Friday 7 July 2023
Welcome to Community, your Dumfries and Galloway community bulletin.
We are always keen to hear of any positive stories about things that are happening in your community and would like to feature them in Community – please email us at communitybulletin@dumgal.gov.uk and one of our reporters will get back to you.
 A to Z of Dumfries and Galloway Council
C is for Can we go see?
This is Lydia, who’s title is Museums Officer, Collections. Lydia’s role centres on the conservation and cleaning of objects ensuring they are preserved in their current condition in Dumfries Museum and in five others across the east of the region.
Lydia’s job is a specialised one having studied for three years in Conservation and Restoration to have the required attributes for this job. The skills needed to care for everything from thousand-year-old log boats to Burns Manuscripts, is a science, and a very intricate one, too.
Did you know that an artefact, the stand it sits on, the lighting used to illuminate it, the temperature of the environment around it, even the paint used on the walls near the artefacts affects its condition? The science and knowledge behind preserving history is incredible, and important.
Lydia’s role has seen her work with an array of artefacts from Burns Manuscripts, which can be seen in the Burns Museum and are over 100 years old, right through to a My Little Pony toy that is still being sold in shops today as part of previous exhibition for toys and games throughout the ages.
Lydia can cover Burns on a Monday, My Little Pony on a Tuesday, a thousand-year-old log boat on a Wednesday, a hearse on Thursday and by Friday, well, we can only guess!
Lydia covers these collections in Dumfries Museum, Robert Burns Centre, Robert Burns House, Sanquhar Tollbooth, Annan Museum and Old Bridge House – she really is spoiled for choice, and extremely busy.
Oh, and did we mention there is 150,000 artefacts across the region? Lydia and the rest of the team are very busy. Lydia says passionately: “I feel privileged and lucky to work with a range of historically significant objects with many being particularly important to this region such as the Burns Manuscripts. My job allows me to preserve history, uncover intricacies not seen for hundreds of years, and showcase for all to see and enjoy for a long time to come.”
Lydia, with you, current and future generations can experience our history first-hand.
Thank you for protecting our history for the future.
 Amazing Summer Roadshows Back for 2023
The Amazing Summer Roadshows are returning this summer to unleash unforgettable fun across Dumfries and Galloway communities. These events are jam-packed with activities for children, young people and their families, and are proudly funded by Dumfries and Galloway Council.
Starting on Thursday 20 July until Sunday 20 August, the Amazing Summer Roadshows will travel across Dumfries and Galloway from Tuesday to Sunday each week, providing 100 sessions over 80 different communities over the summer.
The Amazing Summer Roadshows are a partnership programme delivered Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Active Schools, Lifelong Learning and Youth Work Services, and supported by a wide range of partners including NHS Dumfries and Galloway, third sector organisations and community groups. Each community event lasts for three hours, with daytime sessions running 1pm to 4pm and evening sessions running 6pm to 9pm – each providing a range of activities such as crafts, sports, sports coaching, games, music, and refreshments.
The full programme for where the roadshows will be touring over the summer can be found on the links below, or at the Youth Enquiry Service website: https://youthenquiryservice.org/whats-on
Fifty Years as a Community Councillor
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Alex Whannel is a current member of Stoneykirk Community Council, and was recently elected as the Chairperson of Ward 1 Federation of Community Councils. He has been an active member of his local community for the past 50 years and was one of the first people involved when Community Councils were first formed in Scotland in 1973.
The introduction of the 1973 Local Government Act brought the establishment of Community Councils, and since that time dedicated volunteers like Alex have achieved tremendous things for their communities.
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Reflecting on his time as a Community Councillor, Alex said: “I was a young man of 25, living with my wife and two small children in the Lochans when Community Councils first started. The first meeting calling for volunteers was probably a bit before that, as a constitution had to be prepared and agreed.
“Anyway, I went to the first meeting called by the Council, to hear what it was all about. When it came to the part when they called for volunteers, I raised my hand, along with a few others. Then if I remember rightly, the volunteers were taken into a small room to form a steering committee to work on a constitution for the Lochans Community Council. I was surprised that I was elected Chairman. My Vice Chair was Mr Crammond, an ex-teacher of mine. I can't remember his first name, and it did take a wee while for me to stop calling him Sir. He was a great help, and together, we personally delivered leaflets to all in the catchment area about what Community Councils do and imploring the people to get involved. It was surprising how many people, especially in the countryside, were unaware of ‘their Community Council’.
"Many people have asked me why did I volunteer? With a wife and young family of two girls, I had plenty on my plate, but the Lochans had the usual problems and complaints, street lighting, potholes and of course speeding cars through the village. I volunteered to listen to the community and be able to do something on their and my behalf, or at least try. The Community Council can also play a big role in supporting local organisations, organising events, encouraging people to volunteer to help, enriching the community spirit.
