Filling Edinburgh's 'Mary Celeste' council HQ
Plus: No university deal 'at this stage' to buy ex-Scottish Widows HQ; and honouring Scots couple who helped shape Finland
Council looks to rent out more of its £3m-a-year flagship office
City councillors are tomorrow expected to approve taking two further tenants into their underused multi-million pound headquarters building – generating a further £400,000 towards the annual running costs of a building once described as like “The Mary Celeste”.
With annual running costs reported at more than £3 million, the Council has been seeking to increase rental income from tenants as it looks to turn Waverley Court into a “true partnership Hub”.
Already the council has attracted several other tenants to the East Market Street building, including environmental protection agency SEPA, Visit Scotland and Skills Development Scotland.
Councillors on the Finance and Resources Committee, which meets tomorrow, are likely to approve recommendations from officials on two new tenants – British Transport Police on an initial 10-year lease and Creative Scotland on a five-year deal.
Between agreed rents, plus contributions to building running costs, the two deals will bring in around £400,000 each year.
Why is the council seeking office tenants?
Waverley Court was built in 2006 under a Public Private Partnership financed by Norwich Union Life and Pensions. Built by Miller at a cost of £80 million, it was initially home to more than 1600 council staff, and was built to high sustainability standards.
It was bought by the Council for £90 million in 2008, in a move hailed by then council leader Jenny Dawe as saving the council significant monies.
However, the global covid pandemic and its attendant lockdown measures, which accelerated hybrid and home working, led to many council workers being allowed to maintain flexible working post-Covid with occupancy levels at the showpiece building falling to 14%.
What will the new tenants do in the building?
The report to councillors stressed the 444 sq metres of space for British Transport Police would not be used as a ‘police station’ – rather as offices, amenity facilities and storage. The space is on the courtyard level and will see some council staff moved.
Creative Scotland is rationalising its office space, and has negotiated a flexible deal that could see the number of desks being rented vary with a proportionate change in rent.
What the council says
Labour councillor Mandy Watt, convener of the Finance and Resources committee said: “If agreed, we will look forward to welcoming British Transport Police into Waverley Court, which is quickly becoming a true Partnership Hub, with organisations from all parts of the public sector joining forces to make greater use of the space and share expertise.
“By welcoming these organisations in, we are generating significant income for the Council and making sure our headquarters is operated in the most sustainable, efficient, and collaborative way.”
However, not all elected members have been comfortable with the situation. Last year, Conservative Councillor Iain Whyte said part of the problem was “council officers spending all their time at home”.
He added: “I’m really beginning to get concerned about productivity loss and the accessibility for members of the public who need to contact people in our various departments.
“You go into Waverley Court, particularly on a Friday, and the place is like the Mary Celeste. That can’t continue. We have to have some kind of rules that get people in the office at least for part of the week otherwise they’re not engaging with others in their team and with the public.”
YOUR EDINBURGH BRIEFING
DANCE AWAY: Dance teacher Sheena Gough, 89, is hanging up her ballet shoes at the age of 89 after a career spanning 72 years. Sheena began dancing as a 14-year-old at the Scottish School of Ballet in Grosvenor Crescent; was taught alongside Margot Fonteyn in Paris; and continued teaching weekly 90-minute lessons in Stockbridge until this month.
‘BIGGEST EVER’ UNI CUTS: Universities Minister Graeme Dey has said compulsory redundancies should be considered only “as a last resort after all other cost-saving measures have been fully explored” amid the University of Edinburgh’s ongoing cash crisis. Principal Sir Peter Mathieson has said the university is “taking time to consider its next steps” after 350 staff took voluntary redundancy and academic promotions were put on hold to save money. Compulsory redundancies remain a risk as the voluntary ones will save only £18m out of a £140m a year target set by the university. The University and Colleges Union, who described the cuts as the biggest in the history of Scottish higher education, and Unison are both running strike ballots among university staff.
