Fresh ’09 (Fintry Renewable Energy Show) is a two day event being held in the village of Fintry on the 8th and 9th May.

It is aimed at community bodies and householders who want to know more about what they can do in their communitieis and households to tackle climate change.

The programme is almost finalised and it looks like it will consist of –

Friday 8th May

• Morning – Community Conference with Alan Caldwell from Comrie Development Trust, Michael Carr from the Energy Agency, Rachel Nunn from Carbon Neutral Stirling, and Jon Rathjen from the Scottish Government’s Climate Challenge Fund.
• Afternoon – Visits to renewable technology installations, including micro-hydro, ground source heat pumps, biomass (wood fueld), solar panels.
• Afternoon – Visit to Earlsburn windfarm
• Evening – Debate on the role of communities in renewables with speakers including Bruce Crawford MSP, Jason Ormiston the chief executive of Scottish Renewables, Alan Hobbett the chair of Community Energy Scotland and Martin Turner the chair of Fintry Development Trust.

Saturday 9th May

• Morning – Tech talks chaired by Andy Lyle from RD Energy Services and covering householder installations of ground-source and air-source heat pumps, biomass (wood fuel), solar photo-voltaic, solar water heating, and micro-wind.
• Afternoon – Visits to renewable technology installations, including micro-hydro, ground source heat pumps, biomass (wood fueld), solar panels.
• Afternoon – Visit to Earlsburn windfarm
• Evening – Concert (tbc)

Throughout the event there will be an exhibition of renewable technologies from a wide variety of vendors.

SIX communities in Ross-shire are being offered a chance to take over and run their public hall.

Highland Council is reviewing its role in owning and managing community halls in an attempt to equalise the level of support it gives to local groups to run facilities.

At present 90 per cent of public halls in the region are independently owned and run by community bodies.

The council intends offering communities the chance to take over buildings with a grant of up to £1,000 a year towards costs.

Peter Hoffman, senior community learning and leisure officer with the council’s education, culture and sport service, has been consulting residents on the future of the Diamond Jubilee Hall in Evanton; the Perrins Centre in Alness; the Polnicol Hall in Delny; and halls in Milnafua, Saltburn and Fearn.

However Joan Ross, of Alness Community Association, said volunteers would not be able to find the funds needed and said the offer of £1,000 a year was “laughable”.

She went on “We need to know exactly what needs to be done to the building before we make any decisions one way or another.”

“There is no point in taking on a building if it’s going to cost the earth to bring it up to standard. We don’t think it’s in a bad state but it is a difficult building because of its age and it does need refurbishment.

“It’s a case of seeing what needs to be done and then investigating whether funding will be available to take it forward. It’s all very well saying ‘We have to save the Perrins Centre’ but if it’s going to take half a million pounds to bring it up to scratch, we will not be able to find that money as a small community.”

The Perrins Centre is used by local playgroups, dance groups, WRIs, the local Heart and Stroke support group, the fishing club and the Horticultural Society, which also stages two shows a year in the centre.

In addition the centre’s offices are used as a base by the charity Homestart, which does vital work in Alness offering support and friendship to families with young children and who are struggling.

The centre needs a full-time hall keeper to run it and operates from 9am until 9pm most nights.

But the council has made it clear that, if communities don’t want to take on the halls, they will most likely be sold.

Mrs Ross said: “Everybody is very keen to save it and it is used by a huge number of people every week.
“The groups that use it are the kind of groups which could not afford to hire space in the Averon Leisure Centre in the town.

“The people we have on the steering committee are very capable go-ahead people who will do their best to save the centre if it is achievable. We will know more when we see the results of the survey and we will take it from there.”
The Perrins Centre was built for the people of Alness by millionaire businessman Dyson Perrins – of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce fame – who once owned nearby Ardross Castle.

Local food producers make their case

Highlands & Islands Local Food Network are a group of food consumers, farmers, crofters, community groups, retailers and projects from across the Highlands and Islands of Scotland who are working together to make fresh, locally grown food more available in our communities.

