The Edinburgh Reporter December 2022

6 NEWS

Generous donation will pay for team kit needed for US trip

Cheers George!

Granton Gasholder project

By PHYLLIS STEPHEN

GEORGE RUSSELL founder of G Russell
Builders Ltd handed over a cheque for £11,
to Diamonds Cheerleaders to pay for the team
kit which the Ruby section need for their
planned trip to The Summit in Florida in April.
Natalie Samuel, who runs the group with her
mother Gill, handed over a wee token to
George to say thank you for his generosity with
a card signed by all of the girls. She said:
“Thank you all so much. This is amazing. I can’t
wait for you to follow our journey, see all the

kit that we are buying for the girls.”

George said: “I just wanted to see the girls do

well, especially my granddaughter Amy. It is of

course the company that gave the money not

me. I lost my wife five years ago and about

seven months ago I decided that enough’s

enough I had to get myself moving again. So I

set up this building company and it has turned

out brilliant. It was good to hand over that

money for the girls.”

The building company is based in Mayfield

and can take on any project up to building a

whole house. All trades are on call with a

core team of around 12 members of staff

running the business.

Gill and Natalie, who run Diamonds

Cheerleaders, train the girls in a variety

of age-based groups mainly at Liberton

High School.

Following an appeal for new training

facilities in the summer (when the council

altered their contract to use the high ceilinged

space at Liberton High School) John Beatson

from Goodtrees Neighbourhood Centre

answered offering the group some training

space there every week.

By PHYLLIS STEPHEN

WORK IS TO BEGIN next month

on the gas holder at Granton

which will be the centrepiece for a

new town on the riverfront. The

project will create play zones, a

space for public art, a relaxation

area, outdoor trails and tracks, a

large outdoor space which could

be used for festivals or markets.

Trees and shrubs will be included

in the design which aims to

improve the biodiversity in

the area. The newer planning

application lodged only in

October will address issues

around accessibility.

The council’s Finance

Committee approved the

appointment of McLaughlin &

Harvey Limited to carry out the

project funded by £16.4 million

from the UK Government’s

Levelling Up Fund.

Council Leader Cammy Day said:

“I’m delighted with the committee

decision. Our plan is to transform

the structure, the centrepiece of

our £1.3bn regeneration of

Granton Waterfront, into a visitor

destination with high quality open

space for everyone to enjoy.

“Using money received from the

UK Government’s Levelling Up

Fund the contractor can crack on

now and get spades in the ground

to do the restoration work

required, and we’re in the process

of trying to secure the additional

funding we need to deliver the

high quality open space element.

We’ve also submitted a planning

application for this exciting next

stage to make sure we’re ready to

go ahead when we get the

funding that we need.

“The wider regeneration is

about using brownfield land to

develop a sustainable 20-minute

neighbourhood its residents will

be proud of. It will be an area

where people live in affordable

environmentally-friendly homes,

have excellent transport and active

travel links, and access to lots of

open and green space, arts, sports

and culture. Restoring the

gasholder is the first step in

unlocking the wider regeneration.”

By STAFF REPORTER

THE CHARITY Birthlink has two shops in

Edinburgh, one at Lower Gilmore Place and

the other in Bruntsfield

The well-established thrift shops have a

simple ethos - nothing is ever wasted, and

very little goes to landfill.

In 1957 the first Thrift shop was founded

to contribute to the organisation’s funds. It

started off with three members of staff and

the following year the charity bought

Number 6 Bruntsfield Place and employed

four members of staff. A big celebration

was held in 2017 to mark the 60th

anniversary of the oldest thrift shop in

Scotland with staff and volunteers dressing

up for the occasion.

The charity began in November 1911

and was founded as the Eastern Division of

the National Vigilance Association of

Scotland by a group of well-known

Edinburgh citizens, who included Dr Elsie

Inglis. The Association conducted

community based work, mainly providing

temporary shelter to women and girls who

were in need.

NAME CHANGE

In 1941 the organisation changed its name

to the Guild of Service for Women and its

main purpose was to “Advise and befriend

women and children in any difficulty” by

means of individual case work. Students at

the University of Edinburgh’s School of

Social Studies were given practical training

by the Guild. This link with universities

continues, supporting social work

placements. The charity then opened

Edzell Lodge which was a family group

home with house parents working with

social workers and about a dozen children.

The Guild of Service then moved to 21

Castle Street in 1954 becoming a registered

adoption agency.

The Guild supported and organised

adoption placements for more than twenty

years and supported foster carers.

The next and most important phase of

the charity’s work began in the late

seventies and early eighties when it began

to support people enquiring about their

own origins and connecting with their

birth family.

If you are an adult who has been affected by

adoption with a Scottish connection – an

adopted adult, a birth parent or relative, or

an adoptive relative contact the charity on

0131 225 6441 or [email protected]

Birthlink has 111

years of history

Artitst’s impression of the

gas holder renovation

George Russell accompanied by Gavin

Sharp, Joiner’s Mate on the left and

Dod McLean on the right