Coinyie House Close

Before the late 15th century, Edinburgh was one of many Scottish towns where coins were minted. It was not until 1481, under the reign of James VI, that almost all Scottish coins were minted only in Edinburgh. The first mint in Edinburgh was located in the outer court of Holyrood Palace, but was then moved to the castle in 1559. This was demolished during a siege in 1574, and so a new Coinyie House was built. It was located in South Gray’s Close between the High Street and the Cowgate, and it operated through the reigns of seven monarchs from James VI to Anne. The dominant family in the 16th century mint history was the Acheson. John Acheson is recorded as coin-master for Mary, Queen of Scots, in 1553. The other members of the family, John and Thomas Acheson, were successive masters from 1558 to 1611. In 1682, the mint was temporarily closed because senior officials were accused for malpractice. It restarted in 1678, but Scottish coinage came to an end under the Act of Union in 1707. The last coins struck in the Coinyie House were half-crowns and shillings dated 1709, marked with an 'E' beneath Queen Anne’s head. Although it no longer made coins, officers of the Edinburgh Mint were still appointed until 1817. The Coinye House building was then sold and finally demolished in 1877.


In September 2009, the young people at Panmure St Ann’s school expressed their interest in doing something with their tarmac courtyard, which had the potential to be improved to better host their favourite activities. After a consultation process where the space was treated as a blank canvas, the pupils came up with many different ideas to ‘colour’ their playground. Among these, the most popular idea was creating an edible garden, as a private space where they could grow vegetables, play and rest.

Since February 2010, the 25 pupils have been involved in wide-ranging workshops to develop their manual skills and learn about gardening. They have sawn, sanded, drilled and joined beams to fabricate wooden planters, for herbs and fruit trees.

The young people also designed and painted six murals to mark their connections with the long history of the close, which was once the site of the Royal Mint, and with their school building itself, which used to be a school for orphan boys.

On 25 June 2010 the school celebrated the pupils’ achievements in the project, together with the teachers, the residents at Coinyie House Close, Edinburgh World Heritage, councillors and all the other charities involved.

Panmure St Ann’s School provides a holistic service to youngsters experiencing such challenging and complex difficulties that they cannot maintain a place within mainstream education and services. In a supportive environment they have opportunities to fulfil their potential and achieve success, often for the first time in their lives.

The scheme with the residents focused on community sessions looking into the history of the gardens, horticultural lessons and heritage interpretation workshops. The capital works included the formation of a small scale garden area to reflect the tradition of Scottish orchards, parterres and kitchen gardens which used to be located in the Canongate area. The design comprised composting facilities, individual community planting areas, gravel paths, hedges (fagus sylvatica) and granite sett raised planters with timber edging. This created a framework for community engagement and ownership of the space in the spirit of the legacy of Patrick Geddes in the Old Town.


Thanks to the gardening classes, which also attracted members of the neighbouring communities, and the building and interpretation workshops, residents and pupils joined forces to green the close, playing an active role in their historic environment and taking ownership of the space. The creation of a productive active setting for such an important historic location led to tremendous social benefits to be enjoyed by residents, pupils, adjacent communities and visitors. The project brought the communities together, reduced anti-social behaviour and ultimately promoted locally grown food in the Old Town with consequent health benefits.

Coinyie House Close has also recently been included in garden tours, which adds a third dimension to heritage tourism in Edinburgh by attracting more visitors to less conventional spots.

Every year Edinburgh World Heritage (EWH) awards up to £1m in grants for the conservation of the built environment in and around the Old and New Towns of Edinburgh World Heritage Site. These vary from the large scale to the small, but all are community led and help to support life in the World Heritage Site.

Costs
Coinyie House Close 48,629.00
Panmure St. Ann’s Special School 6,414.00
Total project cost 55,043.00

"Greenworks (Scotland) Ltd is a Scottish charity and social enterprise working with groups in Edinburgh, providing them with the materials, design inspiration, tools and skills to turn their sustainable ideas into reality, specialising in creative re-use and remade projects. The Greenworks team worked with young people from Panmure St Ann's to turn a once bare concrete space in Coinyie House Close into a productive green oasis. They gained skills and confidence and learnt more about the use of reclaimed materials. The first phase was successfully completed in 2010 and we look forward to working with the young people again soon to develop the space further" Ellie Mills, Creative Director, Greenworks (Scotland) Ltd

Panmure St Ann's young people said of the project:
“It was fun and exhilarating. We used different types of tools. We made seed trays and garden planters.”

“I helped draw and paint our mural. I’ve never done anything like that before – it was good, yeah!”

“It was my idea to draw the eye on our mural. I’m happy it’d been used – it looks really good.”

“I thought it was really good. It’s better than sitting in a classroom. I enjoyed building things and using tools.”

“I helped water the plants and put the planters together. I did some things I’ve never done before - I drilled holes and used a wheelbarrow.”

“It was fun. I made planters using wood and nails and a hammer. I sanded all the wood down. We did this at Greenworks.”

“It was fun and exhilarating. We used different types of tools. We made seed trays and garden planters.”

“We used a screwdriver, a saw, hammer and a sander. I’ve never used tools before.”

“It was outstanding.”

“Through time the garden will evolve.”

“Our mural was a mix of everybody’s ideas. I think ours is the best.”

“We should do more things like this.”

“The workers were really nice.”

"I was involved as the land is owned by Housing and residents were complaining that drunks were hanging around the Close, people were sleeping rough and generally residents had a sense that it did not feel safe. The place was fairly overgrown. By creating a more open space and involving residents in the redesign and in the gardening we have all achieved a safer and much more colourful environment. Residents are proud of the history of the Close and are now exploring ways to reflect this in the gardens." Carol Duncan, Housing Team Leader.