Welcome to our May Newsletter. The flowers are blooming, the birds are chirping, and life is beginning to look and feel a little more normal. This month, we celebrated Mental Awareness Week. The Mental Health Foundation asked us to do three things during Mental Awareness Week, which can also be applied to everyday life, experience nature, share nature and talk about nature. Your local greenspace is a fantastic place to start doing these things. In their research, the foundation found that 45% of people said that visiting a local greenspace helped with their mental health. This has become even more apparent since the pandemic, and has showed us just how valuable our local greenspaces are. Next time you are at your local greenspace take a time to relax and take in the nature that surrounds you. You never know what you might spot and how much it might help your mental health! ELGT have started most of our activities again and are delighted to be back in the communities we serve. You can find more information about all our events further down. We hope to see you there. In the meantime, if there is anything you think we could do, or if you would like to discuss matters further, then please do not hesitate to get in touch through our contact page. In this newsletter... This edition of the newsletter will follow the recent activities New Staff Mental Health Activities Dreghorn Nursery Update Spaces for People Activities Healthy Lifestyle Activities Tree Time New Staff We have two new staff members who have joined ELGT recently, and we would like you to give them a very warm welcome to Laura and Emily . They have both given a short description of themselves and roles they will be playing as part of the team. ‘My name is Laura Bailey and I have spent the last (almost) 3 years working in the social prescribing sector, developing and delivering the Aberdeen Links service with SAMH. To my friends, I am known as Laura the Explorer, and I love an adventure. I really enjoy hiking, kayaking, and I have to admit that I do enjoy a cold water dip. As Greenspace & Health Manager with Edinburgh & Lothians Greenspace Trust, I will be working alongside Project Officer Emily Ronaldson, to establish and co-deliver our part of the Physical Activity & Greenspace element within the Thrive Project. I am really excited to start working alongside the people within Edinburgh’s communities to create well needed, person led projects to help improve mental health across the city.’ "I'm Emily Ronaldson and I have spent much of my career working in health and social care, youth work, and environmental education.I can usually be found out on walks with my family, riding my bike or cooking yummy food. I am Greenspace and Health Officer with the ELGT team and delivering on behalf of the Thrive project across Edinburgh. We will be offering walks, jogging groups and woodland and conservation activities across the city." Mental Health Activities Branching Out Group Walk We really felt the benefits of being in greenspace at Branching Out this month. We sampled natural scents, woodland weaving, while placing ourselves in Edinburgh's urban nature! It was great to be able to connect with nature and meet new people. Birdwatching at Royal Edinburgh Hospital We had beautiful weather this month for our birdwatching walk with Branching Out at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital. We enjoyed finding out about wrens, wood pigeons and herring gulls! We look forward to the next birdwatching walk. Thrive Pilton Walk Big smiles under a beautiful cherry blossom this month with the Pilton walking group. A walk and a chat really does lift your spirits and energises you! The Pilton walking group is part of the Thrive Project. The Thrive Project was created to improve the mental health and wellbeing of people in Edinburgh by delivering a range of services and programmes. You can read more about the project here Dreghorn Nursery Update Gardening at Dreghorn Nursery All hands were on deck at Dreghorn Nursery this month. We planted a hedge, beans, and a nasturtium wheelbarrow. The garden is beginning to take shape! Thanks to everyone who came to help! The Dreghorn Nursery project was funded by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund to help bring families together through community activities. You can read more details about the project here. Spaces for People Activities Bike Safety at Western General We had a great time month at The Western General Hospital, with Edinburgh Police marking bikes and giving out #BeBrightBeSeen safety equipment & advice. Thanks to everybody who came and helped on the day! The bike safety day is part of the Spaces for People