Podcast appearances and mentions of maureen child

Magic, Flying, and Typos, oh my! She's a little bit boring and his name is Justin. Welcome to another episode Smutz! It's Mother's Day and we are here to give you the orgasm you've been waiting for. Scrap that…you'll need a spa day after reading One Little Secret by Maureen Child. Another white brunette with money problems!? Prepare to be thoroughly underwhelmed. 

The council elections are just four weeks away and we now know who the candidates will be here in Portobello. It's almost going to be all change this time, as three of the four serving councillors - Maureen Child, Mary Campbell and Callum Laidlaw - are standing down. So, in this episode, we find out more about some of those who hope to represent us for the next five years.

This weekend, you will see more tartan than usual out and about because the annual Kilt Walk is taking place. This year’s event is rather different – instead of people walking en masse, they’re choosing their own routes around Scotland. The idea is to raise money for assorted charities, clubs and others good causes. So what motivates them? Porty Podcast Producer David Calder has met some of those taking part.https://www.thistle.org.uk/https://teameastlothian.org.uk/https://www.thekiltwalk.co.uk/Maureen Child's fund raising page: https://edinburghkiltwalk2020.everydayhero.com/uk/maureen-3

You may have seen the posts here on social media about the upcoming elections to community councils. In recent years, the one in Portobello has had quite a high profile. It has been conducting online surveys on a range of issues, the latest about the future status of Kings Place. They are supposed to be the ‘voice of the community’ but there may be a tendency for them to be self-selecting, for the same people to put their names forward. Both Mary Campbell and Maureen Child regularly attending their meetings and reflect the views back to City Chambers. Both are acting as returning officers within the ward. Maureen Child acknowledges that it can be hard to get the message out and persuade people to put their names forward.

The petition to save Portobello Town Hall is growing and approaching 1500 signatures – it may even have reached that target by this morning. The building has been neglected for many years. But its condition has deteriorated to the point where the Lothian Dance Academy’s Annual Show almost had to be cancelled. With hours to go, the work was carried out in order to save it. However, when THAT work was being carried out, it became clear that the fabric of the building was worse than many officials had believed and now a more in depth survey will be carried out. David Calder’s been speaking to Morag Phillips, the Academy’s founder, about the shock she got a few days ago – and a solution she thinks might help to save the Town Hall, one that Cllr Maureen Child thinks might just work!To sign the petition, click here: https://tinyurl.com/y6dlld5a

Both the police and the City of Edinburgh Council are keen to encourage people to take part in ‘active travel’. That means walking or cycling to work, walking or cycling to school. A substantial amount of the transport budget is already devoted to improving the infrastructure to let this happen. The 20mph speed limit was one part of it; the creation of dedicated cycle lanes or cycle paths is another. It’s a recognition that you won’t persuade anyone to take their bike out if they feel afraid or alarmed by the behaviour of other traffic on the road; there’s a current police campaign to explain to drivers just how much space a person on a bike needs when overtaking. Within the past few days, Portobello Councillor Maureen Child took on the role of ‘Active Travel Champion’. Porty Podcast producer David Calder asked her to explain more.

Time to meet another of our new Councillors - Callum Laidlaw of the Tories. He was elected back in May along with Kate Campbell of the SNP, Mary Campbell for the Greens and Maureen Child, the long established representative of Labour.

For the last 21 years, Maureen Child has represented Portobello – and Craigmillar – on the City of Edinburgh Council. It’s been a challenging experience, especially now when increasing pressures are being placed on local authorities thanks to reduced budgets and reforms to what they can do. It’s been a hallmark of her time that Maureen’s been content to steer from behind, letting local people, local communities take credit for changes that have happened in their areas. Her philosophy can be summed up by the question – what matter to YOU?

Maureen Child discusses her work and her latest book, MARRYING FOR THE KING"S MILLIONS, part of the KINGS OF CALIFORNIA series for Silhouette: Desire.