Why Local?

There are lots of reasons for choosing local food! Key reasons include:

• It supports the local economy. Purchasing locally keeps your money circulating within the community for a longer time. For example, for every £10 spent on an organic box scheme, £24 is generated in the local economy; by comparison; every £10 spent in a supermarket generates £12 for the local food economy.

• It supports the local community. Linking local producers with consumers creates a business link, but also has educational and social benefits, particularly in CSA arrangements. Members of CSAs often feel a commitment to the farm. This leads to understanding of issues and a growing awareness of seasonality.

• It tastes better. For the consumer this is often number one. Local food travels less far, so it can grow longer and reach the table faster – and therefore tastes fresher!

• It’s good for the environment. Reduced food miles mean reduced transport costs and fewer global warming emissions. Less intensive growing and production can lead to more biodiversity.

• It can allow choice in growing methods and pesticide use. Fresh, local organic vegetables are 40 times less likely to be contaminated with pesticide residues.

• Local food is a major way to support health and fitness. The production and transport of food affects the environment in which we live, and the food we eat is fundamental to our health and wellbeing.
Local food is not elitist! Individuals, families, schools and some other businesses want local, fresh food, but have difficulties finding it. This was highlighted in a survey carried out in 2003/2004 in various areas of the Highlands. The Highlands & Islands Local Food Network will show local people where to find local produce, and help local producers find this local market.

Good for Consumers

People who have found local food are usually enthusiastic:
‘It’s good to get proper tasting vegetables’ – a ‘regular’ at a monthly produce stall.

‘We look forward to our weekly box of vegetables, and the challenge to cooking with them.’

‘The children (and us, to be honest) are now discovering seasonality, and learning to base our meals around what is available.’

‘We always thought that fresh, organically grown vegetables meant far more expensive vegetables, but it doesn’t have to be that way.’

‘We like knowing where the meat is coming from.’

‘I’m willing to pay a bit more if I know that the money supports a local farmer, and not a supermarket shareholder.’

‘By becoming a member of my CSA farm, I’m able to have some say in the way things are grown and the range of produce.’

Despite the fact that most people surveyed would like more local food, over 80% of our food is purchased from supermarkets, and only 3% direct from producers. Yet few producers in the Highlands and Islands supply supermarkets for a number of reasons, and many find it uneconomical to do so.

As a result, consumers will need to change too. This means learning about seasonality, learning to accept vegetables in a variety of shapes and small blemishes, and learning to source some of their food outside the supermarket. Education is needed too – about the health benefits, and how to cook with what is locally available.

‘I’d like to buy local food, but it costs far more than the supermarket.’

This is often cited by people as the reason they don’t buy fresh, local food. Is it true?

The short answer is: sometimes yes, but often no.

Where there is a good supply of local produce, and when it is in season, quite often the supermarkets are more expensive. A study by the CSA Earthshare in Moray, did a comparison in September 2004 of prices, packaging and food miles between their vegetable box and a similar buy from the supermarket. Earthshare found that their vegetables worked out much cheaper – and they could supply a wider range than the local supermarket. Similar studies elsewhere in have also found fresh, local vegetables at the farm gate to be cheaper than the supermarket.

Supermarkets often keep their prices down by squeezing the local producers – and this is true throughout the world as well as here. Fair trade is an issue abroad, but it is also an issue for our own producers.

Good for Producers

Producers growing locally in the Highlands and Islands range from very small scale to large commercial busineses. Many have found it a valuable and rewarding experience:

‘The produce market is sold out by 2pm… we can’t keep up with demand, and could sell three times our existing production.’

‘We have expanded from 2 to over 30 producers and we are still nowhere near saturating the market….the market has expanded as we have expanded…people used to think there was no local supply so as a result there was no local demand.’

‘The CSA subscriptions are the most viable part of our business at present.’

‘Start small and grow slowly. Get the quality right and you will have long term members who really support what you are doing.’

