The board of trustee is delighted to invite you to the Granton:Hub AGM 2023 in Madelvic house on the 27th of September from 18:30 – 20:30.
Granton:Hub AGM will be chaired by Shaeron Averbuch, who will give an overview of Granton:Hub activities over the past period [August 2022 to July 2023]. The Hub treasurer, Romain Viguier, will present the accounts and the Hub members will proceed with election and re-election of officers.
Following the AGM, we will present a selection of projects, to highlight the diversity of activities being developed at Granton:Hub and inspire new ones. You will hear from the Closing the Gap project, from Art in Granton programme, and from the adventurous Iron Age Log-boat crossing of the Firth of Forth.
You will have opportunities to network, meet other members and users of the Hub’s facilities and tell us what you would like to see happening in Granton:Hub.
WEDNESDAY 29 JUNE at 7pm in DRYLAW NEIGHBOURHOOD CENTRE
Come along to our AGM on June 29 @DrylawNC at 7pm and hear from @greenspacetrust about our consultation on parks and open spaces and have your say on how these can be improved.
We are also looking for new members so if you want to help improve the local area please get in touch.
Where asked to sign-in with a screen display name, please adopt the following procedure:
If you are carrying your council’s vote, please sign in to the Teams screen meeting with a clear CC identifier, preceded by two asterisks and followed by your surname, along the lines of:
**GRANGE – ROBERTSON
**CORST – KERR
**LTHLNK – MILLAR
If you are not carrying a vote, just sign in as FIRST NAME LAST NAME.
First of all, thank you to the members who attended our first ever, in-person AGM which was held in the Heart itself. We had a good turn-out of both full members and associated members as well as several apologies from those unable to attend.
Three trustees stood down after having given significant service since the time of the original steering committee and having continued with membership of the Board when the SCIO was set up in 2020. Rodney Matthews, Colin MacNeill and Alan Hartley all stepped back from the Board for personal reasons although all remain committed to helping the Heart in other ways in the future.
Two Trustees who had joined the Board since the 2021 AGM, Mike Douglas and Layla Robinson, were re-elected.
Guest speaker for the event was Mr David Knight from the Scottish Land Fund.
He gave an invigorating address about the history of the Land Fund and its investments and announced that the grant awarded to the Heart was the largest single grant for an individual site, with the exception of the large award for the Isle of Ulva which was for a whole estate as opposed to “just” a building.
Although the legal documents have not yet been signed, or the keys handed over, Mr Knight presented outgoing chair Rodney Mathews with a plaque commemorating the SLF’s investment in the Heart, which will be given pride of place once it is legally owned by the community.
The new Board
Immediately following the AGM the new Board held a short meeting, whereby Judy Crabb, who has been involved with the project since even before the creation of the first steering group, was elected as the new Chair.
Emma Hendron, who is a co-opted trustee, was elected Treasurer and Layla Robinson was elected Secretary. All three were elected unanimously.
The new Chair has been instrumental in many ways that members may not have been aware of, being involved in all aspects of the project so far. The current Board acknowledged this with her election and can think of no better person to lead the way forward as we enter this new phase.
All trustees can be contacted directly through their Heart of Newhaven email addresses, which can be found on the website.
The new Board wish to thank all three retiring trustees for the vision and unwavering commitment they shared during their terms in office. Without their contributions the project would not be where it is today. We all owe them a great deal.
Could you fill a space on the Board?
As we move into the next phase of the project, we are looking for a new trustee with legal experience who can assist the Board with contractual, commercial and property legal issues that may arise from time to time.
Remember to check the website and social media regularly for updates, news and blogs. June saw the posting of the delightful reminiscences of 95 year old Margaret Mclean who was born, grew up and still lives in Newhaven.
You can find the blogs under BLOGS on the website.
First of all, a big thank you to everyone who contributed to our recent Crowdfunder campaign.
This is to be put towards the costs of sprucing up the building once we get the keys. Lots of volunteers are of course already hard at work getting ready for the big day, making inventories and moving furniture, all essential logistical work.
Soon, it really will be “all hands on deck” as we start with the paintbrushes and the trowels and we’ll be calling on even more help on the ground then.
Meanwhile, if you haven’t already given, the Crowdfunder is still open for donations.
Did you know however that you can gift to our charity at any time you like, or even on a regular basis?
All you have to do is go to our website and follow the links.
You can donate online directly to our bank or you can send a cheque if you prefer.
Now that the weather is improving, remember our big Picnic in the Park, to be held in Victoria Park on Sunday 19th June, between 12.30 and 3.30pm.
Inspired by the Eden Project’s Big Lunch, this is being held in collaboration with the Friends of Victoria Park and the Victoria Park Allotment Holders. Bring a picnic and enjoy meeting your neighbours. Take part in the fun races and games or take advantage of the plants and books swap tables. There will even be an (optional) fancy dress competition for children and pets – with prizes!
New initiatives
Thanks to successful applications to the Social Isolation and Loneliness Fund 2022, The Arnold Clark Community Fund and the People’s Postcode Trust, we have successfully achieved funding to help connect and bring people together. This is the aim of the following two new projects.
Reminiscence training
We know that sharing stories and memories is valuable in preserving not just family history but social history and brings people of different generations together through understanding and sharing. It’s also enjoyable and rewarding.
If you’re interested in reminiscence and recording people’s stories and memories, then we have funding for training in reminiscence work which will be led by the Living Memory Association.
The second project is an expansion of our earlier Pots of Kindness. That project was so well received that we are going to run another.
This time, as well as primary school children, we are inviting young people of 16+ to get involved.
We will supply the seeds, pots and compost. All you do is plant the seeds and write a short letter to an elderly recipient. We’ll deliver the planted pots with their accompanying letters to the elderly or isolated within the community.
It’s a wonderful way to bring the generations together.
Finally, we are due to hold our next AGM shortly, probably towards the end of June. If you’ve not become a member, consider doing so now, before the meeting, so that you have the right to vote.
There are two types of membership depending on where you live and you can find out all about it on the website page.
Drylaw Telford Community Council AGM.
