It’s been an event-packed year for Pilton Equalities Project (PEP), what with special anniversaries and awards to celebrate, so why not find out all about it at PEP’s annual General Meeting?
Pilton Equalities Project
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Monday 17 November 2014
11-12noon
PEP Centre, 3 West Pilton Park Edinburgh
R.S.V.P. Email: pepequalities@btconnect.com
If you require transport please call Trisha on 315 4466
Refreshments will be served after the meeting
PLEASE COME ALONG
Do you remember playing in North Edinburgh when it was fields?
North Edinburgh Grows is holding a meeting on Tuesday (16 September) from 11am – 12 noon at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre to share memories and look at photos of North Edinburgh back before it was built on.
All welcome. Free coffee and cake!
Picture (top) supplied by George Hunter – Pilton folk at Silverknowes beach 1954
Two local workers retired last week after thirty years service with the West Pilton-based charity Circle. The popular pair won’t be forgotten, however – Mae and Bob have had trees named after them at Circle’s head office!
Mae Duncan and Bob Griffiths have supported children and young people in the North Edinburgh area for over 30 years and were joined by colleagues, friends and family at a retirement party organised by Circle in West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre.
Mae, 65, was brought up in West Pilton and now lives in Salvesen, while Bob has lived in the area for 40 years and still lives in Greater Pilton.
Mae attended Pennywell Primary School and then Ainslie Park High School, where she took a course in Commercial Studies. She later studied Child Care at Stevenson College and the Greater Pilton Child Care Centre.
Bob went to Craigentinny Primary School and later to Norton Park Secondary School, which he left at the age of 15 with no qualifications. Like Mae, he studied Child Care at the Greater Pilton Child Care Centre.
The pair ran two projects at Circle. The first was the Inter School Social Education Project (ISSEP), where 5th and 6th year students from Edinburgh secondary schools mentored primary-aged children from North Edinburgh.
The second was the Under Fives, where Mae and Bob worked with children in the Pilton area for 2 – 5 mornings per week and helped parents to understand the importance of boundaries and play in their child’s development.
Reflecting on her time at Circle, Mae said: “I have always thoroughly enjoyed my time with Circle and will always be grateful for the help and support I received whilst doing my child care training.”
Their work at Circle has made a huge impact on the local community, as they have supported many children and parents over the past 30 years. Liz Dahl, Circle’s Chief Executive (pictured above), praised their contribution:
“I would like to take this opportunity to wish Mae and Bob well in their retirement and thank them for the over 60 years of combined service they have given to the organisation. They will be hugely missed by everyone at Circle and especially by the generation of families they have worked with over the years.”
When asked about their favourite memory from their time at Circle, both Bob and Mae said that they have far too many good memories to simply choose one!
Mae and Bob are now looking forward to pursuing their hobbies during their retirement. Mae will read, do crafts and spend more time with her family, while Bob is interested in computers and other gadgets, and will have more time to “potter about with them.” Both may also go on to try new things.
Bob and Mae planted young trees named in their honour at Circle’s HQ in West Pilton Park before they left, and hopefully the wee trees – like their ‘more mature’ namesakes – will be branching out sometime soon!
Best wishes, Mae and Bob – and to little Bob and Mae too!
Woman – believed to be mother – detained
A body, believed to be that of three year old Mikaeel Kular, has been found in Fife. The news came just before midnight and police also confirmed that a woman – reported to be the boy’s mother – has been detained.
Late last night senior police officer Assistant Chief Constable Malcolm Graham, clearly distraught, broke the news that everyone had dreaded – but had increasingly anticipated.
ACC Graham said: “The investigation into the disappearance of Mikaeel Kular has been wide-ranging and fast-moving.
“As a result of these inquiries I can confirm that we have recovered the body of a young boy in Fife shortly before midnight. We have informed the family and the investigation continues.
“A person has been detained in connection with the death.
“I would like to sincerely thank everyone who has shown such a fantastic response to the incident in terms of assisting the police with searches and in terms of our appeals for information and coming forward to assist with information.
“Without such vital assistance the police cannot do their job assisting those who live and work in our communities.
“As a result of this development clearly there will now be no requirement for any further help in relation to searches in the Drylaw area.”