‘Most of my neighbours will retire soon, and so will I…we need more young people in farming…Direct marketing what you grow offers a route to create a better income and a more interesting and fulfilling job. It’s a real job in the countryside.’

‘Most of my neighbours will retire soon, and so will I…we need more young people in farming…Direct marketing what you grow offers a route to create a better income and a more interesting and fulfilling job. It’s a real job in the countryside.’

When Leithers heard of the proposals…

THOUSANDS of Leithers have signed up to a campaign against plans to name a multi million-pound development in the port “Edinburgh Harbour”.

Residents came out in their masses last week to back a campaign fighting for the retention of Leith Docks as the main title for the development by Fort Ports, which is due to begin this year.

A final push for more signatures was made at the weekend as community activists campaigned at The Foot of The Walk.

Protesters believe the name change will strip Leith of its historic identity and warn of a community uprising if the Edinburgh Harbour brand is put in place.

Some signing the petition said that if Edinburgh Harbour is used, they will campaign for Edinburgh Castle to be renamed Leith Castle to prove a point.

Cliff Lutton, 84, a retired doctor, is, along with son Ian, distributing petitions across the port, in pubs, cafes, shops and businesses, before they present the names to councillors at the city chambers.

The former Leith Hospital doctor said: “If this name is passed, councillors will live to regret it. Leithers are extremely different from Edinburgh people. They are proud of their history.”

Leith councillor Gordon Munro is one of many politicians backing the campaign, describing it as a “no brainer”.

But Forth Port officials say people have misunderstood how the development will be named.

Charles Hammond, group chief executive, said: “Leith Docks will remain as the umbrella name for the overall development project. The name Edinburgh Harbour was chosen for this area of Leith Docks, which will include a cruise ship terminal, as it highlights the fact that Leith is the gateway into Scotland’s capital city.”

Forth Ports has applied for outline planning permission for developing the area around Ocean Terminal. The first two of nine “urban villages” will include 1870 new homes.

Two weeks later…

Developers have dropped plans to re-name a section of Leith Docks “Edinburgh Harbour”.

Proud Leithers said the change would strip the historic port of its heritage and identity.

In just more than a week over 4000 people signed a petition protesting at the renaming – part of a multi-million-pound waterfront revamp.

The developers, Forth Ports, said they felt it was right to listen to the protests.

The Ocean Terminal section of the waterfront which was to have been renamed Edinburgh Harbour will now be known as The Harbour, Leith Docks.

Charles Hammond, Forth Ports chief executive, said: “We have listened very carefully to the views expressed in the last couple of weeks and, working closely with the city council, we have taken these on board in arriving at the final decision to name this part of the overall development, ‘The Harbour, Leith Docks’.”

Edinburgh North and Leith MSP Malcolm Chisholm said: “I am glad Forth Ports listened to the overwhelming voice of Leith. I do not think they anticipated the reaction they got.”

…and so the name of Leith will ‘Persevere’ for a while yet.

“In Scotland people die young because of poverty. In one of the richest countries in the world, this is wrong.”

Poverty Truth Commission – From Listening to Action

The Poverty Truth Commission on 21st March in Glasgow, co-sponsored by the Priority Areas of the Church of Scotland and Faith in Community (Scotland) will bring together two groups that are generally not together – representatives of some of the poorest neighbourhoods in Scotland and well-known community leaders from the government, the media, the faith communities and academia.

Poverty is a disease that afflicts an ever-expanding body of the nation’s population; yet not enough is being done to eliminate the causes of this affliction. Policies seek to alleviate the symptoms, but even these are designed without the participation of those who bear the immediate burden of poverty. Those who are struggling against poverty are usually not at the table where decisions are made that affect them directly. This in itself is one of the causes of poverty. The real “experts” are not being heard except perhaps when violence or tragedy afflicts their neighbourhoods.

