INVERESK COMMUNITY COUNCIL


Minutes of Meeting held on Monday 11th February 2002 at Stracathro (Inchbare) Hall

Present        
Careston    -    
Stracathro    -    
Edzell    -    Mrs E. Hickson, Mr A. de Costa, Mr I. Rae, Mr C. Simpson
Glenesk    -    Mr G. Lowden,  Mrs M. McIntosh, Mrs N. Bertram
Menmuir    -    Mr M. Johnston
Lethnot    -    Mr I. Morrison
Brechin Landward    -    Mr P. Yates, Mr C. Gow
        
In attendance    -    Mr D. Murray, Cllr. R. Myles, Mr C. Hutchison (Brechin Advertiser), Courier, Mr P. Bates (Chairman NHS Tayside), Mr G. Marr (Chief Executive Tayside University Hospitals NHS Trust), Col. J. Hensman (Chairman of Angus Council’s Jubilee Committee) and 5 members of the public
        
Apologies    -    Mr H. Campbell Adamson, Mr R. Cooke, Mr C. Williamson, Cllr. R. Leslie-Melville, Mr F. Skene, Mrs I. Miller

In the absence of the Chairman, the Secretary, with the approval of the Community Councillors attending the meeting, chaired the meeting.
The Secretary opened the meeting by welcoming the guests who will be addressing the meeting prior to the usual agenda items.
- Col. J. Hensman, Chairman of Angus Council’s Jubilee Committee,
- Mr P. Bates, Chairman of NHS Tayside
- Mr G. Marr, Chief Executive Tayside University Hospitals NHS Trust
1.    Golden Jubilee Celebrations
Col. Hensman outlined Angus Council’s plans / proposals, to date, for the main celebratory event which will take place on Sunday 18th August 2002 and will be based around Glamis Castle.
Much of the celebrations will have a ‘youth’ theme, with various parades / marches and music supplied by military bands etc.  
It’s hoped the Community Councils will ‘get people to Glamis’ – Brechin Community Council is expected to co-ordinate matters for our area.
Community Councils will not be required to raise funds.
Street parties, if any communities are interested, will be separate to anything being planned by the Council. As such, these parties will have to be organised by the communities themselves.
Further details would follow nearer the time.    Action
2.    Stracathro Hospital
Mr Bates and Mr Marr briefly updated the meeting on what had happened since the January 17 NHS board meeting when it was decided to reverse some of the proposals put forward in August 2001. The main points were
- Agreed to invest £20 million in the existing Angus infrastructure
- Stracathro is assured of a long term future (no definition of ‘long term’ given)
- An end to Stracathro’s provision of acute services to people of Angus
- The CCU will not be opening again. This has been replaced with a paramedic-led community thrombolysis programme.
- The operating theatres at Stracathro will continue to be used with a capacity of at least 24 weekly sessions.
- Communication needs to improve and up to date information on plans etc must be made available to the public. The possibility of some sort of bulletin to achieve this was mentioned.
- The need for all to work together to reinstate confidence in the service is a priority. Some mistakes have been made in the past – but must not be too backward looking.
- The future will be different to what it was in the past
- More investment in diagnostic and service treatment (MRI scanner)
- improved services for the elderly to be introduced
- provision of intermediate and out patient care
- investment in stroke rehabilitation
Other matters discussed
- Mr de Costa illustrated the problems some patients have when they are given appointments at Ninewells that sometimes mean lengthy waits either before or after the appointment due to a lack of public transport.
Mr Marr acknowledged that public transport to / from Ninewells is not always satisfactory and NHS Tayside will be working closely with Angus Council to examine options such as a bus shuttle between Stracathro and Ninewells. In addition, appointments could be timed to try and more closely fit them to suit transport availability.
- The availability of beds at Ninewells is a concern, particularly in winter, due to ‘bed-blocking’. This is an issue that must somehow be addressed, but a solution is difficult.
- The parking difficulties at Ninewells were discussed and again this was acknowledged as a problem. This was an inherited problem, but there are ongoing discussions to try and resolve the issues.
- Mr Simpson asked if there was going to be a sufficient labour pool available to meet the requirements of the new plans / proposals for Stracathro and was assured that there would be sufficient expertise within Tayside.    
The Secretary thanked both Mr Marr and Mr Bates for attending.    
        
