Tag: Inverleith Park

MoonWalk: oh, what a night!

As the last brave walkers make it back home, organisers reflect on a wet but wonderful night …

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Mad Hatters waltzed with White Rabbits and Cheshire Cats can-canned with Pink Flamingos this weekend to celebrate a decade of incredible fundraising at The MoonWalk Scotland!

Thousands of women and men wearing decorated bras inspired by this year’s theme ‘Mad Hatter’s Midnight Tea Party’, set off in the cold and wet at midnight on Saturday from Inverleith Park, to power walk (or meander!) through the streets of the capital, raising money and awareness for breast cancer charity Walk the Walk.

Before one step had even been taken by that crazy gang of weird and wonderful wonderland characters over half a million pounds had already been raised – adding to an incredible total of £18 million since the first MoonWalk Scotland in 2006!

Most of the money stays in Scotland, helping to improve the lives of people with cancer.

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Legendary Scottish band The Red Hot Chilli Pipers ramped up the party atmosphere in Walk the Walk’s Pink Palace, playing for Walkers before they set off on one of four challenges: New Moon (6.55 miles), Half Moon (13.1 miles), Full Moon (26.2 miles) and Over The Moon (52.4 miles).

With a walking distance for every age and ability, whole families were able to experience a night of fun and a bit of MoonWalk magic! Walkers aged from just ten years old are able to sign up for the New Moon, with this year’s youngest MoonWalker celebrating their own tenth birthday just two days before the event.

Iconic landmarks including Edinburgh Castle and the Melville Monument lit up pink throughout the night to give all the walkers a huge collective hug. A number of specially commissioned bras were also on display at The MoonWalk Scotland, designed by Maggie’s, Young Scot, Paths for All, Essential Edinburgh, City Cabs and Liggy’s Cakes, all uniting with Walk the Walk against breast cancer.

Moonwalk finish

Nina Barough CBE, Founder and Chief Executive of Walk the Walk said: “The energy of everyone at this fantastic birthday party was just amazing and the rain was not going to stop a good MoonWalk!

“It was incredible to see Edinburgh lit up pink, in honour of our wonderful Walkers, and I was overwhelmed by the kindness of people on the streets, coming together to provide a constant supply of support, snacks and drinks.

“I found it really moving standing on the finish line of the New Moon, seeing all the faces of young children, who were especially delighted because they had persuaded their parents to take part. What a night!”

All aboard Lothian Buses to the Mad Hatter’s Midnight Tea Party!

Pink1The MoonWalk Scotland’s amazing Pink Bus is back – and thanks to Lothian Buses, it’s en route to the Mad Hatter’s Midnight Tea Party! For the third year, Lothian Buses are uniting with MoonWalk organisers breast cancer charity Walk the Walk, as Official Transport Partner for the iconic night-time walking challenge.

The MoonWalk celebrates its 10th anniversary on 13 June this year, when thousands of women, men and young Walkers will join together at Edinburgh’s Inverleith Park to celebrate a decade of incredible Scottish fundraising and decorated bras, before setting off on their Walking challenges. With this year’s Alice in Wonderland inspired theme, organisers are expecting a night full of fun, wonder and madness!

Between now and The MoonWalk Scotland in June, Lothian Buses’ specially branded bright Pink Bus will once again become a familiar sight on bus routes all over Edinburgh and the Lothians, and will be the centre piece of several special roadshows in the build up to the event.

On the night itself, Lothian Buses will provide a special service from Edinburgh City Centre to Inverleith Park and will also transport hundreds of the charity’s fantastic Volunteers to and from their positions on The MoonWalk route. Participants in the New Moon challenge (6.55 miles) will also be chauffeured by Lothian Buses back from their finish line to MoonWalk City, where they will watch films in Walk the Walk’s huge Pink Tent.

Pink3Lothian Buses are not only providing the wheels to and from The MoonWalk Wonderland, but some of the company’s staff are also ditching their regular uniforms for Alice in Wonderland inspired costumes, as they take part in The MoonWalk themselves.

The MoonWalk Scotland  has raised almost £18 million over the last ten years, with most of the money staying in Scotland, to help improve the lives of people with cancer. Walk the Walk makes a huge difference across the country, granting large amounts to projects and charities who would otherwise take many years to raise the money on their own.

