Friday 23 February 2024
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
S is for Stretch
This is Andrea Haggarty.
Andrea is a casual coach for the Active Communities team.
Andrea plans and delivers five exercise classes a week in Dumfries, including aerobics, circuit training, light mobility (Community Activator class) and a class aimed at over 65s (Bridging Plus) and a disability sport specific class teaching adult Boccia.
In addition, Andrea works for the Dumfries and Galloway Disability Sports branch delivering two disability sports sessions per week, and she also works as a learning assistant in Langlands school.
To say Andrea loves working with people – encouraging them to stay healthy and happy, having community in her heart – would be an understatement.
From 14 to 89 years old, men and women flock to these classes to increase their physical fitness. But that’s not all. It is clear from everyone who attends the classes that the energy Andrea brings, and the focus to create human connections and ultimately friendships, is the reason people keep coming back for more.
Fact – Andrea sees over 60 people routinely attend her sessions a week. That’s 60 people together, laughing, making friends, improving physical fitness and health, and supporting one another.
Best part of the job? “The people. No question about it. I truly love them all. What I get back from those who come to my classes is more than I could ever repay. My motto is ‘if it’s not fun, no one will come’ and I know I put a lot in to my classes to make it as enjoyable as possible. In return I have a community of wonderful people who have become my friends who make every day an absolute dream – I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
Andrea goes above and beyond for those who attend her classes. Her role doesn’t end when the music stops – far from it. Andrea regularly organizes afternoon teas, casual coffee catchups, and is constantly picking up birthday cards for attendees. She knows the positivity this will bring, especially for those who live alone. Andrea realizes the impact she makes and sees the various groups become like extended families, and it’s obviously felt this way by class participants as they surprised Andrea with celebrations for her 50th birthday.
“I hope everyone in my classes understands how they make me feel. They bring me joy, they make me laugh, they make me feel loved and appreciated – it’s quite hard to explain how much joy they all bring to me. Keeping fit is so important for physical health and mental health. Equally important is how we can stay together, have fun, enjoy each other’s company and tackle social isolation. I have sent out texts asking if anyone in my older adult’s class is free for coffee and turned up to find 15 friends waiting...the next thing you know we are out a walk giggling away. It’s just pure happiness.”
From starting as a volunteer for Active Schools, delivering netball in primary and secondary schools, before going on to deliver community walks for the Active Communities team. The next step was completing the Exercise to Music qualification that, while daunting at the start, was completed with flying colours. Clearly her ability to create captivating, fun and appropriate sessions come naturally to Andrea.
Andrea – you activate people in our communities to be more physically active. You have so much energy and a genuine interest in everyone’s wellbeing that you end up creating communities of people who adore you, and who you adore. Your heart is in the community and the impact you make is immeasurable. Thank you for all that you do, and for the compassion and dedication with which you do it.
For more information about Active Communities, please visit their Facebook page.
 Happy Retirement Colin
Colin Baty retired after 53 years' service with the council's education services. Colin has spent his entire career within the same service.
Colin’s story is unique – he was about to leave Kirkcudbright Academy aged 16 when an opportunity arose within the school as a school science technician. So in essence, Colin never actually left Kirkcudbright Academy.
He quickly moved on to become a school network administrator at the same school. Colin is a well-known friendly face in schools across the region. As the school ICT support technicians became a centralised team, Colin spent most of his time in all of our schools in the Stewartry area and assisting the team in Wigtownshire.
Colin's knowledge and enthusiasm has been invaluable to the team, and we wish him well in his retirement.
 Photograph shows SHAX team members Hayley Ferguson and Joyce Harkness with Nationwide Dumfries branch manager, Katriona Bailey, and Scotland Community branch member Judex Paul.
SHAX Receives Funding from Nationwide with a Focus on Helping The Homeless
SHAX, a Dumfries-based charity that provides practical help to people facing crisis through poverty and/or homelessness, has received a grant of £43,745 from Nationwide Building Society as part of its Community Grants programme. The programme brings members and colleagues together to help tackle the housing crisis.
The funding will enable SHAX to help local people moving on from homelessness by providing emergency Home Starter Packs with the essentials they need to set up home. Demand for this service grows each year, with SHAX supporting 30% more individuals and families in crisis than this time last year.
