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MONTEATHS Accountants & Tax Consultants APPOINTMENTS: MORNING, AFTERNOON or EVENING OUR OFFICE, YOUR HOME or PREMISES HOME TO WORK TRAVEL If you are self-employed and use your home as an office –ANDgo to another place for your usual daily work -thenthe first trip of the day and last one back will be considered as “dual purpose” ie going to work just like employees and then coming home at night, to your family, will both be disallowed for tax relief. HMRC won’t necessarily review your claim this year- it may not happen for 4 years but they will review retrospectively, then add interest and a penalty. GOOD NEWS £2000 Employer Allowance Householders who operate paye for care and support workers can claim the allowance from 6th April 2015. This means that you don’t have to pay the first £2000 of the employers NIC bill.
FINANCIAL ADVICE WE HELP - WE SAVE YOU MONEY FULL ACCOUNTANCY AND COMPLETE TAXATION SERVICES WWW.MONTEATHS.COM Cairnfield, 14 School Road, Balmullo, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 0BD Tel 01334 870343 - Fax 01334 871004 E mail : morag@monteaths.com
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Balmullo
COMMUNITY COUNCIL
MEMBERS
Chairman: Zoë Sanders 1zoesanders@gmail.com
Secretary: Sue Smith 870221 secretary@balmullo.net
Vice-Chairman: Alison Jeffrey 870674 alison@balmullo.net
Minute-Secretary: Ann Falconer 870496 anfalconer@tiscali.co.uk
Treasurer & Newsletter: Andrew Falconer 870496 anfalcoer@tiscali.co.uk
Councillors: Ina Cameron
fife
councillors
870253
John Normand janormand1@gmail.com Gwenyth Mitchell 870010 gwenyth@balmullo.net Peter Lomas 870848 pil77@btinternet.com Colin Finlay
870578
twaaulgoats@btinternet.com
Maggie Taylor 07872 423841 cllr.margaret.taylor@fife.gov.uk Tim Brett 01382 330905 cllr.tim.brett@fife.gov.uk Bill Connor 077 1866 8792 cllr.bill.connor@fife.gov.uk
Useful Contacts
NHS24
111
Burnside Hall Keeper Lynn Murphy 870466 GALA Committee: 077 8033 5250 http://balmullogala.weebly.com Community Police Officers 101 PC’s Susie Martin & Norrie Hill Non Emergency Police Contact 101 Dog Warden 0345 155 0022
M.P. Stephen Gethins M.S.P. Rod Campbell Doctors Surgery Balmullo Balmullo Primary School Bell Baxter High School Madras High School
TBA 844971 871164 659451 659459 659402
Statements made or opinions expressed in this Newsletter do not necessarily reflect the views of the Balmullo Community Council or any of its officers.
Advert Prices - Small £5, Half Page £10, Full Page £20. You can rent advertising space on a month by month basis or on a longer term basis. The Balmullo Newsletter has a circulation of 700 and is hand delivered FREE of charge. TO ALL ADVERTISERS – Please check your advert. If you would like to remove it or change it in any way, please let us know.
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BRONZE SERVICE: From £30.00 plus parts SILVER SERVICE: From £50.00 plus parts GOLD SERVICE: From £65.00 plus parts
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CHIC O’HARE DOMESTIC APPLIANCE REPAIRS
Over 35 years experience Prompt reliable service NEWPORT-ON-TAY TEL 01382 541702 MOBILE 07802 538284
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ANNOUNCEMENTS Police Sergeant Pat Turner, who is based in St. Andres and in charge of Community Policing for North-east Fife, attended our June meeting and confirmed that we are fortunate to live in an area which has very low levels of reported crime. However, several residents attending raised concerns about speed of vehicles, both on the main A914 and also within the village which has a 20mph speed limit throughout. The Community Policing team is seeking funding for a new speedgun, which would allow occasional speed check sessions in Balmullo – you have been warned!
BALMULLO COMMUNITY COUNCIL Railway Station car park. This will take time but is some progress to report.
POINTS FROM THE SECRETARY’S EMAIL ‘Fife Cares’ Newsletter, summer edition, is available on the Fife website Forth Bridges Unit Operating Company leaflet, about the role played by Amey for Transport Scotland, is on the Community Council shelf in the Spar
SUE SMITH The Economy, Planning and Employability Services Development Management team at Fife Council carried out a Customer Satisfaction Survey for May 2015. This has shown an improvement in satisfaction levels.
