Minutes of Meeting of Bridge of Allan Community Council
Held on Tuesday 18th May 2021.
Due to Covid-19 this meeting was held remotely via Zoom.
Present: Mike Watson (MW) Chair; Leslie Harkness (LH) Secretary; Alasdair Taylor (AT) Treasurer; Anna Doeser
(AD) Communications Officer; Iain McCusker (IMcC) Planning Officer; Janie Meikle Bland (JMB); Bill Fortune
(BF); Neil Harman (NH); Alastair Heron (AH).
Apologies: Andrew Drummond Baxter (ADB); Sandra Davidson (SD); Siobhan Hencher (SH); Vicky
McDowell(VMcD); Duncan McDougall (DMcD) Associate Member; Moira Randall (MR) Associate Member;
Lucy McCormick, Minute Secretary; Alyn Smith MP; Andrew Davis (Stirling Council); PC Paul Gilliland; PC Dee
Chalmers; Graham Russell (Chair of the Friends of Bridge of Allan);Douglas Neilson( Vice Chair of the Friends
of Bridge of Allan)
In attendance: Councillor Douglas Dodds; Councillor Graham Houston (GH); Councillor Alastair Majury;
Councillor Alasdair Tollemache; Councillor Jeremy McDonald; Alexander Stewart MSP; Gavin Drummond (GD);
Sandi Grieve (SG); Sam Shortt (SS);
Abbreviations – Community Council (CC), Common Good Fund (CGF), Stirling Council (SC), Annual General
Meeting (AGM)
B 1915 Welcome, Apologies and Conflict of Interest (MW)
MW chaired this meeting. MW opened the meeting at 7.30pm and welcomed all those in attendance via Zoom
including two new members; Neil Harman and Alastair Heron. Apologies were recorded as noted above and
conflict declared by Alastair Heron regarding planning at the Westerton
B 1916 Approval of Minutes, Matters Arising and Action Log (MW)
The minutes of the April 2021 CC meeting were approved: proposed by LH seconded by AD.
Further to item B1886 regarding Cornton level crossing: Councillor Dodds advised that the concerns raised by
SS have been referred to the Network Management team and a meeting scheduled for w/c 24th May 21 to
discuss them. Councillor Dodds will provide an update at the next CC meeting. SS explained the usual
process for such road/network developments or changes would be for studies to be undertaken and mitigation
measures agreed prior to the works commencing; in this case these processes have been overlooked making
the issues more challenging to retrospectively address. MW indicated that this has been noted and thanks
those involved for their efforts to remediate.
SS offered to attend the meeting with SC and Network Rail to articulate the concerns; Councillor Dodds agreed
to suggest this and will forward the invitation if deemed appropriate.
Classification: Limited
In relation to item 1902 regarding Dog Fouling, JMB gave a progress update indicating that the posters and
leaflets produced by the LeCropt nursery are now with the printer being laminated with some expected to be
ready for distribution this week. The nursery has also up-cycled several poo-bag dispensers and Councillor
Dodds has provided 5,000 bags to be made available at various locations: mostly those with the highest
instances of fouling and most footfall. Media updates are planned for the coming weeks and an invitation
extended to the dog warden to increase presence in the area to continue to the focus on community spirit
and engagement.
Councillor Tollemache has requested an update on the Park of Kier planning extension but received no
update at the time of the CC meeting.
In relation to Item B 1909 and the Pollinator Strategy, a resident wrote to suggest Haws Park as an alternative
option for the pilot grassland area. In addition, Douglas Neilson, Vice Chair of the Friends of Bridge of Allan,
sent the CC a list of seven alternatives including the Haws Park option. Graham Russell, the Chair of the Friends,
also wrote stressed the need to establish whether the strategy involved appropriate measures to encourage
wildflowers to develop. Councillor Tollemache very helpfully forwarded a copy of SC’s briefing document on
the strategy. We have included the matter on the agenda today and AD will update the CC on the issues
involved.
In relation to Item B 1910 and the impact of Zoom on the CC’s administration budget, Councillor McDonald
has raised this issue with SC. In its reply, the Council has explained that, once it has received from community
councils their annual breakdown of their administration budget expenditure, SC will be in a position to assess
if adjustments to the budgets are required.
