Category: Volunteer Midlothian

Midlothian Volunteers’ Week 2023 Mascot Rhino Competition

Richard Cross on 10 May, 2023

What’s my name?

Please send us your suggested name for our mascot rhino. The winner will receive £100, their own cuddly toy rhino and a winner’s certificate. The deadline for applications is Thursday 1st June 2023 at 12 p.m.

Good luck!

Competition guidelines:

  • Any child who attends primary school or after school club in Midlothian can enter.
  • Primary school teachers or club leaders can also enter on behalf of their whole class or after school group, provided the children have chosen the name.
  • There should be only one entry per child or class.
  • If there is a whole class or club entry, individual children from that class can still apply once each.
  • The winner will be announced via Twitter on the evening of 1st June 2023.
  • The school will be contacted in the week beginning Monday 5th June to arrange delivery of the prizes.
  • Midlothian Advertiser may also be invited to cover the story in local media.

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Midlothian Third Sector faces devastating cuts

Lesley Kelly on 30 January, 2023

Midlothian council are facing a projected budget gap for 2023/24 is £14.481 million rising to a projected £26.575 million by 2027/28. The current proposal of budget cuts includes; the removal of staffing at libraries and secondary school libraries, end of funding grants to community transport and dial-a-ride service by Handicabs Lothian and Lothian Community Transport, and a 100% cut to large and small grants funding for the third sector. The loss of third sector services will have a devastating impact on communities and particularly on the vulnerable, elderly and youngest residents. This also occurs at a time of the cost-of-living crisis where many people are facing poverty with increasing food and energy bills.

The Midlothian TSI and its third sector partners are launching a campaign to #CareDontCut to prevent cuts and start an open dialogue with Midlothian councillors and the decision making process. The councillors will meet on the 31st January at 11am (watch here) to discuss the proposed cuts and then there will be community engagement until the 21st February where they will make their final decision. If you are interested in lobbying your local MP and MSP then please find a link to the open letter signed by us and third sector partners which you can also sign and send out.

OpenLetterCuts (Word document)Download

Get in touch with ku.gr1745812640o.svc1745812640avm@n1745812640osmoh1745812640t.eil1745812640atan1745812640 to get involved or more information.

Dear Councillors,

We are writing to you as representatives of the third sector in Midlothian who are deeply concerned by the impact of the proposed cuts which will affect our most vulnerable, youngest, and oldest residents of Midlothian, and cause significant job losses to the third sector and a reduction of services.

We recognise the difficult task you have in making cuts that no-one wants to see happen, and we are aware that many of Midlothian’s current difficulties arise from a lack of recognition of our status as the fastest growing local authority. However, we feel that it is important that councillors are aware of the impact of the saving proposals.

Many of the proposals in the paper will have a negative impact on the funding of third sector organisations. Our organisations were not well-funded to begin with, and have been badly impacted by the combined effect of Covid, Brexit, inflation and the recent rise in utility prices. Further cuts to their budgets could lead to the closure of key, long-established organisations.

Much of the work funded through the Grants Programme is preventative, and its removal will lead to increased costs for the Council and other community planning partners, for example, through a rise in isolation leading to increased calls on GPs and other health services, children being less able to cope at school, or an increase in anti-social behaviour.

There are a number of proposed actions in the paper that suggest that the community could get more involved, yet at the same time the budget that could have supported this has been cut. Most volunteers only volunteer for a few hours a week, meaning that every full-time post that is lost would need ten to twelve volunteers to replace it. There are costs attached to coordinating this number of volunteers.

Many older and disabled people are unable to get to third sector activities without the support of our community transport providers. If these cuts are made, the lives of our most vulnerable citizens will be hugely restricted.

In light of the comments above, we call on council members to undertake the following actions:

· Reconsider the 100% cuts proposed to the Third Sector Grants programme. We are in the process of compiling how many people this cut would affect; with 40% of the response received so far organisations are reporting that over 7000 vulnerable clients would be impacted.

· Recognise that children and young people’s organisations will be particularly badly affected by the accumulation of cuts to both the Grants programme and commissioning budgets.

· Institute transitional arrangements for commissioned services so that they do not stop abruptly on the 1st April. This would allow third sector employers to undertake the redundancy process as set out by law, and in line with the Scottish Government’s Fair Work criteria. It would also allow time for discussions about how clients continue to receive support.

· Once the paper has been approved, undertake meaningful engagement that goes beyond just a survey, to ensure that the needs of people who struggle to complete surveys is also met, for example people with learning difficulties, people with mental health issues and people with literacy issues.

