Tenants and Residents in Muirhouse (TRIM) will be holding their first annual general meeting tonight in Muirhouse Millennium Centre.
It’s an opportunity to find out a bit more about the award-winning community group – what they’ve done, what they’re doing now and what they plan to do in the year ahead.
The meeting starts a 7pm – all welcome, and there’s tea, coffee and biscuits too!
Do you know someone who gave up their time to help the Drylaw Telford community last year? A local volunteer who went that extra mile to support a neighbour, or a community group that’s worked to improve the local environment or enhance the quality of life in the neighbourhood? If so, Drylaw Telford Community Council wants to hear from you!
The local community council is now seeking nominations for the Thomas Tierney Award for Good Citizenship.
Tam Tierney was a committed community activist from Wester Drylaw who was involved in many of the positive things that happening in the Greater Pilton area during the Eighties and Nineties.
He was a stalwart of Pilton Sporting Club, chaired Craigroyston Community Centre for many years, was an active and enthusiastic member of Drylaw Telford Community Council. Tam was also part of the steering group – and subsequently a member of the first management committee – of Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre which opened in 1995.
When Tam passed away in 1999, Drylaw Telford Community Council decided to mark Tam’s contribution to community life – not only to celebrate his achievements but also to try to encourage others to become more active within their community.
Every year since 2000, the community council has chosen a new recipient of the Award. They are all very different, and each was nominated for a wide variety of reasons. The one thing they have in common, however – indeed the one thing they must have in common – is that they freely contribute their time to do something that makes the Drylaw Telford neighbourhood a better place to live.
Former recipients have done that in many ways – helping out as a volunteer with local projects, doing their neighbours’ shopping, supporting local groups by serving on management committees … and some have done all of these things and more!
Drylaw Telford Community Council chairman Alex Dale – who was recipient of the 2012 award – said: “The Thomas Tierney Award is an important date on our community council calendar and is usually the best attended meeting of the year.We have slightly changed the criteria for the Award this year and we hope this will encourage more people to make nominations”.
If you think you know someone who may fit the bill, visit the community council’s website at www.drylawtelfordcc.co.uk
email Secretary@drylawtelfordcc.co.uk
or contact Jackie Brown at Rainbow Daycare Centre in Drylaw Church for a nomination form.
Police in Edinburgh are appealing for witnesses after two men were subjected to a racist attack in West Pilton Terrace last night (Monday).
Two 18-year-old men, of Arabian and Pakistani ethnicity, were walking home at around 9pm when they reached the junction with West Granton Road. A group of male youths began to shout racial abuse at the pair before throwing rocks and stones at them.
The suspects then chased both victims into their home address before continuing to throw objects at the house, breaking a front window.
Officers are following a positive line of enquiry to identify a number of those believed to be involved in this attack but are urging anyone who can assist with their investigation to come forward.
Inspector David Happs said: “As a result of being struck by rocks, one of the victims suffered an injury to his arm. In addition the property both men share was also damaged and we are undertaking a thorough enquiry to bring those responsible to justice.
“This incident is being treated as racially motivated and we are keen to hear from anyone who was in the West Pilton Terrace area on Monday evening and witnessed the disturbance or who saw anything suspicious.
“In addition, anyone with any further information relevant to this investigation is also asked to contact police immediately.
“Police Scotland is committed to tackling hate crime in all its forms and the local community can rest assured we are devoting appropriate resources to this investigation and offering all the necessary support to both victims.”
Those with information can contact
Police Scotland on 101
or the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Dear Editor
To express thoughts in words is sometimes difficult; hopefully the following is clear enough.
There are many needs common to everyone in the UK: amongst them are the NHS, gas and electricity, water, transport, schools and employment, they are basic needs. In Scotland only the NHS, schools and water can be classed as universal services; even these are faced with attempts to privatize them.
Gas and electricity supplies are absolutely basic for life, yet these industries are in private hands, operating for private profit. There is no way individuals or groups of individuals should control such basic needs.
Most people have to use public transport; buses, railways and trams to get to and from work – again, a basic necessity that should not be run for private profit.
