News from Councillor Maureen Child - The Edinburgh Reporter

Cllr Maureen Child who represents Portobello/Craigmillar

Councillor Maureen Child represents Portobello/Craigmillar and she has written this column for us with news from the East of Edinburgh.

This is our Portobello & Craigmillar Neighbourhood Partnership’s first try at participatory budgeting – You Decide! Our main event is on Saturday, TOMORROW from 11 -3 in the East Neighbourhood Centre, 101 Niddrie Mains Road, EH16 4DS. This is decision time on Community Grants for 2015/16. The projects on display in the venue and in Portobello Library for the last month are all worthy of your careful consideration, so do take all your choices seriously, find out about just some of what local people are doing – all as volunteers – across the neighbourhoods of Craigmillar and Portobello. Don’t just turn up to support your own pet project – although that too is important. Pop along between 11 and 3 to find out about some of the great ideas people have for helping in their community – and have your say. Anyone 8+ can vote

The applications and projects’ posters will again be on display and applicants are invited to come along and promote their applications. There will be a roving microphone to help this and the Craigmillar library staff will have activities for children and young people. Integral to the East Neighbourhood Centre, the relatively new Library in Craigmillar is has the second biggest library in Edinburgh and is well worth a visit in its own right! If you are coming as an applicant or supporter of a particular project, you might feel it would help you application if someone is there for some of the time to answer any questions and promote your cause. We expect voters to drop in, rather than stay for long periods of time. Do encourage people you know to attend and cast their vote (scores 1- 5) – for ALL the projects – if they have not already done so. The cafe will be open. We would hope to be able to announce the results later in the afternoon, and publish the successful applicants on the Neighbourhood Partnership web page www.edinburghnp.org.uk/neighbourhood-partnerships/portobello-and-craigmillar/

The Field in Duddingston Village is community-owned and well worth a visit. Open Day is Saturday 23 May – maybe after you’ve been to You Decide?! More here: fb.me/3Rx0ZnV3i

I was at the Towerbank meeting about the catchment review, which attracted about 30 parents and carers. The proposals will impact on other neighbouring schools, one of which is Brunstane Primary School which is the venue for Monday’s meeting at 6pm until 8pm. See here: http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/towerbankconsultation All welcome to go to any of the meetings. The following week are the Royal High and Duddingston meetings.

Pregnancy and Parents Centre • Yoga for Pregnancy Sessions in Portobello at Tribe Porty 28 May. More here: http://pregnancyandparents.org.uk/2015/yoga-for-pregnancy-sessions-in-portobello/

One of many facts in the latest Edinburgh By Numbers. Find out more here: http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/news/article/1841/edinburgh_by_numbers_shows_large_rise_in_degree_educated_workers

This year’s Portobello 4 mile Beach Race is on Sunday 7 June. Kids Fun Run too. Proceeds to local charity Portobello Monday Centre which provides informal day care for people with a dementia, respite for their carers and rewarding volunteering experience. More about the Fun Run here: fb.me/7kJf3AeLt and about the Monday Centre’s work here: http://www.evoc.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/media/2015/01/Portobello-Monday-Centre-Annual-Report.pdf Contact details here: http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/directory_record/242573/portobello_monday_centre

Bridgend Farmhouse Sunday have drop-ins 11am -3 pm over May and June. Bridgend at Old Dalkeith Road Sunday has become a little hive of Sunday activity: people sifting soil, clearing rubble, fixing fences, preparing lunch, restoring the stone wall, building raised beds, painting and making a cork board. All sorts! Volunteers are always there on a Sunday. Sometimes they have planned workshops, other days they find things to do together and just get going with them. They always have hot soup and fresh bread for lunch for volunteers around 1pm. Come along!

What’s The FRACKING Problem? Join Edinburgh Active Citizen discussion group on 10 June, City Chambers, Edinburgh. 7-9pm FREE.pic.twitter.com/1U7PqDkXTe

Parliament has started working on Sandra White MSP’s Footway Parking and Double Parking (Scotland) Bill. See: scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentaryb…

Don’t miss the next Portobello Comedy Night, Friday 19 June at the Dalriada: fb.me/2FV1WNmua

Just one example of what Edinburgh’s Seaside at Portobello has to offer. Turkish Baths featured in Time Out – see here: http://www.timeout.com/edinburgh/blog/take-the-plunge-at-portobellos-turkish-baths

Niddrie Mains Road is getting a pedestrian crossing upgrade and work started on Monday 18 May. Niddrie Marischal Road is closed. Map:bit.ly/1L0ogrn

Map – City of Edinburgh Council On Niddrie Mains Rd at Hay Avenue are temporary lights here once work starts which are in place during peak periods for 3-4 weeks.

