Following the inaugural West Pilton and Muirhouse Gala and the disappointing cancellation of this month’s North Edinburgh Community Festival at Forthquarter Park, NEN caught up with SEAN GARDINER, chair of the West Pilton event’s organising committee, to reflect on the gala:
“The committee has yet to meet, but as it stands we have reviewed feedback and the few things we have picked up on for next year is more bins, more ticket stands to avoid queues and perhaps something for older kids like archery, a paintball area or laser quest. All in all the event was a great success; there were a few people felt that some things were a bit pricey, but for everything that cost money there was a free activity too so in the Galas opinion, things that cost money are the individuals’ choice. Hearing feedback from the gala day suppliers I will say it seems that, even with prices not being suited to everyone, all our suppliers had a very successful day.
“With regards to the Forthquarter event , we were never and will never run in competition with ANY event in Edinburgh; our aim from the start was to host a community event for local people, by local people. I must say I was very disappointed to hear it had been cancelled, and with no real explanation either. Areas like West Pilton and Muirhouse have long had this reputation for being a rundown area, events like our gala and the Forthquarter festival prove ten-fold that the area is only as bad as some people make it. There are certain groups operating within the West Pilton and Muirhouse area that promote how bad the place is and how bad the way of life is, when in my opinion, all that really does is brings people down. A little bit of hard work and organisation for something like the gala lifts heads and spirits and gets people in this area – who would otherwise be walking round thinking how bad the place is – walking round with a buzz, talking about how great the gala was or what there kids dance group done, etc.
“I spoke to a man who lives in Pilton Drive North just yesterday and was told about a couple of locals from Pilton and Royston looking into the possibility of a gala in their area next year, so from what started as a fun idea, it has not only been a huge success , it has also inspired other areas to do the same thing. It can only get better …!”
Did you attend the West Pilton and Muirhouse Gala? What could be improved? Let us know!
The new Edinburgh College has announced the name of its first Principal. MANDY EXLEY, who is currently Principal and Chief Executive at Jewel & Esk College, will take over the position when Edinburgh College launches on October 1. Her appointment provides the final key link in the process that will see Edinburgh’s Telford, Stevenson and Jewel and Esk Collges combine to allow the creation of a bigger, stronger and better college serving Edinburgh and the Lothians.
Ian McKay, Chair (Elect) of Edinburgh College, said: “We are delighted to have someone of the calibre and pedigree of Mandy Exley lead Edinburgh College at the start of this exciting journey. We have given a commitment that Edinburgh College will change the face of further education in Edinburgh and Lothians and with Mandy’s previous experience at the helm of Jewel & Esk College, and the vision she has for the new College, we are ideally placed to fulfil our ambition.”
The rigorous selection process to find a Principal for what will be one of the biggest and most influential colleges in Scotland has been conducted over a number of months. In a new development, the process also included the involvement of the leadership of the student body in the college – the President and three vice Presidents of the Edinburgh College Students’ Association. This was seen as an important part of working with and for students in the new College.
John Martin, President of Edinburgh College Students’ Association, said: “The Students’ Association were pleased to be invited to be a part of the interview process, and particularly the value that has been placed on our opinion. Students should be at the centre of every decision making process as colleges across Scotland go through unprecedented changes and tribulations in the coming years and I hope that this sets a precedent for all future appointments of major office holders within Colleges, including membership of Boards of Governors. I congratulate Mandy on her success and look forward to working positively with her over the coming year to make sure our students get the best possible experience out of their life-changing time at Edinburgh College.”
Ian McKay added: “We believe it’s the first time that the student body have played a part in a Principal’s appointment. That illustrates the depth of the recognition of, and commitment to, the students, who we have always said are the most important people in the new College.”
Mandy has a long history of leadership in education in Scotland having served for the last two years as Principal at Jewel & Esk College and previously as Principal at the University of the Highlands & Islands Perth College. She said that she is looking forward to Edinburgh College playing its part in securing improved prosperity for everyone who lives and works in Edinburgh and the Lothians.
