Community Shed job opportunity with North Edinburgh Arts

Are you ready to dive into a rewarding role?

We’re thrilled to announce that we’re extending the application deadline for the Community Shed Manager position!

This part-time opportunity (21 hours/week) is your chance to play a pivotal role in nurturing the NEA Community Shed’s development and growth.

As the Community Shed Manager, you’ll be at the heart of our vibrant community, fostering positive connections, and ensuring sustainability.

With our venue expansion on the horizon, this is a great time to get involved and be a part of our team. Bring your passion for making and mending, your creative problem-solving skills, and your excellent interpersonal skills.

To find out more about the role, please visit our website at

northedinburgharts.co.uk/aboutus/work-with-us/

and apply by Friday 26 April.

As we’ve extended the closing date for this post, previous applicants need not apply. For more information, please email garden@northedinburgharts.co.uk

Business in Bloom: Celebration event

SATURDAY 20 APRIL from 11am – 2pm at WEST PILTON NEIGHBOURHOOD CENTRE

Do you have a creative ‘hobby’ but have never thought of it as a way to earn some £ or to set it up as a business?

Are you at the very early stages of starting a new enterprise like being self-employed or a sole trader, setting up a business or social enterprise? Keen to learn more, share your skills, get some advice or support on next steps?

Or maybe you are an established entrepreneur, business owner, sole trader or self-employed person looking to share your skills and knowledge with others in your community?

At the Business in Bloom event, everyone is welcome, no matter what stage you are at on your enterprise journey.

We believe everyone has something important to contribute, and by working together we can make a positive difference – Small Steps, Big Impact! 🌷💙

To find out more about the event and sign up for your FREE place, visit: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/…/business-in-bloom…

Celebrate 100 years of Community Ownership with North Edinburgh Arts

Did you know 2024 marks the 100th anniversary of community ownership of land, assets and buildings in Scotland?

To celebrate this, and to mark North Edinburgh Arts coming into community ownership in 2022, we have commissioned a work from local textile artist Francia Boakye.

Francia will be weaving a set of baskets to carry our hopes and ambitions into the next 100 years of community ownership. Francia will be using a range of fabrics to represent the rich diversity of our local community. The many languages spoken across North Edinburgh will also be incorporated into the baskets, written on fabric woven into each piece.

The completed collection will be part of an exhibition in the Travelling Gallery touring Scotland between June and August this summer and will have a permanent home within the refurbished and expanded NEA building due for completion later this year.

If you live in North Edinburgh, we’d be delighted if you can take part in this project. Simply reply to this post with your hope for our community, and note additional languages spoken, or email these details to admin@northedinburgharts.co.uk by Friday 19 April 2024.

This project is supported by Creative Scotland and The National Lottery Heritage Fund

For more details, please see:

💜http://www.communitylandscotland.org.uk/…/community…/

💛http://frankfrancia.com/new-scots-textile-artist-and…/

🩷travellinggallery.com/future-exhibitions/

💜www.northedinburgharts.co.uk/development

NEA Easter Event tomorrow

🐰Join us for a Free Family Easter Event tomorrow Monday 8 April, between 10am – 12pm at West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre🐣

Enjoy arts and crafts, an exciting Easter egg hunt, and some refreshments. Don’t miss this family-friendly Easter break fun, simply come along and join us Monday morning. 🌸

For more information, please contact the NEA Link Up Team at 07493 876 130.

North Edinburgh projects hit the Lottery jackpot

Community groups across Edinburgh will be able to provide vital services and support for thousands of local people thanks to National Lottery funding announced today.

North Edinburgh projects have done particularly well in the latest round of funding. Both North Edinburgh Arts and Stepping Stones North Edinburgh are awarded six figure sums, while Muirhouse Millennium Centre, Heart of Newhaven, Blackhall Children’s Sports Committee, Ama-zing Harmonies and Granton Parish Church are among other local organisations to receive grants today.

The latest round of funding from The National Lottery Community Fund is shared amongst 384 projects across Scotland, sharing in £15,048,544

See below for a full list of projects

North Edinburgh Arts will use their award of £148,821 to continue their ‘Green Projects’ programme which provides green spaces for local people to come together whilst offering a range of volunteering opportunities and arts and garden activities for people of all ages to get involved in.

Valla Moodie, Green Projects Manager, North Edinburgh Arts said: “This funding will enable us to start an exciting phase of work as we move back into our refurbished and extended building after two years in temporary venues, setting up our new Community Shed workshop and redeveloping our community garden at the back of our venue.

“This support, given to our ‘Green Projects’, will allow us to continue to offer opportunities for our local community that improve their health and well-being whilst contributing to the enrichment of their neighbourhood, building local resilience to big issues and sharing and supporting them with actions that combat climate change.”