We include two key quotes from our most recent third sector forum which highlight the difficulties they face:

“If community places and libraries are closed or not staffed adequately as safe places then vulnerable people and disabled people become more isolated, isolated means more physical illness, physical illness means more hospital appointments or mental illness leading to increased rates of suicide.” Graham Thomson, Co-chair, Forward Mid

“With a cumulative cuts to our service and the potential of losing our service level agreement, we are facing the potential of at least 40% cuts, which would mean the loss of 2 family learning centers with 18 staff and potentially therapeutic services which has a direct impact of children and families. This could mean redundancies of between 18 – 60 staff as early as Mar ’23.” Cheryl Brown, CEO, Midlothian Sure Start

Yours sincerely,

Lesley Kelly, Chief Executive, Midlothian Voluntary Action and Volunteer Midlothian

Alasdair Mathers, Penicuik Alliance, Penicuik Youth Band and Penicuik Silver Band

Brian Christie, Pathhead & District Community Association

Dave Evans, Chief Executive, MYPAS

Emma Diffley, Chair, Tynewater Parent Council

Eric Johnstone, Graham Thomson and Marlene Gill, Forward Mid

Ian Purves and Janice Burns, Midlothian Foodbank

Jan-Bert van den Berg, Director, Artlink

Jill Bunyan, Development Worker, MFIN

Jim Hiddlestone, Chair, Roslin Village Group

Julie Podet, Manager, Dalkeith Citizens Advice Bureau

Linda Cuthbert, Service Manager, Play Therapy Base

Lucy Holyrood, Senior Recovery Services Manager, Cyrenians

Dr Neil Heydon-Dumbleton, Pathhead Men’s Café & Community Councillor

Pat Bowie, Chairperson, Newtongrange Development Trust

Paula Swanston, Manager, Home Link Family Support

Play Midlothian

Robert Scott, Manager, Rosewell Development Trust

Scott MacFarlane, Chief Executive Officer, Penicuik YMCA

Sharon Hill, Manager, Mayfield and Easthouses Development Trust

Yvonne Hay, Committee Member, Beeslack Allstars

Pop into our 2023 Volunteer Recruitment Fair

Richard Cross on 25 January, 2023

Volunteer Midlothian is hosting a Volunteer Recruitment Fair on Thursday 9th February from 10.30 -16.30 in St John’s and Kings Park Church in Dalkeith (opposite the Morrison’s retail store).

Local and national volunteer involving organisations will be there promoting their volunteering opportunities including Rec Cross, Sure Start, NHS, Alzheimer Scotland, Penicuik Storehouse, Gorebridge Beacon, Scouts and more.

The event is an ideal opportunity to meet organisations and find out more about what volunteering has to offer. There will be a warm welcome at the door by Volunteer Midlothian. Free tea, coffee and cake, fresh soup and bread with an area to sit, take time and browse information for visiting adults. For children we have an arts and crafts table.

Midlothian Provost is due to visit and chat to stall holders in her capacity as ‘Midlothian Volunteer Champion’.

There are many reasons why we promote volunteering, it’s a great way to meet new people, get involved, get busy, learn new skills, pass on experience, help improve your own and others’ mental and physical health, help the environment, boost your CV and more.

At times when we do so much online, promoting volunteering with an in-person recruitment event is a great way to connect with people and to build relationships between organisations and potential volunteers on the spot.

This is the first recruitment fair since the pandemic but it is intended to resume as an annual event from now on. It is held in February to inspire people to get involved as part of their New Year Resolutions.

If you are thinking about volunteering but not quite sure where to begin, then this event is perfect for you! Come along and find out how you can develop your skills and make a difference in your local area. For more information call 0131 660 1216.



Launching into 2023 with two new projects

Karen Downie on 11 January, 2023

Volunteer Midlothian are excited to launch into 2023 with the delivery of two eight-week projects thanks to funding from Tyne & Esk Rural Communities Development Fund.

Both short projects will focus on involving volunteers to bring people together, reduce social isolation and improve the health and wellbeing of all involved.

In Penicuik, the first project will see Transform Activity Sessions restart and further develop in Heinsberg House Sheltered Housing, where young volunteers (14-24 years old) will be supported to deliver social activities for the older people living there. The sessions were delivered prior to Christmas and had the dual benefit of young volunteers gaining confidence and self-esteem, as well as developing new skills and experience to help pave the way for positive future progression. The older people regained the confidence to make use of their communal lounge following Covid restrictions, enhancing their social contact with others within the Sheltered Housing, as well as the young people from their local community.

