community action

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Walkabout in the First New Town

As previously announced, next Monday, 28 October, we will be holding a Walkabout — this time in the First New Town — starting at 14.00.

A map of the route is below. Starting from St Andrew Square we will take Thistle, Hill and Young Streets to Charlotte Square and return via Rose Street (anti-clockwise).
Lasting about 90 minutes, we will be checking for litter, waste bins, fly tipping, graffiti, blocked drains, poorly repaired roads, pavements, pedestrian crossings, potholes, depleted greenery, footway obstructions, planning anomalies and anything else you may find notable.
All are welcome — see you next Monday!

 

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Community Grants Funding

Post adapted from email received from City of Edinburgh Council.

Two weeks to apply for this round of Community Grants Funding

The Community Grants Funds across the city have a deadline for applications coming up. Get your applications to communitygrantsfund@edinburgh.gov.uk by 20th May to be in with a chance of securing up to £5000 for your project.

We cannot support core, ongoing costs but can consider applications from not for profit constituted groups for equipment, new activities and more. You can get all the info here.(simply choose the area where the majority benefit of your proposed activity will be).

Projects can take place from 12 months from award, so this gives you time to plan for festival activity, October or Easter breaks or an event you have coming up during this time.

Please email communitygrantsfund@edinburgh.gov.uk if you have any queries.

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Community Grants Fund – Reopens for Applications

The City of Edinburgh Council Community Grants Fund has reopened for applications from eligible local groups. Small grants of up to £5,000 can be awarded. There is a total of just over £25,000 for the 2024/25 financial year available for City Centre groups. The initial deadline for applications is 20 May 2024. Further information including the application form can be found on the Council website.

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East London Street Residents – Petition to Edinburgh Council

 

East London Street residents have submitted a petition to Edinburgh Council calling for urgent action to reduce the impact of the heavy traffic including out of service buses using this residential street.

So far more than 160 people have signed this petition which will be considered at the next meeting of the Transport and Environment Committee. If you have not yet signed the petition, please consider doing so. It can be accessed at the following location.

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NTBCC Walkabout with members and residents – Broughton / Canonmills

Our third NTBCC walkabout was on Wednesday 30 March, starting and ending at Broughton St Mary’s, and covering East Claremont Street, Broughton Road (to the NTBCC boundary), Dunedin Street, Broughton Road (again), Eyre Place, Logan Street, King George V Park, Scotland Street, and East Scotland Street Lane (with some minor detours en-route).

We picked up litter, checked for blocked drains, poorly repaired roads, and depleted greenery

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Scotland’s 2022 Census – Have You Completed it ? If not, this may help

From an email received by the New Town & Broughton Community Council  on 1st April (& it’s not a hoax) from the Community Engagement Officer at the National Records of Scotland who are responsible for  Scotland’s 2022 Census.

As I am sure you are aware, Scotland’s Census Day was Sunday 20 March 2022. This Census is a Digital First Census, acknowledging that, for most citizens in Scotland, this is the preferred method of completion.

However, we are aware that there are a number of people in local communities where this may not be the best way to access the questionnaire, and we have been working very closely with Local Authorities and Third Sector organisations across Scotland to encourage and support these households to take part in the census and be counted.

Scotland’s Census is the official count of every person and household in Scotland, with answers helping us build a picture of the population of the country. Government and other service providers use the data we collect to make decisions on investments and planning, which makes it all the more important that the people of your area are supported to take part.There is still time for those who have not yet completed it, to submit it, either digitally or via the post.

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“Business Bulletin – Communal Bin Project” – NTBCC deputation to Transport & Environment Committee

The following written deputation was submitted to the Council’s Transport & Environment Committee on 27 January 2022 in response to an item contained within the Committee’s Business Bulletin which covered an update to the Communal Bin (Hub) Project and the £7.7m grant from Zero Waste Scotland’s Recycling Improvement Fund. 

The verbal deputation and discussion along with verbal deputations from Edinburgh World Heritage and the Cockburn Association, who supported the view of the community council, can also be viewed in the webcast of the meeting, starting at 5:45 minutes in.

(A note of caution – the full discussion on this topic runs for over an hour).  

Deputation to the Transport & Environment Committee meeting  : 27 January 2022 on item 6.1 Business Bulletin

Introduction

Since April 2021 when the City of Edinburgh Council (“the Council”) made its original decision to impose Communal Bin Hubs right across the New Town, the Council has refused to consult, engage or listen to the residents, their associations, Community Councils and Heritage Organisations.

The Business Bulletin before the Transport and Environment Committee today (“TEC”) is just another example where the Council has, again, failed to listen to experts or those affected by its decisions. Based on lengthy interactions with Edinburgh World Heritage (“EWH”) and Historic Environment Scotland (“HES”), the Council had an opportunity to re-think its extremely unpopular policy and consider some small mitigating suggestions. But it has failed to do so, ignored the advice of these Heritage Organisations and taken a “we know best” approach.

The Business Bulletin misrepresents facts and has not fully explained the Heritage Organisations’ views. The Committee does not even have the opportunity today to debate the minimal amendments proposed by EWH and HES.

The Council have been made aware of the very strong objections there are to the decision to abandon doorstep collection of Gull-proof bags and recycling boxes. A recent survey carried out by Angus Robertson MSP (and Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture) shows that just over 90% of residents do not support the imposition of Communal Bin Hubs. This is supported by our own NTBCC online survey and a recent door-to-door poll on India Street. In addition, the Council’s ‘Information Events’ also demonstrated how opposed the New Town community is to these changes.

However, the Council continues to ignore those it represents.

Before dealing with the details of the Business Bulletin, it is important to remind the Committee, how it reached this current decision in April 2021.

  • There was no consultation or even engagement with residents, residents’ associations, and community councils.
  • There was no consultation or engagement with Heritage Organisations
  • The Council has not conducted any impact assessments, despite the view of experts that such assessment should be carried out. It continues to refuse to conduct such assessments despite requests from EWH and HES.

New Town residents support the Council’s ambition of greater recycling, cleaner streets and less pollution. However, the way the Committee is taking these decisions is both undemocratic and lacking in transparency. As the Council will know, only too well, effective decision making involves and does not exclude those that are affected by its decisions.

Committee members will have received last week, our ‘Five-Year plan for Waste Management’ (attached to this deputation). This aims to approach the matter of waste and recycling in an imaginative way and looks to best practice nationally and internationally. The NTBCC wish to work with the Council to develop a system that not only carries the support of the community but also looks for a long-term and sustainable solution that will not permanently scar the streetscape of this beautiful City.

As a consequence, we are urging the Committee to just take a step back, pause and consider the lasting impact its decision will have on the unique heritage of Edinburgh. Once imposed, the Council will not be able to reverse its decision or if it did – it would again cost millions of pounds. Millions of pounds of public money.

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