Tag Archives: community

What’s happening with £eith Chooses projects?

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The £eith Chooses team is of course very aware that normal service delivery and activities have been massively disrupted, for everybody. We have contacted all the community groups that won £eith Chooses grant funding awards in February 2020, to say that we would like to help in whatever way we can.

We understand that some organisations may not be able to deliver their project exactly when and how they had planned to, and that some really creative conversations will take place about possible /necessary adaptations.

We have allocated a named volunteer from the £eith Chooses Steering Group to link supportively with each project group, to join conversations about the direction groups feel they can safely take with their project, to reach the most vulnerable members of our community..
We are hoping that all groups can agree a plan before / by 28 June about how they will be able to use the funding within the spirit of the original agreement.
For example, project groups may aim to –

  • Stick pretty much to the original idea but tweak the delivery methods e.g. food going out to people rather than people coming to gatherings for food.
  • Deliver the original project idea but with a later start date (probably affecting the finish date).
  • Re-prioritise / redesign their original plan and suggest a new project idea that combats social isolation or food poverty right now, in this Covid-19 crisis.

Hopefully groups will not feel that their project cannot be rescheduled or tweaked or revamped in some way and want to return the funding.

Meanwhile, thanks and best wishes  to all groups for everything they are doing in Leith

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Awards 2020

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The following groups / projects have received the largest number of votes from the Leith community, and will receive funding through £eith Chooses 2020, for projects
fighting hunger and/or loneliness. The total amount allocated is £44,624.

The figure below, per group, is the amount the group applied for

YMCA £5,000
Multicultural Family Base £5,000
NE Edinburgh Foodbank £5,000
Feniks £3,808
Citadel Youth Centre £4,990
Leith DIY Skateparks £4,500
ELREC £5,000
Projekt 42 £3,900
Pilmeny Dev. Project £3,870
Dr Bells Family Centre £3,556 (partial funding)

Congratulations! These projects will benefit the Leith community in many different ways, through the energy, work and commitment of the great project teams listed above.

Sadly, not everybody can be successful. The groups and projects whose names do not appear above did not win funding on this occasion.This is no reflection on the quality of their projects, which were all excellent, but just that, unfortunately, there is never enough money available. The £eith Chooses team is as upset about this as the project groups must be. Thank you for participating.

Any project applicants who wish private feedback on their application, votes received etc. are most welcome to email in for this information to Caroline.Lamond@edinburgh.gov.uk

There will be an open ‘Feedback’ discussion session on Tuesday 10 March, at 6:30 pm in the Leith Community Centre cafe, to review and evaluate all/any aspects of the 2020 £eith Chooses process. All welcome, and all views and contributions will be listened to and taken on board for future events. Do come along!

£eith Chooses 2019-2020 Launch, 1st October

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Do please come along to the launch of the latest £eith Chooses process. There are new themes for this year, that you will want to hear about before planning your community project application. 6:30 pm, Leith Community Centre Cafe area, Tuesday 1st October

 

 

Hot News – £eith Chooses 2019-2020 – Key dates!

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Here’s a heads up of key dates for £eith Chooses 2019/ 2020 to get into your diary.

  • Applications to be in by Monday 6th January 2020 (but ideally before Christmas….)
  • Voting Event is Saturday 1st February 2020

There is £44, 000 for community projects, up to £5,000 per project. Start thinking and planning now! Come to a support session for discussion and advice, if needed.

£eith Chooses 2019 is a Record Breaker!

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What a day! And Well done, Leith! A record-breaking 1,267 people (not including volunteers and some project applicants, so probably c100 more) came along on Saturday, showing a commitment in our wonderful community, and supporting all the brilliant community groups putting forward their project ideas for making Leith even better!

The sun shone, and the people came! We served delicious food from local suppliers, and many people stayed around to network and chat, after voting. It’s everything you’d hope for and expect in lovely Leith. We know that the project groups are all winners in their own ways, in who they are and what they do. The only sadness is that there is not enough money to fund all of them.

The ‘themes’ for this year’s £eith Chooses were tight, so that the only projects eligible for funding were ones that met the criteria of addressing inequalities and aiming to benefit disadvantaged people. Local community groups rose to the challenge and all put forward imaginative, creative ideas! There was also a requirement to actively include members of ethnic minority communities in project designs, and groups did this too!

