Lord Wallace meets teaching, research and professional services staff
Edinburgh Napier yesterday hosted a visit across a number of departments and teams by the Moderator of the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly.The Rt Hon Lord Wallace of Tankerness QC spent the morning at the Sighthill campus as part of a 10-day programme organised by the Presbytery of Edinburgh.
He was welcomed to the University by Professor Andrea Nolan, Principal & Vice Chancellor, and toured the purpose-built simulation and clinical skills centre where student nurses, midwives, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and social workers develop their skills in an authentic environment.
Lord Wallace met School of Health & Social Care students and the staff who run the centre, which includes practice areas ranging from community and critical care to general wards and birth environments.
He also met Professor Gary Hutchison, Dean of Applied Sciences, and the Sighthill-based School’s Dr Liz Aston, who is Director of the Scottish Institute for Policing Research, whose work helps police meet the challenges of the 21st century.
Lord Wallace also chatted to representatives of the University’s Chaplaincy Service, the Wellbeing and Inclusion team who work to make students feel safe, supported and healthy, and the Student Futures team who support their professional development and prepare them for the world of work.
Professor Andrea Nolan said: “It was an absolute pleasure and delight to host Lord and Lady Wallace.
“The visit gave them a flavour of what we do at Edinburgh Napier – they saw our modern teaching facilities and heard about the real world applications of our research, while also getting to meet the teams whose pastoral and support work underpins our progress as a university.
“I hope they found the visit interesting and informative.”
Lord Wallace, a QC and former MP and MSP, who went to university, trained as a lawyer and sat in the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, said he was grateful to the Presbytery for putting together a comprehensive programme which allowed him to engage with a range of people who reflect his interests.
The 10-day programme will see Lord Wallace carrying out a wide range of engagements visiting churches, hospitals, universities and Edinburgh prison.
The Moderator of the General Assembly Lord Jim Wallace has embarked on a ten-day schedule to learn more about the life and work of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Lord Wallace said he is looking forward to attending events organised by the Presbytery of Edinburgh which will see him meet people from all walks of life and learn how they have coped during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Presbytery visits provide Moderators with an opportunity to offer encouragement and support to church members and the communities they serve.
Due to the lockdown, this is the first fully in-person visit to take place since 2019.
Lord Wallace, Moderator of the General Assembly
Lord Wallace, a QC and former MP and MSP, said the city is close to his heart. “I am very much looking forward to my first presbytery visit, not least because it is Edinburgh where I went to university, trained as a lawyer, practiced as a lawyer, sat in the Scottish Parliament and where I met my wife, Rosie,” he said.
“I am very grateful to the presbytery for putting together a very comprehensive programme, which will allow me to engage with a whole range of people who reflect my interests and background.”
Candidates
The programme will see Lord Wallace visit churches, hospitals, universities and a prison and meet ordinary church members, politicians, senior figures in the judiciary, ministers, chaplains and interfaith and ecumenical leaders.
Lord Wallace was ordained as an elder at what was St Bernard’s Church in Stockbridge in 1981. It is now called Stockbridge Parish Church and Lord Wallace joined the congregation there yesterday (above).
In the evening, the Moderator led worship at Holy Trinity Church in Wester Hailes.
Lord Wallace will meet with Councillor Frank Ross, Lord Provost of Edinburgh, at the City Chambers today and will later attend an event at New College to mark their 175th Anniversary and meet candidates for the ministry.
This evening, the Moderator will attend a civic event at the City Chambers for members of the Edinburgh Area Children’s Panel who make sure that a young person is at the heart of legal decisions that affect them.
Many church members are involved in this work and Lady Wallace, who will be accompanying her husband, was a panel member for many years until recently.
Courts and prison
On Tuesday, Lord Wallace, who is currently sitting on the non-affiliated benches in the House of Lords, is visiting the Charteris Centre run by Greyfriars Kirk, which is based in a refurbished church building at The Pleasance which is nearing completion.
It is a social enterprise initiative which seeks to provide a place for connection with communities of all kinds.
Afterwards he will visit Edinburgh Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Courts to hear more about the administration of justice, especially during the pandemic.
Lord Wallace will then travel to HMP Edinburgh in the Saughton area of the city where he will be given a tour and introduced to staff, prisoners and the chaplains who support them.
On Wednesday, he will visit Napier University’s Sighthill campus where he will meet Principal Andrea Nolan and be given a tour of the Clinical Centre in School of Health and Social Care.
He will meet staff, students, members of the university’s chaplaincy team and Professor Gary Hutchinson and Liz Aston from the School of Applied Sciences to discuss work with Scottish Institute For Policing Research.
In the afternoon, the Moderator will visit the Granton Goes Greener project at Granton Parish Church to learn more about an innovative clothes upcycling project which is part of work to reduce consumption as part of efforts to tackle the climate crisis.
He will later attend a special Presbytery service in St Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile, which will be attended by the church’s ecumenical and interfaith partners, as well as national and civic leaders, and will be followed by a reception in Parliament Hall which will bring people from the worlds of religion, politics and legal profession together.
On Thursday, the Moderator is visiting Edinburgh Airport with Rev Moira MacDonald, minister of Corstorphine Old Parish Church and Workplace Chaplain, Esther Elliot, to hear about the work of workplace chaplains.
He will later meet with the Principal of the University of Edinburgh and visit the law school – the place where he studied – to speak with students and staff.
Frontline chaplains
In the evening, the Moderator will attend a Presbyterial Guild event in Craiglockhart Parish Church, speaking on the theme of “Look forward in Faith”.
On Friday, he is visiting the Royal Blind School, the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and will attend an evening reception at Edinburgh Castle for chaplains who serve in a wide variety of contexts – hospitals, the military, universities and the workplace.
Lord Wallace said: “I am looking forward to meeting people engaged in chaplaincy, many of whom have been at the front line during the COViD-19 crisis.
“I will be very much in listening mode and hope to provide them with encouragement.”
Polwarth Parish Church is the Moderator’s next stop where, on Saturday, he will visit the new All Aboard canal boat that the congregation jointly own with a charity called People Know How.
It is used for spiritual and educational pursuits on the Union Canal, which links Edinburgh and Falkirk.
The Moderator will take part in worship at Tron, Moredun and Gilmerton Church on Sunday and join members of Leith Churches for a special service in the evening.
He will visit the Richmond’s Hope bereavement project for children and young people at Richmond Craigmillar Church the following day.
Very Rev Dr Derek Browning, Moderator of Edinburgh Presbytery, said: “We are looking forward to welcoming Lord Wallace.
“Presbytery visits allow Moderators to meet local Christians and gain a wider perspective of how the Church, and the communities we support, engage.”
