Edinburgh Leisure – Page 35 – The NEN

Free swimming for kids at Ainslie Park

Yes, it’s the Easter holidays … no money for trips and kids bored already? Well, holiday activities needn’t be too expensive – and sometimes they’re even FREE!

There’s free swimming for Primary School children this Easter break (5 – 21 April) when Edinburgh Leisure are running free swimming sessions for primary school children at three Edinburgh Leisure swimming centres.

This month, Primary School children can swim for free during ANY listed Public Swim session at Ainslie Park, Dalry and Gracemount (Wester Hailes Education Centre is offering free swims too).

Remember the earlier you get there the more fun you can have so Edinburgh Leisure recommend arriving no later than half an hour before the Public Swim session’s finish time.

Telephone Ainslie Park Leisure Centre on 551 2400 for more information – see below for pool programme details

AinslieParkPoolProg_2014

Don’t forget Forth’s Family Fun Day!

forth health

Forth Neighbourhood Partnership along with Edinburgh Leisure and Pilton Community Health Project is holding a Health Fair and Family Fun Day at Ainslie Park Leisure Centre tomorrow to showcase local health related services and activities and hear what local residents think are their priorities for improving health in the Forth ward.

The event will have a ‘market place’ format with people able to drop in at any time between 1.30pm and 3.30pm, with loads to see and do – see poster (above).

Don’t miss it – it’s what Saturdays are for!

… and Forth are having a Health Fair too!

Forth Health Flyer

Forth Neighbourhood Partnership along with Edinburgh Leisure and Pilton Community Health Project is holding a

Health Fair and Family Fun Day at Ainslie Park Leisure Centre

on Saturday 23 November

to showcase local health related services and activities and hear what local residents think are their priorities for improving health in the Forth ward. See the attached flyer for more details.

The event will have a ‘market place’ format with people able to drop in at any time between 1.30pm and 3.30pm.

If your organisation would like to have some space on the day to publicise any health related activities then please get in touch with me at jim.pattison@edinburgh.gov.uk or on 529 5082.

Jim Pattison

Partnership Development Officer, Forth Neighbourhood Partnership

Forth Health Flyer

City makes a splash with affordable swimming

A £125,000 investment by the City of Edinburgh Council is to make swimming more accessible and more affordable for hundreds of young children and families across the Capital. A range of measures will be introduced over the next two years that will increase swimming provision and access to pools and schools for those who need it most – with free swimming for primary school children during the October school holidays!

The programme involves a ‘raft’ of measures including:

· free swimming during school holidays,

· top up swimming classes for P2-3 pupils,

· free family splash time sessions

· swimming classes for women and children from BME communities.

Councillor Richard Lewis, the city’s Culture and Sport Convener, said: “Swimming is a fantastic activity that is not only fun but keeps you fit and healthy too. The purpose behind providing a free programme of swimming is to open up our pool facilities to those that may never have tried swimming before or to encourage parents to take their children along for a fun family swim.

“We’ve worked closely with our partners in Edinburgh Leisure and sportscotland to produce a programme that specifically targets children and adults who need support the most and also benefits the most number of people for the money available. It builds on what was proposed by Splashback and, I believe, goes even further to ensure that children from all over the city have the opportunity both to learn to swim and enjoy it at the same time.”

Between Saturday 12 October and Monday 21 October, free swimming for primary school children will be available between 12-4pm in four city pools every day during the school holidays (with some exceptions – see Edinburgh Leisure website and Wester Hailes Education Centre websitefor details). The pools are Leith Victoria Swim Centre, Gracemount Leisure Centre, Dalry Swim Centre and Wester Hailes Education Centre.

These free swim session for juniors will be repeated during school holidays until April 2015 and will also include the pool at Ainslie Park Leisure Centre when it reopens after rfurbishment and upgrading later this month.

Further to this, from January, the Council will also provide additional swimming lessons for P2/3 pupils in eighteen schools designated as ‘positive action’ schools (where over 40% of pupils are entitled to free school meals). These will be run with Edinburgh Leisure who will provide additional teaching support to help these children develop early aquatic skills, knowledge of pool safety, and in many cases, introduce them to swimming for the first time.

Also early next year the Council will launch a ‘Family Splash Time’ programme which will provide parents and their children with eight weeks of fun, two-hour, swim sessions funded as part of this investment.

The Council also proposes to extend the successful ‘Female Only Swim’ sessions held at Leith Victoria to other parts of the Capital next year. These sessions are targeted specifically at the BME community where cultural and religious barriers may prevent women from participating in swimming.

