West Pilton – Page 111 – The NEN

All together now

‘Inspirational’ new course coming to North Edinburgh

Big changes are happening in Scotland about how families who need support are offered it. This is called Self Directed Support. The idea is that families and communities can have more say and control over the types of support they are offered.

Total Craigroyston and Muirhouse Link Up are working with Diversity Matters to run ‘Everyone Together’, a course for everyone involved with children and families in Pilton and Muirhouse – social workers, community workers, support workers, people who need support, families, friends, neighbours, local community leaders and others.

We know that there is a huge variety of skills amongst us: families, communities and workers. By sharing skills and working together we can help families live well. Come and find out how the new changes can help us do things better.

The course will run from 9.30am to 2pm in

North Edinburgh Arts Centre on the following dates:

Wednesday 29 April – Building the right kind of relationships

Wednesday 6 May – What do we need? Identifying local services

Wednesday 13 May – Creating local networks to help us work together.

Interested? Contact Tracey Devenney at Total Craigroyston for more info and to book a place:call 529 5073 or email tracey.devenney@edinburgh.gov.uk

Everyone Together has been developed by Diversity Matters and is funded by the Scottish Government to help develop the use of Self Directed Support.

We have run 12 events in the last year in different parts of Scotland – read more at everyone-together.org

Putting the boot in for Fresh Start

Customised Doc Martens raise over £1000 in raffle for local charity Fresh Start

The Dr. Martens Edinburgh team demonstrated its ongoing support for the local art and charity scene when they attended the fifth annual Scottish Tattoo Convention recently.

The global footwear brand set-up shop alongside some of the world’s most renowned artists and entertainers at the Corn Exchange, in aid of the homelessness charity Fresh Start.

An impressive line-up of tattooists from the convention set to work in customising Dr. Martens’ product with an inked-based twist.

Making use of mixed-mediums, products were embellished with hand-drawn or painted designs as well as leather tattooing or etching, raising over £1,000 as part of a charity raffle – the proceeds from which will support people who have been homeless to resettle successfully.

Dr. Martens Edinburgh store manager, Jenni Birrell said: “After a huge success last year, we are so pleased that this year has been equally as triumphant. The team are big fans of tattoo culture – myself included – so being a part of the convention is a perfect fit.

“We selected Fresh Start as our chosen charity for the second year running because of the close work they do in helping the city’s community and it’s important to us to do our bit on a local level.”

Keith Robertson, Managing Director of Fresh Start, said: “We are delighted that Dr. Martens has chosen to support Fresh Start once again at such a well-attended international event. Each year we provide goods and support to over 2,000 of the most vulnerable households in Edinburgh and this is only possible due to the support we receive from the wider community.

“Dr. Martens’ support will enable us to help people who are moving into an empty tenancy with the goods they need to make their house a home.”

Your community needs YOU!

Coming soon – the Community Leadership College!

Groundwork is now underway to establish a new Community Leadership College in North Edinburgh. The initiative will build on the skills of local residents and will be designed by the community itself.

Total Craigroyston works in partnership with others to strengthen services across Pilton and Muirhouse; strengthening support for families and building on the strength of the community.

The organisation, with partners Circle Scotland and Muirhouse Link Up, recently secured funding from the STV Foundation to develop a Community Leadership College.

What’s a community college?

“Many local people have become involved in community activities and volunteering through Link Up, The North Edinburgh Time Bank and many other community projects,” explained Total Craigroyston manager Christine Mackay. “The Community Leadership College will give us the opportunity to take that involvement to the next level by providing training, support and other types of activities so that more leaders are created within the community. The development of the college will be directed by local residents themselves, initially through a series of ‘Conversation Cafes’, so that we can gather their ideas and develop the programme.”

The College will be led by the community, ensuring that local needs and aspirations are central to the college’s development.

Over the coming weeks a series of ‘community conversation cafe’ events on the subject of community leadership will be held across the area.

It’s hoped that these informal sessions will attract the widest possible range of local residents of all ages, and the ideas and suggestions generated at the conversation cafes will then be used to develop the community leadership college plan.

Look out for more information coming soon – and get involved! Be part of shaping your community!

Blackhall talk on Mary Seacole

Blackhall Library, in partnership with Surgeons Hall, is hosting a talk about Mary Seacole on Wednesday 15 April at 3pm. The event is free.

