A north Edinburgh housing estate where author Irvine Welsh grew up is to get its own book festival.

The Trainspotting author's childhood stomping ground will also get its own writer-in-residence under a three-year-project aimed at engaging people with culture.

Mr Welsh has spoken of how he got a criminal record aged just eight years old after a kickaround outside a block of flats in Muirhouse led to a court appearance - which he described as “educative and exciting”.

And a neighbouring family, the Begbies, who lived in the scheme, were the inspiration for the name of one of his most famous characters.

The estate was built in the 1950s, and organisers of the pop-up book festival, Citizen, hope to draw in locals who “haven’t been so well represented in the audiences at the August festival”.

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Citizen is part of Edinburgh International Book Festival On The Road, a series of events and activities around Scotland throughout the year.

It is aimed at “giving a voice to communities” in several parts of the city with low levels of involvement in the festivals, including Muirhouse, Wester Hailes and Moredun.

People will be encouraged to “explore their connection to each other and their relationship to their local area” as part of the project, starting in 2019.

Irvine Welsh, who was born in Leith, moved to Muirhouse when he was four.

He attended Ainslie Park High School, nurturing his writing talents and led to the creation of his magnum opus, Trainspotting.

Nick Barley, director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, said: “I feel passionately that book festivals are not just about books.

"They are much-needed forums for public discourse.

“If we are going to sustain a genuinely inclusive forum for grassroots democratic discussion in Edinburgh, we must reach out more effectively to give everyone the chance to take part.

"That’s why it’s so exciting to be able to work with community groups that haven’t been so well represented in the audiences at the August festival.”

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It is being launched after organisers of the book festival staged pop-up events in several locations around Scotland, including Cumbernauld, Irvine, East Kilbride, Livingston and Glenrothes.

A team of "community programmers" will be created to help stage the festival at the North Edinburgh Arts centre.

They will work alongside centre staff, author Eleanor Thom and the Edinburgh International Book Festival on the venture.

Ms Thom said: “The most powerful stories are likely happening beyond the geography of the festival and exploring these narratives can transform how we all see our city, ourselves and others.

“That’s why Citizen is important.

"I’ll be asking what kinds of stories people want to hear, as well as listening to the stories people want to tell.

"I’m motivated by my belief sharing stories can effect change.”

Citizen is being launched after the book festival received a £585,000 share of a £5.8 million initiative.

The event is backed by both the Scottish Government and the city council, to spread the benefits of the festivals, which are said to be worth £313m to the economy.

Ms Thom will work with writers, musicians, illustrators and other artists to inspire residents to tell their stories of life in Muirhouse and “share their views on community, home and their relationship to the wider world”.

North Edinburgh Arts director Kate Wimpress said: “We’re sure Eleanor, as North Edinburgh Arts writer-in-residence, will spark many interesting conversations and inspire creativity among all the users of our venue and beyond.

“We aim to be a place where we can make connections, share ideas, learn together and take creative risks, and this project will contribute directly to those aims and offer new perspectives for the future.”

Other offshoots of Citizen will see another Edinburgh-based author, Claire Askew, work with several city high schools.