Thursday 14th January 2010 at 7.30pm in the Village Hall
Present: Walter Wyse (Chairman), John Prentice, Marion Donovan, Christopher Heywood, George Murray, Kym Bannerman, Ian Fleming , Fran Keymer, PC Alan Richardson
(CBO) and Laurie Wood (Scottish Borders Warden).
Apologies: Councillor David Raw
Police -
PC Alan Richardson (CBO) attended this months meeting.
There were no reported crimes reported in the Grantshouse area since pre-Christmas.
However
there were reports of a spate of break-ins committed in the East Berwickshire constituency. The links to these crimes have been observed to have been predominately
isolated large houses. It is stated by the police that even though the reported crimes were mostly in the mornings that they still wanted everyone to be on guard for this could just be a coincidence and the pattern could be changed at any time if the perpetrators are not caught. If you witness a crime in progress or hear of a crime that has been committed,
please either contact Eyemouth Police Station during working hours.
Tel:01890 850217 or e-mail Kirsty or Alan at berwickshirecbos@lbp.pnn.police.uk.
Over the Christmas period there was one instance of a drunk
driver having his vehicle seized. This happened because it was the second time the driver had committed the offence and they are
currently waiting for the case to be brought to court.
As we have had such a cold and bitter Christmas period there were no
antisocial crimes reported. Unfortunately there were two car accident fatalities. One was at the junction of the A1 and Blackburn road
the other was on the A1 at Cockburnspath. If there are any witnesses
these or any accidents, please contact your local police station.
Complaints have been
received from drivers who have been held up by abnormal loads on the A1
transporting wind turbine components. The police request all drivers
to exercise patience in these circumstances. It would be advisable for drivers to
allow extra time for their journey to avoid such delays and be
tempted to speed or force their way past these loads and
increasing the risk an accident. For out-of-hours police
contact please call Hawick Police Station Tel: 01450 375051.
SB Warden Laurie Wood explained what the Warden's role in the community.
Wardens are coving the Berwickshire area and will be
undertaking village and town walkabouts in the near future to give residents the opportunity to highlight
problem areas in their community or general information on community news.
Wardens do not have the powers of arrest but are there as a link for the Police and the CBO's who do have those powers.
Wardens are employed by the Scottish Borders Council. Wardens can help in
cases of antisocial behaviour, noisy neighbours, dog fouling and
litter dropping etc,. Wardens do have the power to issue fixed penalty tickets in the event of anyone caught
dropping litter or not cleaning up their dog's mess. In order to
help resolve any issues help resolve any issues the CBO's and the
Wardens need be notified by if there are areas of concern with
regard to either members of the the public or the community area.
It is up to us all to help the CBO's and Wardens make this work. To contact the SB Wardens you can either e-mail them at communitywardens@scotborders.gov.uk or
Tel: 0800 028 5711 or FAX: 01835 869 698.
Neighbourhood Watch -
Nothing has been reported to Granthouse neighbourhood Watch
during the previous month.
If you notice anything unusual in your neighbourhood then please contact the neighbourhood Watch Officer
Walter Wyse Tel: 01361-850620 or the Police.
Previous Minutes: Approved: Proposed by John Prentice and Seconded by Marion Donovan.
Matters Arising -
Household Batteries:- The CC were asked if we knew how batteries are disposed of. We are aware that larger batteries
i.e. car batteries, are taken to the recycling plant where they can be disposed of in a safe manner. As for general batteries i.e. “AAA, AA, C & D”, we are unsure if they are placed with the general waste. Kym Bannerman will contact the Waste Department at the
SBC and try and find out if there is any specific manner in which to dispose
them and will let you all know ASAP. If anyone has any uncertainty where certain recyclables go they can either contact the waste department by calling the SBC Switchboard on 01835 824000 or logging on to www.scotborders.gov.uk/council/departmentsandservices/technicalservices/3562398.html .
New Wheelie Bins:- It has been announced that the recycling bags currently used are
to be replaced by a wheelie bin. It is thought the collection may then be every 2 weeks instead of weekly. It is hoped the new bins will
be delivered early in February. It is not known which areas
will be the first to receive them and it may take a couple of weeks for all
county areas to have them. If there is any change to the reported
dates then we will let you know ASAP.