She said: “The creation of Edinburgh College is about a journey from good to great. The three existing colleges are really good in their own right but together, they can deliver great results. The College aims to deliver the very best education and training to students. By achieving that, we have an opportunity to build an economic powerhouse – to play a vital role in getting individuals back to work and to deliver skilled people needed in those economic sectors where Scotland can enjoy a genuine competitive advantage.”
Mandy added that with each college having an impressive reputation for forward thinking and innovation, it would allow ‘centres of excellence’ in key learning fields to be developed in the new College.
“The College itself will become a ‘centre of excellence’, building on the existing strengths of the three colleges to foster growth, opportunity and economic development. We are confident Edinburgh College will compete with the best in Britain and that it will be a College we can all be proud of,” she said.
Mandy has worked in education for more 20 years and her career has been both in England and Scotland, working in large inner city colleges in Birmingham, Manchester and Stoke and rural colleges in Gloucestershire, Perth and the Highlands and Islands. Her work has been recognised beyond the college and she has served on a number of Government and Scotland’s Colleges’ Task Groups including the current Government Change Team. She is a Board Director of the Scottish Institute for Enterprise and has a particular interest in Public Value and leads on promoting this work for Scotland’s Colleges.
The new Edinburgh College will operate from four main campuses employing more than 1,500 staff; Granton (formerly Edinburgh’s Telford College), Sighthill (formerly Stevenson College Edinburgh) and Milton Road and Midlothian (both formerly Jewel & Esk College).
The College, a £60m business and the biggest FE college in Scotland, will accommodate more than 35,000 students – the biggest student body in Edinburgh – when it opens next month.
The Total Craigroyston initiative’s Draft Road Map was produced following a number of consultation meetings across the area. The Total Craigroyston team went back out into the community again last week to get feedback on the draft report, holding sessions at West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre, Craigroyston Community High School and North Edinburgh Arts Centre. This feedback will help guide the way forward for the initiative which was set up to improve the life chances of children and families in the Craigroyston High School cluster.
Total Craigroyston’s Tim Packer said: “We had 18 people at the feedback events last week and we will be meeting with others over the weeks to come to continue the conversation about the Road Map and the initiative as a whole.
During the sessions we asked people not only to comment/feedback but also to ‘sign-up’ to particular actions identified in the Road Map. The response to this has been encouraging and we will be following up with those people/organisations on how to take things forward with them.
There has been a lot of interest in the Timebanking scheme and other general opportunities to volunteer and we will make sure how these provisions are accessed is included in the work of Total Craigroyston. Information and communication have continued through the feedback sessions to be an important area requiring further work. It has been great to have a good number of young people involved – they have contributed to a number of the actions and will be involved in taking forward the work.
The Road Map itself is available on the Forth Neighbourhood Partnership website or directly from http://www.edinburghnp.org.uk/media/12573/Road%20Map%202012%2009%2003.pdf. In order to break down the areas of work identified within each of the themes we are preparing a more detailed action plan (with names and some timescales). This will identify who is taking forward each of the areas of work. So, the ‘next steps’ are to go, with the local community and staff, and do the things that people have identified!
If anyone wants to talk about the Road Map then they can contact Christine (Mackay, Total Craigroyston manager) or myself.”
Total Craigroyston is based at North Neighbourhood Office, 8 West Pilton Gardens, Edinburgh EH4 4DP
Tom Allan and Emily Dodd will be hosting the third NENgage social media workshop in Stockbridge Library on Thursday from 5.45 – 7.30pm. The theme of this week’s session is video-blogging – and there are still a few places available.
As ever, the session is free but you so need to register. To do so, or to find out more, go to:
Last week’s session was a lot of fun, with a mixed group of Inverleith bloggers old and new taking part. Such was the participants’ enthusiasm – maybe some bloggers don’t get out much! – that the session overran, and was continued in The Antiquary (thanks for that splendid buffet, incidentally!)
We’re hoping to post some of the articles written by our ‘NENgagers’ on the blog soon, but meantime you can get involved – sign up for NENgage this Thursday!
