Some statistical information for all you cyber-geeks out there – the NEN blog will pass three important (for us, anyway!) milestones over the next day or so.
We’re getting very very close to 750 posts, 50,000 all-time views and 250 comments! We think that’s not too bad for a wee community newspaper and it’s nice to be able to shout about it!
The blog was born on 19 January 2011, with a post to introduce the NEN and to welcome readers. There was an understandable silence shortly after that as the NEN’s funding was discontinued, but now – slowly but surely – the figures are creeping up.
Our thanks to you for your contributions and your comments, to our old friends for sticking with us and our new followers who are now beginning to share their stories. Our thanks to you all for helping to keep the blog fresh, interesting, topical and, hopefully, fun to read.
And thanks to our readers, wherever you come from – but a special mention to our loyal friend in Moldova!
Stepping Stones (North Edinburgh) will be holding their AGM on Thursday 20 September at 12.30pm in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre, Pilton Drive North. All welcome.
Stepping Stones is one of North Edinburgh’s longest established and most succesful community-led organisations, and has worked with young parents (up to 25) and pregnant teenagers from across the Greater Pilton Area of Edinburgh since 1986.
Stepping Stones provides structured but flexible support to young parent families and pregnant teenagers, providing centres where parents can relax, enjoy themselves and their children. The varied group work programmes include leisure recreational and educational activities and is designed to offer a wide range of learning opportunities to the family.
Individual support is also available to complement the group work sessions. Individual support includes counselling, help with parenting, play therapy, relationship advice, career and training advice, housing and debt management, etc. A designated worker provides individual and group support to very young pregnant teenagers.
For further information about Stepping Stones (North Edinburgh) telephone 551 1632, email ststnorthed@hotmail.com or visit their website at www.steppingstonesnorthedinburgh.co.uk Then again, you could find out all the latest Stepping Stones news by attending the AGM!
Initiatives to make Edinburgh a better city for ‘active travel’ will be considered by councillors this week, with cycling set to recieve a considerable chunk of the council’s transport budget. Inspired by Olympic success, there’s been a sharp rise in bike ownership over the last month so the measures are likely to prove popular with the Edinburgh public.
An extra dedicated cycling officer will also be appointed to take forward the design and construction of schemes that are already in the pipeline.
A further £460,000 will be spent on routine maintenance of cycle routes and on marketing and promotion. This year the Council has also attracted £425,000 of matching funding for cycle projects from the Scottish Government via Sustrans.
Councillor Jim Orr, vice-convener of the Transport committee, said: “This programme is evidence of the capital coalition’s commitment to making it easier, safer and more attractive for people to cycle and walk in Edinburgh. It represents a record investment by the Council with 5% of our total transport budget going on cycling, and we believe this is more than any other Scottish authority in both total and per head spend. Encouraging active travel makes sense for environmental, health and traffic reasons, but Edinburgh is also a fantastic city to explore on foot or two wheels. Our investment will make the most of that.”
There will be further spending on promoting walking, with a new post focussed on improving design for pedestrians and upgrading popular routes.
The measures form part of the Council’s Active Travel action plan, which was drawn up in 2010 with NHS Lothian, walking charity Living Streets, Sustrans and the city’s leading cycling group Spokes, among others. The Council’s progress will be measured under Scottish and European schemes to promote cycling, as well as annual reports to the Transport committee.
Edinburgh’s own Sir Chris Hoy’s herculean Olympic exploits have doubtless encouraged many more citizens to get on their bikes. Yesterday council leader Andrew Burns was joined by Inverleith councillor Nigel Bagshaw and Forth’s Cammy Day among others on the freshnlo Pedal for Scotland Glasgow to Edinburgh charity cycle – his tenth in a row! It seems the capital’s gone cycle crazy!
8500 cyclists registered for yesterday’s Pedal for Scotland event which was started by cycling star Mark beaumont and Scottish Transport minister Keith Brown
Your library’s opening hours are changing! From 1 October 22 city council libraries will open 10am – 5pm on Saturdays, with major changes to Thursday opening citywide. Local library opening times will be:
Edinburgh’s senior bowlers headed to the north of the city on Thursday when Dudley Bowling Club hosted the Auld Yins Cup. Sponsored by Lindsay’s Solicitors, eight city bowling clubs battled it out in a round-robin event that was only slightly affected by gusty wind and light showers – they’re made of stern stuff these seniors!
At the end of an action-packed day it was Dudley’s near neighbours Summerside who triumphed and made the short journey home with the spoils.
Stockbridge was a busy place today: as well as Stockbridge Market’s first birthday celebrations (see previous post) SOS (Save our Stockbridge) members were out on the streets to lobby support for their campaign against Edinburgh Accies’ redevelopment proposals.
Armed with petitions, the SoS campaigners were joined by a BBC film unit yesterday – the BBC plans to screen a documentary about the campaign next Spring.
In their first Scottish Tour since, ‘Tonight Sandy Grierson will Lecture, Dance andBox’ Greyscale are delighted to present Sylvia Dow’s ‘A Beginning, A Middle and An End’ to North Edinburgh Arts Centre on Friday 21 and Saturday 22 September.
Commissioned with the support of Creative Scotland, Glasgow University and Fenton Arts Trust and produced in association with Stellar Quines, this is the world premiere of Sylvia Dow’s first play.
A beginning, a middle and an end, that’s how things go, provided you start in the right place.
For Evelyn and Ade time passes; sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes all at once, but always away from what was and relentlessly towards what will be.
Their little family of two, of four, of three, of one, not necessarily in that order, travels together towards a new beginning, or an old ending. Or both. Only time will tell.”
Drylaw Telford Community Council has raised safety concerns over the Doo’cot (that’s the old Listed structure, not the boozer!) with officials at the city council’s local North Office.
During the summer holidays local children, some of them older teenagers, have gained access to the old Doocot structure and have been climbing through the building, using trees and shrubbery that are growing through the heart of the structure. Some are jumping off when they get to the top, and residents fear that children will be injured – or worse – if they land on rusty railing below.
Drylaw Telford Community Council chairman Alex Dale has taken the safety issue up with the local North Office – along with another potential problem – Japanese Knotweed. This invasive plant is very difficult to remove, and residents believe that teh invader is gaining a hold in gardens surrounding the old Doo’cot.
“I have passed this information on to the local council office and the response has been very prompt. I understand that there has been some confusion about who is actually responsible for the old Doo’cot – it’s hard to believe it when you seen the state of it, but it’s a Listed building – but that’s been resolved and the council will be taking action. That will be a relief to local residents.”
a trail of knotweed at the old doo’cot?
More good news for Wester Drylaw residents is a council rethink on local street lighting. Following concerns raised by the community council earlier this year, council officials looked again at the quality and positioning of street lighting in the area.
“John McFarlane and his Lighting team have come up with an action plan, fitting 70w bulbs instead of current 45w metal halide bulbs in three sections of Wester Drylaw Place”, Alex added. “Around end of November or early December they shall consult with all residents on which would be their preferred option and before the end of the year the preferred option will be fitted throughout Wester Drylaw Place. We hope that all residents will participate in the consultation when asked in order to achieve the best result for all, and make Wester Drylaw Place a brighter and safer place for the community.”
David (with medal!) pictured with Kathy at Muirhouse Library
David Colvin, our Library Link volunteer, has just received a long service medal from the WRVS for working with Muirhouse and Granton Libraries for 20 years. We are celebrating the anniversary of the Library Link on 4th October.
Some statistical information for all you cyber-geeks out there – the NEN blog will pass three important (for us, anyway!) milestones over the next day or so.
