Author: BBC Scotland

A statue (to see photograph of statue click here) is to be unveiled honouring the woman behind the internationally recognised Craigmillar Festival, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Dr Helen Crummy’s venture has been lauded worldwide for its innovative approach to community arts, social change and community action.

She set it up when her son’s school refused to give him a violin lesson.

The sculpture, by Tim Chalk, is being unveiled on Friday outside the East Neighbourhood Centre.

Dr Crummy has also been to the European Parliament to speak about its success.

The statue shows Dr Crummy handing her son a violin bow.

The sculpture, one of only three public statues in Edinburgh to honour women, also incorporates work by local adults and children who will sing at the unveiling ceremony.

Edinburgh art patron, professor Richard Demarco will unveil the statue.

Dr Crummy’s son’s original violin will also be played at the Niddrie Road ceremony at 14:00 on Friday.

The statue was funded by the City of Edinburgh Council, with a further contribution by Craigmillar Castle Regeneration Group.

Author: The Stove

Dumfries-based artists’ group the Stove Network has challenged the town to create a ‘people’s charter’ for the future of Dumfries. The 1395 Royal Charter for the Burgh of Dumfries is read out each year as part of Guid Nychburris (Good Neighbours) Festival – this year there will be an alternative version as well.

The Dumfries Charter 14 is made up of contributions from individuals and community groups and begins with the premise that people are responsible for making their place – and they do not need to ask anyone’s permission other than their fellow citizens.

Artist from The Stove Network Katie Anderson commented: “We have been overwhelmed at the response we have had. People have contributed through face-to-face meetings, by letter and by social media. Connecting with other projects and groups in the town in this way is building a rich and powerful potential for the future regeneration of Dumfries”.

Dumfries & Galloway Multicultural Association said: “We were delighted to be approached to contribute to the new charter. We exist to give a voice to people who do not always feel included and we feel very proud to be part of a charter which reflects local people’s commitment to increase understanding and promote equality.”

The Stove artists plan to make the revealing of the Dumfries Charter 2014 as interactive as possible. It will be launched on the High Street on a series of giant canvas banners with ‘secret’ text on the banners requires the application of water to make it visible. Stove members will be inviting members of the public to assist them in ‘applying’ the water and revealing the Charter to the world.

Stove member Matt Baker said: “The day promises to be great fun and we hope people enjoy being part of launching the charter. But there is also a serious side to this and we hope this new People’s Charter will inspire more people to believe that they can and will play a part in making Dumfries the best place for everyone to live, work and play”.

People will also be invited to edit, stamp, sign and seal their own personal version of the Charter to take away with them, with members of The Stove team there to help and talk. Proceedings will also be helped along by the visit of a mystery guest from history who has been close to radical movements in Scotland.

An article by Dr Linda Pollock at Newcastle University – Beyond the Rural Cringe – describes in more detail the work of the artistic collaboration,The Stove, which has been the driving force behind the initiative to present a more contemporary charter for Dumries – not a royal charter but a people’s charter. The article can be accessed here

Author: Kevin Curley, New Start magazine

Lamlash Bay is unique for being the first marine reserve in Britain where fishing is banned on the recommendation of local people. After a campaign organised by theCommunity of Arran Seabed Trust, known as Coast, a large part of the bay was declared a No Take Zone in 2008 by an order of the Scottish parliament. No recreational or commercial fishing from shore or boat is permitted, and no shellfish can be taken. Just five years later, research by York University has shown that the bay is 40 per cent more complex and healthier than the area outside the No Take Zone. The scallops and lobsters are bigger and more fertile, so their eggs spread to neighbouring waters, giving commercial fishermen bigger and better catches.

Remarkably, Coast has a supporter base of 2,000 people on Arran – more than half of the adult population. With this strong community support, the organisation tried for 15 years to reach a voluntary agreement with the Clyde Fishermen’s Association to protect declining fish stocks. “It was a long, hard fight with people who had a very short-term vision,” says Andrew Binnie, Coast’s marine conservation officer. “In the end, the voluntary agreement would not work and we had to petition parliament for a change in the law.”

What was won for the community was the Inshore Fishing (Prohibition on Fishing) (Lamlash Bay) (Scotland) Order 2008. It’s a striking example of why community groups should use the law to seek the changes they need, rather than rely on voluntary agreements or the endless pursuit of consensus between conflicted interests.

