WIG call public meeting to debate council budget crisis

Local campaigners the Womens Internation Group (WIG) are to hold a public meeting to discuss the city council’s budget crisis. The event will take place in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre tomorrow (Tuesday 9 December) at 6.30pm. All welcome.

Council Cancels Christmas flyers 4

Full details of the event will follow when we have them, but here’s some background to where we are and why the local meeting has been called:

Last week public spending watchdog the Accounts Commission expressed concern over Edinburgh’s budget control – the city council must find savings of of £138m by 2017.

The Accounts Commission said Edinburgh needs to develop a comprehensive strategy for managing its staff – and on Friday it was revealed that city councillors are to discuss radical new proposals for service provision at Thursday’s full council meeting.

The council’s last major internal reorganisation in the 2000s saw the creation of ‘super departments’ – Education and Social Work were merged to become Children and Families, while roads and pavements, environmental services, housing, refuse collection and trading standards all became part of the remit of a huge new Services for Communities department.

As well as delivering a ‘joined-up’ approach, those new structures were introduced to devolve more power and decision-making to front-line staff to address new community planning arrangements.

Now, following a comprehensive review and facing severe budget pressure, Chief Executive Sue Bruce has produced a new blueprint to restructure the Council’s operations and it’s thought that hundreds of middle manager posts could be under threat as part of the proposed reorganisation.

Councillors will debate the proposals on Thursday before they go out to consultation with unions – the council currently operates a policy of no compulsory redundancies.

Council Leader Councillor Andrew Burns said: “It’s essential that we transform how we deliver council services to an ever growing number of residents, focusing more on their priorities while addressing the significant financial challenges we face.

“A further report from the Chief Executive makes the case for delivering services through four ‘localities’, or neighbourhoods, giving front-line staff the ability to make decisions more suited to the local community and their particular needs. It also outlines a proposal for creating a ‘Business and Customer Services’ corporate centre which would provide the necessary guidance and support.

“Councillors will be asked to select one from three models outlined in the report, following which consultation with staff, Trades Unions and relevant partners will begin.”

Councillor Burns also urged citizens to have their say on Edinburgh’s budget. He said: “Over the past two months, we’ve been inviting views on how we invest and save money. The consultation has attracted significant attention, with over 1,400 people completing our budget planner online, and a further 300 submitting comments by post and email. This is already more than four times the number of responses we received last year.

“Last week, attention turned to our Question Time event, giving members of the public the opportunity to quiz our panel of senior councillors on the budget proposals that mattered to them. It was a lively debate with the Chair, Evening News editor Frank O’Donnell, taking contributions from the floor and from those watching at home. Archive footage of the event is available to view on our website.

“Please take the time to have your say on the proposals, if you haven’t already. The consultation period runs until 19 December, and we will consider all feedback prior to setting the final 2015/16 Budget in February.”

Key_Facts_and_Figures_2014_2015

Edinburgh's Hogmanay programme announced

“Edinburgh will be the greatest place on earth to say goodbye to 2014 and bring in the bells for Hogmanay” – Cllr Steve Cardownie, Festival & Events Champion

Organisers of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay have announced the glittering programme of events for this year’s three day festival. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay will run from Tuesday 30 December to Thursday 1 January 2015, and is expected to attract tens of thousands of visitors from around the world.

The Festival, produced by Unique Events on behalf of the City of Edinburgh Council, will kick off with the hugely popular Torchlight Procession on Tuesday 30 December which is supported by EventScotland. A complete sell-out for the last few years, this event is expected to attract over 30,000 participants and 8,000 torchbearers in the procession which winds through the city centre from George IV Bridge to the finale which can be viewed from Calton Hill as well as Waterloo Place where there will be additional entertainment. In this centenary year of the start of World War I, a contribution from the sale of torches will be donated to Erskine.

The flagship Concert in the Gardens on Wednesday 31 December will turn West Princes Street Gardens into THE party with Björn Again, the world renowned Australian ABBA Show kicking off the evening, followed by Grammy award winning dance/R&B superstars Soul II Soul closing their worldwide 25th anniversary tour and headliner Lily Allen who, on the last date of her international tour, will ensure the audience is partying through the bells at midnight. Enclosure tickets have already sold out.