Our second project, new for the Pathhead area, will engage our Connect Online volunteers with I.T. skills in its delivery. The volunteers will help share their knowledge and support older people to use technology effectively. This group project aims to provide a lasting legacy enabling older participants to confidently access services such as GPs, shopping and price comparison sites online; and will also allow them to engage with community activism, for example, by linking into the Midlothian Older People’s Assembly.

With January being a particularly difficult month for many, Volunteer Midlothian are delighted to start the year by offering these exciting projects, highlighting the value volunteering can bring to both the volunteer, and those impacted by the services volunteers provide. We can’t wait to further develop the fun, social connections, empowerment and sense of belonging the projects aim to provide. For further information, to become a volunteer or to join as a participant contact Karen.

Funded by Scottish Ministers in conjunction with East Lothian Council, as the Lead Partner for the Local Action Group.

Anam Cara – Empowering and Supporting Women

Richard Cross on 30 November, 2022

Anam Cara is a charity run by women, for women, in East and Midlothian. They offer a programme of workshops aimed at empowering and supporting women to improve their wellbeing by learning how to develop better self-care and coping mechanisms. Anam Cara is motivated by its three core values of compassion, courage and connection, which run through all of the projects and activities that the organisation provides.

Anam Cara helps women who are at risk of slipping through the net of other services that can help them, therefore missing out on the support they need. This can include women in unpaid caring roles, those with substance use issues or other health and wellbeing issues that they need additional support to deal with. Their approach is forward thinking and non-judgemental, with a focus on prevention, harm reduction and early intervention to support the mental health needs of women, particularly those from more vulnerable or deprived communities. As such, Anam Cara was well placed to receive a grant in Year 1 of the Midlothian Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund.

The organisation successfully obtained £8,456 from the Fund to put towards salary and equipment costs for peer support activities with women, including monthly meet-ups and extended one-to-one support that had initially taken root during the first lockdown. In Autumn 2022, we checked in with Marion and Karyn from Anam Cara to see how their projects were developing.

What goes on at Anam Cara?

Every woman who comes to Anam Cara is invited to take a 4-week wellbeing course consisting of live workshops plus access to around 70 online short videos covering a wide range of topics. The videos were a more recent addition aimed at reducing barriers to participation due to information retention difficulties and poor attention span among some participants. They have proved very useful for practicing wellbeing skills in short bursts and have allowed participants much greater flexibility in their uptake of Anam Cara’s services.

“The online wellbeing videos are like a medicine cabinet of information. They give you the chance to develop and revisit these skills and keep on top of your mental health.”

Karyn, lead volunteer with Anam Cara and Midlothian Volunteer of the Year 2022.

Women are also encouraged to repeat the course 1-2 years after initially completing it, because Anam Cara know how useful it is to receive support over a longer period, as life evolves and different challenges come to the fore. They understand that someone may come back to Anam Cara and learn something new, not only due to personal circumstances but because the course itself is constantly being reviewed and improved.

The Sanctuary

The community orientated focus of the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund links particularly well to Anam Cara’s core value of connection. The grant enabled Anam Cara to develop their Sanctuary drop-in service, where women needing a sense of connection and togetherness with other women have a safe and welcoming space to meet. The Sanctuary offers refresher workshops for women who have already completed Anam Cara’s main programme of workshops, allowing them another chance to practice the mindfulness and wellbeing techniques they learned initially. This is especially important as the programme relies on continued engagement in order to be most effective.

Within the Sanctuary, there are a variety of activities on offer including aromatherapy, holistic healing work, dance classes and more. Each of these activities is centred around improving and preserving good mental health and aims to give women the social connection they need to develop a sense of belonging. Feedback from participants has shown that attending workshops helps women to feel less isolated and alone, whilst also encouraging them to be self-sufficient and self-sustaining when looking after their mental health. Women coming to workshops show positive differences in their outlook even from week one.

Maria, the founder of Anam Cara, believes that this is a result of the organisation’s services being comparatively unique, in that they allow women to gather and support each other in ways that derive from a place of personal experience. There is a very low drop-out rate at Anam Cara, suggesting that its services are not only empowering and inspiring, but effective. Women are learning to reflect on their mental processes, how their minds work, and why they behave the ways they do. They are learning to respond to unhealthy behaviours with better choices, enabling them to move forward and make significant changes in their lives.