Fife Council has issued new “High Hedges” guidance for residents wishing to challenge neighbours who have hedges exceeding 2 metres high. We have been told by Stagecoach bus that there is no prospect of changes to the 42 and X42 bus service timetables until there is a more general review of services.
The next meeting is the AGM in Burnside Hall Fife Council has applied for a Compulsory at 7.30pm on Monday 14th Sept. Purchase Order against the farmer whose land A copy of the Minutes will be available on the is required for the extension to Leuchars shelves at the Post Office.
WHAT’S ON? JULY 18th Fun Day with Target Bowls, Sausage Sizzle etc. Balmullo Bowling Club 2.00 pm. AUGUST 1st Leuchars & District Gardening Club. Summer Flower Show. Burnside Hall 1.30 pm. 5th Burnside Hall Committee Meeting. 7.30 pm. SEPTEMBER 3rd WRI Open Meeting. Floral Art Demo. with Andy Smith. Burnside Hall. 7.15 pm. 14th Community Council AGM. Burnside Hall 7.30 pm. All welcome. RUNNING AN EVENT? EMAIL ANFALCONER@TISCALI.CO.UK
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THE 200 CLUB DRAW - THIS MONTHS WINNERS
£50 Mrs Bagnall, Smithy Road £20 £20 £20 £20 £20
Mrs Donnelly, Pitcairn Drive Mrs Skinner, Smithy Road Mrs Berry, Cynicus Place Mrs Dishington, Inchlaw Mrs Leese, Greenacre
£10 £10 £10 £10 £10
Mrs Thomson, The Mount Mrs Stockton, Main Road Mr & Mrs Wilson, The Smiddy Mrs Hall, School Road Mrs McKay, Park View
How to Join Our 200 Club? - It's easy to join you like. We are currently trying to raise the 200 Club. Call or email Ina at money for various Balmullo community twaauldgoats@btinternet.com or call activities and projects. 870253. It only costs £1 per entry per month, and you can enter as many times as
GOOD LUCK!
#BalmulloLife
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KEVIN MALONEY
W&J HORSBURGH
FOR ALL YOUR DECORATION NEEDS 01334 870241 OR 07941 545052
FRESH Pittenweem Fish In Balmullo every
WEDNESDAY
From 10am to 4pm Or place your orders by telephone 01333 310567 07751 974615 07528 301092
Balmullo needs you! 14th September 2015 @ 1930 Burnside hall
R ROBERTSON Domestic Gas Central Heating Services Installation, Servicing & Repairs All types of gas central heating systems, hobs and cookers Landlord Certificates Free Estimates 559096
Colin Finlay Qualified Electrician Any jobs large or small Discounts for OAPs Balmullo 870578 Mobile 07828 547395
DEREK B CAMPBELL Motor Engineer SERVICING & M.O.T. REPAIRS Tel 870328 ‘Loanhead’ Balmullo St. Andrews KY16 0BQ
Mob: 077 0731 5932
Appointments not always necessary Mon Closed Tues 9-3 Wed 9-5 Thur 9-8 Fri 9-6 Sat 8-3 Sun Closed
15 Main Street Leuchars 01334 848625
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BURNSIDE HALL The Burnside Hall Committee held its 2015 AGM on 3rd June with 14 attendees. The minutes of the 2014 AGM were approved and the Chairman, Simon Sanders, then gave his report on another good year. The groups who use the Hall regularly were very satisfied by the service p r o v i d e d , particularly in the hard work of the Hallkeeper, Lynn Murphy, who has been responsible for maintaining the Hall in excellent condition since it opened. The Treasurer, Richard Hynd, presented the Annual Accounts and explained that the Deficit shown was partly due to timing of expenditure being incurred on the new car park extension before relevant grant income was received. However, the fact that Council Tax would no longer be fully subsidised and some other annual costs had increased, meant that the charge-out rates would have to be increased, most for the first time since 2009. This change and the overall accounts were approved. There were only 6 nominees for the new Committee, so an election was unnecessary and the Committee remains unchanged. One issue was raised by User Group representatives. There are no formal written rules or regulations governing use of the Hall grounds, which is a public open space. However, it has been established practice that children are asked not to play near the Hall when it is in use. This simply shows
consideration and fair treatment for groups who have paid for their use and can expect a decent level of peace and quiet. We would respectfully ask parents, whose children play here, to remind them to stick to the main grassy area at these times. It should be obvious when the Hall is in use, by the presence of cars and people coming and going, but we will seek a way to make this even more apparent. We are all concerned about the safety of children playing near the Hall. The random visits of residents’ vehicles to the recycling area and, even more so the large “bin lorry� (usually on a Sunday) pose a specific risk to those playing with bikes or scooters on the roadways, so again we would ask parents to make children particularly aware of this danger and pay attention when they are playing here. Burnside Hall Committee
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BALMULLO S.W.R.I.
