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Referendum Registration Roadshow’s at North Office tomorrow

The Scottish Independence Referendum takes place on Thursday 18 September. To take part you must be registered by Tuesday 2 September.

To make sure you use, and don’t lose your vote, why not come along to a Registration Roadshow? You can check if you are registered or update your details if you have moved home.

The events are taking place in the city council’s local offices:

10am – 2pm, Wednesday 11 June, North Neighbourhood Office

11am – 3pm, Tuesday 17 June, South West Neighbourhood Office

10am – 2pm, Tuesday 24 June, Leith Office

10am – 2pm, Wednesday 25 June, West Neighbourhood Office

11am – 3pm, Monday 30 June, East Neighbourhood Office

11am- 3pm, Wednesday 2 July, City Centre Neighbourhood Office

You can also register by contacting the Electoral Registration Office on

0131 344 2500.

Valuable ring recovered following Western theft

Local Police have recovered a valuable gold ring as part of the ongoing Operation Wolf. The ring was stolen at the Western General Hospital but was tracked down to a local second-hand shop and has now been returned to it’s delighted owner.

A 73-year-old man was visiting the hospital on 1 May and washed his hands in a restroom. As he did so he removed his 18ct gold signet ring, which was etched with his family crest. He then left the building – but forgot to pick up the ring. The man returned a short time later but found that the item had been stolen and contacted police.

Officers from the Search and Recovery Team (SART) carried out local enquiries and spoke to local second-hand retailers. The investigation proved successful as police were contacted by one of the stores on Saturday 24 May after the ring was brought in for sale.

Police are now following a positive line of enquiry to identify those responsible for this theft, and the ring has since been returned to its rightful owner.

Superintendent Matt Richards said: “This ring was made by the victim’s brother and while it is worth a significant sum of money, it is of greater sentimental value.

“As a result of Operation Wolf activities carried out by the SART, police in Edinburgh were able recover the item from a second-hand store and are actively hunting for the thieves.

“I would like to thank all of the retail premises we work alongside for their continued support in tackling acquisitive crime.

“Operation Wolf continues to address the crimes and issues affecting our various local communities and will relentlessly pursue those responsible for these offences.”

Community Council office bearers announced

Drylaw Telford Community Council appointed the following office bearers at last week’s Annual General Meeting held in Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre:

Chairperson: Alex Dale – email alex.dale@blueyonder.co.uk
Secretary: Andrew Barnett – email andrew@abarnett.net
Treasurer: Jackie Brown – email catchjackiehere@hotmail.co.uk
Vice-Chairperson: Mhiari Curran – email mhairi.curran@hush.ai

The Community Council meets at 7pm on the last Wednesday of the month in Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre – all meetings are open to the public and new faces are always welcome!

Sing with the Time Bank choir!

Time Bank Sings!

We’re having an open evening on Wednesday 11 June from 7pm -8pm with a free crèche.

This is for anyone who wants to come along and try a bit of singing for fun. We’d like to have new members. The group is very friendly and easy going. No experience needed.

Some comments from people who have come along:

“Singing is great fun and I enjoy being part of a community. Great for your confidence!”

“ Meet new people, stops me being isolated”

“Works well as a group. We are positive!”

“Iit lifts your mood!”

So come along and lend your voice to our very own North Edinburgh Time Bank Singers!

Julie Smith

North Edinburgh Time Bank Broker

For further information visit:

www.edinburghtimebank.org.uk

email Julie at north.timebank@volunteeredinburgh.org.uk

or telephone 07807 002 591.

More support for new home buyers

Scottish Government increases ‘Help to Buy’ funding

An extra £40 million will be invested in a scheme that helps people get on the housing ladder for the first time or move to a new property, Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed yesterday.

The Scottish Government’s Help to Buy (Scotland) initiative has allowed more than 1,100 people to buy a new home since its launch in September 2013.

This latest financial boost brings the overall investment to £275 million – investment that has brought much needed financial support to the Scottish construction sector.

The scheme helps people to buy a new-build house from a participating home builder without having to fund all of the purchase price. The buyer is required to contribute a five per cent deposit, with the Scottish Government taking an equity stake of up to 20 per cent of the value of the property.

The buyer then receives the outstanding sum through a repayment mortgage from a participating lender, repaying the Scottish Government’s equity stake when they can financially afford to do so.

So far 156 house-builders have signed up for the initiative, with six mortgage lenders offering mortgages to buyers wanting to benefit from it.

Ms Sturgeon said: “This additional £40 million funding will allow more people in Scotland to buy their first home and continue to make it easier for ‘second-steppers’ and others to move to a new property.

