Five things you need to know today
ANDY MURRAY WIMBLEDON CHAMPION – Planning matters – Playday at the City Chambers – Edinburgh Council wins award from Stonewall – Petition for HMS Edinburgh
Andy Murray won the men’s finals at Wimbledon yesterday in three straight sets. If you don’t know that by now you either have no electricity or friends…..!
Our weekly Sports round up to be published later this morning will include news about the historic win and all other weekend sport from Edinburgh.
So the only question now is when will he get word about the knighthood?
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The council’s planning portal often shows up some gems. This week it is this one from owners of a shared garden in Bellevue who want to fell a tree there ‘because it is dead’.
This may be one of the silliest we have seen in a long time!
We understand completely the need for planning laws, but does it take a whole planning application to get the permission to pull down a tree which has already expired? Apparently, even for a tree which is clearly dead, it does.
A little more worrying is the application from Stewarts-Melville College to remove a tree which has Dutch Elm disease.
And just a little more substantial is the application by Cala to develop the quarry in Ratho with what appears to be a major housing development. This is a variation of the permission already granted by substituting some house types, which is not surprising since the original planning permission was granted in 2005.
You can see the Weekly Planning List here.
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On Wednesday 31 July 2013 betweent 12.30—4.00pm you can take your children to the City Chambers to play.
Edinburgh’s Playday is a festival of play for parents and children. It gives adults ideas on a big scale of things they can do with their children at home on a smaller scale.
This year, Edinburgh’s Playday takes place right in the heart of the city in the City Chambers Quadrangle and High Street on the Royal Mile. The street will be transformed with a festival of play on offer for children and their families. Come along and try out some old and new ways to play together!
Today’s photo features Gorgie City Farm which is building a new play area. They are posting photos on Facebook of their progress.
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The City of Edinburgh Council has been named by Stonewall as one of the best local authorities in Britain for tackling homophobic bullying and celebrating difference in their schools. The council is number 7 on the Stonewall Top 10 local authorities list 2013 and is the first Scottish local authority to ever appear in the Top 10.
Stonewall’s Education Equality Index measures practice and policy at all of the participating local authorities. 42 local authorities submitted entries to the 2013 Index, the most competitive index to date. The School Report 2012 – research conducted by the University of Cambridge – showed that more than half of lesbian, gay and bisexual young people experience homophobic bullying in Britain’s schools. Three in five gay pupils who experience homophobic bullying say that teachers who witness the bullying never intervene.
Full results of the 2013 Stonewall Top 10 local authorities list were announced at a ceremony at the charity’s annual education conference held on Friday 5 July 2013 at the Barbican in London, with the Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove.
Councillor Paul Godzik, Education Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: ‘A lot of very positive work is carried out in our schools to promote equality, tackle discrimination and bullying so I’m delighted that Stonewall has recognised the efforts of the council, school staff and pupils. Steps this year have included making sure that every school is implementing the council’s equalities and anti-bullying policy and building on the strong links already established with LGBT Youth Scotland and Stonewall. Our schools recognise that homophobic bullying exists and have a range of ways of dealing with it, according to each individual situation. Everyone agrees that any form of bullying is completely unacceptable and I hope the progress being made in our schools to tackle this issue will ensure that every child in Edinburgh is safe from harm and the fear of harm.’
Colin Macfarlane, Director of Stonewall Scotland, said: -‘City of Edinburgh council deserves enormous congratulations on securing a Top 10 place in Stonewall’s Education Equality Index. Homophobic bullying has a detrimental impact on the attendance, achievement and life chances of young people, so it’s fantastic to see the work of City of Edinburgh council highlighted through the Index to inspire others to take action to make schools a safe and supportive place to help all young people to achieve their potential.’
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HMS Edinburgh was decommissioned last month, but there is a movement to keep her in Edinburgh as a floating museum. There is a petition here and a Facebook page here.
The Lord Provost Donald Wilson blogged about the possibility of bringing the Type 42 destroyer back to Edinburgh on his own Lord Provost’s blog:-”
I thought I should update you on our efforts to secure a future for the ‘Fortress of the Sea’ on these shores.
As you may have read, we hope to bring the decommissioned warship back to Edinburgh as a tourist attraction and last night I chaired the first meeting of the ‘HMS Edinburgh Group’.
I was joined round the table by Margo MacDonald MSP, Cllr Frank Ross, Sir Tom Farmer, Bob Downie, the Chief Executive of the Royal Yacht Britannia, and other senior Council officials – all of whom, I’m pleased to report, shared my view that the prospect of bringing HMS Edinburgh home should be pursued.
We agreed that a feasibility study is to be undertaken which will cover two work streams: the first is to review potential costs and revenues; and the second to examine the practicalities of berthing alongside Britannia. That work would then inform how we can take this forward.
I have written this morning to Captain Chris Smith advising him of progress and of our enthusiasm and determination to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity.”