At the Poverty Truth Commission people who have grown up in the context of poverty will testify to the realities they have faced and still face – telling a bit about their own daily struggles while attempting to break the stereotypes by which they are often known. In their testimonies they will move beyond the hurdles they have faced to describe their hopes for the future and their resolve to work to overcome poverty not only in Scotland but throughout the world.

They will call on the community leaders not only to “walk in their shoes” but to join with them in building the kind of world when all people can reach their full potential.

Following the testimonies there will be an opportunity for participants to meet and talk with the testifiers and other people from poor areas, to hear more stories and to learn from individuals and organisations that are in this struggle. There will be a market place of grass-roots anti-poverty organizations and an opportunity for everyone present to talk about what they have heard and to get involved with others in the struggle.

POVERTY TRUTH COMMISSION 21st March, 2009 2.00 – 5.00pm

A unique gathering for everyone committed to tackling the causes and symptoms of poverty in Scotland today.

Glasgow City Chambers
George Square, Glasgow G1 1RX

To register for the event, please email your name and contact information (address, phone, email) to Paul Chapman (email: paul@faithincommunitscotland.org)

Don’t watch it – make it. Youth TV channel takes off

Fablevision’s partnership with the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation and Project Scotland has allowed Fablevision to develop an emerging community TV channel for Glasgow – Transform TV – run by young people – featuring their issues and ideas.

Outreach work during 2008 has revealed a wealth of talent in various Glasgow neighbourhoods – initially, Barmulloch and Shettleston, now, Blackhill Provanmil, Possil and Govan where young people aged between 16 and 19 who are not in formal training or employment are learning TV and media skills in their own local areas. Several of the pilot young people have gone on to access media courses or have gone straight into employment.

One had his own short film screened at the Grosvenor Cinema in the summer of 2008. His Gran commented: “if it hadn’t been for Fablevision’s guidance he would never have found this path”.

The Church of Scotland and Culture/Sport Glasgow are key players and in 2009, North Glasgow College are coming on board. Several young folk from each pilot area are now on paid training places and they will achieve accredited NQ modules. Ultimately, cascade training is the ambition – so that the trainees of today become the trainers of tomorrow – back in their own neighbourhood enterprise with newbies.

They are already sharing ideas and blogs. It’s a small step from here to a Transform community TV channel on the web. Look out BBC!!

Under the wing of professional film and TV artists like Frank Miller, Robert Farifield and Peter Wilson, the young people are accessing their training at Fablevision. Based in Govan, in the heart of the creative industries quarter, the Fablevision team will help them make full use of potential networking, signposting and portfolio/CV development.

And, if they don’t make the BBC first off, there is Fablevision Studios – Fablevision’s multi media trading arm delivering websites, promotional films, 3D animations and graphic design to other social enterprises as well as the public and private sector.

Studios is always on the look out for new talent and several of the Transform TV students have already landed free lance contracts creating music, digital animation, film and 3D work for the Charity (click to examples of their work).

Some are already high fliers who are making their own way in the free lance world – names to look out for.
The young people who have jumped at this “Chance for Change” are highly motivated individuals with skill, talent and ability in spade loads. If they have been NEET (Not in Education, Training or Employment), they now have more Choices and More Chances. So let’s take a look at what needs fixing in the mainstream Education, and Employment Training on offer, coz there sure ain’t much needing “fixing” about these guys!

http://www.fablevision.org/transformtv/index.html

In Dreams from my Father – Barak Obama,

Barak Obama, the community worker, describes how a delegation – a few inarticulate and dispirited tenants – made the housing department jump – and their sense of elation on the way back on the bus. Obama `gets` community empowerment.

‘‘I changed as a result of that bus trip, in a fundamental way. It was the sort of change that’s important not because it alters your concrete circumstances in some way (wealth, security, fame) but because it hints at what might be possible and therefore spurs you on, beyond the immediate exhilaration, beyond any subsequent disappointments, to retrieve that thing you once, ever so briefly, held in your hand. That bus ride kept me going, I think. Maybe it still does.’’

Out-of-town shopping malls, edge-of-town supermarket developments, poor planning decisions and the credit crunch have conspired to create an identity crisis for many of Scotland’s towns.