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay presents the biggest ever Hot Dub Time Machine at the World Famous Street Party. The time-travelling dance party which usually sees in New Year in Sydney, returns to Edinburgh to celebrate New Year for the first time in the Home of Hogmanay. 75,000 revellers across the arena will travel back to 1954 and then Moonwalk, Mashed Potato and Macarena their way through the bells and into 2015 with a banging song from each year relayed from the Rewinder Stage on the Mound across screens the length of Princes Street.

This year the Street Party welcomes a stellar Scottish line-up with a headline performance on the Waverley Stage from UK festival-favourites Twin Atlantic, joined by the winners of this year’s Mercury Prize, Edinburgh’s own alternative hip hop group Young Fathers, and Indie champions The Twilight Sad.

Audiences at the Scottish Stage will enjoy performances from Scotland’s chanteuse extraordinaire singer-songwriter Eddi Reader with special guests Radio 2 Folk Award nominated Breabach and the band led by Scottish piping phenomenon Ross Ainslie & Jarlath Henderson.

At the Keilidh on the Mound revellers will be birling through the bells to The Smashers (featuring members of Rura), Hugh MacDiarmid’s Haircut and The Sensational Jimi Shandrix Experience.

Revellers will enjoy countdown firework displays at 9pm, 10pm and 11pm rising to the crescendo of the spectacular Midnight Moment as the fireworks lift from the ramparts of Edinburgh Castle and Calton Hill. Followed by the world’s largest rendition of Auld Lang Syne as old friends and new join hands across the arena to sing Burn’s anthem.

All stages are live from 9pm to 1am but the party starts from 7pm throughout the Street Party arena with bars, rides and attractions.

Free NightBus services will run throughout Edinburgh and the Lothians for revellers at the Street Party and throughout the City Centre, supported by Lothian Buses and Johnnie Walker. These safe rides home are part of the Join the Pact global responsible drinking initiative from Johnnie Walker which has secured over one million personal commitments from people across the world to never to drink and drive.

Councillor Steve Cardownie, Festivals and Events Champion at the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “Edinburgh will be the greatest place on earth to say goodbye to 2014 and bring in the bells for Hogmanay. From the Street Party to the Keilidh, the Concert in the Gardens to the Loony Dook, this is going to be a jam-packed three day festival of fun.

“Every year, people travel from all over the world to experience Edinburgh’s midnight moment, and this year all eyes will yet again be on the Capital as locals and visitors come together to celebrate. With performances from Lily Allen and Mercury prize-winners Young Fathers, it’s also one of the best outdoor concerts in Britain. Local residents planning to celebrate New Year on their doorstep can snap up an early bird discount on tickets, but be quick – the discount will only apply until 28 November.”

Pete Irvine, Director of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, said ““The Street Party boasts the world’s biggest open air dance floor and this year we really are going to party, including at The Concert – we should say Party – in the Gardens. On the other stages we’ve got the perfect Scottish line-up and this reverberates the next day at SCOT.LANDS where 100 artists across 11 venues will be part of what is probably Scotland’s biggest free festival. And it’s still only the first day of the year!”

On New Year’s Day, Edinburgh’s Hogmanay presents Scot:Lands – incredible new worlds hidden in 11 beautiful buildings and outdoor spaces in the city’s Old Town, where audiences can discover the very best in music, art and theatre, created and curated by Scotland’s most innovative artists, arts organisations and musicians: a festival in itself – all free. Scot:Lands is supported by the Scottish Government’s Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund.

Also on New Year’s Day revellers can work off the excess of the night afore with a dip in the River Forth in the annual Queensferry Loony Dook. Starting with a Dookers Parade through South Queensferry featuring pipers and a host of entertainment the brave, or daft, Dookers will take the chilly plunge for charity under the world renowned Forth Bridge. For those not brave enough to get their feet wet, there are plenty of vantage points to watch the action and spectators are welcomed.

The award winning #Blogmanay was conceived in 2012 as a means of using travel bloggers and a high-impact social media campaign to showcase the unique experience of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, whilst using the festival as a gateway to explore and discover the delights of visiting Scotland, the ‘Home of Hogmanay’ in winter.