ANN FALCONER
President Mrs. Ann Falconer welcomed 3rd Katrina Addison members to the meeting on Thursday 4th 2 Meringue Shells 1st Evelyn Erskine 2nd Jan Redpath June. The meeting took the form of an Inter- Flower of the Month Mary Campbell Institute Visit, with 3 members of Cults & District WRI joining us. Our vicepresident and local historian, Mary Reilly, gave a very interesting and informative talk on the history of St Athernase Church in Leuchars. The oldest part of the Church dates back to Norman times and Mary spoke about the families and ministers who influenced the Church and local It was proposed that we should sponsor the parish through the centuries. On a lighter planting of the 2 new floral tubs situated at note, Mary Hutchison from Cults entertained Pitcairn Surgery (below). This proposal with a comic song entitled “The Inverurie received full agreement. Stripper” which had everyone rolling in their seats. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed Our next event is the annual outing, on themselves and Ann Falconer thanked both Thursday 2nd July, to Monturpie Restaurant ladies for such a diverse and well-presented for high tea at 6.00 for 6.30 pm. Drivers and passengers have been arranged. evening. We also held our annual Bring and Buy Sale Our next meeting will be an Open Meeting on which was most successful and raised £88 Thursday 3rd September when local expert for our funds. Thanks to all who contributed Andy Smith will give a demonstration of Floral Art. The competitions will be a Floral and bought items. Table Centre (max. 10”), a Table Centre of Competition winners: any other craft and Flower of the month. Favourite Plant 1st Wilma Mackie 2nd Mary Reilly FISH TANK / REPTILE TANK Sometime over the next few weeks I will have a large fish tank available. It is 3 feet in length by 1 foot wide. Has a teak wood cover. Would also be suitable for small animals etc. If you are interested phone Ina Cameron on 07711545927.
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A J INNES Painter & Decorator
FREE ESTIMATES INTERNAL & EXTERNAL VERY HIGH STANDARD EVERYTIME Call Andy on 079 2040 3412 or 01382 782684
Pains Of Labour No Time? Too Busy? Help Is At Hand. Gardens, Garages, Maintenance Clearing, Removal Anything Considered. Reasonable Rates Call Jake On 079 6978 0956
andyinnes1986@gmail.com
JOHN STEVEN Plumbing and heating CORGI REGISTERED
WILLISON MOTORS QUEEN STREET - TAYPORT Free collection & delivery service from local and surrounding areas MOT Car Sales Servicing & Repairs
MONDAY – FRIDAY 8am to 5.30pm
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Saturday 9am – 3pm Sales MOT’s until 1pm
Phone 01334 653922
www.willisonmotors.co.uk
Tel: 01382 552720
VIOLIN TUITION From RETIRED PROFESSIONAL VIOLINIST (Former Leader of the Scottish Opera Orchestra) All ages and stages taught, from beginners to advanced/Diploma level, and including preparation for Conservatoire entrance. For further information please contact
ANGUS ANDERSON 01382 540076 (Home) 07708 454770 (Mob)
Balmullo
Bowling Club Play outdoors in summer Indoors in winter
Variety of competitions and friendly matches every week No experience required. All welcome to join. Call John on 870196
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MAGPIES: BEAUTIFUL, BUT ARE THEY VILLAINS?
