Tag: community facility

North Edinburgh Arts secures £250,000 Community Ownership funding

LOCAL ARTS ORGANISATION REACHES 80% OF FUNDING TARGET

North Edinburgh Arts has been awarded £250,000 from the UK Government’s Community Ownership Fund to support the Millan Hub project.

The announcement marks a significant step forward in NEA’s capital development journey, bringing the organisation closer to achieving their fundraising target: they have now reached 80% of their total goal.

Communites across the UK will benefit from over £50 million in funding to support community ownership of local assets.

North Edinburgh Arts was one of eight successful applicants in Scotland at this stage of the process. Another Edinburgh applicant was Portobello’s campaign to renovate their Town Hall. They receive £90,000.

This £250,000 awarded to NEA will be added to funds already secured for the ambitious build from Foundation Scotland, The Garfield Weston Trust, The William Syson Trust, The Robertson Trust, The Binks Foundation, and the Scottish Government Regeneration Capital Grant Fund.

Reaching four fifths of the target gives a real boost to NEA’s Board, team, participants, visitors, and volunteers alike.

A NEA spokesperson said: “We are grateful for the overwhelming support we have received from our local residents, with over 96% backing our mission to keep NEA at the heart of a creative, connected, inspired, and inspiring community.

“Your unwavering belief in our vision has been the driving force behind this achievement. Thank you for your ongoing support!”

NEA is a well-loved and well-used venue but we had outgrown our building. To meet the needs of current and future generatons of North Edinburgh residents it needed to be redeveloped.

As part of the new MacMillan Hub the NEA capital programme will:

 Increase the footprint of NEA by 380m2, adding two foors of studio and work/ space
 Extend the café to look/ into MacMillan Square, and ofer enhanced community facilites
 Provide bespok/e work/shop space for the ommunity Shed
 Reduce the carbon footprint through beter insulaton, lightng and environmental design and constructon
 Be a fully owned community asset.

With the build scheduled for completion early in 2024 NEA has set up a welcome cabin in front of the site to ensure local residents can find out more about the build, join up as NEA members (htps://northedinburgharts.co.uk//membership/) and share their aspiratons for the space.

The refurbished, redesigned and expanded venue will be a welcome space for all, ofering local residents high quality culture, arts, enterprise and meetng spaces. In additon, our venue will link, on site, to the city council’s new Library, new Learning and Skills Hub, new Early Years Centre and social housing.

Lesley Hinds, Chair of North Edinburgh Arts said: ‘North Edinburgh Arts is delighted to receive funding from Community Ownership Fund.

This funding from the Westminster Government shows the confidence they have in NEA and its future in the expanded facilities at MacMillan Hub.’

For more information, visit northedinburgharts.co.uk/development/

Heart of Newhaven: We’re OPEN!

The Heart of Newhaven Community (HoNC) has finally received the keys to the front door! 

The charity, formed four years ago to purchase Newhaven’s old Victoria Primary School for use as a community hub, has faced a long battle to get all the legal documentation with the City of Edinburgh Council signed, sealed and delivered but has finally been given legal possession of the site.

The original Steering Group was set up after public consultation and eventually converted into a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO), registered with OSCR the charity overseer in 2020.

They won the right to purchase the site under the Community Asset Transfer scheme in July 2020 and secured funding for the purchase from the Scottish Land Fund in June 2021.

The school pupils and teachers moved out of what was then the oldest working primary school in the city in December 2021, but delays originally caused by Covid 19 and last minute legal hurdles meant that the final transfer could not take place until this week.

Current HoNC Chair Judy Crabb and former, and very first Chair, Rodney Matthews led the way in and now it’s all systems go, with volunteers tidying and cleaning and potential users and tenants queuing up to move in and get started.

First though, there are some necessary health and safety measures to install, IT equipment and communications must be set up and the most urgent repairs to the structure need to be completed.

Once open to the public, the community hub will be offering spaces for intergenerational activities of all kinds, including space for such as theatre groups, choirs and performances, rooms for rent for meetings or parties, artists’ studios and small business rooms for rent, a Heritage Suite including the Victorian Schoolroom run by the History of Education Centre, much needed early years’ provision in the modern Anchor Building, rooms for the Men’s Shed to carry on their activities in the Creel Building and of course a community cafe.

Current Chair, Judy Crabb has been involved since even before the first public consultations and is now celebrating with the rest of the Board.

“It’s a well known phrase ‘ If it is worth having, it is worth waiting for’ and how true that is as of today,” she says. “Finally, we are thrilled to announce that HoNC now owns the former Victoria Primary School that from now on will be known as ‘The Heart’.

“A huge thank you to everybody who has helped over the years to bring about this day, volunteers, supporters, members of the community, our funders, trustees and consultants. Every contribution, big and small, has made a difference.

“Over the next few months we will begin to open up the buildings to all the services and activities that support our themes of culture and heritage, learning and enterprise  and improvement in well being. 

“Watch this space as we offer opportunities for people of all ages, from all walks of life and interests, to come together in an accessible and welcoming environment and The Heart comes to life.”

Cara Gillespie, Chair of the Scottish Land Fund, said: “The Scottish Land Fund is committed to helping urban and rural communities across the country to unlock assets on their doorstep and to put them to work for local people, so we are delighted that Heart of Newhaven Community has now taken ownership of Victoria Primary School.

“We wish them every success with their plans to turn the school into a thriving community hub.”

National Mission funding for community project

Charity will increase support for drug users in recovery

Bluevale Community Club in Glasgow has been awarded almost £100,000 to enable them to continue with their recovery and wellbeing services, helping their work in the community and with people in recovery from problematic substance use.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon will confirm the funding over the next two years during a visit to their recovery club which opened earlier this year.

The First Minister will also visit the community club’s sports facilities which offer a range of activities for young people and adults including boxing, personal training and strength endurance classes which focus on improving the mental and physical health of members.

She will be joined on the visit by Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross.

The First Minister said: “The work being done by Bluevale Community Club in their local area helping people to live healthier lifestyles through their activity classes and recovery drop-ins is fantastic. It is an excellent example of how sustained, meaningful activities and supportive social networks are key to building stronger communities.

“The funding of almost £100,000 will help them focus on expanding these services further and give employment to young people who have given their time free until now.

“The rights of individuals to access effective treatment and support underpins our national drugs strategy. But we know there is more to do to make these rights a reality which is why we launched the National Mission backed by an additional £250m over the next five years to improve and increase access to services for people affected by drug addiction – including an investment of £100m on residential rehabilitation.

“We are determined that every penny of that will make a difference to all those affected by this public health emergency.”

Bluevale Founder and Project Manager Kenny Trainer said: “We welcome the visit by the First Minister and Douglas Ross to see first-hand not only what we are trying to achieve here at Bluevale Community Club but also meet the people who remind us daily why we do it.

“We have run our club on a voluntary basis and welcome the investment from the Scottish Government that will allow us to employ two part time members of staff, allowing us to focus more on developing a whole community response to recovery. Prior to this funding we were unsure if we would last beyond Christmas. We will continue to look at further alternatives to meet the additional shortfall in meeting our charity’s mission and ambition. 

“We now ask that all parties, and both governments, put their political differences aside and agree on how we can tackle Scotland’s problems not just at a national level, but locally – ensuring that any investment reaches the heart of our communities where it will make the biggest impact.

“We have seen too many friends and family members die while seeking access to the help they needed and that’s why we back any rights-based approach when it comes to drug treatment – one based on holding decision makers to account where necessary.”