Council business
Today the Policy and Sustainability Committee meets at the City Chambers at 10am.
This is a fairly dry committee which deals with a lot of the procedural items which have to be put in place often for legal reasons. One of the items which may be approved today is the council’s new Whistleblowing Policy drafted in light of the Tanner Inquiry. This will set out guidelines for anyone employed by the council who might seek to inform the council of some wrongdoing.
The council is proposing to appoint a Night-time Coordinator in common with other cities such as Manchester and London. The idea is to appoint a person to advise the council on policies such as Get Me Home Safely to ensure a prosperous and safe night time economy. The council will have to decide if the role is voluntary or paid – probably at a cost of around £50,000.
The committee will hear that the council and Scottish Canals have refreshed the Edinburgh Union Canal Strategy under which the focus would be to improve the canal, particularly in the areas of active travel, nature, development and heritage. This is a key green-blue corridor in the city and both organisations are charged with protecting it, improving the canal pathway and access to it at various points within the city boundary
The only deputation will be from the Southside Resource Centre on Nicolson Street who say they have not been consulted on the council’s new venue and events booking policy.
The Advice Shop has enjoyed some improvement according to one of the reports before the committee.
You can watch online or attend in person at the City Chambers. Click here for details.
Shelter Sale raises thousands
The annual Shelter sale at the Stockbridge shop has raised more than £24,000 in one week. The charity collects together all manner of items such as designer clothing and first edition books as well as rare vinyl for their sale on 3 January each year.
Film night at Portobello Town Hall
Freedom to Run a feature-length documentary following the Palestinian running group ‘Right to Movement’ (RTM) and a group from Glasgow as they train for and run both the Palestine and Edinburgh Marathons will be screened in Portobello this Friday night. RTM, co-founders of the Palestine Marathon which takes place in Glasgow’s twin city Bethlehem, use running to challenge the restrictions on movement people face in Palestine. A normal marathon route is 41km but due to the restrictions imposed by Israel, it is not possible to move more than 10km without being stopped. To complete the route, runners must run on the same road four times.
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The Bike Station
The charity which recycles and refurbished donated bikes, and delivers bike and skills training is holding its AGM on 23 January at 2pm – the form has been fixed for you to sign up now.
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