For three days of his short life Mikaeel has been the most famous wee boy on the planet, and information about just how, when and why an innocent three year old lost his life will follow over the coming days.
For now, though, North Edinburgh will slowly get back to mundane, everyday life. Instead of joining mass searches, residents will be shopping, going to football games, cleaning windows and a hundred and one other humdrum activities. North Local Office and West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre will return to the normal routine.
But, with the eyes of the world on our neighbourhood, the North Edinburgh community can be very proud of it’s magnificent response to an appeal for help. It’s deeply sad that such an uplifting community effort was unable to help achieve the happy ending we’d all hoped so much to see.
And after Mikaeel, North Edinburgh will never be quite the same place again.
Police in Edinburgh have issued a new image of missing boy
Mikaeel Kular as enquiries continue to trace the three-year-old.
Missing boy Mikaeel Kular wearing jacket
The image shows Mikaeel in the jacket he was believed to be wearing when he disappeared.
Officers are keen for local members of the North Edinburgh community to come forward if they believe they have seen a child wearing a coat like this within the area since 9pm on Wednesday night.
Mikaeel is described as being of Asian appearance, two feet tall and of slim build. In addition to the thigh-length beige coat, it is possible he is also wearing black gloves with multi-coloured fingers, dark navy blue jogging bottoms, a grey pyjama top featuring an embroidered turquoise dinosaur on the chest and brown Clark shoes with two Velcro straps.
He has a faded scar on the bridge of his nose and a sore on the left hand side of his mouth.
A Child Rescue Alert as been activated as part of the search for Mikaeel and a dedicated number has been set up for those with information that can help establish his whereabouts.
That number is 0300 200 0200
Door to door enquiries are being conducted in support of this investigation, with specialist support being provided by Operational Support Division, including Air Support, Roads Policing, Police dogs and trained search officers.
Anyone who can help trace Mikaeel is asked to contact police immediately.
Superintendent Liz McAinsh said: “Our enquiries to trace Mikaeel have been ongoing for over 12 hours now and so far, we have still to receive that vital piece of information that will lead to his discovery.
“I would like to thank the local community for their continued support and assistance during the search, and I also wish to thank those who have already called our dedicated number with information.
“All information received is being quickly progressed by our officers and I’d like to urge anyone who thinks they may know where Mikaeel is be to get in touch if they haven’t done so already.
“This new image shows the jacket we believe Mikaeel was wearing when he disappeared. Local residents and those who travel through the Drylaw area on a daily basis are urged to be vigilant for a young child matching Mikaeel’s description who may be wearing a jacket like this.
“Anyone who has information that can help us trace Mikaeel and bring him home is asked to contact police immediately.”
Volunteers wishing to help in the search for Mikaeel should assemble at North Local Office in West Pilton Gardens at 10am where they will be briefed by police search team
We’re really pleased to report the success of two local groups during adult learners’ week, an international event celebrating and promoting the benefits of adult learning (write CLD workers Sarah Low and Lynn McCabe).
The highlight of the week is the Adult Education Awards ceremony. Over thirty groups across the city were nominated in eight award categories. Forth councillors Vicki Redpath and Cammy Day were at the City Chambers last month to help present the awards. Of the eight successful groups, two were from North Edinburgh: the ‘Use Your Loaf’ (pictured above) bread making group and the North Edinburgh Social History Project.
The selection panel were ‘inspired’ by the bread making group, who won the ‘Health and Well Being’ award. The ‘Use Your Loaf’ group is a Pilton Community Health Project (PCHP) supported group, in partnership with CLD and North Edinburgh Arts.
Every week, the group (and their children!) meet in the Arts Centre with Lisa Arnott from PCHP and Sarah Low from the local CLD team to make loaves of bread (or rolls, naans, pitas, pizzas and deli breads). Whilst the dough was proving and baking, the group planned their own healthy community event: The Yummy Food Festival. The Festival took place in North Edinburgh Arts Centre in March this year and attracted 500 local people who enjoyed amongst many things, cooking demonstrations, workshops and a community ‘bake off’.
