Tag: PoLHA

Port of Leith Housing Association and its subsidiaries rebrand as Harbour

An important new chapter has begun for Port of Leith Housing Association and its subsidiaries which have revealed new names and branding.

Harbour is made up of:

  • Harbour Homes (previously Port of Leith Housing Association)
  • Harbour Lettings (previously Persevere Developments Ltd, a mid market rent company)
  • Harbour Connections (previously Quay Community Improvements, a placemaking organisation and social enterprise)
  • Harbour Multi-Trades (previously TB Mackay Energy Services, a boiler, maintenance, repairs and multi-trades provider)

Harbour Chief Executive Heather Kitely said: “We’re excited to unveil our new branding which reflects our growth to become a family of organisations all working together to make a positive impact on people’s lives in Leith, north Edinburgh and beyond by providing excellent affordable homes and a wide range of services.

“I’m very proud of everything each member of Harbour has achieved to date. I’m confident that as Harbour we will continue to find new ways to support our brilliant communities and to provide vital services that make a real difference to people’s lives.”

The rebrand process began in October 2020 with an extensive research and consultation process. You can read more about the rebrand story at:

www.polha.co.uk/rebrand. 

Local artist Kate George brightens up Leith with seasonal mural

Port of Leith Housing Association (PoLHA), working alongside local arts charity Out of the Blue, have commissioned a mural for the garden of one of its developments in Leith.

PoLHA asked what type of mural residents would like and using the chosen theme of gardens, artist Kate George held a riso print workshop with tenants at Out of the Blue to create garden-themed shapes to include in the design.

Inspired by the tenants’ ideas, Kate and the team layered different nature based shapes including a swift and a robin to create a design for the 12 metre long mural.

Artist Kate George commented: “I was approached by Out of the Blue as I have previously worked on large scale murals and my studio is based at their Drill Hall. I always use community input into the designs.

“We surveyed the tenants and found that they wanted a garden themed mural featuring plants and flowers; most importantly they wanted it to be bright.

“This mural was different to any I’ve produced before as I used the Out of the Blue riso print studio to work with tenants to create riso prints of garden themed shapes then applied these to the mural design. It’s changed my approach to community murals that I’ll undertake in future.”

Heather Kiteley, Group Chief Executive of PoLHA, said: “This mural is an excellent example of us working with community organisations and our tenants to create brilliant outside spaces.

“I love the bright design which makes the garden an even more appealing place for residents to enjoy.”

Port of Leith HA to help ease pressure of pandemic over winter through Leith Gives campaign

Port of Leith Housing Association is proud to be one of 17 north Edinburgh charities, community groups, schools and other organisations who have joined forces to support people most likely to be hit hardest by coronavirus and associated restrictions this winter in a new collaboration, called Leith Gives.  

The Leith Trust is coordinating the campaign which seeks to provide tailored food hampers and other household essentials to vulnerable individuals and families in the run up to Christmas and again in late January. 

It also plans to provide gifts and other items people may need to celebrate Christmas, Diwali, Hanukah and other festivals, and to offer practical help to get people online and connect with loved ones or support groups. 

Heather Kiteley, Group Chief Executive, Port of Leith Housing Association, said: “The first wave of this pandemic showed just how much we all need each other to get by. Our tenants, the people of Leith and north Edinburgh, charities and community groups, have already demonstrated great resilience and perseverance.

“Now as we head into winter, we’re thrilled to help harness that collective dedication through Leith Gives to spread hope and offer practical support over the festive season and into the New Year.”

To make a donation, please go to: https://justgiving.com/campaign/LeithGives 

Port of Leith Housing Association holds young persons’ street art workshop

 

A group of young people have created a graffiti mural with Port of Leith Housing Association to celebrate Scottish Housing Day. Led by Spectrum Arts, the group experimented with spray painting techniques on an indoor wall at Transgression Skatepark inside Ocean Terminal. Continue reading Port of Leith Housing Association holds young persons’ street art workshop

PoLCATS volunteer for action at seniors event

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Port of Leith Housing Association’s (PoLHA) PoLCATS (Port of Leith Community Action Team) lent a hand at the Older Adults event at Meadowbank Sports Centre this week. The event was hosted by Edinburgh Leisure’s Ageing Well project in partnership with the City of Edinburgh Council (CEC) and Pilmeny Development Project (PDP). Continue reading PoLCATS volunteer for action at seniors event

POLCATS pounce on the streets of Leith!

