Scotland has a proud history of producing internationally renowned writers, from Burns, Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson to contemporary talents like Hugh MacDairmid, Liz Lochhead and Irvine Welsh. If you’d like to learn more about modern Scottish literature there’s a free course starting at The Prentice Centre later this month that’s just ‘write’ for you!
Starting on 23 January, ‘Modern Scottish Literature’ is a 8 – 10 week course that will run on Monday afternoons from 2.30 – 4.30pm in The Prentice Centre. Supported by the Workers Education Association and Prentice Centre’s Adult Education Group, the course is free to all participants.
The course tutor is Derek Suttie (pictured), who is no stranger to The Prentice Centre. Derek was formerly Senior Community Education worker based at the centre in Granton Mains Avenue until he retired last year.
For further information on ‘Modern Scottish Literature’ or to book your place on the course please contact The Prentice Centre on 552 0485 or WEA on 225 2580.
A seventy-five year old woman has been mugged at the entrance to Ferryhill Primary School on Groathill Road North. The incident happened at about 6pm on Sunday night.
Police cordon off the area around the entrance to Ferryhill primary School. (Picture: Thomas Brown)
A Police spokseperson said “A seventy-five year old female had her handbag snatched from her with such force it caused her to fall to the ground. As a result of this fall the elderly lady has sustained serious injuries which have resulted in her having to be admitted to Hospital.
Officers of Lothian and Borders Police are appealing to the public to help them identify the male responsible who is described as being in his early twenties, six feet tall with a skinny build, wearing dark clothing and a cream coloured hat.”
Officers were at the scene until about 10.30pm and carried out a thorough search of the area.
A Police search team search the area where the woman was mugged. (Picture: Thomas Brown)
Anyone with information is urged to contact the Police on 311-3131 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111
The finishing touches are being applied and it’s all systems go as staff gear up for the official opening of the magnificent new Royston Wardieburn Community Centre on Monday. Full report next week.
The new Centre towers over the old building, which is currently being demolished
Have you got news for us? If you have – get it in now!
This weekend is the deadline for contributions for our relaunch issue, so if you have news you’d like to share with the people of North Edinburgh email northedinnews@gmail.com or telephone 0792 540 5972.
The Granton Community Gardeners now have a Tuesday morning gardening club. We meet at 10.30 at the Salvation Army building on Wardieburn Drive for a cup of tea and to pick up tools. Then (weather permitting) we go to work on the community gardens at either end of Wardieburn Road. All very welcome! You don’t need to know anything about gardening to join in. For more information and updates you can now follow us on Facebook at: http://tinyurl.com/grantoncommunitygardeners
PYCP’s Christmas party was a spectacular end to a busy year!
Over 80 children attended our Christmas party and were entertained by Alexander the great with his magic tricks and balloon skills. The children enjoyed a fabulous buffet and participated in party games enjoying all the old favourites such as musical statues, bumps and pass the parcel. We had some amazing disco dancers who boogied the day away and were awarded a fantastic prize for their hard work and energy levels!
To end the party all of the children who attended met Santa and received a wonderful gift! The project applied to Radio Forth’s cash for kids who provided us with toys and a grant to buy all the children a gift for Christmas!
We would like to thank all the children who attended, our volunteers who helped out and radio forth. The day would not have been as successful without the support of all of these agencies and people.
ATTACKS on firefighters attending blazes in the Lothians are on the rise with crews reporting everything from assaults with beer cans to thugs trying to steal appliances.
David Lockhart, says attacks on crews are sensless. (Picture: Lothian and Borders Fire Service)
At least 46 violent attacks were launched against firefighters tackling blazes in the last year, a rise of more than 25 per cent since 2010 and the first increase in four years.
Crews have been attacked with bricks, eggs and even berries as they responded to emergency incidents. They have also been threatened with pool cues and have experienced youths stubbing out cigarettes on their uniforms, spitting at them and trying to cut up hoses.
Today fire bosses blasted the “senseless” attacks.
David Lockhart, community safety manager at Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service, said chiefs would not hesitate to prosecute anyone who carried out such anti-social behaviour. He said: “Any attack on operational firefighters is totally senseless. They play a vital role in the community, protecting the public from fire and other emergencies.
“We now have added legislation in the form of the Emergency Workers Act, which has been used to successfully prosecute people who have impeded firefighters and other emergency service personnel from carrying out their duties.
“Although we have seen an increase in figures this year, over the longer term attacks are down and in part this is due to our continued efforts to educate the public about the need to respect firefighters and the risks of prosecution should they choose not to.”
