The OneCity Trust Board

The One City Trust Board is composed of a number of prominent and committed individuals who give up their time voluntarily, joined by three elected members from the City of Edinburgh Council, including the Lord Provost as ex-officio President.

    Paul Wilson                        (Interim Chair)

Paul Wilson is the Chief Officer of Volunteer Edinburgh, where he leads a talented team with a shared mission to increase the number of people who volunteer in Edinburgh.  Paul has a strong commitment to promoting the value and benefits of active citizenship and volunteering both for individuals and wider society.  Paul has worked at Volunteer Edinburgh for over 20 years and is active strategically in volunteering at both local and national level in Scotland.  Personally Paul is a volunteer Board Member for a local equalities organisation and a volunteer Regional Officer for a national car club.

Paul said, “I am very proud to be able to offer some of professional skills and my experience in Edinburgh’s vibrant third sector to the One City Trust, which I believe has a uniquely well placed to support the activities of grass roots organisations which impact real change for people and our communities.”.

    Robert Aldridge, The Rt. Hon. Lord Provost of the City of Edinburgh (President)

Robert Aldridge has been a Councillor in Edinburgh since 1984, where he represents the Drum Brae Gyle ward.  Between 2007 and May 2012 he was the City’s Environment Leader with responsibility for recycling, refuse collection, street cleaning, parks, carbon reduction and clean air.

Until his appointment as Lord Provost he was Group Leader of the Liberal Democrat group on the Council.

Robert has been a board member of the Edinburgh International Conference Centre and was its chairman from 2007 to 2012.  Robert has retired from his position as Chief Executive of a national homelessness charity (the Scottish Council for Single Homeless and latterly Homeless Action Scotland). In this role he sat on a broad range of Scottish Government advisory groups and forums (including those relating refugees, homelessness, health and drugs). He was for 20 years the UK representative on the European Federation of Homelessness Organisations (feantsa) and is a past President of that body.

He is currently the Independent Chair of the West Lothian Public Service Partnership for People Vulnerable due to Young Age and the Fife Partnership on homelessness and short term housing support.

Robert was educated in Edinburgh at George Watson’s College and attended university at the University of East Anglia where he obtained a 2.1 Honours degree in Comparative Literature and Linguistics with German.

Robert entered a civil partnership in 2008. His civil partner is a medical consultant in paediatrics. They have been together since 1990.

    Betty Stone

Born and bred in Edinburgh, Betty has been involved in local communities for more than 40 years. A Deputy Lieutenant of the City of Edinburgh , Betty is the Convenor of Edinburgh Tenants Federation and a seasoned campaigner for tenants’ rights in the city. Betty is passionate about improving housing conditions and has led on a wide range of initiatives to secure improvements to services for the most vulnerable in the city, including award winning work on support for people with mental ill health.

Betty said, “I am delighted to have been appointed to the One City Trust Board. I hope my contribution will give the Board a valuable communities’ perspective.”

    Cllr Cammy Day

Cammy was elected as Leader of the City of Edinburgh Council at the 2022 Local Authority Elections.  He is also Group Leader of the Scottish Labour Group and Councillor for Forth ward within the City of Edinburgh.  Given his career working with young people, supporting them to challenge social injustices in many of Edinburgh’s areas of deprivation, it is unsurprising that he was nominated by the City of Edinburgh Council to join the One City Trust Board.

“I’m really proud to serve on the OneCity Trust promoting social inclusion in Edinburgh. It’s extremely important that we find innovative and creative ways to encourage social inclusion in Edinburgh, and for me, that starts with genuine engagement with young people.”

    Lesley Hinds

Lesley, a teacher by training, and a long-time local Labour politician, retired as a Councillor for the City of Edinburgh Council in May 2017.  She is keenly interested in issues of social justice and inclusion, and was a great champion of the One City Trust during her term as Lord Provost (2003-2007). Lesley has chosen to continue her commitment to the Trust by joining the Board in a personal capacity.

“I love living in Edinburgh; it is a great city. I have lived here for over 30 years, and brought up my children on the north side of the city.  Over these years it has become clear to me that there are areas of deprivation in Edinburgh where people are excluded from society and do not feel they are part of the city. I want to live in a place where all its residents can feel they are included, have their part to play and feel proud of the city they live in. OneCity Trust can play its part in bringing all parts of the city together.”

    Cllr Denis Dixon

Denis came to Edinburgh from Irvine on the west coast of Scotland back in 1970. He studied Marketing and Accountancy at Edinburgh College of Commerce which is now Napier University. He is now a Councillor for the city ward of Sighthill/Gorgie, in which Napier University is situated.  His ward harbours some of the City’s most deprived areas and he is always ready to fight to help improve the plight of those in the community who are less privileged than others.

My own background was not one of privilege and I have had to work hard for everything I have. I believe that by deploying the resources of One City Trust into Edinburgh’s areas of need and deprivation, we can help provide a pathway to a better future for many of our less well off citizens.”

    Bridie Ashrowan

Bridie Ashrowan, Chief Executive at EVOC, Edinburgh Voluntary Organisations Council. EVOC’s role is to support a thriving local community and voluntary sector, with championing and advocacy, leadership and organisational development.

EVOC is the lead partner in a strategic partnership, called the Third Sector Interface, with Volunteer Edinburgh and Edinburgh Social Enterprise.

Most recently, Bridie headed up a local community development trust, Space & Broomhouse Hub, Edinburgh, an area that has some of the highest child and in-work poverty in Scotland, and completed a £3.2m capital investment, opening a new community Hub in late 2019. Bridie has worked in start-ups, social enterprise and business, and has 30 years’ experience in the community sector.

“I am very inspired by the primary objective of the One City Trust, to promote inclusion in the city. Our member organisations, across EVOC, Volunteer Edinburgh and Edinburgh Social Enterprise, are at the forefront of inclusion, and reducing child and family poverty. Do support us if you can, please get in touch to find out more about how, whether you’re an individual or a business in the city, and we engage fundraising events, sponsorship or managing Community Benefit commitments.”

    Donald Wilson BA MSc TQ(Secondary) OStJ

Born in 1959 in Selkirk, Donald Wilson attended Galashiels Academy.  Further academic achievements include a BA (Hons) from Stirling University, an MSc in Information Science from London’s City University, and a teaching qualification from Moray House in Edinburgh.

Son of a Baker (Wilson’s the Bakers in Selkirk) he was brought up in a bakery and has a lifelong interest in the skills and trade. He is now the Deacon Convener of the Incorpration of Baxters (Bakers) of the City of Edinburgh.

A former teacher of Computing in Midlothian, Donald was elected in 1999, as a City of Edinburgh Councillor, representing the Shandon Ward and has served on a range of Committees until retiring in 2022.

Donald was Lord Provost and President of the OneCity Trust from 2012 to 2017 and was instrumental in reactivating the theme of responsible business and corporate social responsibility.  As Lord Provost he was passionate about encouraging active citizenship and encouraging more businesses to do their bit for the city in addressing social exclusion and inequality. To this end he revitalised the One City Trust and raised over £250,000 through a variety of fundraising activities (including running five marathons) to fight exclusion and inequality in Edinburgh.

In his free time, Donald enjoys science fiction, opera, antiques and history, and spending time with his wife Elaine, two grown up children and his two grandchildren.

OneCity Trust is a registered Scottish charity (SC034165). Board members are Directors of OneCity Limited, a company limited by guarantee (SC320023), which operates as the Trustee of the OneCity Trust.