About us
A fixed, reliable presence in people's lives
Who we are, why we started, and the values that shape everything we do.
Vibrant Health Advocates – Anchor is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation based in Penicuik, Midlothian. We were established specifically to address the stubbornly high rates of cardiovascular disease among the over-50 population in our town and the surrounding villages — a challenge shaped by Penicuik's particular mix of older housing stock, economic pressures, and a population that grew up in an era when heart health was rarely discussed until crisis struck.
We take our name seriously. 'Anchor' reflects our intention to be a fixed, reliable presence in people's lives — not a short course they complete and forget, but an ongoing community they belong to. A GP or practice nurse might refer someone to us after a concerning blood pressure check or a pre-diabetes diagnosis, but we also welcome self-referrals and family-encouraged enquiries. There is no fitness test to pass. We meet people where they are, quite literally, by collecting small groups from familiar points in the town and walking together at a pace that feels achievable on day one.
Penicuik Community Centre — where friendships begin
Over the years we have built strong working relationships with Penicuik's primary care practices, Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership, Paths for All Scotland, and a network of local volunteers who understand the town intimately. Those relationships mean we can respond quickly when someone's circumstances change — if a member has a health setback, we can adapt their programme; if a GP has a cluster of patients newly diagnosed with hypertension, we can create a tailored cohort group. This flexibility, grounded in deep local knowledge, is something a larger regional service simply cannot replicate.
North Esk — where it all began
Vibrant Health Advocates – Anchor grew out of a straightforward, frustrating observation: Penicuik has extraordinary walking country within minutes of its town centre, and it also has some of the highest rates of cardiovascular-related hospital admissions in Midlothian. The two facts were sitting side by side, unconnected.
A small group of local people — including a retired district nurse, a former Midlothian Council countryside ranger, and two residents who had themselves been through cardiac rehabilitation — began meeting in 2017 to ask why that was, and what a locally-led response might look like. They ran a pilot group of twelve people that first autumn, walking the North Esk path on Thursday mornings, and by spring every one of those twelve was still coming.
Some had lost weight. Several had reduced blood pressure readings at their next GP appointment. One described it as 'the first time in twenty years I've looked forward to getting out of bed on a Thursday.' That pilot became the foundation on which we registered as a SCIO and have built steadily ever since.
Vibrant Health Advocates – Anchor is governed by a volunteer Board of Trustees who bring together expertise in health promotion, community development, financial management, and lived experience of cardiovascular risk. Day-to-day, our small staff team is supported by more than twenty trained volunteer walk leaders — nearly all of them former or current members — who give their time because they have seen, firsthand, what this work does for people they care about. The trustees meet quarterly and maintain close oversight of our finances, safeguarding, and programme quality.
Chair
Treasurer
Trustee
There is a place for you in the Anchor community, whether you come for the walks, the company, or to help others find both.
Get in touch today