There is a walking distance for every age and ability, from the 6.55 miles New Moon challenge, now in its third year, to the Half Moon (13.1 miles), Full Moon (26.2 miles) and for those wanting a thrilling new goal, the double marathon Over The Moon (52.4 miles).

Nina Barough CBE, Founder and Chief Executive of Walk the Walk said:  “I am absolutely delighted that Lothian Buses are once again uniting with Walk the Walk as our Official Transport Partner for 2015, and especially as this year will be a big year, as we celebrate our ten years of MoonWalking in Scotland.

“Lothian Buses will have a busy night ahead of them, transporting our Walkers from the centre of Edinburgh to the best party in town at Inverleith, helping to deploy our Volunteers and Marshalls around the course, and collecting all our New Mooners from their Finish Line and delivering them back to MoonWalk City.

“And as for the incredible pink MoonWalk Scotland bus, it will be out on the streets  of Edinburgh and the Lothians,  always spreading the word –  it’s a daily reminder to encourage people to sign up for The MoonWalk and help to really make a huge difference to people with breast cancer across Scotland.”

Pink4Tina McMurray, a Lothian Buses driver who is leading the company’s MoonWalkers on 13 June  said:  “We are delighted that once again thanks to the support of our employers, Lothian Buses, staff can get involved with The MoonWalk for the third year running. We are all really excited for the night itself and helping this great cause.”

Entries are now open for The MooonWalk Scotland 2015. To sign up as a walker or volunteer, go to www.walkthewalk.org/moonwalkscotland 

Choirs required for Inverleith charity festival

Crowd of SantasThe Christmas Charity Festival will be taking place at Inverleith Park on 6 & 7 December and organisers are looking for choirs to help provide some seasonal song at the popular event.

A number of slots are available throughout the day – if you’d  like to take part contact Terry Crossley – email terry@greatscottishevents.org.uk – or telephone 0131 208 2500.

Visit www.christmascharityfestival.com for more info on the weekends’s events

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Sainsbury support is icing on the cake!

Breakthrough breast cancerSainsburys Blackhall are proud to have supported Dorothy and Joanna Bissett with their fundraising for Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

The ladies had organised a sponsored 5K run through Inverleith Park on 13 September to raise funds for Breakthrough breast cancer and Sainsburys Bakery Manager Scott McDowell from our Blackhall store made and donated 150 pink cupcakes to raise funds too!

Gail, Sainsbury’s Blackhall

Wood you believe it? Community group seeks support

New Caledonian Woodlands needs your vote for Inverleith Park project

plantsNew Caledonian Woodlands has been shortlisted for the Bank of Scotland Community Fund 2014 in the Edinburgh North category – and needs your support!

By encouraging the public to vote, we have a chance to be awarded a grant of up to £3,000 from Bank of Scotland to enable us to continue doing good work in the community.

New Caledonian Woodlands are an Edinburgh-based charity that exist to enhance Scotland’s natural environment, inspire positive environmental behaviour change and improve mental and physical well-being in our community. We deliver a range of projects combining environmental sustainability with education about wider environmental issues, whilst utilising environmental activities to achieve improvements in mental and physical well-being.

Over the course of a year we work with around 100 referred participants and 1000 volunteers in a range of programmes to benefit those struggling with their mental well-being and encourage community ownership of caring for local woodlands.

We educate people about the important role they need to play in a range of environmental issues, from habitat conservation to climate change and carbon footprint reduction.

Participants on our projects work together in a friendly and relaxing atmosphere,
in a setting that benefits individuals in terms of self-esteem growth, learning transferable skills and community involvement.

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Currently, our site located in Inverleith Park lacks adequate work space for our mental health participants to carry out their projects and limits the amount of individuals we can work with at any given time. We have plans to greatly enhance the space into an environmentally sustainable facility to accommodate and expand on the various mental health, employability and environmental volunteer projects we currently offer.

Being awarded this grant would help us put some tangible changes into place, the first being an outdoor Iron Age roundhouse to be used as a sheltered area for our mental health participants to hand craft products which they will then go on to sell.

Andy Ross, coordinator and founder of New Caledonian Woodlands, said: “The Bank of Scotland Community Fund could give us an amazing opportunity to build workshop space in our Edinburgh site that meets the needs of our Fruitful Woods and Good Wood mental health and employability projects. An Iron Age roundhouse will be built by our project participants and then used by them as a dry workshop space to carry out a range of activities – from making baskets to wooden spoons to small pieces of furniture. We anticipate that the roundhouse will be used by 80 participants per year from our mental health and employability projects, and will be a part of their recovery journey.”

