Did you know that we have a secret weapon right under our nose? One that can help us calm our nervous system; helping us to feel grounded, centered and connected to ourselves.
And what is this secret weapon I hear you ask…? Well, it’s the simple act of breathing mindfully.
Join me, Jules. on Monday mornings here at PCHP and together we’ll explore different breath practices that help not only improve our quality of breath but also help us relax and re-charge ready for the week ahead.
10-10.30am – Breathwork, seated warm-up and guided meditation
10.45-11.30am – Yoga Practice
*** Women Only ***
Want to know more? Get in touch with us via email: hello@pchp.org.uk
The third North Edinburgh Community Festival will take place on Saturday 1th May 2024 in West Pilton Park. The park sits in the heart of North Edinburgh and draws its audience from Pilton, Muirhouse, Granton, Drylaw, Davidson Mains, Silverknowes and Wardie.
The event which has grown year on year is a fun, free to attend, family day out for new and existing residents to enjoy – promoting opportunities, creativity, enhancing community cohesion, reducing social isolation and celebrating the diversity of the area.
The Festival is going from strength to strength with over 100 local groups, organisations and charities taking part and providing workshops, information and activities – from glitter tattoos to video games, from dodgeball and football to obstacle courses and interactive theatre.
In the open area at the far end of the park we will have the Army, Marines and the Airforce in attendance showing as well as the Scottish Fire Services.
This year and moving forward, one of the key aims of the festival will be to work with young people in North Edinburgh and encouraging young people to take the reigns for future events and festivals.
One of the ways to engage with the young people is through music and over 600 young people from across North Edinburgh have taken part in the Tinderbox Garage Band Challenge, creating their own new music for the event. The winners will perform their original tracks on the main stage at the festival.
The music for the festival has been curated by local organisations Tinderbox Collective and Granton Youth’s Mixtape Music Club.
There will be more than 30 acts playing over the afternoon including over 160 performers, almost all of them from the local neighbourhood. On the outdoor stage, highlights include the incredible Fischy Music, Ama-zing Harmonies Choir, Heritage Of India Through Dance and Edinburgh Ukrainian choir.
On the indoor stage we have an exciting lineup of youth bands who are part of ‘North By North West’ a collaboration project between 5 youth music organisations across North Edinburgh the aim is to get the very best emerging talent out onto the Edinburgh music scene.
From the slick electronic pop of Muirhouse local (and BBC Introducing alumni) Laurent, Granton rapper Leon Highway, or the pop-rock stylings of Drenched in Dreams – we’ve got something to suit all tastes. Look out for amazing youth artists A420, Kieran Crosbie, Mezari, and Trisha Muco finishing out the festival in collaboration with players from Tinderbox Orchestra.
Head into the Sports Hall of West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre to find Tinderbox Games Showcase, an exhibition of playable games made by young game designers of all ages from North Edinburgh.
These will be featured alongside an exciting new escape room made in collaboration with young people from Granton Youth, which draws inspiration from trips to the Granton Hub archives and the area’s rich history, as well as a selection of games made by previous winners of the East Lothian Game Jam.
You’ll discover a mix of digital, physical and table-top games made by the next up-and-coming generation of game designers and creators from the neighbourhood.
Look out for Granton Youth’s stall advertising its youth work provision, which includes work with local schools, detached youth work, counselling for parents and young people, open access youth clubs, family support, and Mixtape – our music club.
This year we are extremely excited to have so many of the Edinburgh Festivals joining us on the day.
Edinburgh Fringe Festival Society will have street performers on the day and will be handing out free tickets to shows at this years Fringe Festival under their new Fringe Days Out Scheme which offers free Fringe vouchers and Lothian bus tickets to people who wouldn’t normally get to experience the Fringe.
The Edinburgh Science Festival are back with bigger and better street performance style science shows as well as their cargo tricycle for their science demonstrations.
And there will be storytelling activities for families from the Edinburgh International Book Festival Citizen Adults Writing Group plus loads of free books for children.
North Edinburgh Arts have a host of activities planned across their two large marquees this year. There will be drop-in arts activities for children and families, carpet bowls, and information on their newly refurbished and extended building opening later this year.
There will be family-friendly performances by commissioned artists, selected by local children from Forthview Primary School and Pilton Youth, as part of the Creative Encounters project, delivered in partnership with Imaginate, the Childrens Festival and North Edinburgh Arts.