Can a new Scottish Government £60m Town Centre Regeneration Fund, announced earlier this month, help? Details of how the money will be used have still to be announced, although a structure will be put in place in the new financial year, starting in April. Already, however, towns all over Scotland are dreaming of what might be.

Paisley
The historic former mill town of Paisley has suffered badly since the opening of the Braehead shopping mall a few miles out of town.

David Ramsay, secretary of Paisley North community council, says that should Paisley receive new government money, the priority should be to make the High Street more accessible. “The pedestrianisation of the town centre has been hugely detrimental because people can not easily get to the shops, and a result the big names have pulled out,” he says, citing the halcyon days when Paisley could boast stores such as House of Fraser, Arnotts, Marks & Spencer, Littlewoods, Woolworths and the Co-op. M&S is still there but has been downgraded to an outlet store, while the Clarks shoe shop has moved to Braehead. The rest of the High Street is dominated by pound stores, charity shops and bars.

Renfrewshire Council Leader Derek Mackay says: “I’ve already spoken to John Swinney, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, and stressed the importance of funding being available to help regenerate traditional town centres such as Paisley.”

There are plans to refurbish the town hall and to create a museum and library complex there.

John Wilby, chairman of the Paisley West and Central community council, says: “Paisley has much potential with its close proximity to an international airport, and it could be developed as a base and launchpad for tourism. Its rich heritage could also be further exploited as a visitor attraction.”

Glenrothes
A “new town” in Fife, Glenrothes recently won the infamous Plook on the Plinth award from the Scottish architecture magazine Prospect, thanks to its “depressed, investment-starved centre”.

Prospect is hosting a conference in April at which community groups, the local MP and architects will be invited to contribute ideas of how to improve the town’s “outdated” planning and architecture. The majority of the town centre is contained indoors in the Kingdom Shopping Centre, which is something that John Glenday of Prospect feels should be reversed.

“Realigning the town centre to create a more traditional street pattern and to build shops that face outwards would be part of our masterplan in an ideal world,” he told The Herald. But he agrees that merely throwing money at town centres is not the whole answer. “You need the consensus of local people. After all they’re the ones who live, work, shop and socialise there.”

Ronald Page of the Glenrothes Area Futures Group, which is made up of community councils, resident groups and local churches, says: “The Plook on the Plinth award coincides with the aims and objectives of the Glenrothes Area Futures Group, set up one year ago and very much supported by the people in this area, especially in terms of a quest for a new Glenrothes town centre plan.

“We reckon Fife Council has ignored the Glenrothes area for 10 to 15 years.”

Cumnock
From his little shop window filled with last-minute deals to sunny places, travel agent Menzies McGee has watched change visit his town. He was born here, he grew up here and for the last 18 years has run his business here, but the community he once knew isn’t what it was. “Cumnock has gone downhill,” he says. “It used to have a bustling centre.”

The reason for this change is obvious: the dark hole created by the collapse of mining, textiles and farming. The promised solution is also obvious: physical, economic and social regeneration. The question is: when?

Soon, says Elizabeth Morton, deputy chief executive of East Ayrshire Council. “We should see a change in the physical environment in the next two to three years.” She is talking about a planning application for new £8m council offices, lodged last week. Just on the edge of the town there are also plans – led by Prince Charles – for a new community called Knockroon.

There’s another possible saviour, some might say an unlikely one: the supermarket. Nine thousand people live here, yet you can’t even do a proper weekly shop. So now the council is trying to attract a Tesco or an Asda. Mention the supermarket to locals, though, and eyes start to roll: they’ll believe it when they see it. After all, there’s now a recession to consider. Developers that were building here a year ago have stopped. Along one road out of the town is a row of beautiful new houses – beautiful new empty houses.

Back in his shop opposite the statue of Keir Hardie, Cumnockian and founder of the Labour Party, Menzies McGee mentions another important part of the solution. “The people are still the same,” he says. It is one of the things in this determined little town that shouldn’t change.

