Helen Crummy

Helen Crummy MBE (10 May 1920 – 11 July 2011) was a founder of the Craigmillar Festival Society, and served as the Organising Secretary for the group until 1985.

Biography Helen Crummy was born in Leith, Helen Murray Prentice. She became one of the first residents in a new council housing estate at Craigmillar in 1931 when her family moved to the estate which became one of the poorest areas of Edinburgh. He replied by telling her that it took the school all its time to teach these children "all three R's".

Her youngest son is the artist Andrew Crummy, creator of the Great Tapestry of Scotland and her niece is the writer Janis Mackay.

Honours She was awarded an MBE in 1972,

Publications Her book Let The People Sing! has been sold in many countries. It tells the story of The Craigmillar Festival Society. Her third book is the novel Whom Dykes Divide, published in 2008. Other publications are "Mine a Rich Vein" 2003; essay and editing: Arts The Catalyst Catalogue, 2004; The Heritage and Arts Trail for Craigmillar, 2009; Edited with Douglas Galbraith: Craigmillar Gold, Community Musical songs, 2004. She was involved in most of the publications that came out of the Craigmillar Festival Society from 1962 to 1985, including "The Comprehensive Plan for Action" (CPA) 1976, which is recognised as a milestone in Community Planning.