As Andrew stated in the last newsletter, the hot birdwatching news in Balmullo is that Magpies have arrived in the village. When I first came to live in Scotland, in 1967, I was struck by how few Magpies I saw in Fife and Angus. Yet I saw them on visits to Edinburgh and Aberdeen, so it was not just a matter of them being generally uncommon in Scotland. For the next 20 years, Magpies were rarely seen in Fife except in the far west. Then, in the 1990s, they began to extend eastwards, though sufficiently slowly that they remained something to be remarked upon in the birdwatching community. The most interesting feature of this story is that the Magpie was widespread in the county, as in most of Scotland, before the later years of the 19th century. Unfortunately, Magpies are conspicuous and can often be observed in the springtime taking the eggs and chicks from the nests of other birds. They incurred the wrath of gamekeepers, who thought them a danger to their pheasants and partridges, and of farmers, who saw them eating not only eggs and chicks in their poultry pens but also food provided for the hens. As a result, there was
JEREMY GREENWOOD
a wholesale assault which eliminated Magpies from large parts of the country. In recent years, poultry have been kept indoors and pheasants are generally kept in covered cages until they are too large to attract much attention from Magpies, so the slaughter has diminished. The appearance of these splendid birds in our gardens, with their swaggering behaviour and their striking plumage, the black shining blue and green in the sun, has not been universally welcomed. Many people are concerned when they see the Magpies attacking the nests of Blackbirds, Song Thrushes and other species in the hedges. However, careful studies based on many decades of data gathered across Britain, largely by the British Trust for Ornithology, has shown that songbirds are just as common in places where Magpies are numerous as in places where there are absent; and the places into which Magpies have spread have not experienced a decline in songbirds. So, we can enjoy our Magpies without being concerned that their appearance will mean fewer other birds in our gardens.
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runners Balmullo Gala 2015
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RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Ingredients For the base
CHOCOLATE RIPPLE CHEESECAKE
For the cheesecake filling, melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water. Cool slightly.
100g/4oz plain chocolate digestive biscuits, Measure the cheese into a large bowl and crushed beat until soft. Add the sugar and beat again 50g/2oz butter, melted until well mixed. Beat in the vanilla essence For the cheesecake and then the eggs, one at a time. Spoon half 150g/5oz plain chocolate, broken into the cheese mixture on to the biscuit crust, separating the spoonfuls. Add the melted pieces chocolate to the remaining cheesecake 700g/1½lb full-fat soft cheese mixture and stir well to mix. Spoon this 225g/8oz caster sugar mixture in between the cheesecake mixture already in the tin. Swirl the top to give a ½ tsp vanilla essence marbled effect. 2 medium eggs Bake the cheesecake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the Method cheesecake becomes puffy around the Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas 3. edges but is still very soft in the centre. Turn Lightly grease a 20cm/8in loose-bottomed off the oven but leave the cheesecake in the oven to cool. cake tin.
Mix together the ingredients for the base and Chill well and then loosen the cheesecake from the sides of the tin using a small press into the prepared tin. palette knife.
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Rumbledethumps Restaurant at the Dairsie Inn Family Friendly Restaurant Freshly Prepared Food Lunch & Evening Menus High Teas Senior Citizen Menu Free Wi-Fi Large Car Park & Wheelchair Access Closed on Tuesdays www.dairsieinn.co.uk eat@rumbledethumps.co.uk 01334 870273
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David Pasley Memorial Bench
In last month’s issue, we mentioned the memorial bench situated in the grounds of Burnside Hall and dedicated to David Pasley, who did so much for the hall, the Community Council and the Newsletter. You can now see the results of the work of Bill Duff and Simon Sanders shown hard at it in the photo in that issue.
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BALMULLO GALA - 2015 Gala season kicked off this year in May with a great Fun Run, supported by many adults and children from the community. This was followed later in the month by the Balmullo 5’s Football tournament which was yet again a huge success thanks to the efforts of Stevie Thaw. A fantastic event held over 2 days which saw the winners of the adult competition ‘The Dream Team’ donate their prize money to the Gala and Fife Thistle!