‘No deal’ for Scottish Widows offices: Meanwhile, the University of Edinburgh has fuelled rumours it has an interest in taking over the empty former Scottish Widows HQ on Dalkeith Road despite its current financial crisis. Responding to inquiries from the investigative website The Ferret, a university spokesperson said: “At this stage, all we can say is that any information suggesting the university has bought the building is incorrect.” Scottish Labour has called for “high standards of transparency” given the university funding situation. There is existing planning permission for the landmark office site to be converted into almost 200 flats, which has not as yet been taken forward.
‘DRUG GANG’ ARRESTS: Police Scotland have now made 20 arrests in connection with the ongoing violence in Edinburgh and Glasgow linked to drug gangs. They include a 16-year-old charged in connection with five attempted murders but later released.
FRINGE ‘TOURIST TAX’ BID: The Fringe is preparing to bid for £1.1 million-a-year from the city’s Visitor Levy funds. It would use the funding to help performers meet the soaring accommodation costs; the cost of creating “pop-up” venues each summer; supporting free street events; and improving mobile phone coverage in the city centre. The so-called ‘tourist tax’ is predicted to raise up to £50m a year once it is established.
ONE IN A MILLION: The star-studded British Business Awards, featuring Sir Bob Geldof, Rob Brydon and Sting, at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre, has raised more than £1 million for the city-based homeless charity Social Bite.
CHECK IT OUT: City Council leader Jane Meagher has urged Edinburgh residents to use two new online help tools to check their cost-of-living support to ensure they are claiming all they are entitled to. Her plea kicks off a campaign to help some of the Capital’s most vulnerable as it is revealed that – despite around 80,000 living in poverty – households could be owed up to £80 million in unclaimed benefits in Edinburgh.
MURAL FEST: The first Edinburgh International Mural Festival will take place at the Hidden Door Festival in June. The festival is the idea of Ross Blair, who paints as Trench One, the artist behind the celebrated mural of anti-slavery campaigner Frederick Douglass in Upper Gilmore Place.
FETTES FIRST: The first woman to lead Fettes College in its 155-year history is retiring after 30 years at the elite private school, which counts ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair among its former pupils. Helen Harrison, 55, who became headteacher in 2018, will step down next year.
1-IN-1000 YEARS FLOODS: Edinburgh-based company EH1 Students Gorgie has responded to concerns about its plans to build student housing on the site of the Murrayfield Bar in Gorgie. It points out the plans would protect the property from a one in a thousand-year flood in contrast to housing proposals for nearby 495 Gorgie Road which were approved with weaker flood defence plans. The proposals are due to be considered by councillors on Wednesday with officials recommending they are refused despite improvements in the flood defence proposals.
Scots who put Finland’s second city on the map commemorated after two hundred years
A couple who helped put Finland’s second city of Tampere on the map are to be commemorated at a special ceremony in Edinburgh today.
James Finlayson and his wife Margaret Wilkie established the Finlayson Textile Mill harnessing water power at Tammerkoski Rapids in 1820. This had a pivotal impact on the growth and industrialisation of the city of Tampere. They were also known for their philanthropy, setting up local orphanages and schools.
At noon today, a short ceremony will commemorate the recent discovery that Margaret Wilkie was buried with her husband James Finlayson in Newington Cemetery. Addressed by Harry Nimmo, Honorary Consul of Finland in Edinburgh, the ceremony will also mark the 200th anniversary of the establishment of their mill in Tampere.
The Finlayson legacy
With a population of around 340,000, Tampere is Finland’s biggest city, after Helsinki. Visitors can explore the Finlayson Quarter, a picturesque district of former textile mills given over to culture, museums, restaurants and cafes. There is also a Finlayson Palace, Finlayson Church and the Finnish Labour Museum, the largest free exhibition space in Finland. Once Finland’s largest employer, with 11 factories and 6,500 employees, Finlayson remains a famous textile trade mark in Finland today.