“Anam Cara was my only open door. It has strengthened my wellbeing, opened mental pathways, and helped me to develop a safety net to support and protect me. Women here are learning to embrace life and learn tools for their future. It is so important for women to have an option like this that doesn’t just involve hospitals or medication but focusses on togetherness and wellbeing as well.”

Karyn

Future Plans

Moving forward, Anam Cara would like to develop a service focussing specifically on women in later life. Maria had noticed that women in the 45+ age group were going through major life changes, often stepping into unpaid caring roles for elderly parents, whilst dealing with the stress of family life, menopause and sometimes finding themselves using alcohol or other substances to cope – sometimes also working into their 60s or even 70’s. Addressing this unique set of challenges alongside older women is a key future goal for Anam Cara.

Anam Cara are also looking to expand their bank of volunteers to accommodate the increasing need for befriending calls, and to potentially offer the Sanctuary up to women to run themselves as an independent project for users of the service. It all sounds really priomising and we can’t wait to see how Anam Cara develops this work in future. It’s fantastic to see that alongside the other grants they receive, the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund has enabled continued development of this valuable local organisation for women in Midlothian.

MAEDT Really Makes It

Richard Cross on 16 November, 2022

MAEDT is a community development trust dedicated to creating opportunities and improving outcomes for the local community of Mayfield and Easthouses. A key value of the Trust is to work towards alleviating poverty. With that goal in mind, MAEDT runs a wide range of different projects that share one key thing in common: the creation of long-term solutions for local people.

MAEDT has been running since 2007 and new projects are continuously being introduced, including the Community Food Pantry which recently celebrated its one-year anniversary. As well as the pantry, MAEDT runs and hosts projects including a school uniform bank, debt and energy clinics, drop-in sessions with the local Citizens Advice Bureau, employability support, a men’s mental health group, a kinship carers group and a ‘wheelbeing’ hub for bicycle repairs and socialising. Central to these groups and projects is MAEDT’s pavilion, community garden and café, where a hub of different activities take place on a daily basis, come rain or shine.

MAEDT’s Pantry and Pavilion

Over the last 2 years, MAEDT saw how the pandemic increased unemployment and food bank referrals in the Mayfield and Easthouses area. Wanting to focus on reducing food poverty and improving people’s access to healthy food, MAEDT introduced a community food pantry. ‘The Pantry’ is a shop where food items are marked as either 1 or 2 credits each, and shoppers can buy 10 credits for £3.50. In addition to the credits, members are offered free fresh fruit and vegetables, sanitary products and bakery items.

To shop at the Pantry, individuals must become members. This free requirement helps to create a sense of equality among staff and users, so that people can be open about what they need and when they need it. The get-to-know-you membership model has helped people to feel comfortable in sharing personal stories about their mental health, challenges within their home life and stressors they are experiencing. It has become a hub where trust between local people can grow.

The Pantry helps to remove the stigma associated with accessing free and discounted food, providing resources that are much needed in a dignified and empowering way. Rather than feeling shame about not being able to afford food or cook from scratch with it, members are encouraged to broaden their cooking knowledge, introduce new flavours and be imaginative with healthy ingredients. Additionally, buying more affordable food from The Pantry means that members can put money towards other essentials such as energy bills, making this a service that helps in more ways than one.

The outside space at MAEDT’s ‘Pavilion’ hub underpins a lot of their work. Gardening activities act as vehicles for volunteering, community payback and rehabilitation. Using the garden in these ways is a non-stigmatising option for people belonging to vulnerable groups and can help them to better manage their own wellbeing. Moreover, the garden offers a safe space for people to improve their mental health by making connections with others, their community, and with nature. Local women Sharon Hill, who is also the manager at MAEDT, explained to us that individuals volunteering together at the Pavilion learn to bring out skills in one another, for example using maths to plot out a garden project, or conversation skills to engage with other volunteers who may find socialising difficult.

“All of our volunteers offer something unique; a skill, knowledge or vulnerability that can help bring out something in another person.“

Sharon Hill, MAEDT Manager.

How was the Fund used?

Part of the grant that MAEDT received from the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund was used to pay for MAEDT’s Enterprise Development Worker, so that the Pavillion could open more often. The funding also paid for a structure in the garden called a Polycrub, as well as a pergola, making the expansion of gardening projects for volunteers possible.

What next?