"I would like to thank my wife, and all the family for their forbearance and putting up with my moods when things are not going right. But most of all, for their support, without which I could and would not have done it’.
 Maria Rawlings and Tom Marshall from the Dalbeattie Community Initiative’s cycling team joined chair of Dumfries & Galloway’s Communities Committee Chair, Councillor Ian Blake
Summer of Cycling Saddles up in Dumfries and Galloway
To celebrate the UCI Paracycling World Championships coming to the area from 9 to 12 August, Dumfries and Galloway Council is urging people to saddle up for a ‘Summer of Cycling’.
The Council has partnered up with a range of cycling and community groups across the region, to organise dozens of events designed to motivate people to get on their bike.
Events range from Galloway Forest Gravel Epic at Talnotry, Newton Stewart, to the Galloway Hillbillies Bike Club’s ever popular 10@Kirroughtree, together with a host of community cycles for all, including a trip around the Crichton Campus in Dumfries.
The Summer of Cycling was launched by the Council’s Chair of its Communities Committee, Councillor Ian Blake.
There are over 450 miles of signposted cycle routes across the region as well as many off-road cycle routes and world class mountain bike trail centres.
Rocks and Wheels aims to create an activity centre where it will bring Dalbeattie’s former Primary School back to life as a cycling and bouldering community resource. Dalbeattie Rocks and Wheels' own Bike Fest takes place on August 5.
All Summer of Cycling events are listed at moo4events.com
 Niomi Nichol, Health and Social Care Engagement Manager; Norma Austin Hart, CEO of TSDG; and Carol Bell, Wraparound Hospital to Home Service Coordinator.
New Service to Support Patients’ Journeys from DGRI to Home
A new service is being launched to help support a patient’s return home from Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary and reduce the risk of delayed discharge. The Wraparound Hospital to Home Service by Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway (TSDG) will work alongside existing processes and will also assist efforts to minimise unnecessary readmission.
The service will make appropriate use of the resources within local charities and community organisations to support a patient’s journey through their hospital stay to back home. This test of change has been developed by TSDG as part of a co-ordinated response to continuing pressures across health and social care in Dumfries and Galloway.
Coordination of the support of relevant third sector organisations and services will look to help minimise delayed discharge, working to support and enhance the work undertaken by staff in areas like patient transport, befriending services, meal provision, pet support, shopping services, home adaptation, and home from hospital packages of support.
The service is a focussed piece of work by TSDG and is being initially trialled within Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary – as the largest acute hospital in the region. A dedicated coordinator will link with the patient and hospital staff throughout any stay to help prepare for discharge.
Future development of the service will be considered as it progresses, with initial funding having been provided by Dumfries and Galloway Health and Social Care Partnership.
 Big Lit Returns
BIG LIT – The Stewartry's Book Festival, returns to The Mill on the Fleet from 27 to 30 July. This year's exciting offer ranges across novels, biography, exhibition, film, politics and poetry.
Highlights include Chris Brookmyre – multi-award-winning author of over twenty novels, and his wife Marisa Haetzman – a former consultant anaesthetist in conversation about their intriguing collaboration and latest instalment of their gripping Raven and Fisher crime thriller series ‘Voices of The Dead’.
Award winning poet Em Strang will be talking about her acclaimed debut novel Quinn. Scotland's most celebrated poet Don Paterson, who has now written (often hilariously) about his Dundee upbringing in Toy Fights – comes wearing both his writers hat and his jazz hat. The hugely engaging Andrew O'Hagan, whose brilliant novel Mayflies was recently televised by the BBC, will also be in conversation. Definitely not to me missed.
You can find full details and information about the festival at the BIG LIT website.
Tickets are available from the website or The Gatehouse Store, Gatehouse High Street, from 12 July.
 Scouting for Opportunities
Scouting provides adventurous activities and personal development opportunities for 400,000 young people aged 6 to 25 – everyone has the opportunity to join in on the adventure.
Our region has many groups where young people can get involved through Beavers, Cubs, Scouts, and Explorers. Locally the organisation is run by a dedicated group of volunteers, and there is a variety of ways you could get involved to help out.
Scouting gives you the chance to try fun new activities that you may otherwise never get the chance to try, at the same time it will give you great new skills and let you explore the outdoors and new exciting places. In the end, it is all about enjoying yourself – Scouting will give you the chance to make some new friends and have great fun!
Scouting runs during term-time, with additional camps through the holidays. In preparation for the new term starting in September, you can register your interest now and receive information on training opportunities. A Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) check is required, and will be provided for anyone wishing to volunteer. There are roles available as group leaders, helpers, and also in committee roles such as treasurer, secretary and chair.
The 10th Dumfriesshire Scout Group is one such group looking for more adults to help provide opportunities for young people. Details for their meetings – held at their hall on Gilloch Drive, Dumfries – can be found on the group's website.
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