It’s in the heart of the community. It’s one of the most used and most successful of Edinburgh’s community centres. And it needs help.

It takes over 100 room hires every week, involving around 1,500 people, and it could take more. But the rents pay for only around 25% of the running costs.

There’s a long and honourable history behind Leith Community Centre. After considerable influence from Leith Rotary Club, initially under its President Mr Gurdit Dhillon, it opened in 1969, owned and operated by the council, to replace the good many church halls that had been caught up in the widespread post-war demolitions.

But it was little more than a series of sports halls. Councillor John Crichton pleaded for another floor to be added, containing smaller rooms suitable for meetings. To no avail.

It is the only premises in the Kirkgate complex not owned by the management company New River. There was a general refurbishment in 2004-2007, in which the community centre was included, and now there is a greater variety of spaces.

The Centre is also the only premises with access above ground level. The ramp at the back is not pedestrianised and is not suitable for folk who can’t manage the steps.

The shopping centre management company is obliged to maintain the disabled access lift, but there have been long periods when it hasn’t been working, or the access gate is locked. And it’s pretty pokey anyway – there’s barely room for a wheelchair and a carer.

Edinburgh Council lost a lot of expertise and local knowledge in its re-organisation of 2016/7.

The charity Leith Community Association was formed as a council initiative to lease the building and give Trustees some protection from personal liability. The charity’s stated purpose is to advance education and to provide and assist in the provision of recreational facilities for the community of Leith and its surrounding areas.

Its purpose does not depend upon nor is limited by its use of the building. It can initiate and support and collaborate with other projects around Leith. But for the time being its efforts are focussed entirely on making use of the building it leases from the council.

It’s a point of principle that the Centre is alcohol-free. No exceptions. The place has to be respectful and safe for a wide variety of users, including wee ones and those recovering from addiction/dependency challenges.

The world has moved on from the early years of the Centre, and the meaning of ‘community’ has changed shape. Now you can have a digital community in your pocket.

But we can’t forget the lessons of the lockdown. Remember how much we missed casual mass meetings, on a bus, in a café, going to the library. And purposeful meetings, like playing sport, or sharing a hobby or an interest.

Every week in the Centre you can find – to name but a few - basketball, badminton, dodgeball, Roller Derby, martial arts, classes and clubs in photography, art, dance, English learning, youngster and toddler groups, dependency support groups, youth development groups, crisis and homelessness-focussed groups, three faith groups, one-off events and a weekly lunchtime community meal.

I could go on. You can’t get them on your smartphone.

The café closed during the Covid lockdown and hasn’t reopened. Shoplifting in the Kirkgate is a problem, as it is elsewhere. It affects the Community Centre, as trouble sometimes spills over to the upper level.

Very much against the instincts of the charity and the council, it is necessary to have controlled access on the front door, and a café really needs unrestricted access.

But the kitchen is usable to professional standards. There are discussions under way to make good use of it: cooking and catering classes to meet personal educational development needs as well as offering regular community meals.

What we are dealing with here is the collective failure of politicians of all stripes, at all levels of government, over many years, to invest routinely and properly in community provision. It’s austerity by inertia.

The above is a copy-and-paste paragraph. We all want our political representatives to show leadership and fix problems for us. But they also need to be led. In the end we have the politicians we deserve.

There’s a real concern that the present model is unsustainable. If something doesn’t change, it looks like the charity is set up to manage decline.

So an urgent appeal is going out: use it or lose it. Charities are started with energy and good will. Over the years, energy and good will need to be replenished.

Volunteers are needed to help run the day-to-day processes of the centre, including admin and social media coverage. And there’s a need for an initiative working with other community and charity groups in the area.

Manager Rob Levick will be happy to meet you and talk it over.

The commitment is to provide affordable, accessible, creative, useful, safe spaces for the community.

Community services don’t come from thin air or work by magic. ■