Regarding Item B 1909, the two residents from Chalton Road who were concerned about the seriously
deteriorating road surface contacted the CC again. Both residents appreciate that Councillor Dodds has raised
their concerns with SC but they still wished to know if there were any imminent likelihood of the road
becoming a priority on the council’s resurfacing schedule. Councillor Dodds has since confirmed that Chalton
Road is not in the 2021/2022 nor the 2022/2023 roads program and that he would try to establish when it will
be scheduled. He has since forwarded a reply from SC confirming that the council works to a 3–5-year program
on a needs basis and that any proposed resurfacing of Chalton Road would be assessed in the 2023/2024
program. A CC colleague has pointed out that Kenilworth Road also has a deteriorating road surface. The
resident who wrote to the CC to express concern about the frustration and delay for road users which he
believes will result from the installation of the new Cornton railway barrier has now forwarded his
correspondence to the Office of Road and Rail.
Following concerns over mail delivery highlighted in item B 1911 Residents voice, LH wrote to the Manager
of Stirling Royal Mail Delivery office whose response did not confirm or deny that any formal decision has
been taken to alternate delivery days however did accept that the standard of service during the pandemic
has been below that which is usually expected and hopes to return to normal as soon as possible.
B 1917 Police Report
Between the 20th April and 17th May 2021 a total of 8 crimes occurred within the Bridge of Allan beat code,
the crimes detailed below are those that are of relevance to the local community.
ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOUR
On 2nd May 2021 at Pendreich Road a self-accommodation was damaged. The persons responsible have
Classification: Limited
been identified and charged with a vandalism.
DRUG MISUSE
On 2nd May 2021 at Airthery Road a male was found in possession of a small amount of cannabis. He was
issued with a recorded police warning.
On 3rd May 2021 at Hermitage Road a male was found in possession of a small amount of cannabis. He was
issued with a recorded police warning.
VIOLENT CRIME
Nothing to report.
HOUSEBREAKINGS/CRIMES OF DISHONESTY
On 3rd May 2021 at Henderson Street a male used a fake note to purchase goods. Enquiries are ongoing in
relation to this and if you have any information in relation to this please contact 101.
ROAD SAFETY AND ROAD TRAFFIC RELATED CRIME
On 12th May 2021 at Airthery Road, a male was found to be travelling above the prescribed speed limit. He
was stopped by officers and a report will be submitted to the PF in due course.
MATTERS OF NOTE
Between 20th April and 17th May 2021 (inclusive) there was a total of 77 calls to the Bridge of Allan area.
Please note this also covers parts of the Cornton, Causewayhead and Stirling University.
A breakdown of some of these calls is as follows 10 were public nuisance calls, 6 calls were drugs/substance
related, 3 call was domestic related, 1 were disturbance type call and 13 were road related traffic calls.
Since the last meeting CPT officers conducted a road traffic related operation which saw 3 motorist warned
in relation to their speed and 2 motorist warned in relation to lighting offence and parking issues.
Activities for forthcoming period:
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Monitor and patrol areas where youth related antisocial behaviour has been identified.
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Carry out schools patrols.
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Carry HHR in area in which speeding complaints being received
B 1918 Common Good Fund (AT)
No applications received since previous meeting. Councillor Dodds indicated that one should be expected
from the Well House as he has shared the application form.
B 1919 Pollinator Strategy (AD)
Classification: Limited
AD provided some background to the strategy indicating that in Oct 2019 SC declared a Climate Emergency
and part of their action plan has been to implement a Pollinator Strategy which includes taking a more
ecological approach to grassland management in order to promote conditions favourable for wildflowers.
In March 2021, David Rae (Grounds Officer, SC) contacted the CC to advise that an area of grassland between
John Murray Drive & Ferniebank Brae was selected for inclusion in a pilot study; the larger area being left
uncut. Views from residents highlighted that this large area is heavily used for outdoor social and
recreational activities and therefore not a suitable or welcome location for reduced cutting. Several
alternative options have been proposed including use of a different area entirely, an alternative cutting
pattern to include a ‘pitch’ type area in the middle of longer grass and reversing the original proposal so that
the smaller area is included in the pilot whilst the larger area remains under its current regime.