And there will be storytelling activities for families from the Edinburgh International Book Festival Citizen Adults Writing Group plus loads of free books for children.
Of course, there cant be a festival without a parade and this year North Edinburgh Childcare have stepped up and organised the parade which will leave from their premises at 1130am and make its way along Ferry Road Drive around West Pilton Park and entering the park for the official start of the festival at 12noon.
The theme is Superheroes and any families looking to join in are most welcome. Pulse of Place will lead the parade and if you are around North Edinburgh on Saturday 11th May, you’ll most certainly hear the parade before you see it!
Other activities on the day include:
Important information from around 80 third sector organisations
Badge making with Pilton Community Health Project
National Galleries of Scotland’s Art in the Open electric cargo-bike for a sustainable art making workshop
Storytelling with Muirhouse and Granton Libraries
Human tower building with Colla Castellera d’Edinburgh
Horses from Edinburgh Equilearn
Each year the festival provides free food – the amazing RRT (Rapid Relief Team) hand out a few thousand burgers and will return again this year.
There will also be free food from Bangla Kitchen and Multi-Cultural Family Base.
This year we have yet again a larger food presence with some new vendors but as always there is cap on the cost of food at £5.
Lyndon Cane from RRT says “RRT is pleased to support North Edinburgh again by providing the signature burger meal at the North Edinburgh Community Festival.
“Care and Compassion is at the heart of what we do, and this event is important for us to attend so we can widen our support to communities during times of need.”
North Edinburgh Community Festival really does have the community at its very heart and we can’t wait to see everyone on the day.
A few places still available at LifeCare’s free info event to help local people simplify the future
Thinking about what would happen in the future if our, or our loved ones, faculties deteriorated can be stressful and worrying. How would someone manage our affairs, access our accounts to set up the right care for us, or pay the bills? Without the right processes in place, an already very emotional situation can be made worse with often very serious consequences.
Local charity, LifeCare Edinburgh understands how daunting and complex these situations can be and will next month host a free information giving event to help debunk the complexities and help people put the right practical support in place to ensure someone trusted can quickly make decisions on behalf of a loved one if they’re not able, or no longer able, to make them themselves.
Power of Attorney is a legal document where someone – while they still have mental capacity – nominates a trusted friend or relative to look after their affairs if they later lost capacity in the event of an emergency, illness or accident.
It is not limited to people who are older or unwell, everyone needs to consider setting up a Power of Attorney at any stage of life to avoid any future complications. For example, due to having a stroke, serious accident or dementia.
Delivered in partnership with experts from Lindsay’s Legal Services team, LifeCare will host its first information giving event designed to encourage people to stop and think about what they need to put in place to help simplify the future.
Sarah van Putten, Chief Executive of LifeCare said “Unfortunately at LifeCare we are well aware of how stressful life can be when people don’t have the right documents in place. No one can predict when they may face an unforeseen illness, accident or other debilitating event that may render them incapacitated.
“As one of Edinburgh’s leading charities providing practical care support we know how emotional these situations can be at the best of times but we also know how much worse they can be when family members and loved ones are locked out of helping access the support for the people they care for.
“Relatives can’t just walk into a bank and access your money, even if it is to pay for your care. Unless you’ve a Power of Attorney, loved ones would need to apply through court, which can be long and costly.
“We understand that thinking about the future can be upsetting and frightening. Our free and informal information giving event delivered in partnership with Lindsays is designed to simplify matters; there will be no jargon and there will be plenty of time for questions and discussions and an opportunity to discuss any concerns with legal experts for free.”
LifeCare’s ‘What is Power of Attorney’ event, delivered in partnership with Lindsay’s, will take place at 2pm on Wednesday 1st May in the charity’s fully accessible community café, CafeLife at 2 Cheyne Street, EH4 1JB.
Free tea and coffee will be available along with the opportunity to find out more about LifeCare’s vital services for older people and the community overall.
The owners of Ocean Terminal have confirmed they have signed a deal which will bring a Tesco Express to the Leith waterfront development as part of multi-million pound plans to regenerate the site.
The addition of the supermarket to the retail section of the redevelopment is expected to create up to 20 jobs as part of a major investment in Leith’s waterfront. The 4,700 sq ft ground floor unit will look out over a new public realm and future residential development.