SHAX emergency Home Starter Packs help local people and families to avoid the nightmare of moving into an empty house with nothing to sleep on, clean, cook or eat with – turning empty rooms into a home and place of basic comfort and security.
Joyce Harkness, Social Enterprise Manager at SHAX said: “We’re absolutely delighted to receive the award from Nationwide, which will part-fund two of our staff team, help our volunteers increase their wellbeing and employability skills while supporting local people move on from homelessness. With demand increasing year on year and the cost of living making everything far more expensive to buy, Nationwide’s award will help SHAX continue to deliver well-respected services."
 Thriving Community of Pipers and Drummers in Dumfries and Galloway
Think of Guid Nychburris in Dumfries, Riding of the Marches and the parade in Annan and the Pipe Band Competition that follows, the Common Riding in Langholm and the Children’s Common Riding, the Galloway Pageant in Newton Stewart, Kirkconnel and Kelloholm Gala Day, Remembrance events...the list goes on. All of these events look for pipe bands or pipers.
The South West of Scotland Piping and Drumming Academy works to increase participation and raise the standard of piping and drumming in the south west of Scotland. Working with pipe bands, schools and individuals to give lessons, the group is able to draw on the entire piping and drumming community to find the best tuition for those in our region who wish to make their music the best it can be.
Now with a new principal tutor and leader of its tuition teams, the academy has its sights on producing three Dumfries and Galloway schools Pipe Bands – based in Moffat Academy, North West Community Campus and a regional Pipe Band. Once established, they will be able to continue the fine local tradition of competing.
If you'd like to be part of a community that is bringing Dumfries and Galloway to the forefront of the Scottish piping and drumming scene, find out more on the academy's Facebook page.
 Spring is On Its Way
Dumfries and Galloway Council is proud to support the Keep Scotland Beautiful Spring Clean Scotland campaign, which runs from 15 March to 28 April. Littering is an issue that affects our region year-round, but through this six-week campaign we will focus on the amazing volunteers who tackle the left behind litter and the council services that support them.
We want to know if your local community group is organising or participating in a litter pick. We can help by providing bags, litter pickers, gloves and hi-vis vests for events, and collect the bags for recycling or disposal afterwards.
The 2023 campaign had fantastic results in Dumfries and Galloway with individuals, community groups and schools taking part across the whole region. Can you help us make an even bigger difference this year?
Register through the link, or contact your local ward officer for more information.
Opportunity for Local Groups
Youth Beatz Festival will be returning to Park Farm Showfield, Dumfries on Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 June with a Fringe Festival running in local communities for 10 days prior to the weekend.
A long-established part of the festival is the participation of local groups and individuals. Festival organisers have opened applications for dance groups, cheerleading squads and solo performers from across Dumfries and Galloway to perform over the event weekend on the dedicated dance stage.
You can apply now through the short form.
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DFN Project SEARCH for Applications
Applications for the next intake of DFN Project SEARCH are now open for the 2024/2025 academic year.
This fantastic opportunity for people across our region with Autism Spectrum Disorder or other additional support needs is a transition-to-work programme. Offered through a collaboration between Dumfries and Galloway Council and Dumfries and Galloway College, the project aims to enhance individuals’ employability by providing them with fully immersive work experience placements within Dumfries and Galloway Council and wider businesses and sectors.
If you have informal enquiries, please email: projectsearch@dumgal.gov.uk
 2024 is a UK General Election Year
Voters in Scotland now need to show photo ID to vote at polling places in some elections. This applies to UK parliamentary elections, including general elections, by-elections and recall petitions.*
If you want to vote, you must first be registered to vote. If you have registered before, you only need to register again if you have moved house or changed your name. The need to register to vote, and how you register, has not been changed by the introduction of the voter ID requirement.
*Voters in Scotland will not need to show photo ID at Scottish Parliament elections or at council elections.
Find out whether you are eligible to register to vote, or which elections you can vote in by making contact with your local Electoral Registration Officer (ERO).
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Transmission Net Zero Fund has been established to support vulnerable communities across central and southern Scotland on their journey to net zero. The £5m fund provides guidance and support to enable local communities to achieve their green ambitions.
For all the criteria and application information, please visit: Funding Support - SP Energy Networks
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