AD sought opinions from the CC regarding the proposals as well as community engagement on
strategy going forward given the responses received.
MW indicated a preference for selecting an alternative site altogether since the site is so well used and some
of the others that have been proposed by residents would be unlikely to receive any objections.
Councillor Tollemache provided an explanation for the proposed reversal and AD indicated that discussions
are underway for increased signage to ensure that the process and reasoning is understood, and extra
vigilance required around dog fouling and litter to prevent the area from becoming an eye-sore.
GD highlighted that there are no other recreational outdoor spaces on the north side of Henderson Street and
the general view of the residents is that the status quo should be maintained, although the wholesale reversal
option is considered an acceptable compromise if an alternative location cannot be agreed. The ‘pitch’ style
cutting would not be feasible as it would require two ride-on mowers taking far longer and using more fuel to
perform the task than the usual tractor that can complete in a few minutes. GD also noted that none of the
areas identified for the pilot study are in Central Stirling and suggested that the area by Sainsburys or within
Kings Park would be more suitable.
JMB queried what other locations with BOA had been suggested which may be put forward to SC as
alternatives and whilst supporting BOA’s involved in the experiments in principle, echoed GD’s sentiment that
SC should be challenged to identify areas in the city centre that could be given over to wildflowers. AD
confirmed that areas of Haws Park, Camerons Haugh and some others including Cornton road had been
suggested to David Rae and he was in the process of reviewing them in terms of land ownership and suitability
etc.
It was agreed that the CC is supportive of being involved in the pilot providing a more suitable location is
identified, however is critical of SC’s approach in respect to community engagement which risks damaging
faith and trust in the overall Pollinator strategy. Councillor Houston suggested that proposing sites that are
agreeable to the community would be helpful in moving the discussions forward with SC, AD agreed to share
all the proposed sites including those outside the CC area with David Rae. It was acknowledged that the tone
of recent communications is conciliatory and would suggest that SC are open to feedback on the matter.
B 1920 Wallace Monument Stakeholder’s Group (JMB)
JMB advised that the stakeholder’s group has met once and the keynote speaker for the session was Gordon
Morrison (CEO of Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions) who reported on current activities within the
sector, confirming that a large portion of Scotland’s monuments will remain closed as it is not financially
Classification: Limited
viable to open with current commuting restrictions and some places reporting staff shortages. Wallace
monument opened on 26th April and visitor numbers have been strong with residents gaining free access
although online booking is required. BOA business group is particularly concerned with the destination
promotion activities but has not met since the last CC meeting however SC Tourism team and local
merchants are busy preparing for re-opening. A meeting of the BOA merchant ideas group is planned for
1st week in June and opportunities to promote and raise the profile of BOA on the YourStirling website will
be discussed; BOA is potentially at a disadvantage from not having a destination / landing page that the SC
website can point to as individual businesses are not permitted to advertise directly on that site. Councillor
McDonald suggested looking into the FROG website as it was setup for this purpose and SC was one of the
first councils to invest in it.
B 1921 Tennis Courts (BF)
After a couple of false starts, a positive meeting was held via zoom with Chris McKenna from ActiveStirling
and three members of the Tennis Courts Committee and a follow-up session between Chris and
SportScotland has been scheduled to determine the criticality of stakeholder engagement e.g. Stirling Sports
Club in BOA’s application. Once the planned meetings have happened the CC will clearer on how to progress
with the application and whether a joint submission would be beneficial.
GD queried item 1906 in April’s minutes stating that SC had advised that they will not adopt the tennis
courts in whatever state they are in and indicated that this is a surprising attitude given their past
involvement; BF confirmed that this is their current view and seems unlikely to change given this has been a
consistent message for at least the last two years. The CC needs to get funding to get the courts into a
usable state, at which point SC will agree and commit to a contribution towards maintenance.
B 1922 Play Park initiative – carried forward to next meeting.
B 1923 Chairs Report (MW)
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Confirmed that replacement bridge at Cocksburn on Darn Walk is now scheduled to start in a 4 week
period. -
Royal Hotel now sold to Fairview School.