Musselburgh
Musselburgh’s past might well be its future, as the town looks to tourism for new opportunities. In the 1960s, townspeople were employed in fishing, mining or the paper, cotton or wire mills. “You could finish work on a Friday and find another job straight away,” says Alan Hay, a lifelong resident and vice-chairman of the community council. Things have changed dramatically: “Musselburgh will get badly hit by the credit crunch because it’s now a labour force for Edinburgh’s employers like Standard Life and the Royal Bank.”

Local retailers have struggled to compete with Tesco and the Fort Kinnaird shopping complex three miles away. “At one time we had five shoe shops and three gents’ outfitters; now we have none of either,” says Mr Hay.

Chocolate-shop-owner Elaine di Rollo of the famous local ice-cream dynasty has felt the pinch. “From a business point of view, I don’t think there’s a lot to keep people here,” she says. Youth unemployment is a growing concern.

Tourism is one area the town hopes to develop, says Mr Hay, highlighting the famous race course, the world’s oldest golf course, a history dating back to the Romans and the famous John Muir Way. Old industrial buildings are already being converted. Eskmills, a former fishing-net factory, houses offices, an art gallery and a restaurant; the disused bingo hall is becoming a pub; and the wireworks is becoming a health centre.

Community spirit survives, but Mr Hay welcomes the notion of regeneration funding. “Good will and volunteers are worth their weight in gold, but money breathes fresh air into a community.”

West Kilbride
West Kilbride, a 19th- century former weaving town on the Ayrshire coast, has suffered from high unemployment and the detrimental effects of out-of-town shopping centres. At one point half the local shops were boarded up.

But it became Scotland’s first craft town in 1998, following the establishment of the West Kilbride Community Initiative (WKCI), a charity founded by local people to encourage skilled craftspeople to take over derelict shops and to plough profits back into the town. It has been so successful in regenerating the town that, in 2006, the craft town project won the Enterprising Britain competition against stiff challenges from multimillion- pound projects across the UK. West Kilbride is now generally regarded as the pioneer for town-centre regeneration.

“Regeneration starts with passion, willpower and consensus from local people, and grows from there. It doesn’t have to be about attracting the big-name retailers,” says Maggie Broadley of WKCI. “It’s about helping small independent local businesses.” Since the community initiative was launched, eight artists’ studios, an exhibition gallery, a delicatessen, a photography business, a clock and watch repairer, a bridal shop and a graphic design business have opened. In addition, the local butcher, baker and greengrocer have been able to maintain their presence in the town.

Broadley believes that neighbouring Saltcoats, Kilbirnie and Dalry could benefit from copying the blueprint established by West Kilbride, if new government money were to become available. “Resources would have to be committed at an early stage but our project has shown that it’s workable. It’s important to create clusters so you have a network of vibrant, thriving communities that can learn from each other.”

North Ayrshire Council has identified Saltcoats, Ardrossan and Stevenston as areas of greatest need for financial investment. West Kilbride, says Broadley, suffered from a perception of being a wealthy town.

“We weren’t in an area that attracted funding and we persisted with hard work for six years before Scottish Enterprise and the local authority came on board.

If we’d had input at an earlier stage, we could have made a bigger impact and got things moving more quickly.”

BANFF looks more certain than ever to get the long-delayed Better Life Centre sports and community centre after Aberdeenshire Council announced last week it will invest £10million in the whole project.

It has finally agreed on a deal with Tesco to sell them Canal Park for a new Tesco store.

The news emerged as part of the council’s budget settlement for the coming year.

The council announced that they will invest £2.5million of capital plan cash into the whole project, adding to the £7.5million which the council is expected to get from selling off the park and the Bridge Street Community Centre to Tesco.

But there is still one major hurdle to cross.

The council has yet to secure legal agreement to sell the land which was gifted to the two councils of Banff and Macduff for the benefit of local people by the Duke of Fife in 1906 – and that could still be challenged in the Court of Session.