Loss of employment is devastating for individuals and families, long-term unemployment leads to depression and loss of dignity.
A creator of unemployment is the withdrawal of investment by groups of individuals – and banks – moving their money from one place to another, home or abroad, to maximise profit. Again, this is not right and must be changed.
The services outlined above need to be in public hands, a view on which I believe most people would agree. There are so many areas of life common to all on which a unity of thought and action can make them universal services.
Pitting one section of the population’s interests against another must be resisted at all times.
A. Delahoy
Silverknowes Gardens
A local teenager who helped save the lives of two yachtsmen has been presented with a prestigious lifesaving award. Edinburgh Academy pupil Robyn Dougall, 15, is a volunteer rescue boat driver on the Forth and she was presented with her award at a gala dinner on Saturday (1 February).
As part of her duties with the Royal Forth Yacht Club at Granton, Robyn helped rescue a man who had been swept into the sea last summer and also assisted in rescuing another sailor who had fallen overboard in the sea near Leith.
During other rescue missions also helped save five yachts which were in danger in the Forth waters so Robyn’s Young Volunteer of the Year award from the Royal Yachting Association Scotland is richly deserved!
The first rescue she was involved with came after she spotted a man who had fallen overboard during a yachting festival on the Forth last summer.
She said: “We were helping out with the yacht races in force seven winds and we got a radio call to say a guy had got swept overboard. I found the boat, pointed it out and we got to him. He probably only had few minutes because he wasn’t wearing a life jacket.”
Robyn’s father Ken, who started teaching Robyn when she was aged eight, said he was “very proud” of his daughter’s achievements.
It was closed and earmarked for sell-off but after a rethink it seems that the Royal Victoria Hospital will be providing services for a while yet …
NHS Lothian confirmed its commitment to retaining the Royal Victoria Hospital for the medium to long-term earlier this year. Wards in the hospital are currently being used to provide additional winter capacity and plans are now being developed to use the facility to provide flexibility in the number of beds available for older peoples’ services.
Between £0.5 and £0.75 million has been invested to improve the accommodation and infrastructure within the hospital to ensure it meets the needs of patients and staff and complies with infection control and health and safety standards.
Following board approval, detailed plans will be developed to transfer appropriate services from other sites such as the Astley Ainslie Hospital and Corstorphine Hospital to the newly refurbished and upgraded wards in the Royal Victoria Hospital.
Patients, families and staff will be fully engaged in this process and support will be provided to ensure the transfer of patients is as smooth as possible.
Melanie Johnson, Director of Unscheduled Care, said: “The significant investment in improving the facilities at the Royal Victoria Hospital has been made easier by the fact the Hospital has not been fully operational. We are now looking at how we can make the best used of the Royal Victoria Hospital once the demand for additional winter beds reduces.
“Moving some services from the Astley Ainslie Hospital and Corstorphine Hospital will allow us to continue to provide safe, high quality care for patients in a more modern healthcare environment. We will be working with patients and their families as well as our staff to develop these plans over the coming months.”
Two wards were re-opened in the Royal Victoria Hospital in November 2012 to provided additional capacity, and since two more wards have been upgraded with another two currently being refurbished. This will provide around 120 beds in total with a mix of single rooms and four or six bedded bays.
NHS Lothian’s long-term plan is to concentrate on developing four key hospital sites and the proximity of the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) to the Western General Hospital has also played a part in the decision to investigate services moving to the RVH. The RVH will be incorporated into the master planning of the Western General Hospital site.
Local homeless resettlement charity, Fresh Start has received £2,000 from the STV Appeal 2013.
Ferry Road Drive-based Fresh Start works in partnership with churches, local communities and volunteers in Edinburgh to create, develop and provide services that support the resettlement of people who have been homeless. The charity helps them get a fresh start by providing essential household goods, practical and social support and training opportunities.
The STV Appeal funding will be used to help expand the charity’s flagship Starter Pack service, which provides the basics for new households. Last year, Fresh Start made up and distributed nearly 8,800 Starter Packs, helping families and individuals turn their empty houses into a home. This year the charity hopes to distribute 10,000, including the newly launched Food Packs.