P5The Bank of Scotland Community Fund was set up to help local people across Scotland have a positive impact at the hearts of their communities by giving grants to 232 local good causes in 58 Scottish communities.

Four good causes in each community have been shortlisted and Bank of Scotland is inviting everyone to vote for the causes they’d most like to support.

Members of the public can vote for their preferred community group on-line, by SMS or Twitter, or in a Bank of Scotland branch from 2 September to 10 October 2014. The local good cause that receives most votes in each community will receive an award of £3,000, with the other groups receiving £2,000, £1,000 or £500 depending on the votes received.

You can find out more about the Community Fund and New Caledonian Woodlands and cast your vote by visiting the Bank of Scotland Community Fund website at:

www.BankofScotland.com/communityfund

Voting for the 2014 Community Fund is open until Friday 10 October.

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Paws for applause: PDSA awarded £500,000

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Inverleith Park was alive with animal-loving celebs yesterday. Why? The local park is very popular with dog-walkers so it was the ideal place to announce some great news for our four-legged friends. Thousands of pets now face a brighter future as PDSA has just been awarded £500,000 from players of People’s Postcode Lottery.

The cash boost will be used by the charity’s vets and nurses to extend vital treatment and education programmes across the UK.

Last year alone, over 470,000 pet owners turned to PDSA for help to care for their pets – a figure that has risen by more than 50% in recent years. Annually, it costs over £60 million to run PDSA’s charitable service – all of which is funded entirely by public support and reinforces the fact that the UK is a nation of animal lovers.

PDSA Director General, Jan McLoughlin, said: “We’re delighted to receive this support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery which will make a massive difference to pets’ lives.

“Through our network of 50 pet hospitals and our education work in schools and in communities we’re able to touch the lives of more pets than any other UK animal charity.

“Every single day our amazing team of vets and nurses work flat out to deliver not just life saving treatment but also vital advice and preventive care that gives all pets the chance of healthy, happy lives.”

The funding, made possible by players of People’s Postcode Lottery will be used by PDSA to help support thousands of pets nationwide through education, prevention and treatment.

The charity was joined at yesterday’s cheque presentation – which thankfully took place before the thunder and lightning! – by a number of animal-loving celebrities including members of Britain’s Olympic silver-medal winning Curling squad, skippered by David Murdoch, and People’s Postcode Lottery ambassador, singer Danyl Johnson, at Inverleith.

David Murdoch, Scottish curler and animal lover, said: “As the proud owner of a dog myself I know only too well the joy pets can bring to our lives. I think PDSA is an amazing charity and this funding from players of People’s Postcode Lottery will safeguard the lives of thousands of adored pets.”

Singer Danyl Johnson, who owns a spaniel called Darcie, said he was delighted for PDSA. He said: “I have first-hand experience of PDSA’s lifesaving work having visited one of their hospitals last year. The vets and nurses really are unsung heroes, helping all those sick and injured pets that have nowhere else to turn. I’m thrilled that this money is going to such a worthy cause.”

Hazel Johnstone, Trusts Manager at People’s Postcode Lottery added: “People’s Postcode Lottery is a charity lottery raising funds for, and increasing awareness of, charities and good causes. Pets are a huge part of people’s lives and PDSA’s work is a lifeline to hundreds of thousands of pets and their owners in the city and communities nationwide.

“We are delighted that our players are able to provide this support to PDSA, the UK’s leading veterinary charity, to help its vital work.”

 

Foodies Festival continues at Inverleith Park

The Foodies Festival has returned to Inverleith Park this weekend … 

This year’s new features including the Cake & Bake Theatre, Chocolate Theatre and BBQ Arena all went down a storm at the first of eight Foodies Festivals that took place in Brighton last weekend.

Top chefs from across Scotland, including Michelin-starred Jeff Bland from The Balmoral Hotel, Craig Sandle of The Pompadour by Galvin, Great British Menu contestant Mark Greenaway, Neil Forbes of Cafe St Honoré and John Quigley of Red Onion will cook their signature dishes live in the Chefs’ Theatre and explain how amateur cooks can prepare the same dishes at home.  The theatre will be compered over the three days by Foodies veteran Jacqueline O’Donnell of The Sisters in Glasgow.

