Sharon Hill, manager of Mayfield and Easthouses Development Trust, talks with host Osbert Lancaster at Mayfield Park and the community garden where her colleague Phil Morris joins the conversation.

Listen to hear how Sharon, the Trust and the local community have created a beautiful garden and café space from an abandoned bowling green and pavilion, and how the community pantry and the cafe are providing low cost, healthy, food and meals to everyone without stigma.

Sharon highlights how climate change is connected with local hardship, why communities feel they can’t rely on government to help them out, and the importance of honest partnerships, trust, and relationship-building to strengthen and support community action.

Changing Climate, Changing Midlothian explores what the climate and nature emergency means with people living and working in the county. Their reflections will help inform discussions as cross sector representatives and community leaders meet in October to agree a new Single Midlothian Plan setting collective outcomes and actions for the next three years.

Changing Climate, Changing Midlothian is produced for the Midlothian Community Planning Climate Emergency Group by Thrivable Scotland, and is kindly supported by Midlothian Climate Action Hub, Midlothian Community Planning and Midlothian Energy Ltd.

Find out more about:

• Mayfield and Easthouses Development Trust
• This podcast and the Midlothian Community Planning Partnership

Thrivable Scotland: helping changemakers engage their colleagues, communities and stakeholders to solve challenges today while building capacity to thrive in an unpredictable future.

They'd be like, "and what are you doing for the climate?

2

How is me filling my bag

full of carrots and potatoes?

3

How is that climate?"

4

but we say to people, we can't

afford tomatoes or peppers.

5

Like last year there was some

droughts in Spain so people could

6

see why we've not got them an offer

in the pantry at the minute 'cause

7

they're too dear for us to provide.

8

I'm Osbert Lancaster, and this is

Changing Climate, Changing Midlothian,

9

where we explore what the climate and

nature emergency means with people

10

living and working in Midlothian.

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In this episode, you'll

hear from Sharon Hill.

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Sharon is manager of Mayfield and

Easthouses Development Trust, which

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runs a community pantry, community

garden, and a community cafe.

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We went for a walk around Mayfield

Park ending up in the community

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garden where we were joined by

Sharon's colleague Phil Morris.

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I asked Sharon to start by

telling me about the garden.

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Sharon Hill: The garden is a beautiful

space built within I'm not saying the

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actual community, 'cause the people

within are beautiful, every one of us,

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but the, the built space that we have

here is not nice to look at, is very old.

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It's very worn.

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Things like the town centre, which we

can see now, this is our town centre.

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So it's not exactly a beacon of, it's

not most welcoming of wonderfulness that

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you would want to come and spend time in.

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And so the garden here in this place

is an unexpected beautiful space.

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So we, we've created a space that

people can enjoy and appreciate and

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that gives them that community pride in

where they are and what they can have.

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We can have beautiful things too.

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And we do look, it's here.

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But it also demonstrates to them how they

can be growing their own fruit and veg.

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How do I maintain my flowers?

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How, how come your flowers are

always blooming in mine's don't.

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So they can do that.

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They can volunteer, they can join in.

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And then within the

cafe, it sounds very grand.

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It's a very small, it used to be a

bowling pavilion with two changing rooms.

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So the main room is the cafe.

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And a lot of the stuff that we grow

in the garden is then used in the cafe.

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The waste from there that can

be composted is composted, and

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some of it goes to feed animals.

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We say all the time that it's

a community pantry, it's not a

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poverty pantry; it's a community

garden, it's not a poverty garden.

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Do you know, you come here because

you're a member of the community,

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why would you not attend the pantry?

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And to be fair, is there a single person

that's no felt the pinch in some way?

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Whether it's you're no shopping in

Waitrose anymore, or whether it's

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actually you're no shopping anymore,

everybody's feeling it on a sliding scale.

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So having the pantry there available

to everyone, it reduces stigma: if

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you are shopping there, then I'm not

ashamed that I shop in the same place

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as you and I'm really struggling.

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So everyone shopping in the pantry

is supporting not just the pantry,

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they're supporting their community.

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They're, they're enabling

other people to attend.

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And here in the garden, at the

minute we've got the, the kids

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eat for a pound, which is funded

through Midlothian Council.

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So it's community diner.

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So during the summer we're

doing kids eat for a pound.

