Ooops - it's been a while...
But, you can now find agendas, reports and minutes for our meetings in August, September and October on our Minutes page.
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Just a quick update today: the minutes and notes from our recent public meeting with Midlothian Council have been posted on our website here.
It was a very open discussion but, unlike the impressions of many of the community, there is no committed timescale for the High School to be built. In fact, we learned that the next stage of the process is to review the school roll projections in December to decide IF, and then WHEN, a High School would be required in Gorebridge. Our anecdotal evidence from many in our existing community is that a high school is needed NOW - so we hope a similar conclusion is reached via the official channels. Watch this space... It's been a long time coming, but it appears there is finally formal progress in a new high school to be built for Gorebridge! It is still early days, but we're excited to learn more about the project and ensure the community is consulted and can be used in a positive way to shape the proposal as it progresses.
The first step is a public meeting, where we will receive a presentation and the project so far and have the opportunity for a question and answer session. The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday 31 August at 7pm. This will take place over Zoom and is open to the public, so if you would like to come along and/or have questions asked on your behalf, please see our Gorebridge High School for details on how to do this. The minutes from our March 2021 meeting have been published. These are still in draft form until they are formally approved at the next meeting, but you can read them here.
Some highlights: Pump Track at Auld Gala Park Ellen from Gorebridge Community Cares gave an update on the progress being made with this new facility. A pump track is a circuit of bumps, banked turns and other features that are designed to be ridden completely by riders "pumping"—generating momentum by up and down body movements, instead of pedalling or pushing. A mock-up example of the pump track was shared at the meeting. This showed a small (approx. 20m x 30m) undulating concrete track, with a maximum height of 0.8m (mainly around the ‘berms’, which are banked corners of the track that enable fast transition from one section to another). The nearest portion of the track to the neighbouring fence line is approximately 20m. No concerns were raised in the meeting, and it was acknowledged that it was great to see how this project was shaping up which will be an excellent addition to our community. Proposed Development at Lingerwood, East Newtongrange & South Mayfield This is in the early stages of planning, no entry on the planning portal yet. This covers the whole area of land both sides of Crawlees Road, wrapping around the industrial estate at Mayfield and effectively joining Mayfield, Newtongrange and Gorebridge (Gowkshill) together. No indication on number of houses in the proposal, but likely 800+. There will be a public consultation meeting on 28 April, 4pm – 7pm, held as a virtual event. Details are TBC. Gorebridge, Newtongrange and Mayfield & Easthouses Community Councils are discussing how we can work together to respond. Skyrora Test Facility - 21/00132/DPP Representatives from Moorfoot Community Council attended to discuss an application for a rocket engine test facility in their district. They have arranged a meeting with the developers on 17 March, and are looking to gather any additional questions from us. Can you knit? Are you able to help new Primary 1 children adjust to their time at school? If so, we received the following from Laura Wright at Midlothian Council: The Mid Mouse project is a Midlothian transition project to support children who are starting Primary 1 in August 2021. We want to ensure that this is a joyful experience for all Midlothian children. We require willing volunteers to help to knit/crochet mice, so that every child starting school in August will receive one. Our hope is that this will help ‘knit our Midlothian community back together’. The children will get to take their mouse with them when they start school and we hope that this will help them to settle. Children will receive their mouse in the summer term, in the lead up to the school holidays. During this time, children will take part in various transition activities, with their mouse at their nursery and/or with their childminder and at home. If you are interested in getting involved, you can reach Laura at [email protected] to find out more. If you want to get started right away, you'll find the knitting pattern in the file below.
In summary, the changes mean that the owner of the property must ensure that:
These smoke and heat alarms must be ceiling-mounted and interlinked. Carbon monoxide detectors are also required in every room with a carbon-fuelled appliance, such as a boiler or heater, and wherever a flue exists. The carbon monoxide alarms do not require to be linked to each other, or to the smoke and heat alarms. If you own your own property, then it is for you to ensure your home meets the new standards. If your home is owned by a housing association or similar, then the onus is with the landlord. Lynne has provided a leaflet produced by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service which gives more details to the new requirements, and what this means for you. The legislation was originally planned to be introduced in 2021, but this has been delayed until 2022 at the earliest due to the Coronavirus pandemic - note that the leaflet still reflects the original dates.
There is also significant information available on the Scottish Government website:
https://www.gov.scot/publications/fire-and-smoke-alarms-in-scottish-homes/ Members from the Community Council met in November with members of the Arniston Improvement Trust & Hunterfield Gothenburg Tavern Trust to discuss how we might work together to improve the visibility of the work of the Trusts and, in particular, the plans for the Hunterfield Tavern building itself. The minutes of this meeting are now available to view below. In an encouraging first step, the Trusts have now published a website which we encourage you to view: http://arnistontrust.org.uk/
* NOTE: Minutes are 'draft' purely as they are not formally approved at the next meeting. However, they have been agreed upon between all parties and represent an accurate record of the meeting.
As we mentioned previously, there was a proposal published on the temporary closure of Crawlees Road and a short-notice 1-week public consultation as a result. Gorebridge & District Community Council looked at many Facebook posts, feedback to our own email inbox, and comments on this blog and, after a brief email discussion, presented an objection to the proposal. You can find a copy of our letter below. We would like to thank all of those who have replied to us to let their feelings be known. We believe we have fairly represented the views provided, but if you disagree please get in touch.
Further to our post yesterday, a public consultation has been launched regarding the proposed (temporary) closure of Crawlees Road amongst others. This can be seen here:
www.midlothian.gov.uk/directory_record/49723085/the_spaces_for_people_project_vehicle_traffic_ban_on_crawlees_road_oatslie_road_and_roslin_glen_road/category/182/current_consultations The Community Council has still yet to be consulted directly, but we will be responding to the public consultation and summarising the mood of the community that has interacted with us on Facebook and on this website. With only a week's consultation (and zero notice of it coming), unfortunately we feel this is the best level of engagement we can manage. As always, we encourage constructive comments below. There has been a right old stooshie online today regarding a page that is on the Midlothian Council website that suggests that a proposal is being looked at to close Crawlees Road to vehicles. The original page can be seen here:
www.midlothian.gov.uk/info/200296/coronavirus/660/spaces_for_people/16 Clearly, this is causing a great deal of concern for many residents of Gorebridge, Mayfield and Newtongrange (not to mention other areas for the other roads included). It is also worth noting that this proposal is from the same list of proposals that previously included removing parking from Main Street, and this turned out to be not real. Posts from local councillors also suggest they have not been consulted about this particular proposal, and neither has Gorebridge & District Community Council (nor have any other Community Councils). We have been in touch with Councillor Muirhead directly, and he is looking into it. Looking at the parent page on the Council website for these proposals, it is stated on the "assessment table" that this proposal has not been accepted (nor rejected). As we understand it, this proposal has not progressed further than being something put forward for consideration. If it were to progress further, a public consultation would require to be undertaken and the many, many opposing views we have heard already would be provided. We'll keep you posted. |
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