This year #Blogmanay is back again, encouraging locals, visitors and attractions across the city from 23 November to 5 January to create a huge bank of live digital content – blogs, reviews, videos, photographs and tweets, highlighting Edinburgh & Scotland as a premier winter destination. This year guest bloggers will be joining #Blogmanay from across Europe, North America, China and Australia and will participate in the award-winning campaign which since 2013 has generated over 150 million twitter impressions.

Tickets for all events at Edinburgh’s Hogmanay are on sale – full details can be found at www.edinburghshogmanay.com.

The early bird ticket offer for Edinburgh residents will close on Friday 28 November. Until then, anyone living in an EH postcode can buy their Street Party ticket for the reduced price of £16 plus booking fee.

Council offices on the move

1 Cockburn Street is closing

Council services currently based at 1 Cockburn Street are moving. The building will close at 3.40pm on Friday 28 November.

City Centre and Leith Neighbourhood Office

From 8.30am on Monday 1 December, the City Centre and Leith Neighbourhood can be found at Customer Hub, 249 High Street

0131 529 7061

Services from here include:

paying Council Tax and rent
housing, including bidding on properties through Key to Choice
reporting anti-social behaviour or environmental crime
parks and green spaces
roads issues.

Or you can access these services at our Leith Office, Leith Library, 28-30 Ferry Road

0131 529 6170

Homeless and Housing Support Services

From 9am on Monday 1 December, Homeless and Housing Support Services can be found at

1A Parliament Square

0131 529 7368

Services from here include:

housing advice
housing options
temporary accommodation
support to remain in your own home
immigration and asylum support.

Community meeting to discuss Granton Mill vandalism

West Pilton/West Granton Community Council has organised a special community meeting to discuss vandalism in the Granton Mill area.

The meeting will take place on

TUESDAY 25 NOVEMBER from 6.30 – 8pm

in Craigroyston Community High School

Police, council officials and councillors have been invited to the event and a council Community Safety officer will report on what steps are being taken to tackle the problems.

The meeting also offers an opportunity to meet with other concerned residents and tenants who are working for the betterment of the area, and community council secretary Willie Black hopes Granton Mill’s residents will attend, get involved and make a difference.

“Why not come along to the meeting and have your say? With your help we can all make Granton Mill a place where everyone can be proud to live and work”, he said.

For further information contact Willie Black (Secretary) on 07515686421 or email w.black@blueyonder.co.uk

Community Council Public Meeting

EVOC thinkSpace event: Balancing the Books

Monday 24 November, 1 – 3pm

City of Edinburgh Council, City Chambers, Business Centre

At this thinkSpace event, we will be joined by Councillors Burns, Rankin, Child & Cook, as well as Hugh Dunn, Head of Finance at CEC, to take us through the Council’s budget proposals for 2015/16 and into the future.

Full details of the event are available here.

Please book in advance by emailing dianne.morrison@evoc.org.uk to reserve your place.

Really hope you can make this important event – the sector needs to make its voice heard during the consultation period.

Play your part in active travel planning

Local councillor Lesley Hinds outlined initiatives to keep the city moving at last week’s Inverleith Community Conference. You can be involved …

A recruitment drive is now under way for members of two groups involved in developing active travel policy for Edinburgh.

The Council is setting up a new Active Travel Forum, to be chaired by Transport Convener Councillor Lesley Hinds (above), which will be supplemented by a Cycling Forum and a Walking Forum.

Applications are now being sought from four members of the public to join the Cycling and Walking Forum (ie eight in total), alongside one lobby group representative for each group.

The Council is also looking for a business representative to join the Active Travel Forum, to give a perspective on active travel and staff commuting.

Councillor Adam McVey, Vice Convener of Transport and Environment, will chair both the Cycling and Walking Forums. He said: “This is a great opportunity for anyone who’s interested in active travel in Edinburgh. We want these forums to reflect a broad range of viewpoints to help us develop new policies and design principles for future walking and cycling initiatives. If you’ve got ideas on how we can do things differently or if you just want to play a bigger role in the City’s active travel plans, we’d love to hear from you.”