Learners from the group are being supported to develop a second bread making course which will run in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre in October, so watch out for more details! Two members of the original group have gone on to volunteer in North Edinburgh Arts Centre café and others have taught bread making in the local nursery. The learners will also be sharing their skills with others during the PCHP supported Food for Thought Forum’s Summer Programme at Forthview’s summer gala and with PCHP’s Women Supporting Women project.
Like to get involved? Call Lisa Arnott at PCHP on 551 1671 for details.
The North Edinburgh Social History Group began two years ago and was set up by community activists who wished to re-engage with the community and re-establish community participation and activism. They meticulously researched the history of the North Edinburgh community, producing a brilliant booklet and exhibition called “Never Give Up”, a record of the community’s fight for social justice.
The social history group won the ‘Political and Social Education’ award. Accepting the award, members of the group were keen to mention the longstanding history of protest in north Edinburgh, and dedicated their award to their friend and fellow activist Brian Robertson, a member of the group and committed community activist who sadly died just a few days before the Awards Ceremony.
Some members of the group are now part of a course called ‘Power to the People’, which meets in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre on Tuesday mornings. This ambitious course aims to cover the history of protest in Scotland over the past 300 years! In doing so, the group have been out and about on study visits to the National Gallery, the People’s Palace in Glasgow and the NationalMiningMuseum. If you’d like more information, please call local CLD worker Lynn McCabe, who runs the course, on 552 5700 (see Lynn’s piece on the group below).
The Outstanding Achievement Award went to the Bumpstart Pregnancy Café in Leith (pictured above). The Pregnancy Cafe is a relaxed group in which pregnant women and their partners meet other parents to be to talk about pregnancy and parenting. One learner described the tutors as always being there for her, and the other group members ‘like second mums’. Pregnant women in north Edinburgh are welcome to come along to their very own Pregnancy Café, on Tuesdays from 11 till 12.30 at the Haven (in CraigroystonPrimary School, Muirhouse Place West). Just turn up, or call Jo Aitkenhead on 537 4230 for more details.
Congratulations to all the learners involved on their achievements!
Sarah Low
Award for Power to the People
Having completed their successful project called ‘Never Give Up’, which documented the history of activism in North Edinburgh over the last 70 years, members of North Edinburgh Social History Group came up with a proposal for a new project called ‘Power to the People’. The group were keen to continue their research into activism but this time widened the scope of their research to cover the history of protest in Scotland during the last 300 years! To add to the challenge, the group decided that they wanted to use the arts to explore this hidden history.
The course began on 28 August last year and has proved very successful with fifteen people regularly attending each session in Royston Wardieburn Community Centre. Some of the topics the group have studied so far include: the Jacobite Rebellion, The Scottish Enlightenment, the Friends of the People, the Radical War, Chartism, The Campaign for the Abolition of Slavery, the Campaign for Land Reform, the Suffragette Movement, the Scottish Hunger Marches and Red Clydeside.
The group’s learning has not been confined to the classroom. They have been out and about and have been on study visits to the National Gallery of Scotland, the NationalMuseum in Chamber Street, the Portrait Gallery, the People’s Palace in Glasgow and the NationalMiningMuseum. During their studies, they also managed to fit in making a short film for the BBC’s learning site called ‘Paintings and Protest’ which is worth a wee look. The course is due to finish at the end of June but there are already plans underway for a new course on issues for the Referendum in the Autumn, a publication on the History of Protest similar to Never Give Up and a community event celebrating the group’s achievements in North Edinburgh Arts Centre. Watch this space!
In recognition of their role in developing this very important course, the organisers of the event gave the award for Social and Political Education to North Edinburgh Social History Group.
Members of the group and participants involved in the Power to the People course have dedicated the award to their friend and fellow activist, Brian (Elvis) Robertson who died a few days before the award ceremony.
Lynn McCabe
National, citywide and local agencies, organisations and individuals joined together to find ways to fill the gaps when CORE (formerly the Black Community Development Project) was forced to close last year. That work continues, as Pilton Community Health Project’s Anita Aggarwal reports …
You may be aware that since the closure of CORE last year a small group of local people and organisations have been looking at the ongoing issues for the BME (black and minority ethnic) community.
There was a short consultation and the findings have been written up in the ‘Living in Harmony’ report (see below). We have offered to facilitate an action planning session to look at how local organisations and people can come together to tackle some of the issues raised in the report.