project. Funding was granted to the NHS by Sustrans’ Spaces for People programme, and ELGT was asked to manage the behaviour change element of the project. The project aims to design and build temporary infrastructure to support active travel and physical distancing during COVID-19, while also encouraging more hospital staff, patients and visitors to travel actively. You can read more about the project here. Healthy Lifestyle Activities Baby and Walk Group We had a lovely time at the Baby and Walk group this month. It was great to get some gentle exercise, but most importantly, it was great to connect with other people! If you would like to join us, we love to see you there. You can find details on how to join the group below. Oxgangs Walking Group We had a lovely time chatting with each other on our walk this month. We finished the walk with refreshments at Oxgangs Neighbourhood Centre. It was great to see everyone and catch up. Looking forward to our next walk! Fun in Dumbiedykes This month we had a fun afternoon in Dumbiedykes! It was full of good music, hula hoops, move and groove and bubbles and not forgetting the refreshments! All the ingredients used for refreshments had the ultimate feel good factor! We are excited to be bringing more activities to Dumbiedykes so keep your eyes out on our Facebook page for more information. Move and Groove in Oxgangs Oxgangs are always up for a boogie on a Monday morning! This month we also had Theodora from Edinburgh Community Food. She brought us some healthy fruit and told us about the new Zoom Cooking Club starting soon. The Out & About team also stopped off to do a couple of songs at Best Bib N Tucker CiC. It was so lovely to see families joining in on their balconies! Litter Pick in Moredun What a fantastic community spirit in Moredun this month. Well done to everyone who helped out at the community litter pick! Thanks to Goodtrees Neighbourhood Centre for all their support as always, and to The City of Edinburgh Council for supplying the litter picks and uplifting the rubbish. Great team work! We will definitely be doing more cleanups in the future so let us know if you'd like to be involved next time. You can find the Out & About contact details below. Dancing in The Quarries What a blast we had at The Quarries this month! The music and movement really lifted our spirits! We finished off with the Time Warp and I think we did it justice! Zoom Cooking Class Are you a new parent in the South East of Edinburgh? Would you like to join a cooking club and meet new people while learning tasty recipes. Out and About are joining Edinburgh Community Food this month for a cooking class on Zoom. Meal kits will be delivered to your door, and we will prepare and cook them together over Zoom. These sessions are fantastic and open to people living in Oxgangs, Moredun, Gilmerton, Southhouse, The Inch and Gracemount. If you would like to take part, please contact Kim or Ruth via the details below. Upcoming Events: Monday 10am Move & Groove, Colinton Mains Park, Oxgangs 1pm Gentle Exercise & a walk, The Quarries, Gilmerton Tuesday 10am Oxgangs Walking Group, meet by Tescos Colinton (opp Allermuir Health Centre), Oxgangs 1pm On Yer Doorstep, meet at the park by Braidwood Centre, Dumbiedykes 2pm Dumbiedykes Walking Adventures, meet at the Crags Centre, Dumbiedykes Wednesday 10am Goodtrees Jogging Group, Moredun Coming up Goodtrees Gardening – email Kim for more info Thursday 1pm Pilton Walking Group, meet at Crewe Toll Medical Centre Friday 10.30am Baby and Walk group, suitable for carers and their babies, meet at Gracemount Medical Centre, Gracemount Friday Litter Picks (monthly), meet at Goodtrees Neighbourhood Centre, Moredun – email Kim for more info . Please register your interest, and we’ll keep you in the loop. Contact [email protected] or [email protected] or alternatively call 07824641133. Tree Time Many of us spent more time outdoors and experienced health benefits from spending time in nature during the lockdown. Spring is a wonderful season to go out and appreciate the nature that surrounds us. On your next walk, take a look at the trees around you. Find out what type they are and send us a photo using @TreeTimeEdin. We would love to see the different trees you discovered during your daily walk. Thank you to everyone who shared their pictures of cherry blossoms tress across the city. We loved seeing all of your pictures. You can see some of the pictures on our Twitter page. In the meantime, we are still able to accept donations if you would like to donate through the Tree Time website. The donations we receive will help us to get more trees planted in autumn during the planting season.