3.    Minutes of previous meeting and matters arising
Approval of the minutes of the previous meeting was proposed by Mr M. Johnston and seconded by Mrs E. Hickson. This was approved as such.     
        
4.    Treasurer’s Report
Mr Simpson presented his report. The opening balance was £437.52 - £0.30 bank interest has been received and £24.93 expenditure has been incurred (£12.93 to Angus County Press and £12.00 to ASCC). The closing balance on 31st January 2002 stood at £412.89.
The rebate for hall rental is still due from Angus Council..    
        
5.    Police Matters
No police matters raised.    
        
6.    Roads Matters
The general condition of the roads is a concern, particularly the number of potholes. Specific mention was made of
- Potholes on the road at the entrance to the Edzell Golf Club ‘driving range’
- Potholes on the newer / most recently tarred area of the road between Inchbare and the A90.
- Surface water on the road in Glen Esk near Craigosheena and the Haugh. Believed to be due to a drainage problem.
- The stone bridge between Balfour and Menmuir where the infill is falling away.
The Secretary was asked to write to the Director of roads with these concerns.     








Secretary
        
7.    Stracathro Hospital
Reported above     

        
8.    Planning Matters    
    No matters raised or of concern.    
                
9.    Correspondence Received    
    a.    Copy of ‘Consultation Report on “Land Reform – the Draft Bill” from the Scottish Executive.
Cllr Myles reported that the proposals, in general, were acceptable. However, there are some concerns about certain points within the sections on access, the community right to buy and tenants / crofters rights to buy.       
    b.    2 copies of Angus Council’s Consultation / Involvement Strategy    
    c.    Letter from Angus Council’s Chief Executive’s Dept confirming that all community councils should have a Constitution and Standing Orders.     
    d.    Letter from Angus Council (Planning and Transport) notifying us of the new Case Officer along with the location of his / her local Development Control Surgery.    
    e.    A copy of the finalised Dundee and Angus Structure Plan    
    f.    Three supplementary reports, from Scottish Natural Heritage, arising out of the Consultation on the proposed National Park in the Cairngorms. The three reports summarise the information received by SNH and some of the lessons they learned as a result of the consultation.     
    g.    Copies of the minutes of the last 6 meetings of the ‘Cairngorms Community Councils Group’.     
        
10.    From the Regions    
    Edzell
    - Scottish Heritage sign for Edzell Castle at the Muir end of the village should have been taken down by now. However, it’s still up. The Secretary was asked to take this up with Scottish Heritage.
- Road signs within the village are dirty, or in need of re-painting. The Secretary was asked to take this up with the Roads dept.    

Secretary



Secretary
        - The cherry trees on the south side of the Edzell Arch have now reached a size where they obscure the Arch. The Secretary was asked to write to the Parks department to request that they be cut back after they have bloomed this coming spring.
- Cllr Myles reported that the Roads / Parks departments had confirmed that the improvement work to the Muir car park would be done as soon as money becomes available – probably in the next financial year.     

Secretary
    Glenesk    - A request for a sign prohibiting dogs from the Tarfside play area was made. The Secretary is to write to the Parks department.  
- Mr Black reported that the Council has advised him that their hands are tied. This is now with Dalhousie Estates.     Secretary
    Lethnot    - Mr Morrison reported that he had been without a phone since the strong winds (or tress) had knocked down the lines nearly two weeks earlier.  
Regretfully this was not something the Community Council could do anything about, but the representatives of the Brechin Advertiser and the Courier took an interest and they could possibly help.    
        
11.    Any Other Business
Nothing matters arising.    
        
12.    Next Meeting
The next meeting will be at 7.30pm on Monday 11th March 2002 in the Inglis Memorial Hall, Edzell.    

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