My visit coincided with the UK Environmental Law Association’s annual Wild Law weekend on Arran. Its coordinator, Ian Cowan, says: “Groups like Coast have had to use the law to fight for the people’s right to have our waters managed for everyone’s benefit.” Without the use of environmental law, the argument with commercial fishermen would still be unresolved as fish stocks plummet.

Coast’s next battle is to get the sea around the south of Arran designated as a Marine Protected Area. Unlike the No Take Zone, this will not stop people from sea angling or creeling, but it will create an area protected from bottom trawling and dredging. Again, the community is up against trawlermen, but after the success of Lamlash Bay, it will confidently use the law to challenge commercial interests. Coast’s experience encourages all community groups to combine popular support and charitable mission with legal action to take the fight to vested interests.

Kevin Curley is a voluntary sector adviser

Author: Jennifer Roberts and Oliver Escobar

How do people feel about wind farms when they are given an opportunity to learn more about the topic and consider and discuss it as part of a group?

Between October 2013 and February 2014 three groups of 15-20 people have spent two Saturdays together listening to speakers before being asked to discuss, as a group, the question:

“There are strong views on wind farms in Scotland, with some people being strongly opposed, others being strongly in favour and a range of opinions in between. What should be the key principles for deciding about wind farm development, and why?”

The conversations have been run using an approach known as a ‘citizens’ jury’. This lets a diverse group of people discuss an issue with the help of experts presenting a range of evidence and arguments in a calm atmosphere and with time to reflect on the issues raised.

The jurors have been randomly selected by an independent research recruitment company, and include a cross-section of society in terms of demographics. They did not know the specific topic for the conversations before gathering for the first jury day.

The juries were held in three locations; Aberfeldy, close to an existing wind farm, Helensburgh, close to a proposed wind farm, and Coldstream which has no existing or proposed major wind farms nearby.

We now have an interim report describing how we recruited the jurors and ran the juries, and the kind of information that we collected in the project.

Key points from the interim report:

·         The project successfully recruited a group of citizens for the juries that were diverse in both demographics and attitudes.

·         Each jury had 15 – 18 jurors. Juror attendance was excellent, with only 2 jurors not completing the jury process.

·         Each jury agreed a set of 10 – 15 principles about wind farm development in Scotland. These statements were prioritised to reflect what matters most to them.

·         The jurors found the process an enjoyable and stimulating experience. 88% chose to use the two weeks between the jury days to learn more about the topic. Almost all the jurors said they would take part in a similar process again.

·         Jurors said that the process had given them a broader view on the issue and provided them with ideas on how to conduct difficult discussions in other settings, e.g. at work.

·         The majority of the jurors thought the citizens’ jury format is ‘a good way to find out how citizens feel about issues that affect them’ and agreed that it should be used to guide decisions ‘about issues that affect communities’.

·         The project generated a vast amount of rich, qualitative and quantitative information. The research team are currently analysing this data to answer overarching research questions about how deliberative processes like citizens’ juries affect knowledge, opinion and understanding of a complex subject.

A final research report will be published later this year.

This juries were funded by ClimateXChange and the project involves researchers from four universities across Scotland; University of Edinburgh, University of West of Scotland, Queen Margaret University and University of Strathclyde.

Author: WE-volution website

A time line of progress

To see what some of these groups have been doing  – click here  get inspired

August 2010: A group of 13 women from 7 disadvantaged communities in Glasgow start meeting together to study and understand the ethos and impact of the Indian self-help group model.

January 2011: The women travel to Mumbai and Gujarat in India – the trip is called ‘Passage to India’ – to learn to interact with women involved in the self-help group movement. The group not only come face-to-face with grinding poverty but also find a deep sense of resilience and confidence amongst the women they encountered and a model they believe can help change the lives of women and their families back home in Scotland (www.apassagetoindia-pa.blogspot.com).

February 2011: On their return, the Glaswegians share the stories of inspiring Indian women they have met and their own life-transforming experience to a gathering of over 150 people and announce their plans to launch Scotland’s first women’s Self-Reliant Groups (SRGs). Passage to India is now renamed as Passage from India.

March 2011: The first SRG in Scotland is started by 8 women in the Provanmill community of Glasgow. Saving £1 each every week, they establish a successful Lunch Club for their community in the premises of St. Paul’s Church in Provanmill.

November 2011: The Church of Scotland Guild chooses Passage from India as one of the 6 projects they will sponsor from 2012-2015. Money raised goes towards establishing the Microfinance initiative.

May 2012: Passage from India becomes an independent Scottish Charity.