As well as culinary lessons from the experts, Fringe Festival acts Gyles Brandreth and Stephen K Amos, who has competed on Celebrity Masterchef, will be donning chef hats and giving comical demonstrations.

Now in its seventh year, Foodies Festival has introduced new features to all events in 2013.  These include a spectacular Cake and Bake Theatre in association with Electrolux incorporating a ‘bake-along’ with members of the audience invited to participate.

2013 also sees the introduction of a dedicated Chocolate Theatre to showcase the world of chocolate and confectionary with daily demonstrations from David Greenwood-Haigh of Divine Chocolate. The specially-designed BBQ Arena features hourly BBQ classes and Man vs Meat competitions where contestants cook their own chicken wings, ribs, sausages and burgers and are then given 60 seconds to eat as much of their creations as possible with the crowd  judging who made the best effort.

In 2013, food-lovers can also enjoy the new dining and VIP area serving signature dishes from pop-up versions top Scottish restaurants.  The bar area has had a countryside makeover complete with hay bales and a focus on British cider and ale.  There is also a wide variety of tent and pagoda bars throughout the site selling cocktails, wine and champagne.  Foodies is proud to provide a platform to launch new drinks brands every year.

These new elements complement Foodies’ existing features including the Drinks Theatre where regular classes and demonstrations are given by some of the most talented sommeliers and mixologists and drink experts in the UK.

The extensive Producers’ Market sells a vast array of artisan produce from the local area and incorporates the Guild of Fine Food award-winning British produce.

Foodies will be showcasing local producers in Edinburgh including Summer Harvest Oils who will be selling their range of award-winning cold-pressed rapeseed oils, dressings, vinegars and mayonnaise.

Last year saw the successful introduction of Street Food Avenue to all Foodies events.  In 2013 the Edinburgh crowds can again enjoy the huge selection of ready-to-eat hot and cold food from around the world including hog roasts, exotic meats, tapas, churros, burritos, Moroccan tagines, South American prime beef, sausages, pizza, Jamaican and Thai street food.

The Children’s Cookery Theatre ensures children get involved and have the opportunity to learn more about eating and cooking healthy food with hands-on daily classes.

Relaxation in 2013 comes in the form of a City Beach where families can chill out on deckchairs with an artisan ice-cream or an afternoon tea whilst children build sandcastles.  Various specialist tea, coffee and fresh juice vendors can be found around the site.

The entertainment stage features live music acts performing every day until the later closing time this year of 8pm.

Opening times

Saturday 10th August, 10am – 8pm

Sunday 11th August, 10am – 8pm

Further Information

Visit the Edinburgh Foodies website which has all the information you need including schedules of the Chef’s Theatre and Masterclasses.

You can follow Foodies on twitter @FoodiesFestival and like them on Facebook.

Tickets for Foodies Edinburgh are available via this link or by calling 0844 995 1111.

One-day ticket £12 (concession £10).  VIP tickets cost £38

Entry is free for children aged 16 and under accompanied by an adult.

Price includes entry into the Chefs’ Theatre, Food Masterclass, Drinks Masterclass and Kids’ Cookery Theatres and they must be registered for upon arrival (first come first served).

Foodies Festival

It’s BIG Search day – get the teeshirt!

The BIG search 2013

Wanted to remind you about the free, fun event taking  place this afternoon in Inverleith. ‘The BIG Search’ is a treasure hunt /  quest type event that involves reading clues and finding the answers across the  area from Blackhall to Warriston! 

Open to teams of children, young people, adults and families  of up to 6 people (at least one must be aged 16+), every participant will get  a teeshirt and goody bag and the winning team will get exciting prizes!

Pick up your packs from 1pm at either Stockbridge or  Blackhall Libraries and bring your sheets back at 4pm to Inverleith Park where  there will be fun activities and BBQ (weather permitting).

Please come along and take part and please tell your friends,  families and neighbours about this first in Inverleith! The event is organised  by the Inverleith Neighbourhood Partnership’s Children and Families Action  Group.

Thanks to Ocean Terminal and Scottish Gas for their support in this  event.

Elaine  Lennon, Partnership  Development Officer

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Tel: 0131 529  5270