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And during, term time, we're just

doing a family meal every week.

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Phil: Because like, this morning

the place was, was full of families.

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So I think they know that they can

come, they can relax and enjoy, the

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space, but also eat quite cheaply as

well, but good food a reasonable price.

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Sharon Hill: People love that we grow

the food and that the food they're

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eating has been growing here from here.

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They love that.

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They really do

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Phil: The salad's picked in

the morning and and, we we're

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not charging the earth as well.

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We wanted it to be welcoming,

but taste good as well.

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So I think people have

really enjoyed that.

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And even though we get some regular

customers now, but we still get a lot of

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people who are coming from the first time.

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And a lot of people who've word

of mouth, family say, pop along to

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the Pavilion, you might enjoy it.

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Or if you've got kids, it's a nice

safe place for the kids to play.

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Getting the schools and the younger

kids involved I felt was a big step.

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It's become a regular part of what we do.

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Sharon Hill: When we first opened

the pantry, there was some kids

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coming in that didn't know that

pears and apples were different.

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Just silly wee things.

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And we take it for granted that

because we live in this green space,

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yeah, it's a very green space here.

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There's hundreds of trees around

here, you just assume that people know

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and they don't necessarily, because

fresh fruit and veg is expensive.

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We know we spend about 400 pounds

a week in fresh fruit and vegetable

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for the pantry that we then give

away, plus all the donations.

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It's a huge endeavour

for us to provide that.

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So we know they're expensive.

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And so if you have the option between you,

like a 20 pence bar of chocolate or a 25

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pence apple, what are you going to buy?

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So I, I completely get it.

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And that is not a criticism of

people at all, 'cause, well, I,

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I usually choose chocolate over

an apple, in fact, every time.

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But I think it's been really good

for, in the pantry to have such

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a variety fresh fruit and veg.

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And that's really important to Warris,

who runs a pantry that we offer as

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much variety as possible, and we do.

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Phil: Being able to send somebody over

here I know and get something that's

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straight out of the ground as well.

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" Sharon Hill: Aye, go and see

Phil, see if there's any leeks

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ready" and they love that!

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I've been in this post for over a decade,

but this is the only place that I've

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done this type of work and I live here.

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I'm from here, but I think fundamentally

people want to be valued and to value

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what they have, and they want to be part

of something that they view as positive.

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Whether it's a choir or a huge community

garden or whatever, whatever it is, they

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just want to be included in stuff and

people want the best for other people.

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It's easy to think that people

only look after themselves, but I

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think people are very altruistic.

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Yeah.

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People very much see what their

community needs, what the area needs,

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and very much can see, well, I've

only necessarily benefit for that,

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but I can see other people who will.

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I've seen it number of times here where

people will vote for something that

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isn't really going to be relevant to

them, but they can see other people need.

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I always struggle with the climate thing

because despite the fact we live in this

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beautiful green area that's surrounded

by fields and trees and woodland they

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still fail and I'm amongst them, I'm

not saying people are wrong or daft

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or whatever, 'cause I'm the same.

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They still fail to understand

the huge impact that changes in

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the climate are going to have.

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So there was a thing on the news the

other day there about, there's a bloom

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of octopi or octopus or whatever.

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Octopus are beautiful animals.

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but actually they're eating all the

shellfish which is then having an impact.

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And, I can see why people

feel so powerless in it.

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So what am I meant to do about octopus?

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So I understand people

feeling powerless in it.

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And I think we have to look really small.

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We as people, as communities, we

have to look at micro things that

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we can do because that ripples out.

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Whereas it's up to governments who

we can influence, it's up to them

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to make them macro adjustments.

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. But all we can do is make

the micro adjustments.

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So we need to, make them well.

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And make them in a way that enhances our

lives and therefore enhances everyone.

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Osbert: The real strength about

the stuff your group and others are

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doing is bringing people together or

creating a space where they can come

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together to do this stuff collectively.

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Sharon Hill: It changes things

and it's that camaraderie of

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togetherness having a task, as you

were saying about the resilience stuff

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that was done to a certain extent

during COVID it was nice and easy.

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We got a sized, we peeled the

tatties, we washed them, we cooked

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them, we mashed them, we served them.

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It was nice and easy.

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I mean, obviously it was more difficult

than that in real life, but that

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was effectively what we were doing.