September 2013: Women@Work in Provanmill SRG goes on to establish a Community Interest Company, receives a small loan and launch ‘Fluff & Fold’, a Laundrette business.

October 2013: Scottish Government announces funding that helps recruit a dedicated 3-member staff team to grow the SRG movement.

April 2014: Passage from India is rebranded and launched as WEvolution (taking its cue from ‘we’ and ‘change’: change as a combined activity).

Dotted around Scotland are small groups of huts – the remnants of the 1920’s hutting movement which allowed industrial workers to enjoy time in nature with their families. Karen Grant from the Thousand Huts campaign believes that today Scotland needs huts more than ever.

Simple, rustic buildings have long been central to Scotland’s cultural riches. From shielings to mountain bothies and shepherds’ huts, they have played a crucial role as lively, temporary containers for music, poetry, learning, celebration, retreat, work and family time in Scotland’s countryside.

These have been immortalised in artworks as diverse as Martyn Bennett’s seminal album ‘Bothy Culture’ and the Broons’ famous but’n’ben.

Today, few people know that Scotland had a strong working class hutting movement that was very active until the 1950s. The largest and best-known example of this is at Carbeth, just north of Glasgow, where over 140 huts continue to be occupied by a thriving community. The huts are not permanent residences, rather they provide intermittent, affordable accommodation for people who historically tended to come from the industrial areas of Clydebank and Maryhill in Glasgow.

In 2013, the Carbeth Hutters made hutting history by succeeding in buying the land where their huts are sited. Carbeth has given many people of Glasgow an opportunity to give their children access to simple, rustic living as an alternative to city life. A Community Trust is both the landlord and the representative body for the Hutters.

A new hutting movement

However, most of the other sites of Carbeth’s vintage have disappeared over the last 60 years, making it close to impossible for any aspiring hutter to find a hut to rent in Scotland today.

Part of the problem has been that, until now, there has been no provision in Scottish planning policy for those wishing to build a simple bothy, hut or cabin, where people might sleep from time to time. Other than mobile homes, the buildings where planning and building regulations permit people to sleep are those classified as hotels, hostels, residential institutions and houses. This lack of informal accommodation in rural Scotland contrasts dramatically with the situation in Scandinavia and many other European countries, where it is normal for families to have access to a hut in the countryside.

There is a real chance that this might change in the near future. Last year the Scottish government ran a consultation on the revised draft Scottish planning policy (SPP), and, for the first time ever, included a crucial paragraph allowing for ‘huts for temporary recreational use’. The consultation attracted a groundswell of support for hutting, so hopes are high that the paragraph may remain in the finalised SPP when it is published this month. That could be the first step in opening the door to new huts in Scotland.

Reforesting Scotland’s campaign for A Thousand Huts has been working since 2011 to remove the barriers to hutting in Scotland. In that time the group has been astounded by the level of support that the idea has received from all kinds of people. Technical experts, academics, builders, architects and planners have come forward to volunteer their time to help the seed of an idea grow into a real possibility for change.

The hope is that it will be increasingly possible for people to build small, simple huts, appropriately sited in the landscape, which will give individuals and families access to the physical and mental health benefits and the learning opportunities of hut life. The essence of the campaign is the belief that hutting can create sustainable, low-carbon, environmentally appropriate development in rural areas. For hutters, or those that simply dream of a hut, the idea inspires such energy and enthusiasm the momentum seems unstoppable.

A Hutters Gathering in Edinburgh in February 2014 was hugely oversubscribed, with participants clamouring to find out how they could have access to a hut. The Thousand Huts campaign is working towards founding a Hutters Federation which would play the role of a representative and supportive body for the new hutting groups. Reforesting Scotland has also been working with Forestry Commission Scotland to explore the possibility of a pilot hutting site on public forest land.

Why I love my hut, By Frances Higson

If I miss a weekend at the hut and sometimes I do, sometimes two – then I get terribly itchy to get there, cause it’s where a bit of my soul lives.

Its not that city life is unbearable, but it doesn’t stop. The orange lights make it never dark, the clock always ticking, the constant working, schooling and negotiating the ups and downs of life is so very tiring. So when the pavements stop and the houses disappear making way for fields and the winding Stockiemuir Road, my heart begins to sing.

I’m coming home to Carbeth, to our wee wooden hut, to the cosy fire, the bracken and bluebells, to nature and the shifting seasons. My lassie pulls on her pirate boots and heads for the woods, leaving behind screens and social media, for freedom and adventures of the imagination – so precious. And I kick back, breathe and listen to the silence, to the wind and the rain or the bird song….always a different tune.