of the Storm” Scotland's Equestrian Stunt Team from Perthshire, who amazed us with an array of tricks, flips and stunts all choreographed together to make a spectacular performance. I’m sure everyone who saw it will agree it was a very impressive display. In addition to the main event we had many other attractions, numerous stalls from local businesses selling their goods and charities and local organisations who were Gala day itself was unfortunately overcast raising funds; thanks go to all of them for and cold but this did not deter the their continued support. community from coming out to see this Finally the races proved ever popular again year’s Gala Parade which was led by RAF and the winners for each different event are Pipes & Drums – Central Scotland, who gave listed below. Congratulations to all those the day an impressive start. This year’s gala who took part, especially the winners. party consisted of; Alison Couper - Gala Committee Chairperson Gala Queen 2015: Teagan Brand balmullogala@hotmail.co.uk Attendants: Amaidh Grant As always the last event on the schedule for Amy Hunter the day was the Hill Race, sponsored by Herald: Finlay Foulkes Monteaths. This is a huge part and a Page: Declan McQueen highlight for many kids (and adults) in the Guard of Honour: Beavers and Cubs village, unfortunately this year we had a few Rainbows & Brownies disgruntled and impatient motorists Balmullo Nursery in (including a bus) who were unwilling to wait, fancy dress selfishly endangering runners. Next year the For his outstanding contribution to the Police will be asked to be in attendance to Balmullo Community, Bill Duff was presented enforce these road closures which will thus with an award in recognition of the many ensure safety of all participants. This did not years he has supported the village through spoil it for those who took part and his many ventures not excluding what he completed the run to be awarded a medal. does for the Gala, both as having been our Whilst the weather before and after Gala Piper for many many years and as a valued Saturday was warm and sunny we didn’t helper all day Friday and Sunday. Thank you have the best day weather wise (at least it Bill. was dry). It didn’t seem to put off the many Unfortunately Billy Anderson was unable to people who attended and enjoyed attend this year’s Gala due to prior themselves. A huge thank you for your commitments but Andy Mackie stepped into support. On a more personal note from the the role of MC and I hope you agree he did a committee, a huge thank you needs to go to fantastic job considering it was his first time. our families who become gala ‘widows’ over A generous sponsorship this year was given the 3 days, we give up a huge amount of our by Andy’s company JACS which was greatly time which has an impact on our families, appreciated, thank you. without their support we wouldn’t be able to Our main attraction on Gala Day was “Riders do it, so thank you.
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We know there is always room for improvement and we’d love any feedback to us directly; good or bad! You can find us on Facebook or email us at balmullogala@hotmail.co.uk. Championships Winners Senior Girls Championship 1st Erin Moore
Senior Boys Championship 1st Declan Foulkes 2nd Scott Thaw
Junior Girls Championship 1st Amaidh Grant 2nd Esmee Thoms 3rd Isla Thoms
Junior Boys Championship 1st Ewan Goodwin 2nd Finlay Foulkes 3rd Kyle Thaw
Hill Race Overall Winner Senior Girl Junior Girl
Scott Middleton Erin Moore Isla Thoms
Senior Boy Junior Boy
Robert Withers Kyle Thaw
Flat Races Pre-school Girls Pre-school Boys Girls P1-2 Boys P1-2 Girls P3-4 Boys P3-4 Girls P5-6 Boys P5-6 Girls P7-S1 Boys P7-S1
1. Clara Wood 1. Josh McQueen 1. Chloe Pattie 1. Evan Muir 1. Isla Thoms 1. Kyle Thaw 1. Emma Sampson 1. Callum Strothers 1. Ellie Gilmour 1. Ewan Goodwin
2. Erika Marshall 2. Orrin Strothers 2. Erin MacGillivray 2. Michael Geddes 2. Isla Munro 2. Aaron Stewart 2. Bethany Marshall 2. Nathan Yule 2. Beth Hay 2. Connor Harcus
3. Aaliyah Boggan 3. Lewis Dickson 3. Isla Isherwood 3. Luke McQueen 3. Lowri Brand 3. Owen McEwan 3. Esmee Thoms 3. Ruaraidh Watson 3. Amaidh Grant 3. Conan Sweeny
Hopping Races Pre-school Girls Pre-school Boys
1. Isabella Stewart 1. Josh McQueen
2. Abbie Beveridge 2. Jaydaen Beveridge
3. Aaliyah Broggan 3. Brodie Fraser
Skipping Races Girls P1-2 Girls P3-4 Girls P5-6 Girls P7-S1
1. Sophie Leask 1. Lowri Brand 1. Emma Sampson 1. Ellie Gilmour
2. Erin MacGillivray 2. Sophie Duncan 2. Anisha Kumar 2. Beth Hay
3. Chloe Pattie 3. Isla Thoms 3. Esmee Thoms 3. Teagan Brand
2. Ethan Reid 2. Aaron Stewart 2. Alex North 2. Conan Sweeney 2. Callum Thaw
3. Michael Geddes 3. Scott Sampson 3. Calum Munro 3. Callum Moore 3. Steven Nicholls
Sack Races Boys P1-2 1. Evan Muir Boys P3-4 1. Kyle Thaw Boys P5-6 1. Callum Stothers Boys P7-S1 1. Ewan Goodwin Boys S2-S4 1. Declan Foulkes (race requested by boys, obviously never too old!)