The announcement is the latest in a chain of positive developments on the site, including the relocation and upgrade of the 24/7 PureGym to a brand new unit earlier this month.
Last year Ocean Terminal revealed it had agreed a long-term lease with Level X, the gaming and immersive entertainment provider, which will see a new purpose-built, state-of-the-art leisure venue open at the centre adjacent to a brand new Club 3000 Bingo venue which promises to be one of the best clubs ever developed in the UK, enhancing the leisure offering at the new look centre.
Chris Richardson, Managing Director of Ambassador Investment Management, the Scottish owners of Ocean Terminal, said:“We are delighted to confirm a fifteen-year lease with Tesco which will bring significant benefits to the Leith waterfront development, cementing our commitment to ensure this project delivers for the local and wider community.
“The addition of a new major retailer is a huge boost to the project and our longer term vision to to regenerate this waterfront area into a thriving, sustainable development creating an outward-looking, mixed-use town centre here in Leith.
“We’re thrilled to have Tesco fully on board, which further enhances the multi-use, dynamic offering within the leisure space at the Ocean Terminal site.”
Head of Campaigns for Tesco, Tony McElroyadded: “We are excited to be opening a new Tesco Express in Ocean Terminal, as part of our ongoing investment and job creation plans across Edinburgh.
“We look forward to serving our customers and supporting local community groups through our Stronger Starts and Community Food Connection initiatives.”
Edinburgh singer songwriter Callum Beattie visited the Scottish Ambulance Service’s East Ambulance Control Centre (ACC) on Thursday (April 25) to learn vital CPR skills and give thanks to SAS staff.
Callum, in the middle of a busy touring schedule which includes a number of dates across the United Kingdom, spoke to ACC staff at South Queensferry, giving thanks to the entire Service, and also learning CPR from Bryan Finlay, SAS’s Community Resilience Team Leader.
Callum, along with manager Dave Rogers, said he had an enormous amount of respect for SAS and urged people to learn CPR.
He said: “I was delighted to visit the East Ambulance Control Centre today to speak to staff and learn CPR. I was really impressed with the entire team and how they handle calls from across the country.
“It really shows how important they are to ensuring people get the best possible care. I’ve always admired the entire service, so great to see how things work up close.
“I’d also like to thank Bryan for showing me CPR. It’s something I had never tried, but can see how valuable it is, so I’d encourage anyone to get out there and learn the basic skills. You never know when it could save someone’s life.
“Thanks to everyone at the ACC and the rest of the service – you do an amazing job for the people of Scotland and I was thrilled to see it first hand and learn about the different roles within the control centre.”
Scottish Building Society hosted Scotland’s first inclusive rugby festival, with Edinburgh Rugby Inclusive Team (ERIT) being crowned the tournament’s first ever champion.
The event which saw nearly 100 participants from across Scotland compete from the four teams- Edinburgh Inclusive Rugby Team, Strathmore Clan, Fife Clan and Ayrshire Clan.
The round-robin tournament was played ahead of Edinburgh Rugby’s match with Scarlets in the BKT United Rugby Championship.
All players from the tournament took part in a lap of honour at half-time before the winning side was presented with a trophy by Scottish Building Society, Chief Executive Officer, Paul Denton.
Inclusive Rugby involves both able-bodied players and those with a physical or learning disability, playing in one unified outfit.
It is hoped the Scottish Building Society Festival will encourage others to get involved in rugby, showing regardless of ability, there is room for everyone in this sport.
Mr Denton said: “Our partnership with Edinburgh Rugby is about far more than the professional players on the pitch. Rugby is a sport for everyone and using our platform we wanted to create opportunities to make the game more accessible and inspire others to get involved.
“It was an honour to meet the teams and seeing the players come together with such a great display of community and teamwork is truly inspiring. I hope this tournament encourages people to look at rugby differently, inspires people to get involved in this great sport.”
Edinburgh Rugby, managing director, Douglas Struth added: “We’re absolutely thrilled to have hosted the Scottish Building Society Inclusive Festival ahead of our game against Scarlets.
“It kicked off our ‘Family Fest’ match night in style and it was a special moment to see the players all join in for the lap of honour at half time.
“With four teams and nearly 100 players involved the festival of rugby and togetherness, that celebrates everything good about the game we love.”