Penicuik roots
Born in Penicuik, Midlothian, James Finlayson (1770-1852) was a Quaker and successful machine maker in Glasgow. A downturn in business encouraged him to move to St Petersburg, Russia, in 1813. He then moved on to Tampere, selling the company in 1836 on condition it retained the Finlayson name. He and Margaret returned to Scotland and lived the rest of their lives in Nicolson Square, Edinburgh. They are both buried at the Newington Cemetery in Edinburgh.
Edinburgh memorial
In 1970, OY Finlayson-Forssa AB erected a gravestone on James Finlayson’s unmarked grave in honour of their founder. A further headstone has more recently been placed at the grave to commemorate his wife Margaret Wilkie who is also interred there.
Angela and Tony Harris, who recently published a biography of the couple entitled Tangled Yarns (Madge Books), wrote the following: "Finlayson is a famous textile trade mark in Finland. Any visitor looking up from the centre of Tampere, will see how the Finlayson name dominates the skyline.” Angela and Tony are responsible for organising the ceremony and the headstone marking Margaret Wilkie.
THE BUSINESS
Edinburgh starts the year leading Scotland’s Venture Capital backing
Edinburgh continues to drive Scotland’s business start-ups – making up more than 40% of the Venture Capital investment backing for new businesses in the first quarter of the year.
Having raised £92.3 million in the final quarter of 2024, business in the region received £100.5 million from VC investors in the first three months of this year – an 8% increase – and marks a slight increase on figures from Q1 2024, when £98 million was raised, according to the latest KPMG Private Enterprise Venture Pulse report.
Twenty-seven investments were concluded, the report says, highlighting sustained appetite among VC investors looking to support Scotland’s burgeoning start-up community.
Having raised £92.3 million in the final quarter of 2024, business in the region received £100.5 million from VC investors in the first three months of this year – an 8% increase – and marks a slight increase on figures from Q1 2024, when £98 million was raised.
UNITED EXPANDS: United Airlines is extending its seasonal service between Edinburgh and Washington D.C. Already flying daily during the summer season until 25 October, the service will then on a five-times weekly basis, operating from 26 October 2025 until 5 January 2026 and resuming 20 February 2026. From 29 March 2026, the service will revert to a daily operation.
BERTH OPENS: Forth Ports’ new deep water riverside berth at the Port of Leith – designed to host the world’s largest offshore wind construction vessels – has been formally opened. Forth Ports has invested more than £100 million of private funds into transforming the Port of Leith into a world class renewables hub, which is already playing a key role in supporting Scotland’s energy transition. The new berth will play a pivotal role in the delivery of the Inch Cape Offshore Wind Farm, creating up to 50 new and upskilled green energy jobs.
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
LIGHT UP: The Beltane Fire Festival lights up Calton Hill on Wednesday night in one of the Capital’s most dramatic annual celebrations.
BEWITCHING BALLET: Scottish Ballet brings Arthur Miller’s The Crucible to the Festival Theatre from Thursday to Saturday. Expect electronic music, gothic lighting, a striking set and beautiful dancing in this award-winning production.
NATURE BOOKS: Delve into the Museum of Childhood’s book collection in a new exhibition charting 150 years of publishing and exploring the links between wellbeing and nature. Nurture Through Nature With Children’s Books runs from Thursday until 7 September.
QUICK BITES
NEW OPENING: Viet Street – a new Vietnamese restaurant and café – is to open soon in at St Patrick Street in Newington. The new venue, a sister branch of Hoi An in Bruntsfield and Pho Viet on Dalry Road, is currently undergoing refurbishment with an opening date still to be announced.
TASTY COMPETITION: Six leading chefs are to battle out the ultimate kitchen cook-off at Edinburgh St James foodhall Bonnie & Wild on Sunday. The chefs, including National Chef of Scotland Gary Maclean and TV chef Jimmy Lee, are taking part in front of invited guests as part of the Edinburgh Seafood Festival which is happening at the venue.