Organisers expressed satisfaction at the levels of interest shown during two consultations exhibiting the De Vere Hotels group’s plans to build a new ‘Village Urban Resort’ at Crewe Toll. De Vere representatives displayed plans at Morrison’s on Ferry Road on Friday afternoon and again at the site of the proposed development on Saturday and said that the public reaction was ‘very positive’.
De Vere’s plans for the former World Markets WM Helix House building include a 120 bedroom hotel, a health and fitness club including a 20m indoor pool, a restaurant and bar and a Starbucks Coffee House – all under one roof. A customer and guest parking area for up to 270 vehicles is also included in the plans.
De Vere is likely to apply for planning permission next month and, if succesful, the Village Urban Resort would open in 2014.
Is a ‘Village Urban Resort’ a good thing for the area? Is Crewe Toll the right place? Would you use it? Let us know!
Craigroyston Community High’s most illustrious former pupil Gordon Strachan visited his old school on Pennywell Road this morning. Local lad Gordon, who is also patron of Spartans Community Football Academy, passed on some coaching tips to young School of Football players on Craigroyston’s astroturf, and the Scotland legend showed he’s still got those silky skills – still time for a late call-up before tonight’s Macedonia game?
Stockfest 2012 runs from 15 – 22 September and is a week- long celebration of community events in Stockbridge. The festival celebrates the area’s vibrant and eclectic shopping and dining scene and showcases the immense vitality and creativity in the area.
Stockfest organizing committee Tannis Dodd, Jane Ali-Knight, JoJo Hernandez and Rhona Johnston explain:
“The events have been created by the local community – the schools, community spaces, traders, performers and residents. There are over 40 events including Fashion Shows, a Community Ceilidh, theatre performances, live music, guided tours, a vintage and upcycling event, shop promotions, food and wine tastings, the Stockbridge market and so much more … we hope you will enjoy all that Stockfest 2012 has to offer and support the hard work and effort of all involved!”
There really is a lot to see, do and enjoy in Stockbridge during Stockfest – check out the festival programme on the website at www.stockfestedinburgh.com for full details.
The Cockburn Association (Edinburgh’s Civic Trust) organises Edinburgh Doors Open Day. Now in its 21st year, the event has become one of the capital’s most popular free days out. This is your chance to explore some of Edinburgh’s most architecturally, culturally and socially significant buildings. Most venues feature behind the scenes tours, activities, exhibitions and/or talks which bring the history of the building, garden, cemetery or monument and its everyday use to life. Many sites organise additional free activities for children and families.
No less than 121 locations across the city will be opening their doors to the public, and you don’t have to travel too far to see some of them.
In Inverleith, you can visit the Royal Botanic Garden, Herbarium and Library on Saturday between 10am – 4pm, or what about the Danish Cultural Institute, an elegant Georgian town house in Doune Terrace (Saturday and Sunday, 10am – 5pm)? Another Georgian town house opening it’s doors to inquisitive visitors is the Edinburgh Photographic Society in Great King Street (Sunday 11am – 4pm). Then there’s Dean Cemetery (Sunday 1 – 4.30pm), Edinburgh Society of Musicians on Belford Road (Saturday 10am – 4pm) and Stewart’s Melville College on Queensferry Road (Saturday 2 – 5pm).
North of Ferry Road there are many more places to visit – the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop at Hawthornvale (Saturday 10am – 4.30pm), Alien Rock on Pier Place Newhaven (Saturday and Sunday 10am – 7pm) and old Newhaven Station on Craighall Road (Saturday and Sunday 10am – 4pm).
Moving west into Trinity, Granton and Muirhouse we’ve got St Columba’s Hospice Education Centre on Boswall Road (Sunday 10am – 5pm), Wardie Primary School on Granton Road (Saturday 10am – 1pm), the National Museums Collection Centre on Granton Road (Saturday 10.30am – 4pm) and Muirhouse St. Andrew’s Parish Church in Pennywell Gardens (Saturday 10am – 4pm).
This is just a local selection, of course – citywide there are many, many more to visit and remember, they’re all FREE!
