Just one week to go until Pension Awareness Week!
Pension Geeks are running a series of free online events, including a session on how MoneyHelper can support you.
On 15 September DWP will be presenting at a session on Maximising Income in Later Life, spotlighting State Pension and Pension Credit.
Book your place here: https://ow.ly/QT7S50ZIKqi
Find out more and see the full programme on the Pension Awareness Week website: https://ow.ly/fxXg50ZIKqj
FRIDAY 11 SEPTEMBER 3 – 5pm
This Friday. A really great and important talk, especially for parents and grandparents.
Completely free, 3-5pm. See you there!
Hundreds of former pupils, staff, partners and friends gathered at Portobello High School for a special anniversary lunch celebrating 150 years of the school at the heart of its community last week.
The event was just one of several ran throughout the year to mark the milestone and brought together generations of the Portobello community to reflect on the school’s rich history and celebrate the important role it continues to play in the area.
Guests enjoyed tours of the school and an extensive exhibition featuring photographs, documents and memorabilia from across the decades.
The celebration also included the launch of the school’s new digital archive, which will help preserve its history and make it accessible to former pupils and the wider community.
Former pupils and members of staff shared memories of their time at Portobello, while a special reflection remembered those who are sadly no longer with us.
Headteacher Greg McDowall said: “It was a wonderful occasion and a real privilege to welcome so many people back to Portobello.
“There was an incredible warmth throughout the day, with former pupils and staff reconnecting, sharing stories and celebrating everything the school has meant to the community over the past 150 years.
“Although we are enormously proud of our history, this celebration was also about looking ahead and ensuring that the legacy of Portobello High School continues for future generations.”
The school is encouraging former pupils, staff and members of the community to explore the Porty 150 digital archive on its website, where further photographs, memories and historical materials will continue to be added.
The archive was created by Ian Small, former pupil and former school dux and was awarded the MacIntyre prize by the school at the lunch for his hard work.
A number of events will also be held in the coming months, providing further opportunities for people to visit the school, spend time exploring the archive and share their own memories of Portobello High School. you can find out more at the Porty 150 section of the school website.
GRANTON:HUB – SATURDAY 26th SEPTEMBER 1.45 – 3pm
We are pleased to invite you to ‘Knots, a community walk for all the family’ on Saturday 26th September, 1:45pm-3.00pm. It is part of the Granton:hub / Madelvic House Doors Open Day.
We will walk, play, do an art activity, and learn about nature too. This event relates to our neighbour, United Wire, and one of our other historical and contemporary industries, fishing. You will learn some basic knotting practices (appropriate for children and adults), making a joint artwork, and also something to take home with you to help you remember the walk and what you have seen.
Starting and ending at the Granton Hub / Madelvic House.
Places are limited for participants’ safety and enjoyment. Suitable for those with wheels / sticks. Dogs on leads are welcome.
Tamsin Grainger is a Paths for All walk leader. In 2024/5, she was the Granton Archive Community Development Worker, and she is an experienced pedestrian.
This event is free to attend but booking is required via Eventbrite.
POLICE in Edinburgh have released images of two men they believe can assist with their investigation after a 24 year-old man was seriously assaulted on Princes Street around 2.35am on Saturday, 1 August, 2026.
The first man is described as white, 5ft 10in and in his late teens to early 20’s. He had blonde hair and was wearing a white t-shirt with grey jeans.
The second man is described as white, 6ft and in his late teens to early 20’s with short dark-coloured hair and glasses. He was wearing a black top with grey shorts and had a tattoo on the back of his left hand.
Detective Constable Gary Lipscombe of Gayfield CID said: “I would urge the men pictured or anyone who recognises them to contact us.
“This area was extremely busy at the time of the incident and I would ask anyone with information to contact Police Scotland through 101, quoting incident number 0473 of 1 August, 2026. Alternatively, Crimestoppers can be contacted on 0800 555 111, where anonymity can be maintained.”
The Capital Rail Action Group (CRAG) requested to send a deputation to Thursday’s Transport and Environment committee meeting – but were informed that, due to there being already six deputations, this would not be possible.
We were advised to instead submit a written statement – which I now attach (see below):
CEC Transport and Environment Committee, 10 September 2026 – Item 7.6: Trams from Granton to Edinburgh BioQuarter and Beyond
CRAG was set up to campaign for better public transport, especially rail-based, in and around Edinburgh back in the heady days of 1989 when Lothian Regional Council was consulting on their North-South Metro proposal:
You can see that the general thrust of proposals hasn’t changed much since then – except, of course, that Granton now features prominently in your discussions, making full use of the old Caledonian Railway alignment from Roseburn shown above. And the BioQuarter wasn’t even a thing back then.
