Tag: Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre

Emergency! Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre faces summer closure

Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre faces closure this summer unless £70,000 can to found to meet essential running costs.

Drylaw Community Association chair Alex Dale told a meeting of Drylaw Telford Community Council that please for council support have fallen on deaf ears and that the Centre is gearing up for another ‘Save DNC’ campaign – the second in four years.

With restricted opening and restrictions imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic, membership has fallen and efforts to re-engage with the local community were thwarted by lockdown.

The Centre continues to operate a number of groups and activities but these will be put in jeopardy if core funding for running costs cannot be found. The deadline is seriously tight – Alex said Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre will close in June or July if no financial support is forthcoming.

Drylaw Telford Community Council, who recently resumed their monthly meetings in the Neighbourhood Centre, agreed to submit a letter of support at last night’s meeting.

Zoom no more as Drylaw Telford Community Council meets face-to-face

Two years to the day Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the UK’s first lockdown, Drylaw Telford Community Council meets in person again tonight.

February’s community council trialled face-to-face meetings and, with restrictions being lifted, it was agreed that Drylaw Telford will continue to meet in public.

Tonight’s meeting, at Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre, starts at 7pm.

While much has changed in the last two years – whoever heard of Zoom pre-Covid? – some issues remain the same:

Inverleith Neighbourhood Network to meet next week

There’s a distictly Drylaw flavour to next week’s Inverleith Neighbourhood Network meeting.

Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre will be giving a presentation to the meeting in a ‘Getting To Know You’ session and Easter Drylaw Park has also been tabled as an agenda item.

The meeting, which will take place online using TEAMS, will be held on Monday 6th December from 6 – 7.30pm.

AGENDA

  1. Welcome and introductions
  2. Minute of meeting of 12th October 2021
  3. Getting to know you – Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre
  4. Local Community Planning Partnership (LCPP)- Verbal update from Joan Beattie, Rep on LCPP from this group
  5. Progressing Inverleith NN priority – Greenspace and community growing subgroup – verbal update
  6. Community Grants Fund – discussion
  7. Easter Drylaw Park issues – discussion
  8. AOCB
  9. Date and format of next gathering

For further information contact North West Lifelong Learning Development Officer, Elaine Lennon: email Elaine.Lennon@edinburgh.gov.uk

Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre’s Junior Youth Clubs back next week

Junior Youth Clubs back from 7th September – running at reduced numbers.

P1-P2 Tuesday 3.15pm – 4.45pm

P3-P5 Wednesday 3.15pm – 5.15pm

P6-P7 Thursday 3.15pm – 5.15pm

Places must be pre booked and registration forms completed by phone only. Ring Lynda on 315 4989.

Youth clubs safely back at Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre

Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre’s Junior Youth Clubs are allowed indoors once more although weather permitting we are still encouraging outdoor play.

Due to current guidance all our Junior Youth Clubs are running at reduced numbers.

P1 – P2 Tuesday 15.15-16.45

P3 – P5 Wednesday 15.15-17.15

P6 – P7 Thursday 15.15-17.15

Wednesday is currently full but there is a reserve list.

Due to restricted numbers we are only allowing two weeks no show before spaces are given to a young person on the reserve list.

Places must be pre booked and registration is currently only by phone – speak to Lynda on 315 4989.

Local groups receive awards for Keeping Scotland Beautiful

The efforts of 14 Edinburgh groups have been acknowledged by environmental charity Keep Scotland Beautiful at an online seminar yesterday.

North Edinburgh is well represented among these green-fingered groups, with awards for Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre, Fresh Start Growers, Friends of Granton Castle Walled Garden, Friends of Lauriston Castle Estate, Friends of Starbank Park and North Edinburgh Arts Gardening Group.

The other capital groups to receive awards are Balerno Village Gardeners, Craigentinny Community Gardening Project, Craigentinny Primary Parent Council, Friends of Morningside Cemetery, Friends of Saughton Park, Inch View Care Home, Inspiring Hillside and Northfield Community Growing Group.

Annually Keep Scotland Beautiful runs two community environmental improvement programmes in partnership with the Royal Horticultural Society; the competitive Beautiful Scotland campaign and the It’s Your Neighbourhood initiative.

In total 197 groups, those who would in previous years have been out creating and maintaining community gardens or allotments, looking after habitats for wildlife and adopting streets, have been issued with Certificates of Recognition for the work volunteers and supporters did manage to carry out to brighten up and pull their neighbourhoods together during this year’s health pandemic.

A full list of the 14 groups from Edinburgh can be found in the attached table (below).

Edinburgh-groupsDownload

Faced with the challenges of 2020, there has never been a more important time to recognise and celebrate the achievements of communities and individuals across Edinburgh. 

Throughout lockdown and the following months, groups have worked tirelessly to improve their communities through horticulture, environmental responsibility and working in partnership for the benefit of residents, visitors and our natural environment. 

Despite circumstances this year, 47 new entrants were welcomed to the network, and although judging and mentoring visits were not able to take place due to restrictions across Scotland, groups were still supported with online seminars, networking events, question and answer sessions and a weekly e-newsletter.

Barry Fisher, CEO of Keep Scotland Beautiful said, “We know that lockdown resulted in many people reconnecting with green and blue spaces local to them.  Yet, it has also been a particularly challenging year for the communities who strive every year to protect and enhance the places they live and work in. 