This year we introduced the new idea of a ‘Boost Vote’ for a few projects that  go ‘over and above’ in involving and benefiting minority ethnic communities, as some of these groups have been ‘left behind’ in previous years, due to ‘minority’ status and the fact that Participatory Budgeting is essentially a ‘first past the post’ model. We’ll have to wait for the count, to see the results of this innovation….  But it was heartwarming to see how generously the people of Leith accepted/welcomed this experiment, to make sure our community is ‘fair’ to all.

Projects Revealed!

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Wow! There are 30 applicants to £eith Chooses – 8 for the ‘Food’ theme, and 22 for the ‘Supporting Vulnerable People’ theme. Lots of really great project ideas! View them all here in the ‘£eith Chooses Gallery’.

Checking out the projects online gives you a bit of background to each project, and a chance to reflect, before you come to the Community Centre on 23rd February, to vote. Please take a look and think about questions you might like to discuss with project groups, when you come, and which you might vote for.

The Gallery is just for ‘viewing’. There is no online voting this year.

When you come to vote on 23rd February, you will get up to 3 votes in each room (Food, and Vulnerable People). 2 votes for your 2 favourite projects, and 1 Boost Vote (optional) for your favourite from certain projects which go ‘above and beyond’ in involving members of ethnic minority communities. More voting information.

The following 8 (out of 30) project groups qualify for Boost Votes, according to the criteria laid down by the £eith Chooses Steering Group:

  • Broughton Primary School Parent Council, Saheliya & partners
  • Building Bridges
  • Creative Electric
  • Dr. Bells Family Centre
  • Hermitage Park Primary School Association
  • Multi Cultural Family Base
  • Sikh Sanjog
  • YMCA

 

Please Come and Vote!

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Before the 23rd February –

  • If you would like to come and vote, but cannot get to the Community Centre under your own steam, please let us know asap and we’ll try and arrange help for you to attend.
  • If you are bringing younger children, you may wish to book them in to the free creche (for both applicants and voters). Please get in touch to book them in, in advance (places limited – first come, first served).

Email Caroline.Lamond@edinburgh.gov.uk for either / both of the above

On the Day –

We suggest that you come early, if you can – doors open at 12 – don’t leave it to the last minute, because –

  • it may get busy at Registration, and at the ballot boxes
  • you will want plenty time to chat to project groups on their ‘stalls’
  • there will be lovely free food on offer, but it may start to run out….
  • your kids may want to get glitter tattoos or face-painting done
  • under 8s may need help with the new ‘Kids Vote’ (for the ‘Best Stall’)…

£eith Chooses – Apply Now!

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There is £44,000 of City of Edinburgh Community Grants Fund money available for community projects. Groups can apply for one project, up to a maximum of £5,000 (bids for lesser sums are also warmly welcomed). NOW is the time to apply!

Project bids should be for community projects that will be delivered in Leith and benefit the community in Leith, and that tie in with one or other of this year’s key themes.

Key dates

Support Sessions

Tuesday 8th January 2019  – Support Session at McDonald Road Library (drop in any time between  1pm – 5:30pm)

Thursday 10th January 2019 – Support Session at Leith Library (drop in any time between 3pm – 5pm)

Tuesday 15th January 2019 – Support Session at McDonald Road Library (drop in any time between  3pm – 80pm)

If you want to talk through your ideas and possible application, please come along to this session and meet members of the £eith Chooses Steering Group, who will advise you.

If you can’t make the any of those dates, please get in touch asap, and we will make another arrangement to meet with you.

21 January 2019 – Applications close

23 February 2019 – Voting Day, Leith Community Education Centre, Kirkgate

£eith Chooses rides again, 2018/2019

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Evaluations from 2017/2018 have been ongoing since April, as has forward planning. And at last we have news!

£eith Chooses will take place once more. There is £44,000 of City of Edinburgh Community Grants Fund money available for community projects. Groups can apply for one project, up to a maximum of £5,000 (bids for less also warmly welcomed).

20th November 2018 – £eith Chooses 2018/2019 launches and application open . Please do come along and hear about the plans for this year: 6pm, Tuesday 20th Nov., Leith Community Centre, New Kirkgate.

21 January 2019 – Applications close

23 February 2019 – Voting Day, Leith Community Centre, New Kirkgate.