TWO young people from Scotland have been awarded Rotary Young Citizens Awards for 2024 for their outstanding commitments to their communities:
Ian Duncan (13, Edinburgh), a prominent ‘frame runner’ with Cerebral Palsy, was awarded for climbing the equivalent height of Ben Nevis in steps to raise money for the local Riding for Disabled centre in Muirfield.
Rhys McCole (23, Inverclyde), currently the world’s only para-disabled competitive boxer, was awarded for his commitment to charity endeavours and volunteer work whilst facing numerous health challenges. These include setting up his own boxing programme with local schools, and supporting organisations Inch by Inch, Fighting for Autism and Enable Scotland.
A 13-year-old boy from Edinburgh has been designated a ‘Sporting Hero’ after winning a prestigious Rotary Young Citizen Award.
Ian Duncan was named a ‘Rotary Young Citizen Sporting Hero’ after climbing the equivalent height of Ben Nevis in steps to raise money for the local Riding for Disabled (RDA) centre in Muirfield.
Ian lives with Cerebral Palsy, which impacts his mobility, coordination and balance. Since the age of three, Ian has benefited from Hippotherapy at RDA Muirfield, a physical, occupational and speech therapy which utilises the natural gait and movement of a horse to provide motor and sensory input.
Ian is a prominent ‘Frame Runner’, which is a form of adaptive running which uses a ‘trike’ to support the athlete’s body, giving them the sensation of free movement. Ian proved a natural at frame running, and has proven committed to training in all weathers – even making the 30-mile round trip to his training site near Edinburgh, twice a week.
The training sessions have given Ian confidence, freedom and friendship, and he has played a pivotal role in growing the club to a team of six. In addition to helping support the club’s growth, Ian also took part in a medical study based at Queen Margaret University, Musselburgh (the university collaborated with the East Lothian club to develop the squad).
The study, funded by Action Medical Research, looked at the impact of frame running on the health and wellbeing of individuals with walking difficulties.
Ian’s natural talent for dressage has seen him take part in a number of UK-wide events, resulting in him finishing third in the virtual National Championships, riding the mechanical horse Oreo – a first for the competition.
To support his local RDA centre, Ian challenged himself to climb the 8,810 steps that represent Scotland’s highest mountain – Ben Nevis. In doing so, Ian raised a fantastic £1,755, ensuring more young people can benefit from Hippotherapy.
Ian received his award on Saturday 20th April from two former winners, Bella Field and Katriona Goodsell, at the Rotary Young Citizen Awards ceremony in Alcester, Warwickshire, home of Rotary GB&I.
Ian was nominated for his Rotary Young Citizen Award by the Rotary Club of Braids.
Rotarian Pauline Skinner said: “It is fantastic to hear that Ian has won the Rotary Young Citizen Sporting Hero award. Through his work with his athletics club he has raised the profile of frame running in Edinburgh.
“His fundraising for RDA has enabled others to share the benefits of horse riding. He has shown that anything is possible.”
Ian was chosen as a 2024 winner alongside eight other young people. Now in its 17th Anniversary year, the Rotary Young Citizen Awards was launched in 2007 to celebrate the amazing achievements of young people across Great Britain and Ireland, many of whom have assumed important responsibilities at a very young age. Nominations are put forward by Rotary Clubs.
Rhys McCole, a 23-year old from Gourock, Inverclyde, has been awarded a Rotary Young Citizen Peacemaker Award 2024 for his dedication to community service and leadership.
The award recognises Rhys’s commitment to charitable endeavours and volunteer work, despite facing numerous health challenges, including holes in his heart, Mears Irlen syndrome, Auditory processing disorder, dyslexia, Autism and Asthma.
Currently the only “para-disabled” boxer in the world that competes in mainstream boxing, Rhys has also launched his own boxing programme for young people. Through this, he has worked in conjunction with local schools to encourage health, fitness, and social inclusion, and promote important messages such as anti-bullying and anti-substance abuse.
The impact of Rhys’s work is recognised in the local community, with schools reporting the physical and mental health benefits of his boxing programme, as well as reduced violence and improved attendance among students.
Rhys has represented Inverclyde as an ambassador for the Year of Young People 2018, as well as a presenter for Inch by Inch, a campaign aimed at reducing obesity amongst the population of Scotland. He has also dedicated himself to supporting organisations such as Fighting for Autism and Enable Scotland.