With these results the 2015 Gala is over and the Committee will take a well earned rest over the summer before starting again in the autumn with the AGM. We hope you enjoyed it and hope to see you all again next year.
Balmullo
o Gala 2015
P1
P2
P3
P4
P5
P6
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BELL BAXTER HIGH SCHOOL I always enjoy visiting Balmullo and on my most recent visit I was able to see the newly hatched chicks at reception. This was the second time I had visited this year and the reason for this visit was to present pupils in P7, joining us in August, with a school tie. As many parents are aware we have reviewed our dress code and intend to place an expectation on all pupils to wear a shirt/ blouse and tie. We also hope that all pupils will wear a blazer. Hopefully, by the time you read this you will have received a copy of our most recent newsletter. It will give you a real insight into the many events and activities going on in Bell Baxter. It is now more than 5 years since we started working on the new curriculum in Scotland and, last year, pupils in S4 sat the new national qualifications. We were really pleased with the overall results and look forward to building on this with the new higher. We are even more confident that pupils will gain more qualifications, many at a higher grade, than in the past.
PHILIP BLACK awarded school colours. However, the colours system is used to recognise a much wider range of achievements. At our Colours ceremony held earlier this term the following pupils from Balmullo were recognised for their achievements: Craig Burt (Half Colours) Robert Withers (Half Colours) Alasdair Chalmers (Full Colours) Calum Mitchell (Full Colours) Pupils in P7 visited us for 2 days in early June. This was an important opportunity to get to know the school and our routines ahead of joining us in August. We looked forward to their visit and wish all those in P7 all the very best for the future. Philip Black Rector Bell Baxter High School philip.black@fife.gov.uk 03451555555 451742
Academic qualifications are very important and pupils with outstanding results are
CLASS OF 2015 P7 Moving on to High School
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BALMULLO VILLAGE COMMUNITY At this year's Gala I was pleasantly surprised to be presented with a Quaich inscribed “Bill Duff, for his outstanding contribution to the Balmullo Community. Presented by the Balmullo Gala 2015”. I was extremely grateful to the Gala Committee for this and thank them most sincerely. By coincidence when I sat down to type this, the television news did an item on the Queen's Birthday Honours and my thoughts as I looked at this Quaich were I had truly received an honour and just a week after my birthday. Ann and I came to the village in 1973 and almost immediately I became involved with the Cupar Boys Brigade, helping to teach piping to the boys. I'm not sure whether it was 1974 or '75 that we brought the band to Balmullo and led the floats around the village and that was the start of my involvement with the community. I also played at what was then called the Old Folks Treat in the old village hall on the Main Street and subsequently became the piper for the Burns Supper which started in 1981 and then Secretary to the Leuchars and District Horticultural and Industrial Society which held a Flower Show and Gymkhana in the playing field in Leuchars.
