Man dies after falling from the Scott Monument
Work on the link between the Innocent Path and the Union Canal about to start
Are you ready for Pretty Muddy?
Friends of Canongate Kirkyard publish podcasts
Are you up for GROW for it?
Yesterday morning a man fell from the Scott Monument and was pronounced dead at the scene. The monument is owned and run by the council. Princes Street was closed to all traffic except that crossing from Hanover Street to The Mound for a few hours while police cordoned the area off.
A Council spokesperson said yesterday afternoon: “The Police have carried out a full investigation at the scene and Princes Street has re-opened to traffic. Our priority is to ensure the safety and welfare of our staff and visitors to the Scott Monument, and we are satisfied that all procedures and precautions were followed correctly. Our thoughts are currently with our staff and with the loved ones of the deceased. Monument workers are being offered counselling and support at this sad and shocking time.”
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A £1.25 million scheme to link the Innocent Path cycleway to the Union Canal towpath via the Meadows is scheduled to get under way from Monday 9 March 2015, lasting approximately 12 weeks.
This first part of the project will include fully segregated sections of cycleway, as well as new cyclist/pedestrian crossings.
So now we have to lay down a challenge to Councillor Lesley Hinds the Transport Convener. When it is finished will she cycle along the new path with us? We hope she might be persuaded that this route is ‘off road’ enough even for the most nervous cyclist.
The scheme will fix a longstanding ‘hole’ in National Cycle Network Route 1 (previously cyclists would have had to dismount in order to cross Clerk Street) and is an important step in delivering the Council’s ‘family-friendly’ network of cycle routes, which aims to cater for younger, new or less confident cyclists.
Work on the second phase of the project, which will link the Meadows to the Union Canal, is scheduled to take place in 2016. The whole £1.25m scheme is being jointly funded by the Council and Sustrans, who have contributed £500,000.
The route in the first phase connects North Meadow Walk to the Innocent Path, which follows an old railway route to Duddingston, Brunstane and Musselburgh, using:
– shared footway and cycleway or cycle path on main roads
– on-road cycle route on side streets
– new and relocated crossings on Buccleuch Street and Clerk Street, respectively
Councillor Lesley Hinds, Transport Convener, said: “This is a very exciting project. The upgraded route will form a fantastic addition to our Family Network, making cycling and active travel even more attractive to families and new or less confident cyclists. We had a great response to our consultation on the initial proposals and we look forward to seeing the route well-used once construction is finished.”
John Lauder, National Director of Sustrans Scotland, said: “Sustrans is delighted that the first phase of this project is just about to get underway. We consider that the new infrastructure will be hugely beneficial to cyclists in the area. It will also help the City of Edinburgh Council in working towards its ambitious targets for increasing cycling in the capital.”
The works will be undertaken between 0930 hrs and 1600 hrs Mondays to Fridays and according to the council the contractor, Lafarge Tarmac, will make every effort to minimise disruption. Pedestrian access will be maintained throughout the duration of the works.
The new cycle corridor route will run along the following streets: North Meadow Walk (off-road shared footpath and cycle path), Hope Park Crescent, Buccleuch Street, Gifford Park, Clerk Street (A7), Rankeillor Street, St Leonard’s Street and Hermits Croft.
The works will also affect these streets: Buccleuch Terrace, St Leonard’s Lane and Montague Street.
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Teenager Aimie Caldwell is leading the charge against cancer by appealing for women to join her at Edinburgh’s first Pretty Muddy Race.
Aimie who was just 16 when diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma has signed up for Cancer Research UK’s new Race for Life Pretty Muddy event near Scotland’s capital, which takes place at Dalkeith Country Park on Saturday June 13. She’s teamed up with her mum Gillian, 47, and her sister Claire, 22, to raise money for life-saving research by taking on the women only, non competitive 5K obstacle course-with added mud. Participants are encouraged to run, climb, and clamber over a series of jumps and slides- all to help beat cancer sooner.
