Try something new at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre!
Weekly Salsa classes will be starting on Tuesday 17 September from 6.30 – 7.30pm
Classes will run until 22 October, only £3 per session
Category: Uncategorized
West Pilton BBQ today
West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre is hosting a free family BBQ today from midday – lots of fun activities for the whole family.
All welcome – call 551 3194 for more info.
Unfairly sacked? That’ll be £160, please!
Westminster Government introduces fees for employment tribunals
Bringing a claim or an appeal to the employment tribunal is currently free of charge with the full cost being met by the taxpayer, but the government has now introduced fees, claiming that by doing this people using employment tribunals will meet ‘a significant proportion’ of the £84m cost of running the system. Their aim, they say, is to reduce the taxpayer subsidy of these tribunals by transferring some of the cost to those who use the service, while protecting access to justice for all.
The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) – a taxpayer-funded service to help workers and businesses settle disputes without the need to go to a tribunal – will remain free, but if agreement cannot be reached at that stage and the claim is taken further significant costs will now be incurred.
Workers will have to pay £160 or £250 to lodge a claim and a charge of either £230 or £950 if their case goes ahead.
Minister Jonathan Djanogly said: “It’s not fair on the taxpayer to foot the entire £84m bill for people to escalate workplace disputes to a tribunal. We want people, where they can, to pay a fair contribution for the system they are using, which will encourage them to look for alternatives.
“It is in everyone’s interest to avoid drawn out disputes which emotionally damage workers and financially damage businesses. That’s why we are encouraging quicker, simpler and cheaper alternatives like mediation.”
Critics of the charges argue that the new charges will dissuade many employees from making legitimate claims about workplace discrimination and there is concern that, once again, it is the poorest and most vulnerable that will suffer.
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: “It is vital that working people have fair access to justice, but introducing fees for tribunals will deter many – particularly those on low wages – from taking valid claims to court. Many of the UK’s most vulnerable workers will simply be priced out of justice.
“The government’s remission scheme to protect low-paid employees is woefully inadequate, and workers will be more likely to be mistreated at work as rogue bosses will be able to flout the law without fear of sanction.”
Responding to a consultation on the controversial proposals, Citizens Advice Scotland’s Kevin Dryburgh said: “Employment tribunals are an essential service for all workers and employers in the UK. It is not just successful claimants who benefit – all employers and workers benefit from a service that protects workers, discourages rogue and exploitative employers, and ensures a level playing field for good employers.
“Far from being a costly burden on employers and tax payers, employment tribunals play a key role for all those in work. Placing barriers to accessing Employment Tribunals will affect the effectiveness of the service in providing this role.”
Trade union UNISON is fighting the fees and has been given permission to seek a judicial review. The hearing will take place in October.
BIG Search postponed
This afternoon’s BIG Search has been postponed – can’t think why?
It will now take place next Thurdsay – again, weather permitting!
NEN: Council, it’s over to you
Council support crucial if the NEN is to be saved
The city council must act to save North Edinburgh News, NEN chairman Martin Hinds told charity walkers before they set out on Saturday’s NEN Walkathon. He said that the council must decide whether or not it supports community newspapers.
The previous Lib Dem/SNP coalition administration ‘disinvested’ in community newspapers in 2011 but there was hope that community newspapers would be relaunched under the new Labour/SNP administration elected in May last year. The Edinburgh Labour council election manifesto promised: ‘We’ll back the re-introduction of community newspapers to strengthen the community voice.’
Since then, however, there has been little obvious progress. The city council’s own Outlook newspaper has gone, but support for NEN has so far been limited to grants from local Neighbourhood Partnership Community Grants Fund.
Speaking before the walkers set off from Edinburgh College in Granton, NEN Chairman Martin Hinds (pictured above) thanked organisers and fundraisers for their efforts but went on: “As long as I’ve been on the Board funding has been an issue and it’s particularly difficult now. The reason for today’s event is both to raise money and to advertise the fact that NEN is struggling”.
He continued: “To ensure NEN’s survival we can’t go from one event to one event to raise funds to produce another edition – we need to have some stability and ensure that adequate funding is in place to make NEN sustainable. We have tried a lot of different things to raise money – and the response from local organisation was tremendous when we put out an appeal for advertising for our latest issue – but we now find ourselves in a position that we must pass this back to our elected members, three of whom are here this morning.
“It’s really a matter now for the council to decide whether they want to support community newspapers or not. It’s a sombre note to end on, but the fact that we are having to do this demonstrates that we are in some difficulty”.
Labour councillors Cammy Day, Lesley Hinds and Vicky Redpath all took part in the Walkathon.