MAEDT is always looking to the future and thinking about what the community in Mayfield and Easthouses will need next. Aside from the impending cost of living crisis and responding to what looks set to be a difficult winter, ideas for upcoming projects include a sensory park, an electronic rickshaw, and collaboration with partner organisations to embed the pantry model in other areas. For other places in Midlothian to set up their own pantry initiative, a large, centralised project would need to be organised to ensure that food is being dispersed equally. Sharon’s idea would be to use MEADT’s Pavilion as the central location for donations, and to use it as a network hub for distribution.

Reaching this point has taken several years of hard work from MAEDT volunteers and those who work for the organisation in a paid capacity, but it certainly seems as though all the hard work has been worth it. We applaud the team for their worthwhile efforts, and we look forward to supporting the Trust with its ongoing development in the years ahead.

Bonnyrigg Rose Community Football Club: Championing Football and Mental Health

Richard Cross on 16 November, 2022

Bonnyrigg Rose Community FC (CFC) is a football club that is gaining recognition for its work championing mental health and wellbeing in Midlothian. As such, it was one of four local charities to receive a larger grant from the Midlothian Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund in 2022. A total of £36,884 was awarded via Midlothian Third Sector Interface to enable the ongoing development of services for local people, including peer support groups, mental health training courses and refurbishments to the club’s community hub building.

The way the BRCFC’s staff and trustees see it, football and mental health are deeply inter-connected. It wasn’t always this way however, because prior to 2019 the club’s main concern had been to ensure that its ageing astro-pitch was replaced. Community programmes were seen as being important, but up until that point they had been viewed as more of a side project to football related activities.

A pivotal moment came when the club held a special one-off community event in the summer of 2019, with the input of Midlothian Council’s Communities and Lifelong Learning team. At the event local people were asked about what their town needed and what they wanted from the club, by completing a survey tool known as the ‘Place Standard’. The responses gathered highlighted that Bonnyrigg lacked groups and activities for older people, as well as needing more targeted opportunities for young people. It also became clear that the club had the potential to play a role in championing grassroots mental health initiatives. This meant moving beyond a focus on sport alone, embedding themes such as wellbeing and connectedness more deeply throughout the club’s community programmes.

Trish Sime (Development Manager) and Jim Wilson (General Manager).

Since 2019 the club has worked with organisations such as Health in Mind to expand the delivery of initiatives including ‘Midlothian Men Matter’. BRCFC’s premises also provides space for several groups which help to reduce loneliness and isolation among local people. Given the high rates of suicide among young men in Scotland and the club’s ability to reach this target group through football and sport, an key date in the calendar for Bonnyrigg Rose is Suicide Prevention Week, which takes place every year in September. To raise awareness of this issue, the club has hosted free Mental Health First Aid training for anyone in Midlothian with an interest in attending. Group based coaching work with younger men who are struggling to cope has also been a feature of the club’s provision over the past 18 months, alongside school-based wellbeing programmes, yoga, free counselling and peer support activities.

We caught up with Trish Sime (Development Manager) and Jim Wilson (General Manager), a few months after they received the club’s grant from the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund, to find out what has been achieved so far. Trish and Jim explained that the Fund has given them more freedom to continue linking football and mental health together by giving them additional resources – including core staffing hours – to focus in on progressing their plans for more community-based provision. Knowing that physical space is a particularly important resource and in short supply, the club got to work quickly in using their capital grant to replace old windows in the community hub building, making it a warmer and more welcoming facility. By investing in physical spaces where people can connect with each other more, the club is paving the way for further investments in community mental health and wellbeing.

Having charted the huge efforts made by BRCFC to support mental health and wellbeing in Midlothian, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) found that the impact of community participation in the club was worth an amazing £3.95 million. This commendable achievement is underpinned by UEFA’s commitment to support the club and its activities in the longer term, helping to build an even stronger foundation for the involvement of the community in helping to decide on future priorities (not just those that related to football)

Speaking about the connection between sport, community and mental health, Trish Sime told us:

“Sport brings people together. Through teamwork and a positive attitude, relationships are fostered, and trust is created. People rely on their teammates, friends, and peers to help them through challenges – both on the field and off. Using the power of football and sport in general to talk openly about mental health and to break the stigma is positive, and it’s the right thing to do.”

Trish Sime

We couldn’t say it better than that, and we’re keen to see what comes next for the club because the future for BRCFC looks bright. You can follow BRCFC on Twitter or check out the main BRFC club website for more info about what they are up to.

Midlothian Volunteer Awards 2022

Ellis on 10 June, 2022

The Midlothian Volunteer Awards are all about celebrating the amazing efforts of volunteers in Midlothian.