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A new voluntary group aims to raise the public profile of the Canongate Kirkyard with a series of heritage trails and podcasts voiced, among others, by Alexander McCall Smith. The author said: “I hope that the podcasts will help visitors to appreciate the remarkable history of this important corner of Edinburgh”
The Friends of the Canongate Kirkyard was formed at the beginning of 2014 with the support of Edinburgh World Heritage, as part of the Edinburgh Graveyards Project. Their aim is to explore new ways to maintain and enhance this historic burial ground and encourage local community involvement.
Laura Harrington, Chair, of the Friends of the Canongate Kirkyard said: “It is a privilege to be able to work towards enhancing and promoting our wonderful kirkyard and to contribute towards the Edinburgh Graveyard Project. Not only is this a lovely location it also holds many untold tales and secrets of its past, just waiting to be found. It’s vital these aren’t lost and I see us all as the guardians of this sacred and historical place. The trails are the first steps towards the incredible things that can be achieved when volunteers work together towards a common goal. The connection we make won’t stop at the walls of the kirkyard but will stretch out into the Canongate and its community.”
Adam Wilkinson, Director of Edinburgh World Heritage said: “We are delighted to be able to support the Friends of the Canongate Kirkyard, through the Edinburgh Graveyards Project. Enabling local people to get involved in their care and promotion is a crucial aim of the project, helping to ensure the long-term future of graveyards as a valued part of the World Heritage Site. These trails are a great example of how volunteers can participate in their local heritage, conducting detailed research to unearth the wealth of hidden stories the kirkyard has to tell.”
The ‘Burghs and Burials’ heritage trails each take a different theme: Scotland and the World, Arts, Enlightenment, Royalty and Trades. They highlight some of the fascinating and quirky stories behind the people buried in the kirkyard. The philosopher Adam Smith, poet Robert Fergusson and Agnes Macelhose or ‘Clarinda’, the muse for Burns’ poetry, all have graves there, but the trails also highlight some of the less well known burials.
The trails are illustrated by Carmen Moran (http://www.carmenland.com/), and researched by Eric Drake, Vice Chair of the Friends. Support for the initiative has come from the EWH Green Heritage Project, funded by the Climate Challenge Fund.
There are also podcasts on the same five themes narrated by Alexander McCall Smith, Rev Neil Gardner, Minister of Canongate, Marco Biagi, MSP for Edinburgh Central, Donald Smith, Director of the Scottish Storytelling Centre and Liz O’Malley, a member of the Friends group and a qualified tour guide.
The new trails and podcasts are available here.
In 2015 The Friends plan to further promote the fascinating history of the kirkyard through locally based events and publications. The first of these events will be a coffee morning on Saturday 7 March 2015 from 10.00am in the Harry Younger Hall, Lochend Close, Canongate. Anyone is welcome to come along to meet some of the group and find out about plans for the kirkyard and its community. Later in the year we will be working on the garden area around the Mercat Cross. And we are looking at the possibility of raising funds to prevent deterioration of the historic mausoleum of Dugald Stewart who was a key figure in the Scottish Enlightenment.
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Grow Wild is on the lookout for dynamic project ideas from 12 to 25 year olds to raise awareness about the importance of UK native wild flowers and plants. Whether it is transforming an unloved wall at a youth centre with a wild flower mural, showcasing a passion for writing nature inspired poetry, or developing a plan for an animation highlighting the benefits of growing wild flowers – Grow Wild welcomes creativity.
Supported by the Big Lottery Fund and led by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; Grow Wild’s youth-led initiative, Grow For It is a fresh new opportunity supported by some great partners throughout the UK; the Scottish Youth Parliament, the British Youth Council, Youth Cymru, Northern Ireland Youth Forum.
While Grow Wild’s overall focus is the transformation of spaces, Grow For It projects can encompass more than sowing and growing to include all things wild, original and creative. Grow For It funding can be used to produce anything that communicates the Grow Wild message about the importance of UK native wild flowers and plants – whether that’s a short film, edgy clothing design, or a wild flower cycle tour.
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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