BILL DUFF organisation within the community to use the Village Newsletter to explain who they are, what they do, and who to contact if you would like to get involved and help and to start here is the Gardening Club. As noted above when I joined the Leuchars and District Horticultural and Industrial Society its sole purpose was to run a Flower Show and Gymkhana in Leuchars originally in a local farmers field and then in the Recreation Park with the Flower Show in a large marquee, and stored all our equipment in local farmer's outbuildings. Eventually the cost of the marquee hire and Fife Council making a charge for “reinstatement” of the park we decided to move indoors and hired the Henderson Hall in Leuchars, by which time we had started a winter talks programme, also in the Henderson Hall. We then started an Autumn Show which we decided to hold in the District and held the first in the Balmullo Bowling Club. When the new Village Hall was built we moved both shows and the winter talks there as there was ideal access and parking and eventually storage on site. We also changed our name to Leuchars and District Gardening and Crafts Club which was felt to be a better representation of what we were about. The Club requires a committee to organise shows and talks which involves preparing and issuing a Show Schedule, arranging show judges, meeting sponsors, setting up the shows, looking after the finances, and other general duties many of which do not require “green fingers”
This year as I entered my 70th year I was told that the RAF Leuchars Pipe Band would be joining the parade so I decided it would be an opportune time to step down and pass the baton on and also it would be nice to see a Pipe Band lead the parade again. I also thought I had reached the age when it would be nice to go on the Senior Citizens’ outing but like the parade of floats it has gone. I have and still enjoy my involvement with I was also asked recently what the the Flower Show and through it have made connection was between the Gardening Club many friends both within and outside the and the Flower Show and I began to think local community and from having been that perhaps the problem with getting people originally asked only to take minutes and within the community more involved with the write letters for the Society I now exhibit and running of the various groups was that they judge around the country within a larger did not fully appreciate what they did. So, it fraternity, but always at my choice. may be worthwhile for all the clubs and
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YOUR MEMBER OF EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Negotiating trade agreements with countries, or groups of countries outside of the EU is an important part of my work within the European Parliament’s International Trade Committee. At present the Committee is involved in debating a trade agreement with the United States called the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP - commonly referred to as ‘tee-tip’). A good agreement between the EU and US would cover almost half of world trade. By making it easier for small and medium-sized businesses to export to the US it has the potential to increase trade, help job creation and give the EU economy a much needed boost. But is imperative that we get it right. Stakeholders, such as trade unions, consumer groups, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the general public are all becoming increasingly aware, and concerned, about this agreement and its possible implications. One of these concerns is the Investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) and over the last few weeks I have received many thousands of emails from constituents concerned about this provision. ISDS can give foreign investors legal recourse if they feel the country in which they are operating has passed legislation that could impact on their ability to make profit. I believe that the inclusion of ISDS in investment agreements is too high a price to pay for attracting foreign investment, especially considering the secrecy that has allowed corporations to challenge legislation behind closed doors. A government's ability to legitimately legislate on issues for the public good, including health, environmental and labour rights should never be threatened. Labour MEPs will continue to oppose the inclusion of ISDS and we are working to put pressure on the Commission to exclude ISDS in the TTIP agreement. ISDS is not the only aspect of TTIP that is causing alarm. Many fear that TTIP may be a threat to the NHS. Nothing however at EU level can force privatisation: only the UK or Scottish governments have the ability to privatise the NHS. I and my colleagues will continue to monitor negotiations and scrutinise the final agreement to ensure these provisions are
DAVID MARTIN
included and fully effective. We would also not support any agreement which sought to lower EU food or environmental standards. Regulatory bodies in the EU and the USA safeguard against risks to health, safety at work and the environment, but have different standards and methods of doing so. These different methods and standards pose a hurdle to small companies seeking to sell their products in another country outside the EU. It is important that the European Commission upholds its promise that the final agreement will permit no lowering of present EU standards. Linking labour, environmental and human rights provisions to a trade agreement as farreaching as TTIP could represent an unprecedented opportunity to set global standards - standards that typically, up until now, other large trading nations have resisted. This is another important reason to continue with the TTIP negotiations, and to try, with our sister parties in the European Parliament, to shape TTIP into agreement that we can support.