For more information pick up an Edinburgh Doors Open Day 2012 brochure from your local library or you can download it by visiting www.cockburnassociation.org.uk
Royston Primary School closed despite community campaign
A local mum has reacted angrily to news that the city council may have to extend Granton Primary School – just a year after closing nearby Royston. Mandy Eng has written to education chiefs to express her disgust and also to warn that blaming migration for increasing school rolls could ‘make a volatile situation much worse’.
Earlier this month, Councillor Paul Godzik, Convener of Education, Children and Families, explained the rationale behind another review of school buildings. He said: said: “One of our earliest coalition decisions was to set up a cross-party Forum on Children and Families Estate Evaluation. Parents, union and church representatives have also been invited to participate. By doing this we aim to discuss the issues in an open way from the very start of the decision making process.”
The council believes that while some of the issues are longer term and can be addressed over a number of years, immediate action may be required for five schools – Balgreen, Granton, Trinity, Victoria and Wardie – to ensure they can provide places for their catchment population in August 2013, and plans to build ‘high quality extensions if required to support parents who wish to send their child to a catchment school.’
Councillor Godzik continued: “Thriving schools like Sciennes and Stockbridge Primary schools are delivering first class education, even though space is at a premium. I think it is only right with the predicted rise in school rolls that we consider reviewing GP space across the city.”
Education leaders cite a combination of rising birth rates, migration and economic factors for causing a 5% rise in the city’s primary school population this year and an estimated rise of a further 19% by 2019. However Mandy Eng, parent of a child at Granton Primary, believes there is also another reason – school closures. In a letter to Director of Education Gillian Tee, she said:
‘I am a parent of a pupil at Granton Primary School and have just received a letter from you entitled “Rising Rolls in Primary Schools” and am absolutely furious in regard to its content.
You state that the reasons the school is under pressure to accommodate pupil numbers is “due to a combination of rising birth rates, migration and other economic factors” and this will require you to look at increasing the number of classrooms in the coming year. However, no where do you mention that one of the other catchment schools in the area, Royston Primary, was demolished last year which would easily have accommodated this rise in number of pupils. Having failed to acknowledge this I feel you are not taking any ownership of an issue that has obviously arisen through lack of foresight from Children and Families Dept.
I attended all of the public meetings to save Royston Primary School from closure and I myself pointed out to your representatives at the first meeting that their figures on birth rates did not equate, then again at the second meeting when the “altered” figures STILL did not equate and was then surprised to see that the slide in relation to these figures had been omitted from further presentations from yourselves. Were the Council so desperate to close Royston and use its running costs and the sale of the land to plough elsewhere into the Council that they brushed the birth rate figures under the carpet or are your analysts incapable of working out simple projected figures? To now be looking at spending public money on extending Granton only one year since Royston’s closure is both appalling and unacceptable.
Also by apportioning blame to “migration” I feel you are causing a feeling of resentment to the migrants in our community and I go as far as to say that the Council is inciting racism and making an already volatile situation in some areas much worse. Already I have heard parents say that it is due to the amount of foreign children coming into the area that their child may not get a place in their catchment school and I have been forced to remind them that if we still had Royston School then this situation would never have arisen.
I am keen to know why the Council did not take information on the projected number of school age children in the area, that was easily obtainable at the time of the decision to close Royston, into consideration and who is going to take responsibility for this MASSIVE error?’
Mandy Eng told NEN: “I feel that it is something that needs to be brought to the attention of the community, and everyone needs to be made aware that there is a possibility that their child may not get a place at the school – not through “migration”, but through the council’s decision to close Royston School.”
The council is expected to Ms Eng’s letter in due course.
Just a reminder that the changes to household bin collections come into force from today.
Your green household bin, brown garden waste bin and grey food bin collections will now be on the same day of the week – you will have been notified of what day that is in a new calendar provided by the council.
Grey food bins will still be collected every week, but your green and brown bins will now be collected once a fortnight – the green bin one week and the brown bin the following week.
The red and blue recycling box schedules are not changing – you will continue to receive a separate calendar as usual.
If you use a communal bin, it will be collected as normal.
