Chair's Annual Report
CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT MAY 2024
Firstly, I would like to thank every member of this Community Council for their time and hard work and dedication to our community. This has been another challenging year for us as a community.
We as a community have had a lot to deal with this year including –
SSEN wanting to instal overhead pylon cabling in our area and underground cabling as well. They have said that this is still in the planning process, but rumour has it they have already taken steps further than just consulting.
Also, there continues to be the possibility of a new windfarm “Extension” at Fairburn beside the Orrin Reservoir, which would be larger than the existing one. So far, no planning application has been submitted. We do not really see a need for even more windfarms around us and would object to any planning applications as much as is in our power.
If this “Extension” is to go ahead anyway, then we would have to look at how this would benefit our community further down the line. A much larger windfarm may well mean additional community funding being made available to us in the future. However, past experience with windfarm funding shows that there may be considerable restrictions on how such funds could be used to the benefit of our residents. Also, the application process can be rather complicated and may scare potential applicants off from trying in the first place. Further dialogue with SSE may be the way forward.
When I reflect on this year, I had hoped that our voices would be heard by our local government and Scottish parliament about renewable energy within our area. This has not by any means been an easy task at all. And as a community we are still dealing with this issue and will be for some time.
Apart from the SSEN Pylons project, our key issues over the last year were:
1.Communication with residents
2.Cost of living expenses.
3.Housing need.
4.Having a connection with the younger generation and helping with education and training
5.Community assets for our area, perhaps setting up a Local Place Plan
6. Various
Ad 1:
There are mailboxes at Marybank Primary School, Scatwell and Strathconon where members of the community can post questions and concerns that they have for our area. We also have notice boards in each part of our community to let everyone know of things going on. We post issues on Facebook and our website. We have a growing list of email addresses of some of our residents, so we can contact them directly. Online access to community council meetings is available as much as broadband provision in our remote glen allows. And of course, if residents want to speak to us in person, we will always welcome that. We hope that this goes some way to help our residents feel informed.
There were several pre-planning application consultations regarding siting telecoms towers in our area, which would establish more reliable mobile phone provision but so far nothing has progressed any further. There seems to be work going on at the mast by Loch Luichart Power Station but it is not known how far that has developed.
Ad 2:
The cost-of-living crisis for our community has been extremely hard for all age groups with a lot of everyday bills going up for homes (food, electricity, insurance, fuel etc.). With not a lot of public transport available it is hard. The Community Council has tried to support the older and the younger generation through our food vouchers for the butchers and local vegetable shop. In this day and age, it can be very difficult to buy good quality meat and vegetables at an affordable price for families. Families are often found to be buying more processed food as this is very much the cheaper option.
We have tried to support households with members over 65s and families with children under the age of 16. Apart from that, at Christmas time, every home in neither of these two groups got a small food voucher to help with the increasing costs of living.
We are very proud of what we have achieved with this and are going to apply for more funding for this year coming. We are also investigating further funding to offer perhaps a heated air dryer or a humidifier for moisture within homes, or heated blankets.
Ad 3:
The Community Council is still working hard to try and improve housing for our area. We would love for this to happen to persuade the younger generation to come and live within our community for it to thrive and have a new generation to take over in years to come and to make our voices heard.
Ad 4:
We have looked at how we can get in touch with the younger generation to inform them of our local funding schemes that are available to them to help with progressing in further education or learning a new skill.
A few members of our community have benefited from the Corriemoillie Education and Training Fund to learn to drive, gain extra qualifications for work, or going to college or university, supporting the local shinty clubs and to help people with learning disabilities compete in competitions for a sporting event.
Ad 5:
We have started investigating if setting up a Local Place Plan would be the way forward for us. This is very much in the early stages. Local Place Plans can include proposals from communities about how land and other assets are developed and used within their local area. They can describe the types of changes that local people want to see and what changes and suggestions they would like to be taken into account.
Ad 6:
· We continue to alert Highland Council about road issues within our area with concerns over potholes on our roads to make them safer for users.
· We have had our defibrillators serviced and new pads put in when needed in our area.
· We have responded to planning applications and furthermore called for more affordable houses to meet our needs.
· Mobile connectivity in our area continues to be an issue and we are hoping for better coverage in the not too distant future. New fibre optic cabling is being put in place now, but it is not sure if and how this will benefit the community,
· We have also given out mini grants for new notice boards, post boxes and flowerpots in our area to brighten our community, and to Friends of Fairburn nursing home for client days out.
All in all, we should all be proud of what we have achieved so far and I wish to thank you all again for your support with all our projects and I look forward to helping us pull together and achieve our future goals.