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TEMPORARY TRAFFIC REGULATION ORDERS & CHARGING FOR COMMUNITY EVENTS The information below was provided by Police Scotland and Fife Council to local councillors. (Ed.) Local policing is at the heart of Police Scotland, as is our focus on keeping people safe. As such, Police Scotland has absolutely no desire to jeopardise the future of community events. In legacy Fife Constabulary we historically used emergency police powers to enforce road closures and traffic management for such events. It transpires that the emergency powers are just that – for use in cases of emergency and as such the position could not be maintained moving forward. The position under Police Scotland is that where an event organiser (community or otherwise) applies to the local authority to stage an event which requires the closure of a road, a TTRO should be put in place to ensure the police have the lawful authority to control and regulate the traffic. This is enshrined within current legislation. We advise on events where we think a TTRO would be beneficial, such as where there would be major disruption to traffic, or if there are other parades on the same route with a TTRO. In Fife, we are trying to use a common sense approach and recommend a TTRO only for those events that have a sizeable impact on the location or require road closures for a lengthy period. The final decision for requiring and thereafter granting a TTRO lies with Fife Council, and any costs involved with such an order are set by Fife Council not Police Scotland. Charges include administrative costs incurred by the local authority, such as advertising the TTRO, which is often placed in the local press. Fife Council is expected to charge around £475 for this service, with only registered charities exempted. The police service in Scotland is generally provided out of public funds for the benefit
of the public at large. However the ‘policing of events’ is one of few activities where it can be appropriate for the service to make charges to individuals or organisations to recover costs. The ‘Charging for Goods and Services Policy’ was introduced by the Scottish Police Authority in 2014. All events are categorised and assessed to determine if the police will charge the organiser for providing police services and considerations include whether the event has a statutory basis, is intended for profit, charity, or the benefit of the community. Quite simply, the organiser of a commercial event should expect to be charged full cost recovery when police services are provided. Purely charitable or community events are less likely to be charged, but in some cases these events are arranged on a ‘commercial basis’ and this would be taken into account in the overall charge assessment. Police Scotland does not charge for local community officers who are not dedicated to police the event per se, but who may attend the event as and when duties permit/allow in keeping with their community role. This is good practice in relation to community engagement and is fully supported by Police Scotland providing that it is not to the detriment of other policing demands ongoing within the community at the time. When planning the policing of events in Fife we consider it good practice to have open dialogue with an organiser to ensure that the event is policed with the appropriate numbers of staff. We encourage all event organisers to engage at the earliest opportunity to ensure that both Police and the event organizer can work together to jointly understand and agree the requirements for the particular event concerned.
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YOUR MEMBER OF SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT
ROD CAMPBELL
It is fair to say that a lot is expected of MSPs, not least in the Parliament. Every week there is a new interest group, or charitable organisation hosting a presentation, or a reception or other similar event in the Scottish Parliament. These events are excellent ways for worthwhile causes or subject matters to be brought to the attention of MSPs and Government Ministers. By way of example, during my time at the Parliament I have proudly assisted groups including Al-Anon Family Groups – a network for people who have lived with, or been affected by, somebody with alcohol problems – and the Cupar based “Career Studio”, who offer career guidance, to host events in the Parliament. 2015 is, of course, Scotland’s year of food and drink so it is understandable that a recurring theme of recent events has been food and drink. Shortly after the General Election, Tesco hosted a well attended event, showcasing Scottish produce and specifically Scottish produce that they stock – including Angus strawberries, Perthshire real ale and Edinburgh (sadly not Cupar!) Porridge products. It is fair to say that the Campaign for Real Ale’s event, just a couple of weeks later, also attracted a sizeable crowd - a number of my colleagues, including myself, were part of that crowd. The Tesco event perfectly exemplified the produce available on our very doorstep. Some of my colleagues would attest to that, after they left the event laden with fresh strawberries, shortbread and tea cakes. I was very impressed by the hospitality of all the stall-holders, if only slightly disappointed that no stock was present from North East Fife, which itself is home to fine brewing companies, a world renowned porridge maker and numerous speciality food retailers, from cheeses, to fruit, to meat. Perhaps, next time, a similar event will display what North East Fife has to offer.
Just this week, however, a slightly different style of food and drink related reception took place that married up with a subject of particular interest to me. Regular readers of my column will know that I have a very personal interest in dementia, and that I am the convener of the Parliament’s Cross Party Group on Dementia. Wednesday evening’s event on “Dieticians in Dementia” was, therefore, an event that I was keen to attend. Every Health Board in Scotland, including NHS Fife, has access to specialist dieticians to provide support to patients, but particularly dementia patients and their carers. Recent research by the British Dietetic Association claims that over 80% of carers of people with dementia are concerned about problems related to eating and drinking. NHS Fife’s Dementia Post Diagnoses Support Team have received specific training from the BDA, to help ensure all staff are aware of potential nutrition related issues in dementia patients. Already, some referrals have been made between NHS Fife and the BDA (and vice versa) and I am delighted at the work that is being carried out to help improve the quality of life of dementia patients, throughout Fife.
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