“We have been amazed by the desire of communities, volunteers and local authorities to stay connected, motivated and inspired by each other, all with a steadfast determination to do things to make a difference, even if this had to be done differently this year.  

“I’d like to thank all the groups in Edinburgh for the efforts they have made to keep Scotland beautiful this year.”

Although many of the groups had to stop or curtail their planned activities for the year, we have been blown away by what they have managed to achieve – whether that be setting up a food bank, encouraging and supporting others to grow their own, creating virtual garden tours, connecting their members through online catch ups and keeping their neighbourhoods bright and cheerful. 

Andrea Van Sittart, RHS Head of Community Outreach said: “It’s truly inspiring that so many Scottish communities continued to support others in need this year.

“From a phone box larder in Muthill to planter kits for others in Inverkip, the groups have shown incredible creativity and ingenuity responding to the needs of their diverse communities through this challenging time. Congratulations to all groups on their amazing efforts.”

If you’d like to join the network in 2021, check out the website for inspiration and details on how to get involved:

www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org/BeautifulScotland or www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org/IYN

City says Thank You!

There’s been a great response from the people of Edinburgh to help the city get through the current coronavirus pandemic.

  • Edinburgh Partnership thanks the public and voluntary organisations for all their help so far pulling the city through this pandemic
  • People asked to ‘Think Local and Act Local’ and be good neighbours, where they can
  • To keep essential services running and look after vulnerable people Council constantly monitoring how it deploys its staff

We’d like to thank everyone who has been in touch with the voluntary and public sector to offer their skills and time. We know that many of you are keen to also ‘do your bit’ to contribute to this effort and we would like to thank those of you who are trying to find ways to help your communities.

Your kindness and generosity in these difficult times are a reflection of all that is best about the city we share and the people who call it home.

We need everyone to look out for each other now more than ever and being a good neighbour and taking care of those who need help in your building, street or immediate community is going to help get us through – Volunteer Edinburgh has advice and information on how you can help.

If you are part of an existing or newly formed community group please contact EVOC who have developed a directory and are connecting the amazing community responses across the city.  EVOC is working hard to connect supply and demand of food at a very local and community level.

EVOC is asking people to complete this basic form or email info@evoc.org.uk for more information. 

Council Leader, Adam McVey, said: “The voluntary sector is doing an amazing job pulling everyone together and making sure people can help out appropriately following government guidelines. If you are able to help others then please ‘Think Local and Act Local’.

“Where you can, offer support to your wider family, your friends and your neighbours to help ensure that they can receive the essential supplies and medicine that they may need.

“Volunteer Edinburgh has a range of information and guidance on how to be a good neighbour safely. At the moment the best thing that most people can do is still to stay at home, limit social contact and follow NHS guidelines. This really is the most important contribution that can be made to the safety and resilience of the city.”

Depute Leader, Cammy Day, said: “To keep essential services running and support those who are vulnerable, we’re constantly monitoring how we deploy our own staff as well. We’re working to identify where our services need help and at the moment we’re relying on our own internal capacity to meet those needs.

“We’ll be monitoring this over the weeks ahead and will work with Volunteer Edinburgh if we think we need the wider community to help us. In the meantime staying safe at home is the best thing people can do. If you can offer more then it really is a matter of thinking local and acting local.

“I want to make sure the local community organisations have a key contact to make sure we have a joined up approach and would urge people to make connect via the EVOC.”

Ella Simpson, Chief Officer of EVOC, said: “I am incredibly proud to be part of the voluntary sector in Edinburgh. They know their communities so well and have been absolutely amazing in their responses to Covid-19.

“As we continue to respond it is vital that we all work together – volunteers, voluntary sector and statutory agencies – to support the most vulnerable people in our communities.”

Paul Wilson, Chief Officer of Volunteer Edinburgh, said: “People’s response to the pandemic has been overwhelming. In every street in Edinburgh people are helping each other, looking out for their neighbours and supporting the vulnerable and those in self isolation.

“Never before has it been more important to give your time, if you are able to, be a good neighbour and look out for each other. More than any other city in Scotland Edinburgh has always been a city of volunteers, of people who helped and I am very proud to live here.

“Please everyone be safe, think and act locally, continue to support your community in the weeks to come and most of all be kind.”

North Edinburgh’s voluntary sector has rallied to the cause with community organisations pulling out all the stops to ensure the area’s most vulnerable residents get food and essential supplies.

Now three weeks into operation there’s a co-ordinated effort to pool community resources and expertise to get supplies to people in Muirhouse,Drylaw Telford, West Pilton, Granton and Royston Wardieburn.

Do you, or someone you know, need food, supplies or other support during this hugely difficult time?

An information sheet with key telephone contact numbers is currently being produced and should be available over the next day or two, but in the meatime  please email me at northedinburghnews@gmail.com and I will pass on your details to the relevant area organisers.

Remember the key advice: STAY HOME UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY

 

 

Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre closed

Unfortunately the Neighbourhood Centre has closed its doors until further notice. We are expected to be closed for at least the next three weeks and will then be guided by Government directives.

Emails to the Neighbourhood Centre will be remotely monitored by Roy and Lynda as will our Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Emails to info@drylawnc.org.uk is the preferred method of contact.

We hope to see you all very soon and will let you know when we are open for business. Until then stay safe.