Notes of
Muirhouse/Salvesen Community council, 7th April 2009, Muirhouse Millennium Centre
Present
Roy Douglas, Betty Stevenson, Ulla Schott, John Davidson, Billy Anderson Hugh Harkins, Martha Thom and Cllr Alan Jackson
Apologies
Malcolm Warrack, Cllr Cammy Day, Willie Adams, and Ian Matthews
In Attendance
Bill Wilson (Environmental Task Force Manager, C.E.C.)
Kirsty Rodgers (Community Safety Team Leader, C.E.C.)
Eleanor Hill (Pennywell/Muirhouse Owners Group)
Liz Innes (Pennywell/Muirhouse Owners Group)
Elizabeth White (Pennywell/Muirhouse Owners Group)
Jimmy Butler (North Edinburgh Trust)
1.Correspondence
(a) Edinburgh Community Representative Conference (ECRN)
ECRN will host a community conference under the theme ‘Community Engagement within Neighbourhood Partnerships, Rhetoric or Reality?
ECRN hope that Community Councillors can attend. The date is Saturday 25th April from 9.30 to 1.00. Venue: Melting Pot, Rose Street Edinburgh.
(b) City Community Council Elections
It is a requirement that all community councils elect their councillors.
The elections for all citywide community councillors to their respective councils (not the posts of chair, secretary and treasurer) will take place on 15th October 2009. Notice for elections to the community council has to be circulated around the community by 31st August, with close of registration for those seeking election on 14th of September. If there are more than the required number of registrations elections to the community council will take place on 15th October. If there are less than the total nominations required to make up the full complement of community councillors then all those who have registered for election will be invited to become community councillors.
(c) Forth Partnership: Public Question
The Forth Neighbourhood Partnership responded to a question raised at it public meeting regarding the inclusion of Muirhouse Housing Association (MHA) as registered social landlord on the planning group tasked with redeveloping the Muirhouse/Pennywell area. The community council believed MHA’s experience would be invaluable to this process. Kate Ward the City Councils Regeneration Project Manager replied to the question saying community involvement on the development group consisted of representation from tenants, homeowners, Craigroyston School, North Edinburgh Arts and the Community Council. Her reply went on to say that MHA’s Chief Executive was now attending the meetings but it would be the City Councils 21st Century Homes project that would be developing the area and not Housing Associations.
(d) Maternity Services Strategy
NHS Lothian is holding a public consultation on its draft strategy for Maternity services and would welcome people’s views and comments.
A consultation document can be found in the local chemist or doctors surgery or alternatively people can find and complete the document on www.nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk.
(e) Modernising Planning Procedures
Under new Planning Legislation developers submitting large developments and master planning process will be required to undertake community consultation in their pre-application phase.
This will ensure people will be better informed about developers plans and how these plans impact on the existing community. Jimmy will contact the Planning Department and request both further information and if possible a planning officer would be available to give the C.C. a presentation.
2. Minute of Previous Meeting (3rd February 2009)
Minute agreed by Roy Douglas and seconded by Ulla Schott.
3.Matters Arising from Minutes
(a) Community Council Internet Site and Communication Strategy
The application submitted to the C.E.C. Community Engagement Fund for resources to maintain the Website and create a newsletter has been successful.
(b) Election of Community Council Treasurer
This item is to be continued.
4. Reports by Neighbourhood Planning Officers
(a) Environmental and Recreational Report
The C.C. has for the past number of months raised concerns with the Neighbourhood Planning office regarding the estate management of the area. Bill Wilson the City Councils Environmental & Recreational Task Manager came to the meeting to give an update on estate maintenance issues. Bill spoke of not having the appropriate manpower resources to cover the recreational maintenance needs for the North of the City. He however informed the Community Council that there was a recruitment drive to employ a further seven staff to that will be allocated to North Edinburgh. The C.C. raised the issue of grass cuttings not being removed. Bill said this was because of the additional cost to remove the crass cuttings and send them to land fill quarries. He went on to say that the solution was to cut the large grass areas more frequently to stop the grass from getting to a length that creates the mounds when cut.