The awards take place every year during Volunteers’ Week and are a great opportunity to promote some of the fabulous volunteering projects that exist in Midlothian.

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Winners & Nominees

The winners of the Midlothian Volunteer Awards 2022 are as follows: 

  • Outstanding New Volunteer: Margaret McMekin from Transform Volunteering.
  • Befriender/Mentor of the Year: Alan Paterson from Thornton Rose Riding for the Disabled.
  • Active Volunteering and Climate Change: The Amazing Brains Committee, Art Club.
  • Service to the Community: Juliette Paris from Rosewell Community Council.
  • Health and Wellbeing Award: Margaret Canning from Hearing Link Scotland.
  • Dedicated Service: John McVeigh from Health-in-Mind.
  • Equality & Diversity: Joanna Haba from Home Link Family Support.
  • Saltire Summit Award: Sam Ewens, Lucy White, Andrew Hogg, Caitlin Chambers, Kari Calder, Jaylynn King.
  • Volunteer of the Year: Karyn Mcgrath.
  • Volunteering Team of the Year: Ageing Well Volunteer Team.

Thank You to Our Sponsors!

Who contributes the most to volunteering in Scotland?

Richard Cross on 17 August, 2021

Cover image from the report Who contributes the most to Scottish volunteering?

We’ll be exploring ‘Who contributes the most to volunteering in Scotland?’ in a free seminar on 7 September 2021. 

Matthew and Debbie, from Volunteer Scotland, will share findings from their research published in January 2021. Using data from the Scottish Household Survey related to volunteering frequency and intensity, their analysis challenges our understanding of volunteer engagement across different demographic groups including age, gender, deprivation, income, education and health.

This seminar will be of interest to anyone working in volunteering policy and practice – particularly those looking to promote the development of grassroots volunteering activity in Scottish communities.

More details


Never Mind the Football – the Midlothian Volunteer Awards are Coming Home!

Richard Cross on 8 July, 2021

It’s been a month since the 2021 Midlothian Volunteer Awards ceremony took place online, and we are pleased to say that we have now managed to get the trophies and certificates into the hands of all our wonderful award winners and nominees. Here are a few pics of the trophies being handed over. It was a pleasure to work with everyone involved in the awards and to meet the winners in person. We look forward to doing it all again in years to come.

Well done and thanks again everyone – winners AND nominees!

Members of Art Club’s ‘Amazing Brains Committee’ receiving their Covid-19 Community Award.

Ellie and Holly from the Midlothian Breastfeeding Alliance accepting the MBA’s award for voluntary work related to Health and Wellbeing.

Gina from the Penicuik Ambassadors, who won the ‘Volunteer Team of the Year’ award. Gina was able to come to the Glencorse Centre with her daughter to collect the award at the same time as the MBA.

Ricky Lloyd from Dalkeith Rugby Club accepting his award for Active Volunteering. Chris Boyle also jointly won this award for his hard work alongside Ricky.

We wonder who got to take the award home!

A member of the team from Food Facts Friends receiving the organisation’s certificate of nomination for the Covid-19 Community Award. Heather Mortimore from Food Facts Friends won the ‘Outstanding New Volunteer Award’.

We delivered the certificate and trophy on the same day that some of the other trophies were handed over in the Penicuik area. Unfortunately, Heather wasn’t there at the time of drop off, but we hope she liked it when she got it!

Samantha Gough, winner of the Saltire Summit Award for her dedicated volunteering with the children and families charity, Bright Sparks.

We think Bramble the teddy looks very happy snuggling up with Samantha.

Joseph Burke, Midlothian’s ‘Volunteer of the Year’ 2021. Joseph won this award in recognition of the outstanding volunteer work he has done over the past 18 months on behalf of local mental health charity Health in Mind.

Winners of the 2021 Midlothian Volunteer Awards announced

Richard Cross on 8 June, 2021

Penicuik Ambassadors, Volunteering Team of the Year

To celebrate Volunteer’s Week 2021, Volunteer Midlothian held an online awards ceremony on the 3rd June attended by around 150 people. The ceremony was very different to the one we’re used to at Newbattle Abbey College, nonetheless it was still filled with love and admiration for Midlothian’s volunteers.  Many congratulations to all our hard-working winners this year, and to all our nominees – you’re simply the best, and you are ALL worthy of recognition!  