“Since it launched in September last year, our Help to Buy scheme has already helped over 1000 households into home ownership and this additional funding will benefit even more families.

“It is also bringing much needed economic growth to Scotland by supporting our housing industry and creating employment opportunities. This is alongside our continued commitment to investing in affordable housing for communities across Scotland.”

New Homes for Scotland Chair Sandy Adam said: “A significant proportion of new homes are now sold through Help to Buy, delivering on the Scottish Government’s key objectives of providing more homes, creating more jobs and stimulating the economy.

“Additional investment, such as that announced today, and longer term support assisting developers with investment planning will help the industry to, quite literally, build on the scheme’s initial success and step up production to the levels required to meet housing need across all tenures.

“But this welcome boost for Help to Buy (Scotland) is valuable in another way. Many people in Scotland want to own their own home. Raising aspiration and confidence in this way can only be achieved through initiatives such as this.”

Fabulous farce in Goldenacre next week

The sensational St Serfs players are back next week!

Visit wwww.stserfsplayers.org.uk for more info

Blackhall Plant Sale tomorrow

Blackhall Horticultural Society are holding their annual plant sale tomorrow (Saturday 10 May) at St. Columba’s Church Halls on Hillhouse Road.

The Society plan to have an excellent range of plants for instant colour in your garden as well as some ‘home grown’ perennials, and there will be free advice on hand from time-served experts too.

Last year’s sale made over £440 and the group hopes to beat that total this weekend so get there sharp for the bargains – doors open 10am!

Read all about it! Julia Donaldson visits Forthview

Former Children’s Laureate Julia Donaldson, creator of the much-loved Gruffalo and other brilliant children’s books, was a welcome visitor at Forthview Primary School yesterday. Julia worked with P3 classes during her visit to promote Reading Culture, a new initiative to encourage families to enjoy reading together.

Forthview is holding a series of reading events this month in a bid to encourage both pupils and their parents to read. The school has been working on the development of a Reading Culture, involving school pupils, parents, the local public library and the wider community.

The project aims to encourage children to read for pleasure and to involve parents in the hope that they will also be encouraged to read to their children and read for their own enjoyment. This work is funded by The Scottish Government as part of The City of Edinburgh’s involvement in the South-East Scotland Inter-authority Literacy Hub.

Edinburgh author Lari Don has agreed to be the school’s Patron of Reading. There was a day of events to launch this last week followed by author visits and library visits for every stage, as well as the setting up of a parents’ book group.

Other authors confirmed so far to take part in the Scottish Book Trust Live Literature funded sessions are Simon Puttock, John Fardell (who will also work with the school’s fathers’ group), Joan Lennon, Barry Hutchison and Roy Gill.

Mind you, Forthview parents have a proud record of writing stories themselves – remember the Pathway to Pilton project in 2012 (pictured below)?

Stay safe in the sun!

May be hard to believe, but it’s Sun Awareness Week!

PEOPLE in Scotland are being urged to stay safe in the sun, as part of Sun Awareness Week (May 5-11).

With the prospect of longer, warmer days ahead, people throughout the country will be spending more time outdoors. Scotland’s national telehealth and telecare service is urging people to seek advice on staying safe in the sun.

Professor George Crooks, NHS 24’s Medical Director, says that by taking a few simple steps, people can ensure they make the most of the summer season.

He said: “It is always a good idea to be prepared as best you can for the better weather and the wide range of information available at www.nhsinform.co.uk can help you do just that.

“By taking just a few simple steps, we can all make the most of the good weather, without any ill effects. It is all too tempting, especially in Scotland, to overdo it in the sun and end up with painful sunburn. The sun that shines in Scotland, though, is the same sun that shines in the Mediterranean.

“I would advise people, particularly children and young infants, to take sensible precautions like limiting exposure to the direct sun, using sunscreen and drinking plenty of soft drinks.”

NHS inform contains a wide range of advice and information on summer health issues, with dedicated sections on sunburn, heatstroke, allergies and hay fever.

NHS 24 is now available on the free phone number 111. By dialling 111, people across Scotland can continue to access the same high quality service for anyone seeking advice and support during the out of hours period when their GP surgery is closed.

North Edinburgh’s voluntary sector to meet on Wednesday

A reminder to the area’s charity and community projects that Forth and Inverleith Voluntary Sector Forum will meet on Wednesday 7 May at 10am in North Edinburgh Arts.

It’s been a wee while since the last Forum meeting and there is lots to discuss (see Agenda) so why not go along – new faces are always welcome!

If you do plan to attend, please contact EVOC’s June Dickson (telephone 555 9100 or email june.dickson@evoc.org.uk) to let her know.

Forth & Inverleith VSF Agenda 7th May 2014