STEPPING STONES North Edinburgh receive £132,020 through the Improving Lives programme.

The group, based at Inchgarvie Court in West Pilton, will use the funding to continue delivering their Family Wellbeing project, supporting primary school children and their families by providing individual, group and equine mental health support in North West Edinburgh.

Thanks to an award of £126,671, Deaf Action will run a digital literacy programme to help deaf people across the city develop and improve their skillset.

Support will be provided through a series of one-to-one sessions and group work covering specific topics such as word processing, scam awareness, healthcare apps and video calling software.

Lauren McAnna, Community Services Manager, Deaf Action said: “Our Digital Inclusion Service will support deaf people living across Edinburgh to become digitally empowered, unlocking a world of information, resources and opportunities that will foster greater independence and help improve life outcomes.

“We will support deaf adults and older people who face significant barriers to communication and social inclusion and who are likely to be experiencing financial hardship and/or socioeconomic disadvantage. 

“By supporting deaf people to overcome barriers to digital literacy they can become more connected and active citizens, have increased independence and improved wellbeing in many aspects of their lives.”

An award of £19,929 to Survivors of Human Trafficking in Scotland means they can continue to identify more victims of human trafficking across the city.

Joy M Gillespie, CEO, Survivors of Human Trafficking said: “We will be able to work with our cross-sector partners to recover more victims of human trafficking in Edinburgh and provide vital prevention information to those most at risk. 

“We believe there is power in partnership and are grateful to The National Lottery Community Fund for partnering with us to help end end human trafficking in Scotland.”

Announcing the funding, Kate Still, Scotland Chair, The National Lottery Community Fund said: “This latest round of National Lottery funding will be distributed to groups across Edinburgh who are providing a range of essential services and support for thousands of local people, helping to make a real difference to their lives.

“As The National Lottery prepares to mark its 30th birthday later this year, today’s investment is a timely reminder of the difference that National Lottery players continue to make to communities across the country.”

The National Lottery Community Fund distributes funding on behalf of National Lottery players who raise more than £30 million each week for good causes throughout the UK.   

To find out more visit www.TNLCommunityFund.org.uk    

Stories and Scran!

WINTER WARMER EVENT at WEST PILTON NEIGHBOURHOOD CENTRE

Citizen Winter Warmer: Stories and Scran at North Edinburgh Arts

Saturday 2 December at 3pm

West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre

£5/£3 (Concession/NEA Members) including an afternoon tea

Come along to this special community celebration bringing together local voices with authors and artists from across Scotland.

Savour a sumptuous afternoon-tea provided by the Scran Academy (included with your ticket) and hear brilliant new writing from local people who have taken part in Edinburgh International Book Festival‘s ‘Citizen’ alongside special guests including Kate Forster and Doug Johnstone.

This year’s event showcases the diverse voices and creative talent from local groups including a film from the North Edinburgh Drama Group and the Book Festival’s own Adults Writing Group.

Don’t miss the event and book your tickets at:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/751709632747…

North Edinburgh Arts: Community Studio Space Open Meeting

TUESDAY 31 OCTOBER 2 – 3pm

at WEST PILTON NEIGHBOURHOOD CENTRE

Artist Alice Betts, together with members of the Art for Grown Ups group, have been exploring and developing a plan for a permanent visual arts studio and making space within the expanded and refurbished NEA venue, due to re-open in 2024.

You can read more about the research project in our blog post at northedinburgharts.co.uk/developing-a-community-visual-arts-space/

As part of her research project, Alice would like to hear from local creative adults who are interested in using a free visual arts studio space at North Edinburgh Arts.

Join the Open Meeting: NEA Community Studio Space on Tuesday 31 October at 2pm at West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre to share your thoughts and ideas about a community-accessible studio space within the refurbished NEA.

This event is open to local artists, creatives, and NEA project participants including those from the Community Shed, Create Community Wealth, Art for Grown Ups, and A Stitch in Time.

Come and help shape our future free space for North Edinburgh’s creative community. This is a free event. Advance booking isn’t required.

For more information, please email alice.betts@northedinburgharts.co.uk

New hours for Community Shed

Community Shed opening hours update

Due to staffing changes our free drop-in wood-making session times haves slightly changed to ** Tuesdays & Wednesdays 10am to 2.30pm **

We’re still making and mending, using recycled wood, at the NEA Community Shed, but for the rest of the year we are based at Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre (67b Groathill Road North, Edinburgh, EH4 2SA).

If you want to learn more about wood-making, up-cycle your home furniture or make something new out of recycled wood, come and join us!

For more information, please email garden@northedinburgharts.co.uk