The full membership of the Cycling and Walking Forums will be made up of existing Transport Forum members, elected members and officers from the Council’s Transport division.

The first meetings of the Active Travel Forum, Cycling Forum and Walking Forum will take place on Wednesday 26 November 2014.

To apply, complete the online application form by Friday 14 November.

Edinburgh prepares for winter

Winter is coming – and the city council is getting ready for it …

Road Services staff Brian McKay, Stuart Dineley and David Gillies get ready for winter Salt has been stockpiled, gritting lorries have been serviced and tried and tested plans have been reviewed and refreshed to help the Capital deal with whatever the weather has in store for us over the coming months.

Twenty four/seven stand-by arrangements for treating the roads and pavements came into force late last month [October] and salt bins throughout Edinburgh are being checked and topped up where necessary.

A Ready for Winter communications campaign, launched yesterday, will see information leaflets and posters distributed to neighbourhood offices, libraries and doctor and dental surgeries.

The leaflets provide useful information about being prepared for winter and contact information so that residents can readily access the help and services they need.

A total of 16,000 tonnes of salt have been stockpiled; levels are monitored throughout the winter and topped up when required.

Local farmers, who have worked with the Council over the past three years gritting rural routes, have been engaged again this year. Contracts are also in place with external contractors should the Council need access to additional staff and equipment in extreme winter conditions.

The Council website’s live winter weather pages provide information about priority road, cycle path and pavement gritting routes. Also on the site is an interactive map so that residents can find out where their nearest salt bin is.

If and when severe weather strikes, the Council will use its social media channels, website and local radio stations to keep residents updated on any impact on services.

Waste services skip locations have also been identified. If the weather deteriorates and prevents waste collections from being made, skips will be installed at these locations for public use.

Councillor Adam McVey, Vice Convener of Transport and Environment, said: “We’ve had a few mild winters in recent years but we are never complacent – the harsh winters of 2009/10 and 2010/11 are still fresh in everyone’s memory. It’s impossible to know at this stage what the weather has in store for us this year but we’ve been busy making sure we’re as prepared as we can be to keep the city moving, whatever the elements throw our way. Our staff are all trained up, our equipment is ready for use and our salt stocks are topped up, with more available should it be needed.

“As ever, we’d encourage residents to ensure they find out everything they need to know about keeping themselves safe during the winter months. Pick up one of our Ready for Winter leaflets at your local library or doctors’ surgery, visit our web pages or consult the Scottish Government’s advice at www.readyscotland.org.”

Snowplough at Oaklands 2010

Taking SHAPE: reducing the risk of homelessness

A new pilot scheme to reduce homelessness has been launched by the City of Edinburgh Council and voluntary sector partners .

Focusing on resolving and preventing homelessness, a range of specialist services will be delivered through a partnership with third sector organisations the Bethany Christian Trust, Edinburgh Cyrenian Trust, Foursquare and CHAI (Community Help and Advice Initiative). The partnership heralds the beginning of a new collaborative approach to supporting people in the Capital who are at risk of losing their homes.

The Council, providers and service users are working in partnership to rebalance housing support services and place more emphasis on prevention, through mentoring, befriending, group work and visits from housing support staff. This approach will help resolve some of the crises that lead to homelessness and also deliver initial savings of £400,000, with potential further savings in the future.

The Council’s Housing Leader, Councillor Cammy Day, said: “Taking early action is the best way to combat homelessness. It is vital that we act quickly so we can prevent more people from losing their homes and better protect their well-being.

“By working alongside our third sector partners, we can gain from their expertise and deliver the highest standard of support to those who need it across Edinburgh. This way we can tackle the root causes of homelessness and provide important advice on budgeting and tenancy issues, to build a better future for those at risk and help them to keep their homes.”

The pilot will provide:

Budgeting and debt advice (including rent, utility bills and fuel poverty)I
nformation about benefits, including changes due to welfare reform
Advice about tenancy issues and housing options
Links to employment, including volunteering, education and training
Help to avoid social isolation

People who are homeless and in temporary and insecure accommodation will also receive support to move into more sustainable accommodation, in both the public and private sectors.