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A team of volunteers from Port of Leith Housing Association (PoLHA) and the City of Edinburgh Council (CEC) have taken part in their first clean up together.

The POLCATS (Port of Leith Community Action Team) and the CEC’s City Centre Leith Neighbourhood team, spent two days litter picking, weeding, sweeping, removing graffiti from bins and removing dumped items from Pitt Street and Trafalgar Lane.

Claire Ironside, Director of Customer Services at PoLHA, said: “We have several properties in Trafalgar Lane and Pitt Street, so it was a natural choice for us to target these streets first. We were also helped by local businesses that went out of their way to move cars and vans to allow access to the streets.

“We have received some very positive feedback from our first community clean up and are looking forward to carrying out similar activities in the future to ensure our neighbourhoods are looking clean and tidy.”... after

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Port of Leith raises nearly £2000 for Macmillan

imagePort of Leith Housing Association (PoLHA) has raised nearly £2000 for Macmillan Cancer Support.

PoLHA’s sheltered housing developments St Nicholas Court, Hermitage Court and Jameson Place hosted events for their residents and locals as part of the charity’s ‘World’s Biggest Coffee Morning’ initiative – and they raised £1749.00 between them!

Maureen Tait, Sheltered Housing Services Manager who manages the St Nicholas Court complex, said: “We are delighted so many people came along to help makes the coffee mornings a success. Without their generosity we would not have been able to raise such a vast amount of money to this fantastic cause.”

PoLHA also held a coffee morning for staff at its Constitution Street office raising a further £220.

Pictured: Ian and May Vanhagen and Martin Hunter

St Nick’s summer fayre raises £1400

St Nicks summer fayre 2014Port of Leith Housing Association’s (PoLHA) St Nicholas Court sheltered housing complex raised over £1,400 at its summer fayre held last Saturday (2 Aug) – despite the deluge!

Based on Leith’s Ferry Road, the complex has been open for 25 years and has 45 residents.

All funds raised will go towards supporting activities for them to enjoy including day trips, theatre trips, exercise classes and lunch clubs.

The complexes had an array of stalls including a raffle, tombola, home bakes, bric-a-brac, books and toys.

Maureen Tait, Sheltered Housing Services Manager who manages the St Nicholas Court complex, said: “This was our 17th summer fayre and we were delighted to raise £1,400 despite the heavy rain. We’re lucky to have the support of the local community as all fundraising proceeds go towards getting our residents out and about, which they thoroughly enjoy.”

Park life: Windrush Drive goes green

A site previously earmarked for a new primary school on Edinburgh’s waterfront has been transformed into temporary community parkland thanks to a £50,000 investment.

The Central Scotland Green Network Development Fund and Edinburgh City Council have supplied funding, enabling the derelict two-hectare site on Windrush Drive, Western Harbour in Leith to be turned into temporary green space. This will be available for community use until such time as plans to build the primary school are confirmed at some point in the future.

What was an unsightly area last year has now been transformed – new top soil, trees, grassland and a wildflower meadow have been created to improve the local landscape for both local residents and the new community to enjoy.

Councillor Adam McVey, who helped spearhead the project, said: “Greening such a large site in Western Harbour has already improved the amenity for local residents and made it more likely new residential developments will be brought forward on neighbouring gap sites. The cooperation between the groups involved and consultation with local residents has made this one of the most effective projects of this kind and it can, and should, be replicated throughout Edinburgh.”

The greening initiative has been made possible by Port of Leith Housing Association temporary leasing the site from Forth Ports and taking on future maintenance, with Edinburgh and Lothians Greenspace Trust carrying out initial landscaping and sourcing funding.

Port of Leith Housing Association Chief Executive Keith Anderson said: “For many residents, seeing the derelict land day in and day out was becoming an eyesore. By transforming it into an area they can use and enjoy can make a real difference to their lives.”

Charlie Cumming, Project Manager at Edinburgh and Lothians Greenspace Trust, said: “Windrush Drive is the third temporary greening site undertaken by ELGT with CSGN funding in recent years. Other sites were located in Craigmillar and Granton and each of them has brought stalled development areas into positive management and accessible greenspaces for local people.”

Port of Leith photographed by Alan Peebles