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It was the most rewarding piece

of work I think I've ever done.

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The most amazing group of

people who were so disparate,

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but they'd all been furloughed.

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So they're "I'm bored, I'm not

able to go to work, what can I do?"

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So they were coming in, they were

peeling tatties on a Sunday, and

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they were delivering food Monday,

Wednesday, Friday, thousands of hot

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meals were going out to people who,

we then showed them that we cared.

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Some of them didn't even need that food.

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Some of them would've been

able to feed themselves.

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But what we delivered with that we carton

of food was, was care and belonging.

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And people understanding at a

time, which was quite frightening,

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that we haven't forgotten yet.

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You're still part of this.

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So that was what we were delivering then.

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And I think that ethos, that feeling

of being cared for and valued and

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and included has, has continued in

the Trust work that we are doing.

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The pantry has been so well received.

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We've got about 180 households

shopping every week with us.

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It's phenomenal.

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And people give us things.,

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They swap recipes.

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They, they give us tips on

free to get things cheaper.

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Do you know, people are part of it.

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Osbert: Yeah.

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The Single Midlothian Plan

is about all the community

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partners working together better.

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And so really thinking how could we

just do things differently and, build

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on what we've got, make more progress?

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Sharon Hill: I think it's, I

think it's difficult because

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ultimately we do need money.

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We need more investment in projects

like our own, that are serving the

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needs of the community, but also

serving the wants, a wee bit of what

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they fancy as well as what they need.

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And I think there's real value in that.

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Because people will say to me, and

they're right, I completely get it.

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No, you come in, you're, you're fleeing

domestic violence, your, your kids are no

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settling at school, you've no got enough

money to feed yourself, you've been put

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in temporary accommodation that hasn't got

proper curtains, and what's environment

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got to do with me and how on earth can I

possibly, me the most powerless person in

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the world right now who needs everything

done and help and needs all that help?

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Where's my power in this?

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And it's showing people their power.

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So it's showing people that actually

by being in an insulated house, by

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having thick curtains on the windows,

by doing all of these things, that

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it lowers your bills, it makes your

house warmer, it makes your house feel

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safer and cosier and more comfortable.

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And it has a direct impact on the climate.

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Mm-hmm.

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It has a direct impact on what

you're consuming and highlighting

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these tiny we things that we all

do, I think is really important.

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And I think that's a lot of what

we do within the community anyway.

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We demonstrate to people what their

power is and thus empower them.

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If I was to say, oh, we're

funded by climate money.

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They'd be like, "and what are

you doing for the climate?

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Like, how is this climate?

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Mm-hmm.

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How is me filling my bag

full of carrots and potatoes?

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How is that climate?"

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But what we, what we do within the

pantry in particular is we say to people,

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we can't afford tomatoes or peppers.

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Like last year there was some droughts

in Spain so people could see that's

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why the climate is the reason why this

is more expensive and why we've not got

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them an offer in the pantry at the minute

'cause they're too dear for us to provide.

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And I think more of that, um, sort

of embedding the climate knowledge,

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And I think doing that more implicit

rather than explicit things that you

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can do that help the environment,

things that happen in the environment

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that, that directly affects you,

I think just increases people's

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climate literacy and understanding.

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Osbert: You've described people

someone in very difficult situations.

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Is it important to sort of

raise their awareness about

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how climate relates to that?

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Telling people in difficult

situations that they've got yet

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another thing to worry about.

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Is that really helpful?

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Sharon Hill: Hear what you're saying and

that's definitely not how I would do it.

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A few years ago we had the, all

that snow, the beast from the east.

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Oh yeah.

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And during that time, my husband helped

a local group of dads, clear paths.

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So what they did was they just went around

vulnerable people in the community and

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said, "oh, we're just gonna clear your

path where you just make things safer".

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So they'd spent a couple of days

doing this and it was hard work.

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Guys were knackered, but one of the guys

at the end had said to him, "that's the

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first time in ages I've helped anybody.

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And I always get helped.

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I never help people".

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And that's what the value is.

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And showing people that by helping

yourself in these small ways, you're

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having a bigger influence in that.

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You're much greater than that.

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I always say that we're a jigsaw

and your piece is really important.

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You are part of that jigsaw and

just however small that action is.

