Courier celebrates East Lothian's champions

Three of our secondary school teachers were in the spotlight last month at an awards ceremony celebrating the people and groups that make the county so special

Kenny Beaton and Gillian Williams, both from Dunbar Grammar School, and Ross High School’s Ellis Notley were finalists in the East Lothian Courier’s Community Champions Awards’ Champion Teacher of the Year category.

Now in its second year, the awards honour the outstanding contributions of those who make a real difference in their local communities and a special ceremony was held at Marine North Berwick. The Champion Teacher of the Year category recognised teachers (educational and vocational) who are bringing learning to life by engaging and inspiring children and young people to fulfil their potential. Dirleton Primary School’s Emma Shepherd won the award at last year’s inaugural ceremony.

On the evening it was Ellis, who also plays in defence with Hibernian FC Women’s Team, who lifted the trophy in front of a room full of fellow nominees and invited guests. 

John Bellany Day Centre staff team was delighted to receive the Health and Care Award for the support that they offer to the people they use their service. In accepting the award, Centre Manager Keith McCombs praised his team saying the award was for them for all of the fantastic work that they do.  

‘Emotional evening’

The room heard inspiring stories of ‘ordinary people who do extraordinary things’ in an emotional evening. Finalists from a diverse range of backgrounds and activities were recognised across a range of categories: from sporting success on the world stage to groups that support sustainability; fabulous fundraisers, brilliant businesses and amazing arts projects.

Judges Ciara Jamieson from Berwick and Offshore Windfarm, East Lothian Provost Councillor John McMillan, Gaynor Marshall from Lothian Buses and East Lothian Courier’s Editor Robbie Scott reflected on the challenges of choosing winners from so many worthy candidates – a task that proved impossible when it came to the Little Champion of the Year category which saw all three finalists receive trophies.

‘Amazing residents’

Robbie Scott said: “Week after week, year after year, we at The Courier are privileged – in print and online – to share the stories of our amazing residents who go the extra yard to help and assist their neighbours and countless good causes. We are honoured to formally recognise some of these inspiring people; they never seek attention or fanfare but deserve every plaudit given to them. Without them, our county would be a much poorer place.”

Full details of all the finalists and winners, including photos from the evening, are available from the East Lothian Courier website.

The East Lothian Courier Community Champion Awards were sponsored by East Coast buses, Marine North Berwick, PureMalt, SSE Renewables, Sustainable Facilities Management and Vertu.

Sarah Fortune's update

After a very busy first half of the year across East Lothian Council, I hope that you are looking forward to the summer and able to get a well-earned rest in the coming weeks.

It’s an exciting time ahead. I’ll very soon be travelling to Malaysia for the first time, where we will meet up with family members living in New Zealand, who we have not seen for several years, and it will be a great time to reconnect and have some new adventures. Also, my eldest daughter has just finished high school and is about to embark on a next chapter in her life. For me personally, it feels like a time of change and that a new chapter is beginning.

That is also the case in my role with the council. In recent months, we have of course welcomed Laurence aboard as our new Chief Executive and, together with the wider Council Management Team and other colleagues, I’ve enjoyed having a number of interesting and thought-provoking discussions about the challenges ahead as well as the opportunities for us as an organisation.

Exciting and varied

It’s a real privilege to be Executive Director for Council Resources and also hold the council’s Chief Financial Officer role. My role can be exciting, varied, challenging and demanding all in the space of a day. While Council Resources is often seen as the corporate centre of the organisation, I am hugely passionate that these services play a pivotal role in enabling things to happen across the wider council. It often feels like we are something of an engine room, at the very heart of the local authority, and to see these services in operation fully makes you understand that it genuinely takes a ‘one council’ approach to deliver services, and there is not one part of the council that can truly operate in isolation. We cannot support the frontline services we provide to our communities if we don’t employ people; have systems and digital IT to support how we deliver services; are able to procure and pay for goods and services, and of course ensure that we are spending taxpayers money appropriately. Collectively it takes us all to work together to provide the support we all need to provide vital services to our communities.

In the last year or so, my role as an Executive Director has been expanded to include wider strategic support within Infrastructure and Development services - following the retirement of our previous colleague Douglas Proudfoot - and work closely with the Heads of Services and elected members. Whereas previously my main focus was on corporate services and the critical requirements in relation to financial strategy and good governance, this wider remit has further opened my eyes as to what the council is all about, and what opportunities and ambition we have that will make long-lasting impact on our communities.

Development is key when looking at how we shape the county for the future and that goes hand in hand with Infrastructure and what we deliver on the ground.

It has been a very positive development for me personally. It has made me think differently about some aspects and really underlined that we exist to serve and support our communities. It has also provided different context as to how I can influence my role as Chief Financial Officer to ensure that we are not only managing a wide and growing range of financial demands and risks, but also promoting with the long-term opportunities that we have here in East Lothian.

Delivering a long-lasting impact

And it has been quite timely. It is really exciting at the moment in terms of the opportunities we have to make and shape initiatives which have a long-lasting impact on communities going forward. Significant developments such as Blindwells won’t happen overnight but will leave a long-lasting impact and legacy. It is hugely exciting but extremely challenging at the same time, and something we have never done before. The passion and commitment from staff involved to drive forward developments and new initiatives is genuinely impressive and truly embraces the council's values of Enabling, Leading and Caring at the same time.

It has made me think about how we all play our part and how we work together. While my role isn’t so much about the ins and outs of managing what we do operationally (as we have very strong Heads of Service and managers for this), I can play a part in joining up the strategic thinking as to how we are going to develop and deliver services and support our communities in a different way.

