The NEN – North Edinburgh News – Page 3934 – The community media resource for north Edinburgh

Step out in September

Pilton Community Health Project’s Healthy Lifestyles coordinator Lisa Arnott has news of two opportunities to step out next month:

WALKING at WORK WEEK

Monday 17 September to Friday 21 September

On 17 September Pilton Community Health Project will be launching its new physical activity event ‘Walking at Work Week’. Walking is free and is the simplest way to becoming fit. ‘‘Walkin at Work Week’ is a great way to encouraging us to think about the way we get too work, school or shops. Can I walk there and leave the car or bus?

Do we take a car to a meeting or shops when I can walk? This week we are hoping as may local business, schools and local organisations will join us in ‘Walkin at Work Week’ wear a pedometer for that week and show just how far we all walk.

All the steps made during ‘Walking at Work Week’ will contribute to the Muirhouse Million Steps which takes place on Friday 28 September from 10am.

MUIRHOUSE MILLION STEPS 2012

Friday 28 September 2012

10am -12.30 from North Edinburgh Arts, Pennywell Court Muirhouse

After the success of previous years the Muirhouse Million Steps 2012 is currently being planned. This year’s event will take place on Friday 28 September, 10am to 12.30am. The fun family walking event has proven to be popular in previous years and a way of encouraging local people to take those steps towards a healthier lifestyle.

This year Muirhouse Million Steps will have three walks, a long, short and toddlers walk. For every registered walker they will receive an amazing goody bag and vouchers for swimming at Craigroyston Community High School and a free Zumba class at PCHP .

To register for the walk, or for more information about Walking at Work Week, contact Lisa Arnott at Pilton Community Health Project, telephone 551 1671.

Teddy Time at Muirhouse Library

All local teddy bears and their families are invited to Teddy’s Rhyme Time at Muirhouse Library on Monday (13 August) from 11 – 3pm.

Part of the Total Craigroyston initiative, Teddy’s Rhyme Time is a fun event that children aged 3 – 6 years old and their families – and teddies, of course – can enjoy.

Among the fun activities on offer are Rhyme Time, finger-puppet making, face painting, Fingernotes Music, PEEP for babies, badge making and Lickety Spit. The Play Talk Read bus will be there too, and bring along a packed lunch for a Teddy Bear’s Picnic!

Sounds like fun!

Use your loaf!

Use Your Loaf is a new and exciting initiative coordinated by Pilton Community Health Project (PCHP) in partnership with CLD Forth Team and North Edinburgh Arts.

‘This is an exciting new development for Pilton Community Health Project. The idea came out of our community research which identified the barriers to healthy eating. The research showed that local people want to develop skills in all forms of eating healthy, cooking and bread making”, said Lisa Arnott, coordinator of the Community Healthy Lifestyles Project at PCHP. “As a result of the PCHP research we have seen the development of the Yummy Cookbook, the Yummy Food Festival and now the ‘Use Your Loaf’ project. This new project will teach local people how to make some fantastic bread and encourage people to eat more healthily.”

Sammy Dick, one of the women involved in planning the Yummy Food Festival, said: “The Yummy Food Festival 2012 was really exciting and there was such positive a response that we are planning to repeat it 2013. The Use Your Loaf project is a great idea and we will be learning how to make a simple loaf and planning for the next food festival.’

Use Your Loaf will be held at North Edinburgh Arts Centre, starting on Tuesday 28 August, 10am-12.30 and runs for ten weeks. There are also limited childcare places available.

So if you KNEAD to book a place on ‘Use Your Loaf’, contact Lisa Arnott at Pilton Community Health Project on 0131 551 1671!

Vicki says goodbye to Granton

Vicki Ridley is to leave Granton Youth Centre. Vicki, who has managed the youth centre since 2003, is taking up a new post with Canongate Youth Project.

Granton Youth Centre opened on West Granton Road in 2003 in a building shared with the Pilton Partnership. The new Centre did not have the most successful of starts, however, and it was only with the arrival of Vicki as new manager that the Centre started to live up to it’s potential.

Ten years on, under Vicki’s drive and leadership, Granton Youth Centre has gone from strength to strength: constantly building and developing to offer a comprehensive range of services in a programme that’s always been planned with, and centred around, the needs and requirements of the young people themselves.

Vicki said: “Ten years is a long time to be involved in any organisation, and it’s certainly the longest that I’ve been involved with an organisation. Granton Youth Centre has been an amazing place to work, often challenging, but never a dull moment and occasionally loads of fun! I have lots of fond memories to take away with me, and I have met some truly amazing people whose courage and resilience, kindness and positivity have blown me away, and kept me, the service and everyone else at GYC going when things got tough.

“Although the choppy waters of local community politics don’t always help with plain sailing, some of the partnerships, networks and local organisations we have worked with have been really valuable. I hope young people throughout Forth continue to benefit from a range and diversity of provision which meets their needs, and that all the organisations in the area have a sustainable and prosperous future.

“It’s great to see how GYC has become a viable and valued resource for young people where once there was none. My favourite memories are largely concerning situations where young people do well – they receive certificates, awards, or make a small/medium/large breakthrough. My least favourite memories will be collated and written up in small novella format for publication at a later date!

I look forward to working with friends and colleagues in my new role as Manager of Canongate Youth Project.”

When advertising for a replacement, Granton Youth Centre’s voluntary Board of Management said they were seeking ‘an exceptional candidate to lead our organisation and take our plans forward’. Interviews take place this month, but Vicki will indeed be a hard act to follow.

Olympic fever grips Craigroyston!

If tickets are hard to come by in London, Craigroyston Community High School’s Early Years Olympics were even more exclusive – by invitation only!