I know I’m lucky to have this little corner of heaven, to have a place to feed my soul and I wish it for all the people – all the hungry souls out there!

A Thousand Huts will host a Hutters’ Rally on July 12th in Glasgow – a day which will include broadcaster Lesley Riddoch and campaigner Alastair McIntosh as speakers, plus workshops for hutters and aspiring hutters as well as a site visit to Carbeth Hutters Community.

If you would like to come to the event, please see www.thousandhuts.org for booking details

Author: Mikey Reynolds, Daily Record

RESIDENTS behind a community group that has kept disused playing fields in Maryhill in use have urged locals to voice their opposition to council plans to destroy their park.

The North Kelvin Meadow has been managed by locals since 2008, after being left derelict since the council stopped using it as sports fields in 1993.

Glasgow City Council revealed its official plans last month, and the consultation period is open until June 27, with the group behind the meadow urging residents to lodge an opposition to the plans.

Douglas Peacock is the head of the campaign to save the meadow and would like the council to mark the area as official green space to prevent it being built on.

He said: “We’ve been campaigning for that for around six years now. The council has classed the land as being surplus to requirements for 21 years now – in 1993 they decided that they weren’t willing to maintain it as sports pitches, and left it.

“The land now has 480 trees, some between 30 and 40 feet high. Official council policy says that they can’t sell ex-sports fields if it’s in use, and this is definitely in use.

“The only consultation we’ve ever been given from the council is about what kind of flats we want – and we don’t want any flats built.”

In 2009, when the council first announced plans to build housing on the land, they described the area as “absolutely not a meadow, it’s three derelict red blaze football pitches.”

Douglas, and the rest of those who volunteer at the Meadow, have installed raised-bed allotments, a fruit garden, composting facilities and a wild flower plantation, and is now used by a variety of different groups.

Douglas said: “There’s a host of reasons why it’s so important to the community. It’s quite different from the Botanic Gardens or Kelvingrove Park, with the unique selling point being that this is a community space that people can get their hands on.

“Everybody has agreed that having these type of places is important to Glasgow – Glasgow City Council agree with these things, so it seems crazy that they want to bulldoze it.”

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council insisted the area, owned by New City Vision, was not a greenfield site and was designated “appropriate for residential development.”

He said: “A planning application will be considered by the council’s Planning Applications Committee in due course.

“The application is for a mix of 90 homes (townhouses, flats and mews properties) with additional space that will have scope for a children’s play area.

“The site size is 1.4 hectares. The developer was selected on the basis of their presenting the best financial offer, and their proposal was the one that had the greatest level of community support from those attending the consultation day which the council held back in 2008.

“We are in continued discussions with the developer over the future of the site.”

Information about the campaign to save the North Kelvin Meadow, and how to lodge an opposition to the council plans can be found at www.northkelvinmeadow.com.          

Author: Scottish Government

A new law will reform existing community right to buy and include measures to make it simpler for communities to take over public sector land and buildings. Published today, the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill is designed to strengthen and nurture community participation and encourage enterprising community development. The existing community right to buy will be streamlined and extended to cover all parts of Scotland, both urban areas and larger rural towns, as part of plans to have one million acres into community ownership by 2020. The Bill will also include provision for communities to take over public sector land and buildings where they can show they can deliver greater public benefit with those assets.

Examples could include land for community groups to grow their own food, develop play facilities for young people or a place for older people to meet and socialise. Rules on Scotland’s local authority allotment sites will also be simplified strengthening the duty on councils to provide sites triggered by actual demand. The Bill will also protect allotment sites from closure. The Bill will also embed Scotland’s world leading performance framework in legislation, ensuring the Scottish Government remains focussed on improving outcomes for communities.

Community empowerment can only be achieved with proper support and in announcing the Bill, the Local Government Minister also confirmed an increase in funding from the People and Communities Fund by £1.5 million to £9.4 million per year in 2015-16. Speaking at The Kabin, a community owned facility in Loanhead, Midlothian, Local Government Minister Derek Mackay said:

“This Bill is about enabling people and communities throughout Scotland to make their own decisions and to build their own future.

“Reforming the community right to buy, giving urban communities in Scotland the same rights as rural communities, and creating access to public land and buildings is a momentous step forward.

“This legislation will empower communities who wish to take over public land and buildings where they think they can make better use of them than their current public sector owners and ensure their ambitions are supported by public bodies.