For example, this means joining up and making connections and strategic alignment between projects such as the Innovation Hub at QMU, Blindwells and redevelopment of the Cockenzie Power Station site right through to the Musselburgh Flood Protection Scheme and active travel corridor. Our place making project - looking at how ensure we have modern, fit for purpose buildings that deliver face-to-face services - is another big piece of work, as is bringing forward the next Local Development Plan.

There are real opportunities for us to join up how we shape our services - both for the here and now - to recognise where the future is. If we get our approach to growth correct, we can unlock jobs, opportunities, housing.

This has given me a deeper understanding of how we work together and made me realise how important our values are. I genuinely think we have got our values right and, when you see things for real, it opens your eyes.

I will, however, always continue to lead, champion and support (alongside colleagues and with support through our councillors) the national discussions on funding available to East Lothian. These are never easy conversations given the financial pressures on all parts of the public sector, but the national landscape is complex, and we can't lose sight of the opportunities to use the resources we have available in a joined up manner to make a genuine difference to our local communities, ensuring that East Lothian is receiving its fair share of national funding that supports the growing range of demands and obligations we face. This is something we should all aspire to and I will always continue to promote.

So, while the financial challenges are very real and pressing, there is fundamentally a big opportunity to unlock future opportunities and achieve a more prosperous East Lothian, for the benefit of all the communities we serve. With the participation and support of colleagues across the council, we have the foundations, talent, expertise and ingenuity to look forward with confidence and positivity.

Sarah Fortune, Executive Director (CFO)

Amenities team creates floral display to mark 100-year anniversary of Dunbar Utd

A stunning floral display has been created by our Amenities Services team to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of Dunbar United Football Club.

Both the club and local community have been delighted by the carpet bedding display outside the Old Dunbar Library building in the town’s Belhaven Road.

The team were asked to bring to life a colourful tribute to mark the centenary milestone. James Scott, head operative at the service’s Dunbar depot, and team member Callum Gordon, who is also a student at Oatridge College, designed the arrangement and were joined by gardener Kenny Aitken to carry out the elaborate planting work.

The display’s flowers were grown and supplied by Angus Campbell and his colleagues at our plant nursery in Prestonpans.

Gordon Whitelaw, Dunbar depot manager, said: “Every year we have a different display and we were very pleased to be able to mark the club’s 100^th anniversary. The team have done an amazing job, and we’ve already had so much positive feedback from people in the community.”

Pamela Munro, chair of Dunbar United FC, said: “We’re delighted with the fantastic work the Amenities team have created with the floral display to celebrate Dunbar United FC’s centenary year.

“It means so much to the club to be celebrated in this way in a community which continues to play such a vital role in our remarkable journey. May our next century be as bold and brilliant as this beautiful display!”

Planted with a mixture of low grown succulents and annuals, the display’s writing is formed from red Echeveria Duchess of Nurembergs and silver echinacea elegans.

The rings are made from pyrethrum golden carpets while the boat was created with alternanthera bright red, sedum dragon blood, cineraria cirrus, sempervivum rubin, alyssum easter bonnet white, and senecio serpens.

The background is a combination of ageratum Bermuda blue, begonia devil pink, and lobelia crystal palace.

Thank you! Celebrating staff compliments

Individuals, teams and departments across the council regularly receive compliments from residents, visitors, staff and businesses. Here's a selection:

Local resident: Waste services. Please thank the recycling crew for East Linton High Street - they made sure the bins were not left out, meaning I could walk my dogs safely, mobility scooters buggies and those with mobility issues can too.

Local resident: Road services. Please pass on my thanks to the roads department , they carried out some work to fix a collapsed drain, they were very prompt, completed the repair with minimal disruption to the area and have fully completed cementing and re tarring the section.

Council tennant: Property maintenance. Please pass on my many thanks to the bathroom upgrade team. she said they did such a lovely job of her bathroom and she could not be happier. she wanted to thank the team for such a great job.

Local resident: Amenity services. I would like to thank you and express my gratitude for the job of the unsightly weeds growing out of the pavement in front of 27 and 29 Carlaverock Avenue Tranent.
I cannot thank you enough as it looks very tidy now. When l first raised the issue l did mention my appreciation on your team keeping the street clean and tidy with cutting the grass verges regularly so once again a huge thank you for doing this job with the weeds. Thanks again for your hard work.

Meet Sarah!

Sarah Macrae joined East Lothian Council as a Principal Accountant in May.

Prior to joining the council, she worked for seven years as Finance Manager at Edinburgh Children's Hospital Charity and a year working for the Global Alliance for Livestock Veterinary Medicines (GALVmed), which works to get vaccines for animals in Africa to improve food production, and as a result, relieve poverty.

Moving from the voluntary sector to a local authority has presented some new challenges, but also similarities: “I came from a small charity, they raised about £1.5 million a year whereas each [council] department's budget is more than that.”  

Sarah’s focus is currently on Health and Social Care, but her role will eventually cover all the areas of Health and Social Care, Communities and Development.

“It's just working with people. Even though you're behind a spreadsheet, you still need to build relationships. I recently had a tour of East Lothian Community Hospital with General Manager Leslie Berry, which was helpful. Sometimes you need to see it to understand it.” Sarah goes on to say, “the council structure is quite complex, it's just totally different from anything I've ever done before.”

In her spare time Sarah enjoys exercising in her home-gym and spending time with her family: “I don't have any exciting hobbies, I'm afraid. I've done a skydive, I used to be quite adventurous, but now that I've had kids, I feel like I just see the danger in everything!”