They held a Christmas party.
Residents of an Edinburgh housing estate who were at risk of being evicted have told how they have banded together as a community, particularly during the festive period. The Dreghorn estate was originally built as housing for service members.
It now houses a mix of military, private and council tenanted families. In 2022, the homes were deemed surplus to requirements by the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
Some 12 families received a letter in January this year informing them that their homes would be sold off, and they would be evicted.
Edinburgh Council stepped in, and after months of proceedings, purchased the properties to allow them to remain in their homes as tenants, with the new tenancies officially signed on October 20.
The difficult circumstances brought the residents together to support each other, which has continued.
Mandy Burgen, 52, has lived on the estate with her husband Malcolm for six years. Both served in the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, and left the forces in the early 1990s.
Speaking to Edinburgh Live, she said: “This has brought huge changes on the estate. None of the neighbours actually knew each other that well, despite living living next to each other for three, four years before all this started.
“When we all started talking about it, friendships grew, as did a sense of community. When we went to speak at the City Chambers, telling them not to disrupt that community is where we really came into our own.
“The deputations I delivered were all about that, not just keeping our homes. Children could have been displaced from their education, adults could have been made unemployed.
“They would have all been pushed into a situation which was completely unnecessary.”
A residents’ association was formed, which has remained active. After putting on a successful “Halloween trail” with over 100 people attending, they have also organised a Christmas event on December 19.
Mandy added: “The little things, like people redecorating their houses, are more noticeable now and we appreciate them more.
“I took the dog for a walk one morning after everything had settled down and saw several of my neighbours.
“Everybody was smiling, and I couldn’t remember the last time I had seen that. It was quite something.”
Mandy added of the Christmas event: “It was a fabulous night, lots of neighbours and their children came to see Santa and had a great time. We plan to go a little bigger with our events next year!”