Renton Barns Bins:
Residents at Renton Barns have expressed concern that ad their
individual wheelie bins are no longer used, the one large bin
that replaced them is not adequate for the number of
properties served. Kym Bannerman will contact the SBC to
try to resolve the problem and report the outcome to the residents.
Playing Field:- There is a planned meeting scheduled for the 27th January 2010 at 6.30pm in the Village Hall for the Community Council and Grantshouse Community Company
with regard to the playing field. Neil Hastie (Borders Council
Estates Manager) and Michael Cook (Councillor) will attend. It is hoped there will be a complete understanding of what the community would like to apply for whether
the playing field should be included with the purchase of the
former the School/Outward Bound building building. As soon as more information is available we will let you know.
Scam Alert:- It's a new year and yet again we have a new scam alert.
People received phone calls advising that their computer has been infected by a Trojan Horse and the
urgently requires a new security software package. They are then
told they can download the update but they will have to pay a fee.
The are bogus calls. If you receive a call of this nature please contact your local police station and give them as much detail as you can. Just to re-assure people that if you do have a trojan horse on your
PC it would either stop working altogether or if you already have a security programme on your
PC then it will likely let you know and give you instructions on how to remove it safely. We ask everyone to be extra vigilant as when one scam gets nipped in the bud there seems to be another ready to take it's place.
Cannabis Cultivation Conference:- The conference was due to take place on Friday 15th January 2010 but had to be postponed due to the sever weather
at that time. The new date is set for Friday 12th March 2010 instead. Once I have more information regarding this conference I will relay it back to everyone.
Planning Matters -
There have been no planning applications brought to the CC this month. However there is some concern over the ownership of the toilet block situated at Harelawside. Kym Bannerman will write a letter to the SBC to find out more information into whether sale of the toilet block has gone through without other interested parties being notified etc. When there is more information available Kym will let everyone know.
Treasurers Report -
The balance at the present moment is sitting at £518.43. Many annual bills e.g. hire of hall, heating and community repairs (i.e. brick wall in playing field) etc. are due to be paid. The next Treasurers report will be available at the next CC meeting.
Outward Bound Centre -
As explained in the Matters Arising section there is
confusion over whether the community of Grantshouse should find out if it is in the communities best interest to apply for ownership of the
Outdoor Building as well as the Playing Field. As soon as more information is available we will let you all know.
Correspondence:- There was no mail correspondence this month due to the holidays over Christmas and New Year.
Abnormal Loads:- There will be several Abnormal Loads on the A1 until February/March 2010. This is due to materials being taken to Crystal Rigg. It is asked that people who are travelling and caught behind these vehicles to have some extra patience and keep safe on the road.
Any other Business -
Grit Bins - More grit bins are needed on Howpark Road and Grantshouse. Kym Bannerman will contact the council
about providing both Grantshouse and Howpark with more grit-bins. When more information is available it will be given to you.
SBC Contact:- There is some confusion about what numbers are to be used for contacting the SBC. If you are unsure of the department
call Customer Services Department Tel:0300 100 1800.
This number is charged at the same rate as an 01 and 02 number. If you know what department you are trying to contact then you contact the Main Switchboard
Tel: 01835 824000
Both numbers are available on Monday – Thursday 08:45 – 17:00 and Friday 08:45
-15:45.
Out of Hours Emergencies can be contacted on 01896 752111.
If you need to contact the SBC by letter etc. please write to:
(Name of person or department the letter is for)
Scottish Borders Council, Council Headquarters, Newtown St Boswell's, MELROSE, TD6 0SA
Road Gritting Salt: A query was raised into the lack of salt that has been available for the Borders Roads. “Can the sand on the beach be used as an alternative to the grit if we run out again”. No-one is aware of any answer at present but once there is word
back we will let you all know ASAP.
Date of Next meeting: Thursday 11th February 2010 at 7.30pm in the Village Hall.
All are welcome to attend. The
Community Council requests that those attending who may wish
to raise any subject or query with the Community Council
should please wait until the chairman opens the meeting for questions from the
public before doing so.
If there is a question that anyone would like to be brought up at the C.C. meeting but
they are unable to attend, then please e-mail your question to kym.bannerman@lycos.com
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