“The Kabin is an excellent example of what can be achieved with the right support. It supports around 20 organisations all working together to support over 1500 individuals of all abilities, in the local community.

“As part of our commitment to empowerment we have increased our People and Communities Fund by £1.5 million which means that from 2015/2016, £9.4 million will be available annually to support community-led regeneration in our most disadvantaged communities

“This Government believes firmly in subsidiarity and local decision making, and just as independence can ensure decisions about Scotland are taken by the people who care most about Scotland, the people who live and work here, so community empowerment can extend that opportunity to every community in Scotland.”

David Cruikshank, Executive Director of Lambhill Stables, a development trust in the North of Glasgow, welcomed the launch of the Bill. He said:  “This Bill will allow urban based development trusts to pursue an interest in owning land and buildings. And working in partnership with local authorities and other public bodies, that ownership will transform the lives and environments of their communities”.

Commenting on the Community Empowerment Bill, David Cameron, Chair of Community Land Scotland, said: “The forthcoming Community Empowerment Bill now provides opportunities to make progress on a number of the measures around increased community land rights in and we want to see it used to maximum effect and welcome this opportunity.”

John Hancox, Chair of Scottish Orchards, said: “There is no shortage of thoughtful and committed citizens, wanting to change Scotland for the better – they just need to be allowed to do so – and we believe this Bill is helpful in giving that permission. “Our argument to Scottish Government has been that what’s needed is a ‘community right to grow’ akin to access rights. It makes absolutely no sense to have land, and other assets sitting around derelict and underused, while people can’t access and develop it.

“Our vision is of a Fruitful Scotland where people can grow fruit and local food close to where they live and improve their local environment, and also their health. We welcome the way in which the Bill is framed in giving a presumption in favour of community groups being able to access assets, unless there is a good reason otherwise.”

Jenny Mollison, committee member of the Scottish Allotments and Gardens Society, welcomed the Community Empowerment Bill:

“There is a surge in demand for allotment gardening with long waiting lists throughout Scotland in urban and rural areas. The proposed legislation has the potential to bring the provision of allotments in Scotland into the twenty-first century.

“An overhaul of outdated allotment laws, some of which date back to the nineteenth century, is long overdue so that local authorities are obliged to meet the demand for allotments.

“Alongside the nutritional benefits of eating home-grown food, allotments provide physical exercise, green spaces, and stress relief.”

Martyn Evans, Chief Executive of the Carnegie UK Trust, welcomed the Bill, in particular the provision to embed Scotland Performs in legislation: “Placing a duty on future Scottish Ministers to develop, consult on and publish a set of outcomes which describe their long-term objectives for Scotland would further strengthen Scotland’s position as an international leader on measuring wellbeing.

“Putting Scotland Performs on a legal footing sends out a strong signal that increasing GDP should no longer be the sole priority of government. It allows the Scottish Parliament, civil society and the wider public to more readily call the Scottish Government to account on Scotland Performs and opens up new opportunities for civic debate on national wellbeing.”

Extracts from a random selection of the monitoring reports provided by recipients of the previous Knowledge and Skills Fund…..

• The key impact to our organisation was to give us new ideas for setting up our social enterprise, including good use of space, the use of efficient heaters and how to make a building attractive…the visit opened our eyes to the options available to us….we found the people we visited very inspiring…great to see what can be achieved with the right people, the right building and the right vision

• As a result of our two groups making this visit jointly, it provided a platform for us to share ideas, hopes and fears about our proposed joint project. We have been able to bond much more easily as a result. Trust has been built. We all came back from the visit, excited and motivated – something which we have held onto during our meetings to help us focus (on the new project)

• Very inspirational trip. We have made lots of friends and contacts for the future….helped us feel that we were not alone in what we are going through….

• The visit provided inspiration and the belief that we could succeed…we became convinced that the solution to our problem lay in a community share issue `

…….almost without exception the evaluation and monitoring forms that were collated by DTAS on behalf of all SCA  networks contained comments such as these.

Land Matters – The blog and website of Andy Wightman

On 7 June  2014, the Minister for Environment and Climate Change, Paul Wheelhouse MSP, addressed the Annual Conference of Community Land Scotland at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on the Isle of Skye. In the most significant speech on land reform since Donald Dewar’s McEwen Lecture in 1998, he provided the Scottish Government’s first substantial reaction to the report of the Land Reform Review Group which was published on 23 May 2014. The text of his speech is reproduced here.