Progress on developing public transport is extraordinarily slow and costly in this country and our competitor nations have since advanced on a scale unimaginable for us back in 1989, hugely boosting their economic output and raising millions of their population out of poverty – a truly virtuous cycle.
The decisions before you today are shaped by our limited progress on those fronts. The old railway alignments of north Edinburgh were re-purposed in the meantime as active travel corridors – a welcome ‘green travel’ initiative. But they have always been earmarked for travel not just by individuals fit enough to cycle, walk and jog but by all.
Indeed, Parliamentary consent was obtained for use of the Roseburn to Granton alignment for trams as far back as 2006.
CRAG recognises how attractive the Roseburn corridor has become over the years since the old railway trackbed was tarmacked. And we also recognise the utility it offers to cyclists in particular as part of a growing network of paths throughout the city. The 2006 consent also recognised this.
But this utility must now be extended to those who wish to travel by modern mass transit in our increasingly congested city.
The Council have proposed that, to better address the concerns of active travellers, the tram line from Roseburn to Craigleith be only single track with the stop at Ravelston dropped – and with no overhead wires. That carries with it operational risk for the tram – but it is a compromise offered in good faith. Unfortunately, for many cyclists, it is a compromise they are unwilling to accept. This is a view both myopic and discriminatory.
Whereas today approximately 600,000 trips are made along the Roseburn corridor, the tram is projected to carry 4.25 million passengers annually by 2042.
Moreover, it would not only support and drive the ongoing development of brownfield sites around Granton but would transform access to employment, education and health services for disadvantaged and deprived communities in Granton, Pilton and Drylaw.
To cap it all, building a tram line along the Roseburn corridor can be accomplished without the need to dig up streets, move utilities, etc. which bedevilled construction of Edinburgh’s only current tram line from the airport to Newhaven.
It, moreover, separates tram operation from general traffic – enabling a speedier and more reliable journey. And it links with the important transport hub which is Haymarket. It remains the only feasible route by which to connect Granton most efficiently to the city centre. That will not change.
So, whilst recognising the political reality in the City Chambers of minority support for the Roseburn to Granton corridor and that it is likely that the headline positive decision today will be to first proceed with the southern leg of the north-south tram route from the city centre to the BioQuarter, we would urge you, as per recommendation 1.1.4 to “Agree the need to retain ambition to deliver a mass transit connection between Granton and the city centre”.
We, of course, also support delivery of the leg from the city centre to the BioQuarter – not without its challenges but serving a corridor also long recognised as worthy of being provided with mass transit.
And, of course, this opens up the possibility of integration with the emerging tram-train proposal on the South Suburban railway line, especially at Cameron Toll – where a transport hub could be in the making.
Finally, two points:
… and finally, finally:
Cllr. Stephen Jenkinson revealed this aspirational Metro ‘concept’ map at a rail conference in Edinburgh in January of this year. It’s not official policy – but it’s always good to plant seeds for trees under whose shade, at my age, I may not live to sit. Hopefully some of you will live to see this!
Transforming public transport provision in and around Edinburgh is a challenge for our time. Let’s not drop the ball this time.
Lawrence Marshall
Chair, Capital Rail Action Group
e-mail: lawrence336@btinternet.com
website: Capital Rail Action Group – Campaigning for better public transport for Edinburgh
Facebook: (1) Capital Rail Action Group | Facebook
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Service 67 launches after years of campaigning for better public transport to Edinburgh’s adventure sports hub
A new direct bus service connecting Edinburgh city centre with Lost Shore Surf Resort, Edinburgh International Climbing Arena (EICA) and the village of Ratho has launched, following years of campaigning for improved public transport links to the area.
Service 67 is initially operating hourly, Monday to Friday, creating a direct public transport connection between central Edinburgh and two of Scotland’s leading adventure sports destinations. The service is expected to expand to seven days a week in the coming weeks.
Operated by HcL, Service 67 will connect central Edinburgh with Lost Shore Surf Resort and EICA Ratho, with stops including Haymarket Station, Hermiston Gate Park & Ride and Ratho Village.