Other issues raised were the lack of evidence that Pennywell was included in any current estate maintenance plan especially around the demolition areas, despite residents still living there. Members of the Pennywell Muirhouse Owners Group put up a gallery of photographs exposing the current degenerative state of their community, which includes images of obstructed footpaths with household and building materials that have been fly tipped, overgrown grass and shrub areas and areas with large amounts of litter. The lack of litterbins at street level and in parks across the community is also an issue, one reason for this is the council replaced metal litterbins with plastic ones, these less robust bins have been vandalised and set of fire, the Community Council would like to see the metal bins reintroduced.
Bill Wilson said he would produce a community plan for the area that would include action to address the Community Councils (C.C.) issues. He will send the community plan to the C.C. for comments.
(b) Community Safety Action Week
Kirsty Rodger, Community Safety Team Leader inform the C.C. that the Neighbourhood Partnership would undertake a week of action in Muirhouse, Pennywell and Salvesen on the week starting 11th May. The week of action will see resources concentrated in these areas to tackle issues such as dog fowling, anti-social behaviour and street cleaning. During this week there will be an increased Police presences across the area supported by a mobile CCTV unit. The City Council will increase its dog warden patrols and cleansing department resources to clean up the area. This action will be further supported by joint walkabouts to identify hotspot areas. An initial walkabout will take place on April 14th.
5. Community Council High Rise Wormeries Project
The City Councils Waste Management funding programme has requested an evaluation and update of the progress of the project. It was raised that the project could form part of the areas wider climate change agenda currently being developed through North Edinburgh Trust. Jimmy will meet with Ulla and Danny to progress this issue
6. Reports from Neighbourhood Planning Action Groups
(a) Learning Employment (L.E.) Group
The L.E. is currently devolved into sub-groups that will work with a range of objectives such as developing and sustaining long-term training and employment access opportunities in the current downturn market. The sub-groups are tasked to report back to the full action group by August 2009.
(b) Physical Regeneration (P.R.) Group
It was reported that the master planners who will consult with the community over the redevelopment of Pennywell, Muirhouse and West Pilton Crescent have been appointed. It was suggested that the Muirhouse/Salvesen and West Pilton/West Granton Community Councils meet to discuss the community engagement agenda of the appointed Master Planners. Jimmy Butler will approach C.E.C. Housing Development and request a copy of successful tender document.
(c) Health and Social Care (HSC) Group
It was reported that a film night was arranged to show a programme about Women Supporting Women highlighting the issues that bring women to the project and the services they engage with. The HSC meeting revisited issues that were highlighted at the group’s community seminar in 2008. These issues included improving community information about health services and transport links that enable people to access these services. Councillor Morris informed the meeting that resources had been secured to positively progress the issue of community access to information.
7. North Edinburgh Trust Governance
The meeting was informed that North Edinburgh Trust (NET) was reviewing their governance structure, which consists of a Board of Trustees drawn exclusively from the areas Community Councils (C.C). Each C.C. nominates two representatives to sit as trustees, NET wish to include on the Board Trustees from the wider community who have knowledge of social enterprise.
They are proposing that one representative is nominated from each of the C.C.’s with the remaining Trustees selected through a yet to be decided community process. The C.C. will be kept informed of NET’s progress with this proposal.
8. A.O.C.B.
(a) Information Points
It was agreed that raising the profile of the C.C. and getting information out to the community is an issue that needs to be addressed. Jimmy Butler will make application to the Neighbourhood Partnership for community display boards to be setup. It was agreed as a priority that a community council information board is required for Salvesen, other areas will also be identified.
9. Date of next meeting
7pm Tuesday 14th May 2009 @ Muirhouse Millennium Centre.