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So people in situations like that,

when they do move on to a different

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house, they'll maybe come in and

they'll give us, I dunno, maybe they're

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curtains or they'll give us something,

they'll donate it to the shop.

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And that, is an act of power.

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" I'm now in a situation

where I'm helping others."

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Yeah.

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Because so often we get people in who

need help who'll say, like, "this time

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last year I was donating to the food bank.

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This year I'm asking for a food bank.

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I never thought this would happen to me."

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And that's when people

need to be empowered.

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I keep saying the same word, but

that's where people need to be

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shown their value and their worth.

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Because everybody has value and

worth, and our job is to highlight

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it and make sure they know it.

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Osbert: And it sounds to me like part

of the, the climate and nature, bit

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of this I was looking at the website.

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Sharon Hill: Mm-hmm.

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Osbert: There's a section about

resilience , it's like that was

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all about resilience during COVID.

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Sharon Hill: Yes.

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Osbert: There was this crisis.

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And people pulled together

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Sharon Hill: stuff and

necessarily reacted.

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Yes.

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Osbert: I think with climate and

nature crisis that we need to be

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thinking about that in the same way.

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We're going to be needing to keep on

building our resilience, 'cause you

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don't know what's happening next.

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Yeah.

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And expecting it's just going to be,

you know, government will change some

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policies and carbon emissions will

come down and whatever, and everything

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will be EVs, it's all be fine.

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Mm-hmm.

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Actually know, continual change and the

need for resilience is probably ongoing.

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Sharon Hill: But I think people in

areas like this, people throughout

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the country have come to recognise

that the council or the government

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aren't in a position to help.

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Recently on Facebook, there's a, another

local community who are, they're asking

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local residents to help paint the

railings of their park, their park is

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going to be a hundred years old so

they're getting it all nice and ready

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for their centenary celebrations.

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And one of the comments on

Facebook was, "And what are

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the Council doing about this?"

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And the answer, which I thought was very

good, was, "They're no doing anything

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because they haven't only got a bottomless

supply your money, it's our community.

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Can I put you down for

half past 10 on Monday?"

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And that's exactly it.

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And I think most people, most people

who take an active part in their

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community life, recognise there

isn't anybody going to save me.

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I have to save myself.

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Osbert: So the Climate

Emergency Group asked me to go

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out and speak to people mm-hmm.

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And find out what's happening and what,

what would help move things forward.

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Not a wishlist in terms of money

and resources, let's take that's

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given, but in terms of how different

organisations and the public and the

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private sector and community groups

could work better, work differently,

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support each other differently.

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How would you like to see things

change at that sort of level?

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Sharon Hill: I think there is

much more partnership working

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than there ever used to be.

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I think because, well because most

of the time funders are asking

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for that partnership working.

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But also I think, and again, harking

back to COVID, we realised we

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couldn't do everything on our own.

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We had to ask other organisations

for help or advice or support

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or people or whatever.

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So I think that that has paved

the way for partnership working,

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for me, honest partnerships.

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Honest partnerships where people

really can lay things bare, admit

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to faults or worries or concerns,

what's working, what's not working

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without fear of somebody stealing

that idea or taking that away.

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But again, that comes back to

funding because if people are

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secure in their funding, they'll

be secure in their partnerships.

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If they're not secure in their funding,

then "why would I work with you?"

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'cause you might get my funding.

313

I get it completely this to why

people would feel like that.

314

For me, I think if I could

have one thing, it would be the

315

backing of the community forever.

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Because I think if you've got the backing

of the community, you can do whatever you

317

need to do, whatever needs to be done.

318

Osbert: What would your advice be

to another group that was trying

319

to do something similar in their

community, whether it was the

320

garden, whether it was the pantry,

321

Phil: I think it's easy to, to

look at the negatives before

322

you think of the positives.

323

I'm thinking that's not going to work or

it's going to be too costly or, but maybe

324

small scale try and, and give it a go.

325

Sharon Hill: And persevere.

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Phil: Persevere

327

Sharon Hill: and ask for help.

328

Loads of people want to help.

329

Just before COVID, it was just

myself for maybe about two years.

330

It was just me working here.

331

But I asked for help.

332

Like I had this big bowling green

that my board were saying, oh, we

333

really should turn it into a garden.

334

And I'm like, you what?

335

Like I, I'm the gardener.

