Paper faces closure over funding cuts

A STRUGGLING community newspaper is to close after more than 30 years as it faces the loss of its grant funding.

North Edinburgh News is set to close its doors in March, in anticipation of its grant from the Fairer Scotland Fund being withdrawn.

The three members of staff at the newspaper, which is based in Crewe Road North, have already received redundancy notices.

The newspaper, set up by volunteers, first faced difficulties two years ago when the city council cut funding to the Edinburgh Community Newspaper Trust.

However, staff took pay cuts and the NEN secured grants from the Scottish Government fund to allow the publication to continue.

Now the Fairer Scotland Fund cash is to be included in the city council's general funding from the Scottish Government and the way it is distributed will change, with the NEN expecting to lose its share as a result.

Editor Mary Burnside said: "It's been sort of on the cards for some time now. We've had a few massive funding cuts and we've managed to continue.

"Staff took a 30 per cent cut in wages and hours for a year-and-a-half so we could keep going. We're pretty devastated."

The paper, which delivers around 14,500 copies each month, currently receives 43,800 a year via Inverleith and Forth Neighbourhood Partnerships, in addition to around 24,000 a year raised in advertising revenue.

Ms Burnside said: "The Fairer Scotland Fund was initially distributed by local neighbourhood partnerships. Now it's all going to go into a central pot and it's up to the local council.

"They haven't actually said yes or no, but early indications on different documents have said there are two projects in North Edinburgh which don't really tick the boxes for them, and it's us and North Edinburgh Trust."

A council spokesman said: "As the Fairer Scotland Fund is coming to an end, it is crucial that the council works with our community planning and strategic partners to prioritise projects which currently receive funding to determine which are most successful. No final decisions have been made yet."

Martin Hinds, chairman of the NEN Board, wrote in the latest edition that staff were preparing for closure.

He said: "For over 30 years the North Edinburgh News has provided a much-loved and valuable service to the people in this community, but I am afraid to inform you that this is unlikely to continue beyond March 2011.

"We have now been told by council officials to prepare for the worst. This could well mean the end of the NEN, unless some alternative funding can be found. Unless we can identify some other resource, the enterprise will close its doors at the end of March."

Ms Burnside said staff were looking at ways of continuing the newsletter in a different format, such as an online edition.