He added: “We’re always alert to the possibility of these kind of incidents, and as alcohol can often play a part, this is something we are very aware of over the festive period. We get a lot of support from the police if we attend an incident.”
Throughout the course of 2011 firefighters endured dozens of call-outs where they were showered with rocks and bricks and abused in the street. During one incident, on Niddrie Mains Road, small children ambushed a fire crew.
It followed a previous incident when a large gang of children aged between six and 16 attacked firefighters, leaving one injured. They targeted six firefighters from Bathgate, pelting them with stones while their backs were turned, resulting in a leg injury.
Earlier this year, a 15-year-old schoolboy was charged with trying to steal a fire engine while up to 30 children pelted firefighters with eggs at West Pilton Children’s Centre.
In 2010 one home owner tried to attack crews with a pool cue. Children later attacked them with full beer cans, eggs and berries.
The number of attacks was at its highest in 2006, when nearly 80 incidents were recorded by the service. Firefighters were punched, kicked, spat on and dog excrement was thrown at them. There were around 50 attacks in 2007, 45 in 2008 and 45 in 2009.
The Royal Yacht Britannia is tilting towards its starboard side
Emergency services are trying to pump water out of the Royal Yacht Britannia after it started listing while it was being moved to have its hull repainted.
The iconic yacht is tilting on its starboard side after developing a leak in a door seal.
The leak was discovered when officials noticed the boat was tilting and went to alter ballast levels.
The boat was due to be moved at 09:30 to a dry dock a few hundred metres across the harbour in Leith.
At least four fire engines are at the scene.
It is the first time it has been moved from its berth in Edinburgh in almost 14 years.
It is due to reopen to the public on 1 February.
Work began on the ship at John Brown’s shipyard in Clydebank in June 1952 and it was launched in April 1953.
Last year was one of the attraction’s busiest years with more than 275,000 visitors, a 12% increase on the previous year.
THE Royal Botanic Garden is today counting the cost of this week’s storm after the gales toppled more than 40 trees and smashed hundreds of windows.
The Botanic gardens on a nicer day.
The visitor attraction has been left reeling after hurricane-force winds lashed the Inverleith site, with a number of the trees blown down dating back 125 years.
Among the most valuable is the ailanthus altissima – also known as the Tree of Heaven – which was torn from its roots by 100mph winds.
Curators at the Botanics hope they can propagate the rare Chinese tree – brought to Scotland in 1925 by the collector Joseph Rock – along with other rare varieties struck down by the winds.
Many were uprooted or snapped off at ground level, damaging smaller trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants around and beneath them as they fell.
The public glasshouses and research houses also suffered severe damage, leaving plants exposed to the elements, with 400 panes of glass in all smashed.
David Knott, curator of the living collections said “I have never experienced storm damage at RBGE like this before. We will attempt to propagate the wild origin trees that have come down.”
It comes as property experts at the city council continue to survey the damage caused by the high winds at 110 city sites.
Insurance industry sources said many individual claims for damage to roofing or building fabric could total tens of thousands of pounds.
At Edinburgh Airport, a Jet2 cargo plane is being repaired after being struck by a flying bus shelter.
Scottish Power said around 600-700 homes across Edinburgh and the Lothians were still without power, with extra engineers drafted in from down south to help fix the faults.
A spokeswoman said they had received the same number of faults in a single day as they would normally in three months.
Forecaster for the Met Office Dave Clark said gusts reaching around 50mph would return to the Lothians on Sunday.
Kirkliston Leisure Centre will be closed for the foreseeable future until a new roof can be installed and the climbing centre at Ratho was closed after its roof was damaged, and later partly reopened. Leith Waterworld, which was closed due to storm damage, will reopen for its final weekend.
POLICE have warned residents who received bikes as Christmas presents to invest in good-quality locks to help deter thieves.
Local Police often patrol the cycle paths on bikes. (Picture: Michael Lindsay)
Professional gangs are cashing in on the city’s cycling boom, taking bikes from streets, common stairways and sheds.
Pc Janie Harman said: “I would encourage bicycle owners to think about security and to use strong D-locks, never leave their bicycle unattended without securing it and to park in well-lit areas covered by CCTV, if possible.
“I would also ask people to take a few minutes to register their bicycle details on a national register at www.immobilise.com.”
The number of bikes reported stolen in Edinburgh fell four per cent between April 2010 and last March compared with the previous year, from 1706 to 1635.
Last month, figures revealed that only one in ten bikes stolen by thieves in Lothian and Borders is recovered.
Between 2008 and 2010, 6047 bikes were reported as stolen in the area with just 627 being recovered.