Click on link (below) for more info about this remarkable woman:

www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/seacole_mary.shtml

North Edinburgh Arts AGM next week

NORTH EDINBURGH ARTS

Annual General Meeting

To be held at North Edinburgh Arts, 15a Pennywell Court

Wednesday 22 April at 12 noon

Soup and sandwiches will be served at 12.30

Creche available on request

Come and hear about the work of NEA and plans for the next three years, followed by the opportunity to put your ideas forward.

To RSVP and reserve a creche space call Sandra on 315 2151 or email admin@northedinburgharts.co.uk by Wednesday 15 April.

Live Well in Later Life

Drop-in event for older people at Broughton High School next week

Come along to our free drop-in event between

11am -3pm on Thursday 16 April

at Broughton High School, East Fettes Avenue.

Tea, coffee and cake will be served.

Free transport is available if booked in advance.

Call 0131 529 6552 or email rachel.howe@edinburgh.gov.uk

Live Well Inverleith Flyer

Show them you care: public meeting to discuss Granton Marina plans

‘We are fed up being ignored’ – Granton & District Community Council

Following the last community council meeting that was well attended by groups and residents in the area we were asked to organise a public meeting to get our views heard on this development.

We are fed up being ignored. Our wishes discarded. No longer. We have an opportunity to really make a noise about this. Please come along and make your voice heard.

The meeting is on Thursday 9 April

at Royston & Wardieburn Community Centre – 7pm.

Please tell as many people as you know. The developer was invited and said no. Show them you do care!

Granton & District Community Council

Science hits the streets this Easter

Spectacular street science is expected to attract large crowds to locations across Edinburgh during the Easter holidays.

The ‘Busking Bikes’ project is part of the Edinburgh International Science Festival and the City of Edinburgh Council is supporting six performances from 4-14 April.

Each trike carries a box full to the brim with impressive, explosive, messy, and down-right weird science experiments. From the power of water to finding out how carbon capture could save the planet, each demo will explain some of the most interesting science happening today.

As well as watching expert performers do some unforgettable demonstrations, the audience can get stuck in too and learn their own science tricks, from skewering a balloon to launching a rocket.

Councillor Frank Ross, the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “This is a really exciting project as we expect the bikes to draw large crowds to each area creating a vibrant atmosphere, colour and life where ever they go. The ‘Busking Bikes’ project is being funded as part of the Council’s Town Centre Strategy to build stronger town centres by driving up footfall to support local businesses.”

Programme:

Saturday April 4 – Portobello Market

Sunday April 5 – Gorgie City Farm

Friday April 10 – Stockbridge Library

Friday April 10 – Morningside Library

Friday April 10 – Costorphine Library

Tuesday April 14 – McDonald Road Library

Easter Holiday Programme

With the holidays almost upon us the Total Craigroyston team has produced a useful guide to what’s on for children and families across North Edinburgh during the Easter break.

To find out what’s on, where and when, click on the link below:

Easter-Programme-2015

PY’s ‘Giggers’ vote to focus on animals – and unicorn protection!

To coincide with the Scottish Independence Referendum in September, Pilton Youth & Children Project’s ‘Get Involved Group’ (GIG) undertook a ‘Democracy Project’ over several months.

The young people explored all the arguments about both sides of the independence debate and also found out about the roots of British democracy -did you know that only very rich people and only men used to get the vote?

The project ended with two performances of a play staged by the young people.
There were sketches about the working class people and suffragettes who fought and died for their right to vote and a sketch about a fictitious family in Pilton, whose kids eventually persuaded their parents to miss ‘Storage wars’ to go and cast their vote!

The young people performed brilliantly and all their weeks of hard work were well worth it as the audience gave them a standing ovation. Well done to the ‘Giggers’!

Following on from the GIG project about democracy, the young people in the ‘Get Involved Group’ went through a democratic process of identifying what the GIG should focus on next.

After much discussion, they unanimously voted for the next topic to be ‘Animal Welfare’ as this is something they care deeply about.

They are in the process of developing a ‘Dog Dirt Free’ zone around the PYCP building, as many children play there, but unfortunately people are letting their dogs foul there and not cleaning it up.

The group recently had a visit from Rachel Bliss from The Dogs Trust who spoke about the many aspects of Dog Welfare and Dog Safety. Rachel has agreed to come back to PYCP to do two more sessions for young people during the Easter holidays.

A couple of youngsters are very keen to look at protection of unicorns, and this is something that the workers are trying to figure out how best to tackle this subject-without shattering their illusions about unicorns being real!

Photos: (1) Suffragettes scene from GIG play, and (2) GIG trip to Cosmos to celebrate their West End Theatre run!

Pilton Youth & Childrens Project (PYCP)