world come to study – but only two streets away it’s another world. They shipped everybody out of Muirhouse when knocking down the Pennywell flats. Over the years they took away most forms of economic growth: i.e. the pipes and the gas works even Granton’s fishing boats.
Every local MP & MSP & councillor get in to their comfy seats and forget about this and do nothing, apart from sit over an HIV & smack epidemic that of course lasted through the 80’s & 90’s – now comes weed & legal highs.
Its like south central Edinburgh.. How many police stay in the area were they enforce the morals? How many of those wee guys, if trained in whatever, would probably take a job or go and study but only if they were helped and supported through the college system. Every brickie or trades guy who makes it from Muirhouse, Pilton, Royston or Drylaw ends up being one of the best on the site – that’s a fact …
Most folk down there who get a real chance and opportunity in work or education grab it with both hands as they know what the alternative is … that’s robbing, stealing, dealing and living within the chains of masculinity. That is now, because there are no real opportunities.
Ye need to empower a community and let them come up wi’ their own solutions. You need to invest in education to reduce the gap in equality.
You need to have a rehab or treatment centre bang in the community to get three generations of methadone and other daft prescription drugs clean: ye can’t sell green to addicts through drugs policies then jail folk for selling weed to pay for food, power and for some their own smoke.
Ye can’t put shops with pubs chippy’s and bookies then wonder why folk get addicted to putting bets on! Fatty foods, drink then say ‘Oh, why are they dying of preventable illnesses well before their time?’
When I went to college they say I saved them £1.6 million over three years in the social return on investment – imagine what these wee guys now are costing?
See whoever gets elected for the North Edinburgh do you think they will do anything about these injustices while they say they wish to cut austerity?
I taught maself to read, taught maself to write, love ma people and these rich folk take take take & give nothing back apart from academic reports done by their pals.
The system is rigged …
A King’s ransom: joy for the Junction
Leith-based The Junction youth project has been awarded £30,000 from The King’s Fund. The Junction is the only Scottish project among ten recipients of a GSK IMPACT Award, which recognises excellence in health and wellbeing – and The Junction is one of a very select few to have won the award TWICE!
The GSK community investment programme has been running for 18 years, during which time it has awarded more than £5 million in unrestricted funding to charities across the UK. This year’s winning organisations were selected from more than 350 charities who applied for the GSK IMPACT Awards, which are run in partnership with The King’s Fund.
Winning charities are also given access to a free training and development programme and are invited to join the GSK IMPACT Awards Network. This Network offers previous winners the opportunity to develop their staff and provides a forum to share and learn from each other’s experiences and expertise.
This year’s winners will join more than 60 previous winning organisations from across the UK, who have committed to ongoing professional development, collaboration and delivering outstanding services to patients and communities.
An overall winner, who will receive an additional £10,000 in funding, will be announced at an award ceremony recognising all winners to be held at the Science Museum in London on Thursday 14 May 2015.
The winners were selected by a judging panel of health and charity experts including broadcast journalist Fiona Phillips; Gilly Green, Head of UK Grants at Comic Relief; Sir Christopher Gent, Chair of GSK; and Sir Chris Kelly, Chair of The King’s Fund.
Katie Pinnock, Director, UK & Ireland Charitable Partnerships at GSK, said: ‘These awards recognise charities that make an incredible difference to many people’s lives right across the country. The programme has grown immensely since we started in 1997, and we are extremely proud of the way it has brought people together, enabling them to share knowledge and learn from each other. Each year we are impressed, inspired and moved, not only by the innovation and talent in the work our winning charities undertake, but by the commitment and dedication of everyone involved.’
Sam Anderson, director at The Junction, said: “We are delighted at being a 2015 GSK Impact Award winner. Being a GSK Impact Award winner in 2009 provided the Junction with the platform to celebrate our strengths, develop and deepen. The 2015 GSK Impact Award offers fantastic recognition of all we have achieved in the six years since and provides us with both significant funding and development opportunities which will ensure we are able to continue to flourish.”
Lisa Weaks, Third Sector Programme Manager at The King’s Fund, said: ‘Charities provide important services and support in our health and social care system. These winners show just how much can be achieved with relatively limited funds, through the passion and dedication of the organisations and their volunteers. Their work spans the whole of our lives – they can help prevent young people from making detrimental decisions like taking up smoking, or provide support for people at the end of their lives so they can make the right decisions for them and their family. Their energy and commitment is inspirational.’
A Junction spokesperson added: “We have been named a winner of the GSK IMPACT Awards, and in fact we’re one of the rare organisations that have won twice! Not only is this a huge honour but it is a great way to recognise how The Junction has continued to strive for excellence year after year.”
The ten winners are:
- Alzheimer’s Support – a charity improving diagnosis and support for people with dementia in Wiltshire
- CoolTan Arts – based in Southwark, helps improve the lives of people in mental distress through creativity, self-advocacy and volunteer opportunities
- Cut Films Project/Deborah Hutton Campaign – based in Islington, helps prevent smoking among young people through peer-to-peer education and campaigns
- Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust – based in Islington, is the only UK charity supporting women affected by cervical cancer and cervical abnormalities and focuses activity on raising the profile and understanding of the disease and ways to prevent it
- National Council for Palliative Care – a members’ organisation campaigning to help everyone approaching the end of life have the right to the highest quality care and support
- Neuromuscular Centre – a Cheshire-based charity that provides physiotherapy, training and employment opportunities for those with degenerative neuromuscular conditions, as well as assistance for their carers
- Off the Record – a Bristol-based charity helping young people to improve their mental health and wellbeing
- RESTORE – an Oxford-based charity supporting people with mental health problems to gain or maintain employment
- The Junction – this is the second award for this Leith-based charity, which helps children and young people make positive choices that promote their health and wellbeing and reduce harmful behaviour
- Wave Trauma Centre – a Belfast-based charity offering care and support to anyone bereaved, injured or traumatised through the violence in Northern Ireland.