The winners of the 2021 awards are as follows: 

  • Outstanding New Volunteer: Heather Mortimore from Food Facts Friends 
  • Befriender/Mentor of the Year: The Connect Project Volunteers from Volunteer Midlothian 
  • Active Volunteering: Chris Boyle and Ricky Lloyd of Dalkeith Rugby Football Club 
  • Health and Wellbeing Award: The Midlothian Breastfeeding Alliance 
  • Dedicated Service: Colette Pye from Mayfield and District Breastfeeding Support Group 
  • Covid-19 Community Award: The Amazing Brains Committee at Art Club 
  • Volunteer Manager of the Year: Naomi Knights from the Connect Project at Volunteer Midlothian 
  • Saltire Summit Award: Kyle Anderson, Eva Hesketh-Laird, Louise Gillespie, Melissa Reidie, Samantha Gough 
  • Volunteer of the Year: Joseph Burke of Health in Mind 
  • Volunteering Team of the Year: Penicuik Ambassadors 

You can read more about all our nominees and winners here.  

Midlothian Volunteer Awards 2021

Ellis on 4 June, 2021

The Midlothian Volunteer Awards are all about celebrating the amazing efforts of volunteers in Midlothian.

The awards take place every year during Volunteers’ Week and are a great opportunity to promote some of the fabulous volunteering projects that exist in Midlothian.

In 2021, we did things a little differently. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, the award ceremony was held online. There was also a new category introduced to acknowledge the amazing community-led volunteering efforts that occurred in response to the pandemic.

The ceremony was very different to the one we’re used to at Newbattle Abbey College, nonetheless we were joined by around 150 people to share the appreciation and admiration for Midlothian’s volunteers. We even got a mention in UK Parliament!

2021 Volunteering Team of the Year, Penicuik Ambassadors.

Winners

The winners of the Midlothian Volunteer Awards 2021 are as follows: 

  • Outstanding New Volunteer: Heather Mortimore from Food Facts Friends. 
  • Befriender/Mentor of the Year: The Connect Project Volunteers from Volunteer Midlothian. 
  • Active Volunteering: Chris Boyle and Ricky Lloyd of Dalkeith Rugby Football Club. 
  • Health and Wellbeing Award: The Midlothian Breastfeeding Alliance.
  • Dedicated Service: Colette Pye from Mayfield and District Breastfeeding Support Group. 
  • Covid-19 Community Award: The Amazing Brains Committee at Art Club.
  • Volunteer Manager of the Year: Naomi Knights from the Connect Project at Volunteer Midlothian. 
  • Saltire Summit Award: Kyle Anderson, Eva Hesketh-Laird, Louise Gillespie, Melissa Reidie, Samantha Gough.
  • Volunteer of the Year: Joseph Burke of Health in Mind.
  • Volunteering Team of the Year: Penicuik Ambassadors. 

Photographs

Mascot Campaign

In 2021, as part of our mascot campaign, we ran a ‘Name the Bear’ competition for primary schools in Midlothian.

The bear travelled around Midlothian, visiting different beauty spots and places of interest, posting photo updates on our social media using the hashtag #wheresthebear

At the end of its journey on June 3rd, the bear received its new name, Bramble, as voted for by participants at the Midlothian Volunteer Awards ceremony. The name was based on entries from local primary school children, with the winning entry receiving £100 for the school.

Thank You to Our Sponsors!

Richard Cross on 26 May, 2021

If you’ve been keeping up with our recent news, you’ll be aware that every year in Midlothian we run a volunteer awards ceremony during Volunteers’ Week from the 1-7th June. The ceremony is an opportunity for us to say a huge thank you to all of Midlothian’s volunteers. However, we also need to say thanks to another important contributor – the people that help to make the awards possible in the first place. 

We are grateful to have received sponsorship for seven of this year’s award categories from local organisations. Without the input of our sponsors, the Midlothian Volunteer Awards would be a much less exciting affair! As the circumstances do not permit us to offer our thanks in person, we want to show our appreciation digitally, to let others know that our sponsors really are amazing and very generous. 

The award categories and sponsors are listed below.  

Outstanding New volunteer – Scottish Fire and Rescue Service 

Befriender or Mentor of the Year – Police Scotland 

Active Volunteering Award – EDF  

Health and Wellbeing Award – Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership 

Dedicated Service to Volunteering – Esk Valley Rotary Club 

Covid-19 Community Award – Midlothian Council 

Volunteer Manager of the Year – Scottish Qualifications Authority 

Volunteer Midlothian ‘Where’s the Bear?’ Competition Launches TODAY!

Richard Cross on 24 May, 2021

Amber and the as-yet nameless bear!