However, any such challenge to the intention and terms of the original donation by the Duke would require significant financial backing and legal expertise.

If the legal loose ends are successfully tied up, much of the £10million will go towards replacing the Canal Park football and tennis facilities at a new sports complex next to Duff House.

But in Macduff there will also be a youth drop-in centre and improvements to the existing facilities at the Myrus pitches.

Local councillors John Cox and Sydney Mair have been strong supporters of the whole Tesco/Better Life project.

Councillor Cox said: “These much-needed facilities will be welcomed by all in Banff and the surrounding area and I hope will be a catalyst for further investment in the town.

“It is only right that the local community benefits from the sale of the land to Tesco and I’m pleased that the Council has agreed to also draw money from their capital plan in order to fund this project.

“I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in the long and complex process to get us to where we are today.

“There is still a great deal of work to be done but I think today’s decision is a significant milestone for this project.”

Member for Troup, Councillor Mair, has campaigned for improved facilities to be included in Macduff, as well as Banff.

He said: “Whilst Canal Park was gifted to the town councils of Banff and Macduff there was always going to be a chance that any new development would focus on Banff.

“I’m delighted that the council has recognised the needs of Macduff and agreed to new sports facilities at Myrus and a drop-in centre for young people in Macduff.

“This is fantastic news and I’m keen that the project moves ahead quickly.”

The leader of Aberdeenshire Council, Anne Robertson said that she was delighted that the project was moving forwards: “This is a significant step in what has been a long and complex process.

“The new facilities which have been proposed will greatly benefit the people of both Banff and Macduff and ensure that everyone in the community has access to brand new state-of-the art leisure and community facilities.”

What the council describes as ‘complex negotiations’ with Tesco, described officially as the ‘preferred developer’ to the Canal Park site, and ongoing discussions with the Princess Royal Sports and Community Trust, who will run the facilities, have now resulted in agreement in principle to the development.

The negotiations have been ongoing for a number of years about the development of Canal Park, and the creation of the Better Life Centre.

Scottish Ministers approved in principle the application to develop the area in July 2007, and in June 2008 confirmed Aberdeenshire Council’s decision to grant planning permission.

Since then, detailed discussions have been taking place to agree appropriate funding arrangements between Aberdeenshire Council and the Princess Royal Sports and Community Trust.

The new facilities will include the Better Life Centre as a replacement to the existing Aberdeenshire Council-run community centre, a new football pitch and tennis court at Duff House, along with a new pavilion, and the upgrade of existing football pitches in the nearby Duff House grounds.

Macduff gets a grass pitch and an all-weather pitch plus a new pavilion up at Myrus, and a drop-in centre with meeting rooms for young people and the local community at Macduff.

The £10 million total cost will be funded through the sale of the land to Tesco, as well as funding from the Council’s Capital Plan.

Early plans for the Better Life Centre first came out almost ten years ago, and rumours about Tesco buying Canal Park circulated at about the same time.

Despite early council denials about Tesco involvement, it soon emerged that Tesco had already bought up the adjacent ground, formerly of Crown Motors.

After that, there was a long-running dispute between supporters of Princess Royal/Tesco, and those who wanted Canal Park/Bridge Street/ Duff House kept as they are now.

An unofficial referendum saw local people vote for the Tesco argument by 2:1.

The first work on the ground is likely to be at the Duff House site. Even though the council are selling to Tesco, the Canal Park site still cannot be touched until the replacement football pitch and tennis courts at Duff House are ready for use.

Housing Committee Member Briefing
“Investing in Affordable Housing”: A quick guide for committee members
EVH

EVH’s topical briefing notes on the Scottish Government’s consultation document, “Investing in Affordable Housing”.

In future, the Government is proposing that funding should be directed to a much smaller number of “Lead Developers” who would build new houses for themselves and for other housing associations. In the short term, groupings of housing associations (“consortia”) and single housing associations would also be able to take part in regional competitions for funding.

Download full document here