Edinburgh community group Ionad Gàidhlig Dhùn Èideann will be holding a Gaelic community day on Saturday 9th May at the Heart of Newhaven community centre as part of the initiative to develop a Gaelic hub in Edinburgh as a gathering place for Gaelic speakers, learners and supporters.
Wilson McLeod, the group’s chair, said: ‘Over 10,000 people in Edinburgh have Gaelic language skills according to the last census, but they are spread across the city, and there is no single place where Gaelic is the normal and natural language to use.
“A Gaelic hub in Edinburgh would be a real focal point for Gaelic in the city, helping to bring Gaelic speakers together and providing opportunities for everyone to get involved in Gaelic language and culture’.
This is the fourth and final community day under the title Cruinn Còmhla (‘Gathered Together’) over 2025/26. Over 500 people have attended the first three events, but this is the first to take place in North Edinburgh.
The event will offer Gaelic classes, introductory Gaelic workshops, an arts session for under 5s, a Gaelic singing circle, an introduction to the history of Gaelic in Edinburgh, a performance by the Edinburgh Gaelic Choir, a talk on the Gaelic creative process, a session for children to ‘Come & Try’ a traditional musical instrument, reading and conversation groups, and a City of Edinburgh Council session on Gaelic development.
There will also be a café, Gaelic books for sale, games and information on Gaelic activities in Edinburgh.
Development Officer Sarah Scott said: ‘The Cruinn Còmhla community days have been a huge success and we are excited to bring our next event to the Heart of Newhaven.
“We are keen to raise the profile of Gaelic in Edinburgh and bring new opportunities to learn and use Gaelic to people across Edinburgh as we work to develop a permanent hub space’.
Cruinn Còmhla Gaelic Community Day
9 May 2006 | Heart of Newhaven, 4-6 Main Street, Newhaven, (10am – 4pm)
Enjoying payday weekend? Put a few of those pounds to the best use by getting one of the last tickets to the Edinburgh Cake Grab next Sunday!
Enjoy an afternoon eating as much cake as you can, meeting amazing new people and even winning prizes. All proceeds go towards our work tackling local loneliness in Edinburgh’s isolated older people – and members of our community are even coming along as our special guest judges!
Tickets available on our website and use the code grab-a-friend to get 20% off you and any friends
More than 80 grassroots initiatives across Scotland will share in over £3 million funding to help deliver more ambitious community projects and activities and enable them to generate their own income.
North Edinburgh’s Heart of Newhaven and R2 are among the projects to be awarded Strengthening Communities Programme funding.
To date the Strengthening Communities Programme has helped hundreds of organisations to develop and improve their work with local communities and boost local economies.
This latest tranche of funding for 2026-27 will back community organisations to deliver local projects including spaces for business, improving access to employability and skills services, family and young people’s activities, and health and wellbeing support.
The First Minister announced the funding on a visit to the Usual Place in Dumfries – a charity that supports young people with learning disabilities to develop skills, gain qualifications and access employment.
First Minister John Swinney said: “Local organisations are best placed to understand what their communities need and how to deliver it. This programme helps to support and empower community initiatives to deliver what their area needs most – whether that is spaces for small businesses, culture and sport activities, or employability support.
“By providing this funding, we are helping organisations to become more financially resilient and develop the means to generate income for themselves. This will not only help boost local economies, but in turn help these projects generate more funds to serve wider community needs.
“The Usual Place is a fantastic example of this type of initiative. Their work to support young people with additional support needs to build community connections and friendships, and develop the skills needed to access employment, helps to improve peoples’ lives and future opportunities. I was pleased to visit the charity and see first-hand the difference it is making for people in Dumfries.”
Craig McEwen, Chief Executive at The Usual Place said: “Following a very difficult year for The Usual Place, we are now in a much better financial position.
“With the interim funding found to give us breathing space and now the success in securing funds through the Strengthening Communities Programme, we have the space to create capacity to implement some strategic changes, decided by the Board of Trustees, to enable us to diversify our income streams to ensure a more stable future for The Usual Place. Over the past ten years we have put back into the economy of Dumfries and Galloway £9.8m, so our value speaks for itself.
“We thank the First Minister personally, and the Scottish Government for believing in the work we do in reducing the disability employment gap here in Dumfries & Galloway and beyond.”