The great event took place today and the NEN was delighted to be there. Thanks to Lorraine Grant for the invitation, the Early Years volunteers for the organisation and attention to detail, the spectators (mums, dads and carers) for creating that unique Olympic atmosphere and most of all to the brilliant wee participants – maybe there’s a wee future Hoy or Ennis in the following pictures!

Water of Leith cleanup

The Water of Leith is flows from the Pentlands through the heart of Edinburgh to Leith, and it takes a bit of work to keep the river looking it’s best. The Water of Leith Conservation Trust organise regular clean-ups along the stretch of water, and Inverleith Community Learning and Development worker Callum McLeod was involved in the latest spruce-up on 29 July.

He said: “I’d walked the route with Ben from the Conservation Trust and there was no shortage of things to do! Thankfully we had a good team of volunteers on the Sunday and we tackled some troublesome Himalayan Balsam, which is a very invasive flowering plant, and there were a number of log jams to clear. There were also some lighter lighter duties – tending to the formal garden areas and there was no shortage of litter all the way along, unfortunately – but that meant there was something for everyone to do.”

Tons of rubbish cleared from the water and riverbanks tidied up!

It does take a lot of work to keep the Water of Leith looking good, but you can do your bit as a volunteer – check out the website at www.waterofleith.org.uk Among the rewards – apart from the exercise, companionship and fresh air – is a chance to see birds like sparrowhawks and kingfishers up close, and an amazing variety of wildflowers along the banks. It’s like being in the country in the middle of the city!

Return of the King

Edinburgh Elvis fans have an opportunity to enjoy music, rare video and memorabilia at a dance at the Taxi Club in Beaverhall Road on Saturday 18 August from 7.30pm ’til late.

It’s hard to believe it’s now almost 35 years since Elvis Presley’s untimely death – but for members of Edinburgh Elvis, the official local Elvis Presley Fan Club, this will be a celebration of the great man’s life and music, not a wake. So get on your blue suede shoes and go party with The King!

For further information see the Edinburgh Elvis Facebook page or email edinburghelvis35@gmail.com

CORE to close

The Pilton-based Community Organisation for Racial Equality (CORE) is to close. Formerly the BCDP (Black Community Development Project), the project which grew out of the Muirhouse Anti-Racism campaign of the early 1990s will be formally wound up at an extraordinary general meeting in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre on 29 August.

At it’s height CORE was one of the most influential community-led equality organisations in the country – growing from humble beginnings in a room in Craigroyston HIgh School to staging prestigious conferences in Edinburgh’s International Conference Centre – but funding issues and financial struggles over recent years has forced directors to seek closure of the organisation.

Chairperson Dr Fernando Almeira Diniz confirmed that CORE has been experiencing financial problems for some months, but said that the Board will not be making any statements at this stage. “I am sure that you will see that we cannot do anything which could be regarded as pre-empting what might happen at the EGM”, he said.

CORE’s EGM will be held at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre on Wednesday 29 August at 6pm. Following the formal business procedures it’s planned to have a general discussion – ‘an opportunity to reflect on the achievements of CORE /BCDP, followed by a Community-led discussion about ways of engaging BME Communities in developing future provision of public services in North Edinburgh.’

For further information, or if you plan to attend, please contact Adil Ibrahim at CORE, email adil@coregb.org.uk by 25 August.

COREold — Happier times: Director Tesfu Gessesse addresses CORE’s 2007 AGM

Council urged to ‘dive in’ to save Waterworld

Campaigners plan a springboard for success?

Splashback, the Edinburgh residents’ campaign seeking to re-open Leith Waterworld, will this morning submit a bid for a community-led re-opening of the leisure pool. Waterworld was closed in January and subsequently put up for sale by the City of Edinburgh Council (CEC).

Back in February, councillors postponed a decision on the sale for six months following the submission of a 6500 signature petition by campaigners.

The community bid, which comprises a detailed business case and offer letter, will be handed in by campaigners to council headquarters at Waverley Court this morning. the site.

Campaigner Johnny Gailey said: “Today we’re taking our community bid to the Council, handing over the torch to the Council. It is only fitting that, during this exciting Olympic time, the future of such a well-loved and accessible pool is secured for the people of Leith, all of Edinburgh and beyond. We are providing a proposal, a springboard, for a new beginning for Waterworld, and we hope the Council will take a leap of faith and dive in.”

Fellow campaigner Ida Maspero said: “We believe our business case and supporting documents demonstrate that best value – in the broadest sense, not simply financial – will be achieved by giving the community a chance to re-open this unique and much-loved leisure pool.”

The business case draws heavily on the results of an extensive user survey run by Splashback between mid-May and end-July. The survey, which saw over 800 responses, is part impact study and part market research. It reveals the damaging impact of the closure in January, with 74% of respondents saying that they are now swimming less since Leith Waterworld closed.

Maspero continued: “Waterworld’s unique features – particularly its warmer water temperature and shallow beach area – made it particularly popular with parents of young children to gain early water confidence, and for those with disabilities to enjoy the freedom of water. The survey has seen a good number of responses from people with disabilities or their carers, identified by respondents as a user group for whom Waterworld was particularly important.”

One respondent wrote: ‘I attended Leith Waterworld almost every saturday and sunday for the last 5 years. I am a carer for a young man with Down Syndrome and we loved coming along every weekend, sometimes both days. Then I had my daughter 2 years ago and brought her every weekend too. It is very badly missed!’

For more information on the Splashback campaign visit their blog www.splashbackedinburgh.blogspot.com or visit the Facebook page at www.facebook/com/SaveLeithWaterworld