Rhys, who received his award on Saturday 20th April, was nominated for the award by the Rotary Club of Gourock.
Rotarian Norman Pettigrew, commented: “Rhys’s dedication to supporting young people in his community is truly inspiring.
“Despite the challenges he faces, he serves as a role model for both resilience and compassion, and his work exemplifies his passion for making a difference in the lives of others.”
Find out more about the inspirational Rotary Young Citizen Award Winners 2024 at www.rotarygbi.org.
Scotland’s largest health and social care unions protested outside the Scottish Parliament on Thursday to demand the return of the ‘missing millions’ cut from the Scottish Government’s Budget for social care workers.
Information from the Scottish Trades Union Congress’ ‘Missing Millions’ campaign has shown that £38 million of ringfenced funding for maternity, paternity and sick pay for social care workers in Scotland was secretly cut from the latest Scottish Government budget.
Workers from Scotland’s three biggest social care unions, UNISON, GMB and UNITE will protest outside the Scottish Parliament to demand the return of the cash with workers accusing the Scottish Government of “betraying” social care workers.
The ‘Missing Millions’ campaign was launched last week during STUC Congress. A Freedom of Information request has shown that the £38 million cut was pulled directly from the Scottish Government’s Fair Work in Social Care terms and conditions workstream in September 2023.
Commenting, STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer said: “Cutting the budget to improve the terms, pay and conditions of Scotland’s social care workers is, quite frankly, unforgiveable.
“This was a sleekit move from the Scottish Government with no transparency, no accountability and worse, no promise of restoring the funding.
“These were the front-line workers that cared for those most in need during the pandemic. Some even paid with their lives protecting the vulnerable and our communities from the virus.
“For the Scottish Government to cut the dedicated funding that would, in part, seek to implement Fair Work within the sector, with improved sick pay and conditions, is nothing short of betraying the workforce.
“We call on all those who stand alongside our social care workers to join us outside Parliament.
“We’re sending a clear message to all politicians, especially the Scottish Government, that social care workers are demanding a return of the missing millions and a quick U-turn to this ill-judged budget cut.”
An invasive species expert has warned that Scotland is facing a huge year for the proliferation of highly caustic Giant Hogweed after identifying the emergence of the plant much earlier in the year than might be expected.
Keith Gallacher, director of Complete Weed Control, one of Scotland’s leading weed control, ground maintenance and tree management specialists, spotted young shoots of the rapidly-spreading and dangerous plant emerging from winter dormancy in March.
He warned that this is unusually early for the enormous Heracleum Mantegazzianum, which can grow up to six metres high and whose sap can cause severe burns with lasting effects such as scarring and chronic dermatitis.
He said that the early showing of Giant Hogweed could have been precipitated by mild and wet spring weather – March had 27% more rainfall than normal in the UK – and that it could lead to greater infestations of the plant, which can spread tens of thousands of seeds after it flowers in June and July.
Mr Gallacher said: “Our teams saw the much-earlier-than-expected appearance of the young Giant Hogweed during routine inspections in East Lothian, near Musselburgh. With such an early start, and with the rate of growth of which the plants are capable, it is likely that 2024 will be a bumper year for this rapacious invader.
“Like many invasive species, such as Japanese Knotweed and Himalayan Balsam, it was brought to the UK as an architectural oddity, but now it has escaped and, without any natural enemies, it grows into dense colonies, especially along watercourses.
“It is part of the Apiaceae family, which includes carrots, parsnip, cumin, coriander and parsley, but its dense foliage prevents light reaching the soil underneath, killing off native plants and leading to rapid soil erosion.”
Complete Weed Control, which now covers the greater part of Scotland from its recently-acquired base in Larkhall, will treat the plants but has warned that eliminating Giant Hogweed requires a concerted and sustained effort by all landowners in an affected area.
He said: “If you leave it too late, the plants get larger and become more difficult to spray, and require more herbicide. But if you do it too early and you get the torrential rains like we’ve had these last few weeks, the herbicide won’t have much effect.”
Complete Weed Control has continued to gain prestigious contracts from clients across Scotland and has posted a record £2.75 million in sales last year, up from £2 million the previous year.
Growth has been boosted by new client acquisition as well as its tree services division, which now contributes equally with the longer-established weed suppressant and grass cutting services it supplies to mostly public sector organisations.