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Former Bologna restaurant is now a new restaurant called Next Chapter.
B 1924 Secretary’s Report (LH)
Residents’ CommunicationsA resident from Orchard Drive reported a problem with rats coming from the burn at the rear of the
properties in that location. The CC referred the matter to the elected members and Councillor Tollemache
took up the issue with SC.A volunteer working on the restoration of the Well House contacted the CC about possible sources of
funding.A resident asked the CC if there were a Beavers group in Bridge of Allan
Councillors’Communications
Both Councillors Dodds and Tollemache have forwarded from Network Rail details of the next phase of the
railway barrier works due to take place throughout the month of May.Classification: Limited
Councillor Dodds sent the CC a copy of a communication he had sent to SC expressing concern about the
delay in taking forward the working group proposals to address the speeding issue in Henderson Street; in
his communication, he also underlined the fact that he had yet to receive the data from the speed strips
which were established.Councillor Dodds also informed the CC that he has been approached by the Well House restoration project
volunteers to enlist his support for a funding application to the Community Pride Fund and/or the CGF as the
next stage of the project involves major works to make the building wind and watertight, including a new
roof and lime mortaring of the walls.Councillor Houston sent the CC a copy of a SC press release on the resumption of special uplifts of waste.
In relation to the Park of Keir and the correspondence between the Chair of Dunblane CC and SC on this
matter, Councillor Tollemache forwarded his own communication with SC asking why, in the interests of
transparency, any draft agreement should not be placed in the public domain, and also asking if ward
councillors will still receive an appropriate briefing prior to any planning meeting as promised.Stirling Council Communications
SC sent the CC a briefing paper on the creation of a dedicated Community Council Enquiries Co-ordinator to
provide support for community councils within the corporate customer services team. The Community
Engagement Team now becomes the Community Development TeamSC informed the CC of the Scottish Government’s online consultation on Local Place Plans which will last
until June 25.The Coordinator of this year’s refreshing of SC’s Bike Life Report contacted the CC as he is looking for case
studies of individuals who have taken up walking and cycling during the pandemic. AD has taken this
forward.The CC has been asked if it wishes to comment on the potential imposition of parking restrictions to address
a parking obstruction issue outside a property in The AvenueGeneral Communications
Lesley Anne Cain of Network rail contacted the CC to enable her to get in touch with Sam Shortt to discuss
the traffic management concerns he had raised at the march meeting during the discussion of the new
railway barrier crossing; she indicated a readiness to take up the concerns with SC.Safe Blairforkie Greenspace sent the CC copies of their updated leaflet and poster.
SVE (Stirlingshire Voluntary enterprise) sent a letter to the CC outlining the details of their new digital
volunteering portal which will provide free access for third sector organisations to recruit and manage
volunteers more easily.The owner of Logans Wee Library independent bookshop contacted the CC to indicate her willingness to
work with local organisations to support children’s access to books and to encourage reading for pleasure.
The CC received the April Newsletter of Scottish Rural Action.The Accounts Commission which reports on the performance of Scottish councils asked us the CC complete a
short feedback survey on its report on SC.B 1925 Treasurer’s Report (AT)
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Bill received for play park work – £29, 352.80. Takes play park fund down to approx. £543.26.
Classification: Limited
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Administration fund – was £54.76.
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Un-Restricted Fund - £2781.00.
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Covid Fund - £2098.21.
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Christmas Lights - £24.00.
B 1926 Residents Voice
Question raised about progress on traffic management issues on Henderson Street. Councillor Dodds
provided an update about how there will be extra yellow lines and build outs along the street. All residents
and businesses in Henderson Street will get a consultation process.
Concern raised about War Memorial in Memorial Park gathering a lot of moss. There is a fund for this
which is Bridge of Allan War Memorial Fund. MW and Gavin Drummond to progress.
B 1927 Planning Report
Councillor Dodds and Alastair Heron left the meeting ahead of this update.
One application since last meeting of note which is planning application for Westerton Arms. This includes
extension to patio and formation of glazed shelter and a number of internal alterations including
enhancements to the toilets.