Porty Podcast

Beachcombing is a popular pastime for many people - but for Nicola McFarlane Young, it's more of a passion. She describes herself as a "Driftwood Artist" - and a highly successful one at that. She's down on Portobello Beach almost every day, hunting not just for driftwood but also for interesting shells and other objects. Her business, Beach Arts, was established six years ago and her work can be found in galleries across the country.

A first for Portobello and Craigmillar - an online hustings! The local elections are taking place on the 4th of May and usually there would have been a town hall hustings. That's not taking place this year - so we're organising an alternative using Facebook Live on Thursday the 27th of April

Today was a special day for the Porty Parkrun. Over 300 people turned up to mark its second anniversary. The events are free, weekly, 5km timed runs which take place around the world. They are held in pleasant parkland surroundings and the organisers, all volunteers, encourage people of every ability to take part; from juniors to those with more experience.

Portobello has a long history - and the Heritage Trust is dedicated to telling that story. It was created with one project in mind - the rebuilding of the kilns near the beach - but there's more to Porty's Heritage than that. However, even the story of the potteries is missing some elements as we heard at the AGM.

A lot of local people have been on tenterhooks, waiting for the result of the Bellfield Ballot. It's been a first for Scotland, using new legislation to organise a community buy-out of a local resource - in this case, a redundant church. A ballot of local residents was held - and the result was a resounding YES.

The Porty Organic Market has been running for several years now. Organised by PEDAL, it attracts a wide range of regular traders - and, this being the first market of the Spring, there was a healthy turnout. It's not just the purveyors of food and crafts who take stalls - we'll come back to them in a future episode. There are also campaigning organisations as well.

Porty Prom isn't just a great place to enjoy the good weather. It's somewhere to get fit as well. There are all sorts of healthy activities to be found there, some using the beach as an outdoor gym. That's what today's podcast is all about.

Big Things on the Beach was a BIG idea - to turn Portobello into a place where large-scale public art would make an impact. A charitable trust, it persuaded organisations such as the Scottish Arts Council (now Creative Scotland) to put up the money to commission artists - local and international - to create pieces which made people stop, look and think. Sadly, times have changed and Big Things will no longer be inviting people to look at temporary art works such as the Pyramid, three huge constructions made from sandbags! But it has left a legacy within the community.

The next few days will be critical in the campaign to save Bellfield Church for the community. On Monday, ballot papers will be going out - and there's a very short window of opportunity to mark and return them. The Scottish Land Fund may have given almost £650,000 to buy the building but without a strong 'yes' vote then the project could yet be stillborn. There's more at www.bellfield.scot

Most of the local businesses in Portobello will know about the Shop Party Awards by now - but how many of their customers and clients know about them? There's a wide and diverse groups of businesses in the area, from the restaurants and bars down on the Prom to the specialist food shops like Williamson's the fishmonger, Breadshare and Findlay's the Butcher, from Cobbler's Bench, the shoe repair shop, to the new hardware store. It's all part of the diversity that makes Portobello a great place to live.

In the last few days,Turn2us' Edinburgh Trust has launched a new community funding programme for Edinburgh, asking “What can you do to help your community thrive?” Until now, the Trust has focused on providing financial support to people needing short term help for themselves and their families – and still does. But now, with the launch of a new Community Programme, the Edinburgh Trust are looking to fund projects that can provide more lasting and longer terms solutions to help improve lives, reduce poverty and get the best out of the people and resources in their community.

Assassins Kickboxing club meets twice a week at Portobello - and twice a week at Easter Road as well. It attracts dozens of members of all ages - the youngest is just 4! The training focuses on fitness, stamina and skill and is as popular with women as men. But what actually happens at one of the sessions? We went along to find out.

Gardening and keeping your home warm are the topics of this podcast because there are a couple of events coming up which will give loads of advice. The first, tomorrow – Sunday, is a ‘Gardeners’ Question Time’ at the Wash House run by Portobello Timebank (www.portobellotimebank.co.uk). A panel including George Anderson of Beechgrove Garden will there to answer your questions. And later in the month, there will be an event run by Home Energy Scotland aimed at people who live in some of the older houses in the area. Its objective will be helping you stay warm and save money. It’s free but booking is advised at http://bit.ly/oldhomeportobello

New 20 mile an hour speed restrictions have come into force. They now stretch from Portobello along to Granton and from Duddingston to Morningside. It’s all part of the Scottish Government’s Road Safety Framework which is designed to make the roads safer for children, pedestrians and cyclists. The move is supported by Police Scotland and officers will be monitoring the situation closely. Since the start of the first phase of the new speed limits, they've taken action against 18 drivers who have been driving too fast.

Later this year, there will be a TEDx conference in Portobello, organised by Tribe Porty. But what does it take to present a TED talk? Psychologist and Portobello resident Nick Child was the opening speaking at the Edinburgh University TEDx event just this week.

Organically Yours is the creation of American-born, Julia Leyden. It's quite possible that you may have seen her on the Prom last year selling her vegan muffins and other products. She's fully intent on getting back outside as soon as she can. But she has serious ambitions for this currently small business in Portobello - she runs it from her flat overlooking the beach. Having family back in the US helps with her desire that make this an international firm, targetting a rapidly growing market.

There was excitement in the air around the former Bellfield Church. Action Porty's application to the Scottish Land Fund has been successful! The Land Fund Committee has approved a grant of £647,500 which includes some £570,000 towards the purchase of the church and halls. The final part of the Community Right to Buy process will involve a ballot of Portobello residents. The ballot papers go out at the end of March - so get involved!

The 5-a-side football pitches in Portobello are under threat. It came as something of a shock both to users and to the local community when it emerged that the eight pitch site had been put up for sale. There hadn't been any consultation about this and the announcement came out of the blue. So a number of campaigns have been started to stop the sale - at least for the time being.

Everyone who tends an orchard is looking for a bumper crop. Those involved with the Portobello Community Orchard are no different. And to make sure their wishes are granted, they've started a tradition of singing - or wassailing - to the trees at the start of the season in January. Today was wassailing day!

When should children start dance classes? Well, at the Lothian Dance academy, the school rolls are now open to girls as young a 2! The academy has been in Portobello for many years and, for some families, it's almost an institution - the mothers who were pupils in the past are now sending their own offspring along today. The youngsters are very much part of the community. They not only stage their own shows but also help with the Porty Panto and the Christmas Street Fest! At the heart of this dance school is Miss Morag - Morag Phillips, the founder of and inspiration behind the academy.