The £125,000 funding for accessible and affordable swimming was agreed by the Capital Coalition earlier this year in recognition of Splashback’s commitment to increasing swimming opportunities for young people.

Graeme Gardiner, Director of Operations at Edinburgh Leisure said: ‘We are delighted to be supporting this swimming initiative. We passionately believe in the positive impact that sport and physical activity can have on individuals and communities and we want to inspire everyone in the city to be more active and healthy. This swimming initiative provides a great way of encouraging people to get active and try out swimming.”

On your marks for Festival of Sport

Fest_of_Sport_booklet_lr

Edinburgh’s Festival of Sport kicks off this weekend and runs until 8 September.

From aquafit and athletics through to volleyball and walking – and lots of sporting activities in between – there’s something for everyone at venues across the city.

See the above programme for details or visit:

www.activity.info/festivalofsport

Scottish Sailing Trust launches public appeal

New Trust formed to run the Sailing School at Port Edgar

A new trust is being set up to run a Sailing School at Port Edgar following the decision by Edinburgh Leisure to close the Watersports Centre there. The new trust, established by members of the community, plans to become a registered charity and buy the boating assets from Edinburgh Leisure to ensure the activities at Port Edgar can continue.

The trust aims to continue to provide a full range of courses and activities to children, adults, schools, sailing clubs and commercial businesses. It also plans to work closely with local authorities and RYA Scotland in developing its services, particularly for disadvantaged groups.

The trust will be called the Scottish Sailing Trust to demonstrate how convenient and accessible the location is for over 75% of the Scottish population and to demonstrate its aim to cover a wider area than just the local South Queensferry community.

The trustees have applied for a SportScotland grant to part-fund the acquisition of the Edinburgh Leisure assets but it also needs financial support from the public as well as local businesses and clubs to demonstrate the public support it has and to secure its future.

The appeal, which was formally launched yesterday (Tuesday 20 August), aims to raise a minimum of £5,000 and gain grant funding of £5 for every £1 raised.

Edinburgh Western MSP Colin Keir supports the community-led initative. He said: “This is local people taking charge of the situation in a bid to run the school alongside the successful sailing club. Many hundreds of people including youngsters will benefit from this.

“I congratulate the Scottish Sailing Trust for their efforts so far and offer them every assistance to get this great idea off the ground.”

Further details can be found at http://www.scottishsailingtrust.com

or email: info@scottishsailingtrust.com

Gym Fest 2012 hits new heights

Edinburgh Leisure and Active Schools teamed up again to stage Gymfest, a celebration of the city’s young gymnasts, at Broughton High School yesterday. And with financial support from Active City the annual display reached new heights – quite literally! A wide range of gymnasts from across the city took part in the Broughton spectacular – from enthusiastic new dancers and fun gymnasts (some performing in public for the first time) to top young athletes who already participate in competitions – and the packed audience was entertained from start to finish by some spectacular performances. Given the high standards throughout the afternoon it was fitting that all the participants received medals, so take a bow:

City of Edinburgh Gymnastics Club (Senior Team)

City of Edinburgh Broughton Recreation Team

Blackhall Primary School Gymnastics Club

Castlebrae Community High School Gymnastics Club

Broughton High School Gymnastics Club

City of Edinburgh Firrhill Recreation team

Tynecastle High School Gymnastics Club

Gylemuir Primary School Gymnastics Club

Granton Primary School Dance Group

Corstorphine Primary School Gymnastics Club

Ferryhill Primary School Gymnastics Group

Pentland Primary School Gymnastics Club

Stockbridge Primary Dance Group

City of Edinburgh Gymnastics Club Display Team

Park life gets Inverleith Summer Programme under way

A whole host of agencies have got together to organise and support Inverleith’s Youth and Children’s Summer Park Events, and the programme kicks off at Ravleston Park on Monday (2 July) from 1 – 3pm with a portable football pitch, games, music, sports activities and more.

Further park events are planned at Ravelston again (Monday 16 July,1 -3pm), King George V (Monday 30 July 1- 4pm) and Inverleith Park (Friday 10 August 1- 4pm).

For more information contact Anne Brown at Inverleith CLD at Broughton High School, telephone 332 6316 or email anne.brown@ea.edin.sch.uk or check out the website www.joininedinburgh.org/holidayprogramme

And the agencies who have made the Summer Programme possible? In no particular order: Edinburgh Leisure, Glenogle Swim Centre, Fet Lor Youth Centre, Scotmid Co-operative, Inverleith Neighbourhood Partnership, CLD Inverleith, Library2go, Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre, sportscotland active schools Edinburgh & Lothian and Borders Police.