The STV Appeal was set up in 2011 by STV and The Hunter Foundation and in 2013 the Wood Family Trust pledged its support to the Appeal. Now in its third year, the STV Appeal has raised a total of £5.8million which has been invested in 163 big and small community projects across all 32 local authority areas in Scotland, helping over 18,000 children. Every penny raised stays in Scotland and goes directly towards helping the children who need it most.
One in five children across Scotland live in poverty – and for some communities that figure is even worse. In parts of the country every second family is living in poverty meaning that in every community there will be a family struggling to feed its kids, a family struggling to clothe them in the winter, a family struggling just to make ends meet. The STV Appeal works in communities all over Scotland helping those young people and giving them the same opportunity that other children take for granted. Working at a local level, the STV Appeal has helped projects in every local authority.
Keith Robertson, Managing Director of Fresh Start, said: “Moving into a new home, especially after being homeless, can bring many financial burdens. Our Starter Packs aim to reduce this burden and give people the essentials they need to settle in to their new homes. They provide the basics for new households to survive, for example bedding to keep warm at night, curtains to close the world out, crockery to eat your dinner on.”
Rob Woodward, STV CEO and trustee of the STV Appeal, said: “The third year of the STV Appeal has been our most successful yet. With the help of our generous supporters and fantastic fundraising efforts taking place right across Scotland we have now raised over £5.8m. The money donated to the STV Appeal stays right here in Scotland and will help make a real difference to the lives of vulnerable children and young people on our doorstep.”
Sir Tom Hunter, trustee of the STV Appeal, said: “The STV Appeal is for Scotland by Scotland’s people who truly have stepped up to support our work in trying to beat the horror that is child poverty here in Scotland. This is a long haul but at the end of the day we can and we will eradicate the impacts poverty has on Scotland’s young people. Every single penny we raise goes directly to tackling the issue of child poverty across all of Scotland something I’m really proud of.”
Sir Ian Wood, trustee of the STV Appeal, said: “This is the Wood Family Trust’s first year of involvement with the STV Appeal to help tackle the issue of child poverty in Scotland. We are delighted to be part of the fundraising endeavours of so many, which have enabled the distribution of such significant financial support to local projects in our own communities. We are optimistic that with the generous total raised by supporters of the STV Appeal, combined with the on-going hard work and dedication seen in communities across Scotland, the lives of children and young people affected by poverty in Scotland can, and will, be changed for the better.”
STV Appeal trustee Lorraine Kelly presenting The Big Live
A joint venture by The Edinburgh Partnership, Joined up for Jobs and Connected will deliver Free Service Training for the Retail Sector at Muirhouse Millennium Centre on Wednesday 12th March, running from 11am – 2.00pm. This will run for one day only, but should be of great advantage to young and older people alike. At the end of the session attendees will be given a proof of attendance certificate.
If you are interested, phone Peter Airlie at Muirhouse Millennium (Community) Centre (0131-467-3578) or Gwen on 0131-557-7913 to book a place.
There are still places available for the new Childcare Academy which will start on Monday 24 February 2014 at North Edinburgh Childcare.
Anyone who is interested will need to book into an information session prior to applying for the course. We have various dates and times for these drop in sessions and I would be grateful if you could contact myself on the number below or Barbara Webster on 0131 311 6926 for more details.
Kim Weir
Training Administrator, North Edinburgh Childcare
As part of a wider project to develop a Health Literacy Toolkit for professional NHS staff, the Health Literacy project is making a Health Literacy DVD.
We are looking for people from all walks of life who may have difficulty understanding health information. This could take the form of not retaining information they are given by health professionals; not understanding medication information/dosage; confusion over drug names and/or language used; feeling unable/unwilling to ask questions; managing long term health conditions; understanding treatment options and shared decision making around their health.
If you know of any individuals or groups who may be interested in being part of this project, please contact Fiona Manson 0131-537-4230; 0787 554 5757; or Fiona.manson@edinburgh.gov.uk
