Small sparks flying at WHCT AGM and Anniversary

Small Sparks were flying as the Wester Hailes Community Trust held a special open community event on Saturday as part of their AGM and their first anniversary.

The event invited local people to head along and find out more about the WHCT and submit ideas to the Small Sparks fund on how to improve Wester Hailes for the community, with the WHCT Funding Panel in attendance to give a speedy response on whether the idea was approved and the award granted. The Small Sparks fund offers grants of up to £250 to individuals or groups to help people make a difference to the community.

Four ideas were submitted:

  • A Community Football match and barbecue at the Clovenstone pitch. They hoped that this would help bring people together and that the event could take place in August. The WHCT Funding Panel approved of the idea and agreed that it would make a great opportunity to bring people together, the award was granted.
  • An International Afternoon Tea Party offering snacks from all the different cultures and religions that make up Wester Hailes. The hope was that this would help people bond and that it could bring together different groups, as well as raise awareness of hate crime. The WHCT Funding panel again agreed that this was a great opportunity to bring the community together and the award was granted.
  • A Community Ceilidh open to everyone in the community, bringing people together over food and music. It was hoped the event could take place in WHEC during the school holidays and that it could be a fun event for all the family. The WHCT supported the idea but felt that it was such a big event that the Small Sparks award may not be enough to cover the costs.  They encouraged the applicants to submit a detailed proposal to one of their other funds which offers larger awards to make sure the event is as good as it could be. WHCT member SCOREScotland will provide support to the young people help them with the application.
  • Two Community Noticeboards in Murrayburn and Hailesland. This application was submitted by Murrayburn and Hailesland Community Park Association who hope to develop the Greenway between Murrayburn and Hailesland and felt that two community noticeboards would be an excellent addition in letting local people know about all the great things that are happening in the community as well as letting them share their own communications. The WHCT agreed that the Noticeboards were a great suggestion and felt that it would be good if every neighbourhood had them. They approved the award believing that these two noticeboards would be a good first step.

The event then offered free complimentary therapies including massage and reflexology and a lunch purchased from local businesses before moving on to the Trust’s AGM.

The WHCT would like to thank everyone who attended the event and they would encourage local people to contact them in they have an idea on how to make Wester Hailes better for the community.

You can find out more information about the Wester Hailes Community Trust on their website here.

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