The launch is a major milestone following several years of work to restore a direct public transport connection between Ratho and Edinburgh, including sustained campaigning by the Ratho Bus Working Group and support from Lost Shore and EICA for better transport links to the area.
Research carried out as part of the campaign demonstrated strong demand for improved public transport. More than 2,200 people responded to a community survey, with 90% saying they would use public transport if services to the area were improved.
The new route will make it significantly easier for Edinburgh residents and visitors without access to a car to reach Ratho and its growing adventure sports hub, bringing surfing and climbing within a direct bus journey of the city centre.
Lee Wood, Managing Director at Lost Shore Surf Resort, said: “This is fantastic news for Lost Shore, EICA, the Ratho community and everyone who has worked so hard to make the case for better public transport to this part of Edinburgh.
“We’ve believed from the beginning that world-class adventure should be accessible to as many people as possible. Lost Shore and EICA offer two incredible experiences right next door to each other, but getting here without a car has been a real barrier for too many people.
“Service 67 has the potential to change that. For the first time, people will have a simple, direct connection from the city centre to come surfing at Lost Shore, climbing at EICA, or spend a day experiencing both.
“This has taken a huge collective effort, particularly from the Ratho Bus Working Group, who have campaigned tirelessly for better connections. Now the most important thing we can do is get behind the service and use it.”
Stacey O’Flaherty, Ratho Bus Working Group, added: “This is about much more than introducing another bus route. EICA and Lost Shore are two incredible destinations sitting side by side in Ratho, yet getting here without a car has remained difficult, while our community has been without a direct connection to Edinburgh city centre since 2014.
“More than 2,200 people took part in our research and 90% told us they would use public transport if a suitable service was available. The 67 responds to that demand, connecting EICA, Lost Shore and Ratho village directly with Hermiston Park & Ride, Haymarket and the city centre.
“This is a huge step forward for the community and for making this part of Edinburgh easier to reach. Now we need people to use it and help us demonstrate over the next six months just how valuable this connection can be.”
Victoria Harper, Manager at the EICA said: “We’re delighted to see the launch of Service 67 and the new opportunities it creates for our customers, staff and the wider community.
“One of the barriers to taking part in climbing and adventure activities can simply be getting here. This new direct connection makes EICA more accessible to people from across Edinburgh, whether they’re regular climbers, first-time visitors, students or families looking for an active day out.
“We’re proud to be part of a destination that brings climbing, surfing and outdoor adventure together, and we’re looking forward to welcoming even more people through our doors.”
Service 67 will initially operate as a six-month trial, with passenger use and feedback helping to inform decisions about the future of the service.
The service currently runs hourly, Monday to Friday, using accessible 16-seat minibuses, with plans to expand to seven days a week in the coming weeks. An adult single journey costs £2.40, with cash and card payments accepted. Under-22 and eligible concessionary National Entitlement Cards are also accepted.
The route will make it significantly easier for people across Edinburgh to reach Lost Shore and EICA by public transport, opening up access to two major adventure destinations without the need for a car.
It also creates a stronger connection between Lost Shore and neighbouring EICA, bringing surfing and climbing together as part of a distinctive active day out at Edinburgh’s adventure hub.
The timetable for Service 67 is available here – HcL Service 67
‘The Spartans FC Head Coach Douglas Samuel has gone on extended leave with immediate effect.
‘Sporting Director Mixu Paatelainen will support the coaching team while Douglas is on leave.’
Edinburgh Leisure has published an Impact Report for 2025 – 26.
Chief Executive Jen Holland said: “I am delighted to share Edinburgh Leisure’s Impact Report for 2025–26, a story of progress, resilience and people working together to help Edinburgh be active and well.
“This year’s report marks an important turning point, with stronger financial foundations, growing participation and continued investment in places and programmes that help more people feel active, included and connected.
From expanding health and wellbeing programmes such as Balanced Life, to widening access through community facilities, subsidised provision and inclusive opportunities for people facing barriers, our work continues to support a healthier, happier and more active Edinburgh for everyone.
“One of this year’s Victorian Pool Crawl participants, Eileen Ingram, summed up that purpose when she told us: “I think it’s important for everyone, regardless of wealth, health or age, to be able to have access to facilities to enable them to live an active life. Regular exercise is really important for improving all aspects of our life.”
“Thank you for your ongoing support and partnership. I hope you enjoy reading the report and celebrating what we continue to achieve together for Edinburgh and its people.”