STRENGTHENING COMMUNITIES PROGRAMME
FUNDING BY ORGANISATION 2026/27
Organisation Name / Funding 2026/27
Active Communities £39,461
Annan Harbour Action Group £47,000
Antonine Sports Centre £44,980
Ardrossan Community Development Trust £40,679
Arisaig Community Trust £46,604
Assynt Development Trust £17,000
Belhelvie Community Trust £26,325
Bluevale Community Club £51,952
Bute Community Land Company £17,760
Campsie Memorial Trust £21,750
Castlemilk Community Football Trust £53,000
Community Development Company of Nesting £25,300
Comrie Development Trust £53,000
Cromarty Community Development Trust £33,100
Culbokie Community Trust £30,277
Dalbeattie Community Initiative £53,060
David Livingston Trust, Blantyre £31,500
Development Coll £41,597
Dufftown and District Community Association £18,825
Dunvegan Community Trust £26,661
Eday Partnership £18,000
Glen Urquhart Rural Community Association (GURCA) £8,500
Glengarry Community Woodlands £20,000
Go Golspie £40,000
Gorebridge Community Development Trust £48,169
Grow 73 £18,688
Healthy n Happy Community Development Trust £40,647
Heart of Newhaven£47,356
Helmsdale & District Development Trust £30,000
IG – Great Bernera Community Trust £39,048
Inspired Community Enterprise Trust (ICET) (The Usual Place) £25,402
Isle of Canna Community Development Trust £12,537
Isle of Gigha Heritage Trust £25,355
Isle of Luing Community Trust £27,000
Kilmadock Development Trust £10,049
Kinloch Historical Society £35,000
Kinlochleven Community Trust £24,110
Kinning Park Complex £42,500
Kirkcolm Community Trust £9,500
Kirkcudbright Development Trust £32,500
Kirknewton Community Development Trust £35,000
Lesmahagow Development Trust £60,504
Linlithgow Community Development Trust £34,885
Lochwinnoch Community Development Trust £25,773
Lockerbie Old School £53,500
Maslow’s Community SCIO £44,847
Midsteeple Quarter, Dumfries £56,420
Minginish Community Association £24,000
New Cumnock Development Trust £44,563
Nith Valley Trust £32,444
North Edinburgh R2 Co-ordinator £56,205
North Glasgow Community Food Initiative £29,388
North Ronaldsay Trust £23,000
One Dalkeith £36,057
Pollok United Nethercraigs CIC £46,498
Portgordon Community Trust Limited £28,723
Possilpark People’s Trust £32,700
Rannoch Community Trust £43,722
Roseneath Pennisula West CDT £44,500
Ruchazie Growing 21 £40,000
Sandness Community Development Group £22,028
Scalloway Community Development Company £38,468
Scourie Community Development Company £12,000
Shapinsay Development Trust £20,000
SHAX £50,500
Sleat Community Trust £38,601
South Islay Development Trust £20,000
South Ronaldsay and Burray Development Trust £33,990
Spean Bridge, Roy Bridge and Achnacarry SCIO £10,000
Stow Community Trust £36,382
Stranraer Development Trust £47,000
Stranraer Water Sports Association £35,690
South West Arts & Music Project (SWAMP) £20,000
Take a Bow Development Trust £48,320
Tayport Community Trust £48,638
The Furniture Project, Stranraer £40,500
The Pavilion, Glasgow £37,987
Three Kings Cullen Association £40,800
Tiree Community Development Trust £22,650
Torridon and District Community Association £46,090
Unst Partnership £37,288
Whitburn Community Development Trust £37,195
Wick Development Trust £26,030
Please note that all funding amounts are subject to due diligence.
The Edinburgh FluteFling concert returns with another lineup of some of the finest traditional flute and whistle players around.
This year’s performers are Claire Mann (Dumfries and Galloway), Tom Oakes (Edinburgh), Tina Jordan Rees (Glasgow) and Hammy Hamilton (County Cork, Ireland).
Expect music from Scotland and Ireland mixed with more recent tunes too. Inventive, dynamic and creative performances all in a friendly setting.
Heart of Newhaven Centre 27 March 2026. Doors open 1930 Performances 2000-2200 BYOB
A group of Edinburgh College students had the right Royal honour of helping cater and host a ship-naming ceremony attended by The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, in the Port of Leith this week.
Princess Anne took part in the ceremony at Forth Ports Cruise Terminal, breaking a bottle of whisky against the ship’s hull and formally naming the vessel POLE STAR.
The students worked alongside professional caterers in a variety of roles, with some cooking up a storm in the kitchens, others taking on front of house duties to make sure all the VIP guests were as comfortable as possible, and some preparing delicious baked goods and cakes to be enjoyed by all.
The event was put on by East Coast Catering Ltd, which is ran by Edinburgh College graduate Kieran Wight, with our students providing vital support. Their hard work was recognised by The Princess Royal herself, who stopped for a chat and learned from the group all about the skills they are being taught on their course.
Adam Robertson, a Level 1 Hospitality student, set out from his home in the Borders at 5am to make sure he was in Edinburgh in time to do his part in the kitchen. He said it was all worth the effort: “When we found out there was an opportunity to cook for such a prestigious guest, I was desperate to do it.
“I think if you want to go out and work in a professional kitchen, it’s so important to have this sort of experience behind you.The College has given us so many amazing opportunities in the short time I’ve been here, and it’s really helped build up my confidence.”
Jodie Dixon is studying HNC Events and she said it was an honour to take part: “I don’t think you can turn down an opportunity like this, to get involved in a literal royal event.
“There’s so much you can learn just by being here, and it’s really nice knowing you’re part of a group that’s all supporting each other too. The lecturers have been great, and have provided us with a lot of support, but they’re also great at letting us go and do our jobs, it makes you feel like you’re trusted.”
Stephanie Tanner, the Head of School for Cookery, Hospitality, Events, Travel and Tourism, said the experience will prove invaluable for the students: “It’s a proud day for everyone at the College, seeing them putting all of their training to use in the real world, and doing so incredibly well.
“Getting the chance to take part in events like this gives them such an advantage when it comes to finding work after graduation. Employers will be able to look at their CVs, and say ‘Wow, they’ve catered an event for a member of the Royal Family!”
Aisha Elshani, a Professional Cookery lecturer, said the students represented the College well: “They’ve all worked so hard, leading up to the event and on the day itself, and it’s really nice to see how well they are all doing.
“They’re all getting on with their jobs, and just conducting themselves really professionally. I think they all have bright futures ahead in the industry”.
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!
For the first time, Heart of Newhaven is delighted to be an official livestream venue for this year’s CHRISTMAS LECTURES® from the Royal Institution.
Join us on the evenings of Thursday 11th, Saturday 13th, and Tuesday 16th December as we stream the lectures live from London.
Bring your curiosity and excitement — families from across the local area are warmly invited to watch the lectures come to life in real time and be among the first to uncover the mysteries of the Universe with Dame Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock!
🎟 Free Events — Please Pre-Register
Although the events are free to attend, please help us manage numbers by pre-registering on our Eventbrite page
Each lecture is suitable for all ages, and you’re welcome to attend one, two, or all three evenings.