Volunteer Midlothian are running a ‘Name the Bear’ competition for primary schools in Midlothian starting TODAY, Monday 24th May. Our little furry friend is the mascot for the Midlothian Volunteer Awards, an annual ceremony that takes place during Volunteer’s Week at the beginning of June.

The bear will be travelling around Midlothian over the next 11 days, visiting different beauty spots and places of interest, then popping up every day on Twitter using the hashtag #wheresthebear 

Followers will be encouraged on Twitter and Facebook to guess the bear’s location. At the end of its journey on 3rd June, the bear will gain a new name voted for by participants at the Midlothian Volunteer Awards ceremony. The chosen name, based on entries from local primary school children, will win £100 for the school and will get to keep the bear!  

The mascot competition is part of a campaign to increase awareness of Volunteers’ Week 2021 and to boost Volunteer Midlothian’s following on social media. We are keen for lots of people to join in and follow the bear on its travels. This is the first time Volunteer Midlothian have run a digital campaign, so YOUR help in making it a success is much needed! Please tell other local people about the bear, especially any families you may know whose children might want to have a go at naming the bear via the school they attend. All local primary school head teachers have been sent information about how to enter.

For more information about how to take park contact Miriam at Volunteer Midlothian.


Midlothian Volunteer Awards 2021: Nominees Announced

Richard Cross on 8 April, 2021

We are now able to share the list of confirmed nominees for the 2021 Midlothian Volunteer Awards, which will take place during Volunteers’ Week from 1-7 June. It’s looking likely that we will run an event on the evening of Thursday 3rd June to announce the winners, so keep an eye out for further updates about this.

The standard of nominations has been very high this year and we have also had a lot of interest in the awards. This reflects all the extra voluntary activity we’ve seen as part of the Covid-19 resilience response in local communities, but also the amazing work that has taken place across the third sector as a whole throughout the pandemic.

All of the nominees are listed below. The full list of Saltire Summit nominees will be announced later on in April. Well done everyone – you are all fabulous!

Outstanding New Volunteer  

  • Heather Mortimore (Food Facts Friends) 
  • Andrew Love (CAPS Collective Advocacy) 
  • Kathryn Gordon (Home Link Family Support) 
  • Katrina Drennan (Penicuik Ambassdors) 
  • Beth Fyfe Falconer (Volunteer Midlothian – Transform) 

Befriender Mentor   

  • Joseph Burke (Health in Mind) 
  • Alzheimer Scotland Telephone Companions
  • Amanda Gillespie (Home Link Family Support)   
  • Connect Project Volunteers (Volunteer Midlothian) 
  • Colin Pow (Health in Mind) 

Active Volunteering 

  • Rebecca Lewis (Riverfly on the Esk)
  • Holly Gibb (Breastfeeding Café) 
  • Mirabelle Maslin (Roslin and Bilston Community Council) 
  • Chris Boyle and Ricky Lloyd (Dalkeith Rugby) 
  • Dalkeith Guerrilla Gardeners 
  • Ageing Well (Midlothian Council)

Health and Wellbeing  

  • Anam Cara Befriending Team
  • Art and Craft in Wellbeing Group (Health in Mind) 
  • Midlothian Breastfeeding Alliance
  • Green Prescribing Garden Buddies (Cyrenians)

Dedicated Service  

  • Jim Paterson (Food Facts Friends) 
  • Connect Online (Volunteer Midlothian) 
  • David Thornton (Health in Mind) 
  • Colette Pye (Mayfield and District Breastfeeding Support Group) 
  • Maggie Palmer (Home Link Family Support)  
  • Jim Ralston (1st Loanhead Boys Brigade Company) 
  • Penicuik Community Development Trust

Covid-19  

  • Vernon Miles (Community Activist – Environmental Clean Up) 
  • Grant Stanley (‘Our Stars Family’ on Facebook ) 
  • Amazing Brains Committee at Art Club 
  • Food Facts Friends 
  • Gorebridge Resilience Partnership  
  • Penicuik Ambassadors 

Volunteer Manager  

  • Mark Wells (Food Facts Friends) 
  • Michael Huddleston (Alzheimer Scotland) 
  • Monika Dyczko (Health in Mind) 
  • Naomi Knights (Volunteer Midlothian) 
  • Shondra Riley (Made in Midlothian) 

Saltire Summit Award

  • Kyle Anderson
  • Eva Hesketh-Laird
  • Louise Gillespie
  • Melissa Reidie 
  • Samantha Gough