336

So I went to different meetings, I went

to different forums and I just told people

337

what my vision was, what I felt like it

could be, but who I've no got a clue.

338

And people want to help.

339

So ask for help.

340

Ask for help and go along and

introduce yourself to everyone and

341

just be that, as I said before,

just be that annoying person.

342

Phil: Yeah.

343

And not put yourself up in the position

of being expert, just saying, we

344

need our ideas and your input and

just, and let's see what happens.

345

And that, it happened that way here,

it was evolved with people's help

346

and people's input and people's,

people's expertise as well.

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Osbert: Earlier you said something

Sharon about sort of the challenge of,

348

groups working together when funding

was insecure and being in competition.

349

I guess for thinking about the Midlothian

single plan, which is about all these

350

community partners, collaborating

better, is there some sort of message

351

about how they can enable more groups

like yourselves to, to achieve more.

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Sharon Hill: I think it's just a case

of, building the relationships so that

353

you trust who you're working with.

354

And that's what we do with

our community and it's what

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we need to do with each other.

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We need to build these

relationships and trust each other.

357

I think, my message to the Council

is, and always will be, trust us.

358

And stop seeing yourselves as being, one,

the most important person in the room

359

,'cause you're not, the community are

the most important people in the room

360

know you and whatever your agenda is.

361

And, two, just because you have the

resources of which the council do.

362

They have the staff, they have the money.

363

And I'm not saying they didn't

have the headaches that go

364

with that, of course they do.

365

But just because you have the

resources doesn't mean you are

366

the best placed person, group,

or organisation to be doing it.

367

Recognise your own strengths and see, like

we would never go for youth money because

368

we have a youth organisation up the road.

369

But play to your own strengths because

not everybody's great at everything.

370

Yeah.

371

So if you can find,

it's that jigsaw again.

372

Yeah.

373

If you can just find where

everybody fits and what picture that

374

creates, that's your partnership.

375

Osbert: And in terms of the importance

of having trust, we can talk about,

376

yes, we ought to trust each other

more mm-hmm until the cows come home.

377

But what is it that allows

that trust to develop?

378

It comes from doing something.

379

Sharon Hill: Our local

TSI, is very good and very

380

proactive.

381

So our local third sector interface

is Midlothian Community Action.

382

So for example, when I first came

into post, I attended, they don't

383

have one anymore, but I attended the

volunteer managers forum meetings.

384

I attended Midlothian

Financial Inclusion Network.

385

And I still do very, very useful.

386

Anybody who's doing anything about working

with people, with or without money comes

387

together, says what they're doing, just

swap and just get to know each other.

388

So they have loads of, wee forums that

they run, loads of meetings like that.

389

So for me, that was how I met people and

that was how I struck up conversation.

390

We realised that we felt the same

or felt differently or whatever.

391

And that's where our trust

and partnerships came.

392

And I think what has not killed

it, but led to the detriment of

393

that kind of work has been Teams

and Zoom, which was from COVID.

394

If we are sitting at a table and you

say something stupid and me and Phil

395

sort of roll our eyes at each other.

396

Yeah.

397

I've made an ally there.

398

Yeah.

399

We both think the same.

400

You might notice and you might

think, actually maybe I'm wrong.

401

You don't get that in Zoom.

402

Osbert: It is a really amazing space

you've created here together and the

403

community, it's so full of life.

404

Sharon Hill: And I'm not saying no to

a nice new, shiny building, but there's

405

real value in the fact that there's

cracks in the wall and there's chips

406

and bits missing 'cause folk will come

in and they'll say, "I can fix that".

407

Or, "I've got a picture that you

can hang there and cover that".

408

So the place very much has been presented

as an unfinished product and people

409

are every day finishing it a wee bit.

410

They're adding or taking wee from it

or doing whatever they need to do to

411

make it look better and it looks fab.

412

So people do own it because half

their granny's stuff is in there.

413

But also it's just, folk are

like, "Oh, I'd love to help.

414

Aye I'll come in and do that".

415

It's just community working together

and valuing what they've got and

416

adding value to it by turning up.

417

And there you have it.

418

You've been listening to Sharon

Hill and Phil Morris from Mayfield

419

and Easthouses Development Trust.

420

I hope you found the conversation

as fascinating as I did.

421

For more information about the trust and

its services, check out the show notes.