There has been a significant rise in the incidence of hate crime in the area, as well as many issues that affect the wider community. We hope that a broad spectrum of people and organisations will want to be part of this planning event. We also hope that by the end of the event local organisations and individuals will have committed to take forward actions that encourage interaction and integration between ethnic groups in the area and remove or reduce some of the barriers for the BME population to accessing services.
This workshop is open for all and we will provide creche (IF BOOKED IN ADVANCE) and refreshments. We particularly welcome members of the local Scottish community to take part.
It will take place on Friday 31 May from 9.30 – 12 followed by lunch, at The Spartans Academy at Ainslie Park. Please let me know if you will attend, or give me a call if you would like more information. Please feel free to forward this invitation to other interested parties.
Anita Aggarwal
Senior Development Worker (Health Inequalities)
Pilton Community Health Project, 73 Boswall Parkway
Edinburgh, EH5 2PW
0131 551 1671
anitaaggarwal@pchp.org.uk
www.pchp.org.uk
![2013_Postcode_Challenge_Poster[1]](https://i0.wp.com/nen.press/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/2013_postcode_challenge_poster1.jpg?ssl=1)
Explore the North Edinburgh Cycleways with Edinburgh’s favourite treasure hunt on wheels!
What: The Postcode Challenge, organised by The Edinburgh & Lothians Greenspace Trust and The Bike Station. This is a fun, free ‘treasure hunt’ event for cyclists and walkers on the North Edinburgh Path Network, part of the Innertube project and funded by People’s Postcode Trust
Where: The North Edinburgh Cycleways (various entrances to the cycleway including at: Trinity Rd/Lower Granton Road; Ferry Road; Clark Road; Wardie Road; Hawthornvale; Pilton Drive; Scotland St)
When: Sunday 28th April 2013, 11am – 4pm
This coming Sunday is the third Postcode Challenge on the north Edinburgh paths, a fun, free event for cyclists and walkers, a ‘treasure hunt on wheels’ (and foot), with the chance to explore around 27km of continuous off-road routes and to enter into the prize draw at the same time.
Dotted around the network will be ten stands, run by local organisations. Find your first one (you can start anywhere on the route) and they will give you a card. Get the card stamped at all ten locations (five if you are on foot) and bring it back to the event HQ at Fiveways Junction by 4pm to be entered into the free prize draw. As well as the main prizes, many of the stands may have freebies and presents to give away too and you’ll be able to get your bike fixed and have cycling advice from Hart’s Cyclery, Edinburgh Bicycle Co-op and The Bike Station stands.
The event is totally traffic free and great for all ages and everyone is welcome – you can take part on your own, as a family or as part of a team.
Participants can download further information here and a cyclist route map and stamp card here or if you are on foot, download the walkers’ version. Or just collect one at the first stand you find.
Look out for the following stalls on the route:
We can’t tell you where each stand will be – but once you’ve found the first one, you’re away. If in doubt, head to Fiveways Junction, where people will point you in the right direction.
And thank you to the following for donating prizes: Spokes, the Bike Station, Harts Cyclery Edinburgh Bicycle Co-op and Green Yonder Tours
This event is part of the Innertube project, funded thanks to players of People’s Postcode Lottery and via the People’s Postcode Trust.
For further information, please contact Liz on 0771 265 1102 or email liz@elgt.org.uk
Download a printable version of the poster to help promote the Challenge.
Local police are issuing advice to licensees following a recent initiative designed to identify cocaine misuse at pubs. Officers from the Drylaw Safer Neighbourhood Team, working in partnership with the licensed trade, visited 16 premises in the area over recent weekends and found evidence of cocaine use within the toilets of 12 pubs.
Inspector Mark Rennie of Lothian and Borders Police said: “The initiative was well received and licensees and staff were given advice on basic measures they could use to counter the problem.
“Our intention now is to widen the initiative and also do follow-up visits to premises over the next month to provide staff with information, and support them in their efforts to prevent the misuse of drugs within their premises.
“We will also be distributing posters to raise the awareness of customers of the direct health and personal safety risks associated with alcohol and cocaine misuse.”
Anyone with information as to drug dealing in or around licensed premises can contact Lothian and Borders Police on 0131 311 3131, or anonymously through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