Forth Neighbourhood Partnership convener Cammy Day (pictured below) responded: “All three councillors here support the NEN and there are other councillors in this part of the city who also support the NEN. I would encourage everyone here today to lobby your councillors. There is an opportunity for us to fund the NEN and community newspapers across the city – there is a £50,000 pot of money which has been potentially earmarked for some work around community newspapers and media work; other councillors will be lobbying for that money to go to other areas in the city, so I am urging local people to lobby their councillors in North Edinburgh and tell us that they want more money for the NEN.”
He concluded: “The NEN’s a fantastic paper, well-respected and the only newspaper that tells good news about North Edinburgh. The Board is struggling to keep things going but I am sure that with the support of the local community and local members we can make it happen, but we won’t be doing that alone. So thanks for coming along today to raise some money for the NEN, but this will be continued – it’s clearly very important that we get a chunk of that finance allocation.”
The next key date for North Edinburgh News is 13 August, when the Board meets to discuss the newspaper’s future.
NEN board member Ann Confrey was one of the main organisers of the Walkathon. Thanking the organisations who opened their doors to the walkers, she said yesterday:
“Many thanks for all your efforts on Saturday, your support and participation was very much appreciated. The walkers enjoyed the mini tours of your facilities and refreshments were gratefully received.
Unfortunately there was a very low turnout with just 20 people (and 2 dogs) walking. As a result we fell a long way short of our target and at this stage it does not look like we raised enough to produce an August/September issue of the newspaper.
The Board members will meet on 13 August to tally up how much was actually raised/pledged and to discuss what options we have available. Thank you once again for showing your support for the North Edinburgh News.”
Gwen Chrystal’s funeral
Gwen’s family have been in touch to say that her funeral will take place at Warriston Crematorium on Monday (22 July) at 3pm.
NEN Walkathon: just three more posts to go
Just in case you’ve missed one or two previous posts, NEN Walkathon is taking place this Saturday (20 July), leaving from Edinburgh College Granton Campus.
Registration takes place from 9.45am and the Walk starts at 10.30.
NEN boeard member Ann Confrey has helped to organise the event. She said: “I have had a very productive meeting with a group of volunteers who will be assisting on Saturday. There are five ladies, all of whom have experience leading or helping to lead groups of walkers in the North Edinburgh area.
“I have one other volunteer – Clare – who will be manning the registration desk and the college’s lovely Jen Kelly will be ensuring that refreshments, information and ample space are provided for the registration process.”
So everything’s in place – all we need now are the local walkers to help make the NEN Walkathon a day to remember!
Walkathon: seconds out!
The NEN Walkathon is just four days away now – I hope your rigorous training regime, like mine, is holding up in this tropical weather …
Another alternative route to consider:
THE TIPPLER’s TRAIL
I could regale you with the tale of the Boswall Battler – Big Boab Baxter, the barefist bruiser – but I will save that story for another day. Instead, here’s are the watering holes that make up the historic Tippler’s Trail:
Telford Arms, Telford Road
The Doo’cot, Ferry Road
Ferry Boat, Ferry Road
The Gunner, Pennywell Road
The Anchor, West Granton Road
For seasoned drinkers walkers you could add detours into Davidson’s Mains and/or continue beyond the Anchor to The Old Chain Peir and beyond … each tavern is a new adventure!
Cheers!
Letters: Winners and losers of the global race
Dear Editor
The repeated use of certain words and phrases, for example ‘let me be clear’, ‘openness and transparency’, ‘hub’, ‘flat-lining’ are very irritating; and ‘we must win the global race’, often repeated by David Cameron and most Tory politicians, is both annoying and dangerous.
Dangerous; when the state of the world needs nations to work together to solve problems of food production, fuel and energy supplies, diseases, protection of the world’s forests and climate change.
Dangerous; because ‘winning the global race’ means there are losers, creating disastrous unemployment, poverty and health problems.
There are many examples of companies engaged in the ‘global race’, making vast profits in one country, closing industries in others, showing little concern for people’s’ lives and wellbeing. The ‘global race’ does not exclude the working people of the UK from this exploitation.
A. Delahoy
Silverknowes Gardens
Health Project seeks new Board members
Pilton Community Health Project is a fast-changing organisation which has been working with local people to overcome health inequalities in north Edinburgh for more nearly 30 years.
We are currently recruiting motivated and dedicated people to join our Board of Directors. We value people’s life experience as well as their qualifications and are looking to achieve a good balance on our Board. Its an exciting time for us, we are revisiting our vision and if you were to join us, you would have a real opportunity to shape the direction of our work for the next 30 years!
We are particularly keen to recruit people who live locally and want to make a difference to people’s health in the area.
If you are interested call Project Manager, Jen Richards on 0131 551 1671 to find out more about what it would involve. Have a look at our website and facebook page to find out more about what we do and what goes on in the area.
www.facebook.com/PiltonCommunityHealthProject
Anita Aggarwal
Senior Development Worker (Health Inequalities)
Pilton Community Health Project
73 Boswall Parkway
Edinburgh, EH5 2PW