By PHYLLIS STEPHENTHE COUNCIL IS refurbishing the play area
in Montgomery Street park in a £230,
scheme, but one significant part in the middle
will take a little longer to get over the line and
needs a bit more cash.
The historic Helter Skelter has been the
subject of a lot of mainly positive discussions
between the Friends of Montgomery Street
Park (the Friends) and the council who have all
but agreed that the play structure can be kept- if the Friends can get the money together to
pay for it.
It will take about £15-20,000 to keep the
spiral of fun which the Friends say is a focal
point in the park and is really worth saving.
The plan is to sandblast the Helter Skelter, weld
parts of it and then coat it with the same
technology as was used on the Forth Bridge.
Simon Preston, a member of the Friends has
taken the lead on both the redevelopment of
the play park, and also in the Helter Skelter
rescue.
He said: “The council had ring-fenced
money for us for many, many years and there
was lots of conversation about how it should be
spent. We didn’t want the generic kind of stuff
you see everywhere which is plastic coated, we
wanted something that was sustainable, that
was natural, that was responding to the way
that children want to play these days with
creative and mindful play.
“It’s been complicated. It’s old, it was put
there in the 70s, and there are some people
who say it’s old, get rid of it. But we live in
central Edinburgh, where lots of things are old
and we’re not going to get rid of them. I know
it’s not a Victorian building, but it is something
that the local community feel very attached to.
They have so many memories. It’s iconic. It’s
something that says ‘this is our place’. This is
Montgomery Street, this is Hillside.”
Cllr Jack Caldwell said: “It’s important to
make sure that it can be safe for future
generations to use it and love it the way we got
the chance to. Everyone who represents the
area wants to see it retained as much as
possible. It’s not just about the piece of
equipment itself, it’s what it means to people,
it’s a landmark of the area, so it absolutely
needs to be kept.”THE CARGO bike used by volunteers at The Wee Spoke Hub
to deliver surplus food from supermarkets has been stolen.
The Bergamont e-Cargoville has a black frame with a large
silver wire basket on the back. It is registered on the Police
Scotland database.
It is an important bike for the organisation and anyone
who knows where it is is urged to contact Police Scotland on
101 or contact SHRUB Coop at 22 Bread Street Telephone
them on 0131 281 0583.3
By PHYLLIS STEPHENThe Rt Hon Lord Provost, Robert Aldridge,
photographed above, rode at least part
of the 26-mile Edinburgh Riding of the
Marches with around 300 other riders,
arriving on The Royal Mile on ‘Lance’ to
receive the news from the boundaries
delivered by the Captain and the Lass.
In 2020 Jay Sturgeon, then an
executive assistant with The City of
Edinburgh Council, and Abbie McDowell
a riding instructor at Tower Farm Riding
Stables, were chosen for the roles. They
waited for three years while the event
was cancelled during which time Jay
changed jobs to work in the EdinburghHealth and Social Care Partnership and
Abbie had her first baby in the summer.
The Provost Consort Colin Cunningham
and the Council Leader Cllr Cammy Day
were also on horseback - and all arrived
at the Mercat Cross without incident.
The reenactment of the ancient custom
of marching the boundaries is a symbolic
tradition of inspecting the Common Land
of Edinburgh which dates back to at least- The Edinburgh event was reformed
in 2008 when a new city banner bearing
the Arms of the City of Edinburgh was
commissioned in consultation with the
Lord Lyon King of Arms. The banner is
kept by the Lord Provost and is carried by
the Captain on official engagements.
Provost takes the reins
It all comes
down to cash
Friends and
councillors gatherHave you seen this bike?
Friends working to save the historic attraction