And before you ask – no news yet on when the long-awaited new Abercorn pedestrian crossing work will start.

At Newcraighall, Network Rail will return over this weekend (23 / 24May) in order to complete (we hope) the repair the substantive damage to the rail bridge structure after it was hit by a tipper truck. If you have any questions or concerns around the work, their 24hr national helpline is 03457 11 41 41. This is a picture from last weekend just before the road reopened on the Sunday. pic.twitter.com/sN4a45qDTn

I had a fantastic time this week seeing a performance of the work of choreographer Hannah Venet at Craigmillar’s Artspace as part of the Imaginate Festival, with lots of local support. We agreed this group needs to be much more widely known about. Hannah has been working for months with young performers Karys McNeill and Konrad Safian on a dance work which explores ideas of identity, difference, belonging and power. Watch this space! http://www.imaginate.org.uk/creative-development/artist-in-residence/

This is a link to the press release for last week’s Planning Committee and all the relevant background on the Local Development Plan decision. http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/news/article/1838/edinburghs_local_development_plan_moves_to_next_stage

There are no plans to build on the fields at Brunstane – yet – in detail or in outline. And there might never be. Don’t despair because the battle is not yet over. The Planning Committee saw merit in the Brunstane objectors’ case, and other Edinburgh sites too. The ‘merit’ word is the planning legal term we need to use. Rather than opening the whole LDP thing up again, we delay and risk losing green sites to housing like Edmonstone (gone at Appeal!) and any other green site you might think of. In getting the LDP off Council desks and into Scottish Government, we sought to put a line in the sand to resist any further developer successes at Appeals. There is the possibility of fewer units or a reduction of the Brunstane site altogether. I am still hopeful can resist this land being built upon. The Reporter and Scottish Minister Alex Neil has still to consider the matter and make a final decision on what is in and out of the Plan. The enabling infrastructure costs to support any development here or elsewhere are massive and could not be supported by the development itself and are not available from any other source.

Come along to the Craigmillar Employment and Learning Fair on Wednesday 27 May to find out about jobs and training! There will be a number of organisations there on the day that will provide information to the local community on what sort of help is available to improve employment skills and opportunities, help with applying for work and advice on benefits. There will also be a number of employers who are looking for candidates from the local area. The event will be supported by a range of local employability and training providers and has been organised by CEC Employability and Skills, East Neighbourhood Team and Library, Edinburgh College, CEC Community Learning and Development and Job Centre Plus. The event is targeted at adult jobseekers however young people have also been invited through the local schools and agencies. More here: pic.twitter.com/8aTRIUTWxu and here: http://www.joinedupforjobs.org.uk/noticeboard/craigmillar-employment-and-learning-fair/

Big Things On The Beach is hosting a Day on which to ‘Imagine Portobello’, as announced at our meeting at the Dalriada the other evening. This is on Saturday 30th May, starting at 10:30am, in the Church Hall in Bellfield Street. Lesley Riddoch will be one of the day’s highlights, along with many local people and groups. Details are provided at http://www.bigthingsonthebeach.org.uk Updated programme for the Imagine Portobello event on 30 May. This was covered in the Evening News: http://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/new-drive-to-put-portobello-on-the-arts-map-1-3776756

Register community clean up events at www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org/register so that they can report on the vast amount of action that is happening to Keep Scotland Beautiful. KSB provide to Clean Up Scotland participants in order for them to get litter picking equipment and to arrange the pick-up of the waste collected after their Clean Up. If you want to organise a clean-up in your local area, this is the contact for Edinburgh, who can coordinate the whole thing with task force, KSB and so on:

City of Edinburgh

Justine Taylor

0131 469 5661

justine.taylor@edinburgh.gov.uk

The latest Clean Up Scotland newsletter can be found here which might give you more ideas on how to get people involved.

Have a good weekend!

Maureen

My face-to-face Councillor Advice Sessions, or ‘Surgeries’, are usually every Monday at 5.30 pm in Castleview Community Centre, 76 Craigmillar Castle Avenue (Phone 661 4064) and then at 7 pm in Portobello Library, 14 Rosefield Avenue (Phone 529 5558). Now also at Craigmillar Library, 101 Niddrie Mains Road, EH16 4DT, 1st Wednesday of the month, drop-in session 5pm-5.30pm, thereafter by appointment only up until 7.30pm. Please phone me on Direct Line 0131 529 3268 or Mobile 07718 666 481, or email maureen.child@edinburgh.gov.uk to check availability, make an appointment or request a home visit.