Iain Gordon of SHAPE, the umbrella organisation representing the third sector partners, said: “Our hope is that this new way of working will help people who find themselves at risk of becoming homeless to be more secure in their homes, so that they can live active and productive lives.”

Council calls for tougher penalties for dog fouling

The City of Edinburgh Council is calling on tougher laws to help crack down on the issue of dog fouling in the city.

A report to next week’s Transport and Environment Committee urges the Scottish Government to raise the Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) currently handed out to dog fouling offenders, and calls for an increased maximum fine for dog owners taken to court.

The report also recommends a new approach to monitor perpetrators’ future behaviour, designed to bring about a long term change and reduce dog fouling in Edinburgh.

Measures would add to a series of campaigns held by the Council to tackle the issue, which is consistently identified by local residents as one of their top priorities.

Environment Convener, Councillor Lesley Hinds, said: “Dog fouling is an issue which continues to blight our streets, creating not only an eyesore but a potential health and safety risk.

“We are committed to tackling this, and it is important that we do everything in our power to deter irresponsible owners from committing the offence.

“That’s why we’re calling on harsher punishments for offenders, as well as long-term monitoring, to reflect the significance of the crime but also to discourage repeat offending.”

If approved, the Council will formally approach the Scottish Government to request an increase to the amount charged for on-the-spot FPNs, currently £40 (rising to £60 after 28 days) in line with FPNs for littering and fly-tipping, which were updated earlier this year.

In addition, the Council will request an increase in the maximum fine on summary conviction in court, currently £500, to reflect “the seriousness or prominence of the offence”.

Proposed measures also include investigating a long term approach to persistent dog fouling, similar to the Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010, which was introduced to address the behaviour of dogs deemed to be out of control. This involves the issue of Dog Control Notices imposing specific requirements with which offending owners must comply, followed by a monitoring period to address the behaviour of owners who repeatedly fail to pick up after their dogs.

As well as lobbying for legislative changes, the Council plans to work with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and the Scottish Court Service with the aim of securing Publicity Orders for convicted dog fouling offenders in Edinburgh. It is hoped the use of the Order, requiring individuals to publicise their conviction in a specific way, would discourage repeat offending.

In the last year, 231 FPNs have been handed out to dog owners across the city, with 82 people reported to the Procurator Fiscal for dog fouling offences.

On Tuesday, councillors will consider the various approaches to resolving the issue, as well as assessing ongoing campaigns like the South Neighbourhood’s Don’t Blame the Dog initiative, which aims to raise awareness of the problem as well as targeting enforcement action in hotspots identified by the public.

For more information on the Council’s approach to dog fouling, and how to report it, visit the Council website.

You can also watch the report being discussed at next week’s Transport and Environment Committee meeting by tuning in to the city council’s live webcast.

Flood prevention scheme second phase gets green light

The second phase of a multi-million pound flood prevention scheme has been given the go-ahead following a funding agreement.

The Water of Leith Flood Prevention Scheme (WoLFPS) is a key infrastructure project to help protect hundreds of properties in vulnerable areas of the city from future flooding.

Following the completion of the first phase, which included defences at Veitches Square, Stockbridge Colonies, Warriston, St Mark’s Park and Bonnington, overall costs for a reconfigured Phase 2 at Murrayfield/Roseburn were estimated at £25.241m.

However, the available capital budget for this second phase stood at £20.539m, leaving a shortfall of £4.702m and jeopardising the delivery of this next stage of the WoLFPS.

The City of Edinburgh Council has now agreed to fund this shortfall through a realignment and transfer of existing Services for Communities capital budgets, meaning that the formal procurement process can now get under way, with flood prevention works starting in the Roseburn and Murrayfield area in autumn 2015.

Councillor Lesley Hinds, Transport Convener, said: “It’s fantastic news that we can now proceed with the next stage of this hugely important project, which will safeguard hundreds of properties from flooding in the future. We’ve been working extremely closely with the community and key stakeholders to make sure they were fully involved in the plans from the outset and with reinforced governance and protocols in place, we’re confident that Phase 2 will be delivered efficiently and at best value to the taxpayer.”