Erin McNally

30, and family, Greenbank

Business owner Erin McNally, 30, lives with her husband Finbarr, 32, and their two-year-old daughter Sadie.

As Managing Director and Designer of Sadie Baby, a handmade baby clothing company, Erin has already implemented a number of decisions to help make her business more environmentally friendly; from trying to source organic materials and using carboard packaging instead of single use plastic.

While she thinks Edinburgh is already family-friendly with plenty of parks and great facilities for children, she’d like to see the city go further, to become greener and with more flexibility offered to working parents.

“For families, Edinburgh is really doing things well”, says Erin.

“I’d like to see it become a bit more accessible. More free Fringe shows, free to access museums and exhibitions are important for children and their families.

“Not all families can afford to pay to keep the kids entertained and engaged every weekend, so it’s vital to offer things like this which can also help with their development and learning too.”

She also hopes it will become easier to recycle, with more public recycling bins on our streets. “We have a nice, clean city, but I think there’s room for improvement – we want to leave a healthy planet for our kids, and their kids too”.

She’d also like to see a more flexible working day, with employers doing more to enable men and women to work more from home during the early years of their child’s life.

“It’s interesting to think about life in 2050 and what might be different,” says Erin. “The other night, my husband and I were joking that when the time comes to give Sadie pocket money, it won’t be cash in hand. It’ll be an electronic transfer!”