Commenting on Community Meetings I Have Attended This Week

On Tuesday evening, after my weekly surgery at the Library, I attended a meeting of the Broughty Ferry Development Trust. It was good to hear about the projects which they are working on. I am sure their efforts will help to enhance The Ferry.

On Wednesday evening, I divided my time between the Parent Council meetings at Barnhill and Forthill Primary Schools as their meetings had been arranged for the same night. To my mind, both groups are positive examples of involved parents and carers leading to inspired children. At both meetings I heard about issues that are important in connection with their children's primary schooling. Unfortunately, there remain road safety issues in relation to the dropping off and picking up of children around Barnhill and Forthill. I will raise these issues at the next meeting of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group.

Positive Responses to Missing Yellow Lines and Gillies Park Improvements

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On Sunday I wrote about the missing yellow lines that had not been repainted at the junction of Brook Street, Westfield Road, Dundee Road and Claypotts Road after it had been resurfaced. I followed this up by contacting staff at the City Council.

I received a very prompt explanation from the Roads Maintenance Partnership that the yellow lining had not been forgotten  but that "the line painting lorry is currently under repair and the double yellow lines will be repainted once the lorry is back in working order."

On Monday, I visited Gillies Park in Barnhill which is located next to Barnhill Primary School and is accessed by road from Ceres Crescent and by foot from Abercromby Street and Falkland Crescent.  I had been expecting to see that the badly rutted car park had been resurfaced and improvements to the lighting in the park had been installed. Having seen that no work had been started and mindful of the fact that funding for this project was available until the end of March, I wrote to the engineer in charge of projects like this. 

The good news is that work at Gillies Park will likely start either later this week or early next week. The staff involved have also reassured me that they will provide advance warning to Barnhill Primary School of the definite start date on site.

No Progress Surfacing Parking Area in Gillies Park

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In the Autumn of last year before he retired, Chief Executive David Dorward committed the Council to provide a proper surface to the Car Park in Gillies Park and install better lighting. 

Subsequently funds were approved to do the job before the end of the 2014-15 financial year later this month.

This commitment recognized that when the weather was wet the surface of the car park become a bit of a quagmire which turn into pot holes. It is especially bad by the entrance to the car park from Ceres Crescent. It was hoped that surfacing the car park for the first time would not only improve access for parents and carers picking up and dropping off their children at Barnhill Primary School but also provide better access to the park for recreational users such as the footballers who use the pitches.

Yesterday, when I visited Gillies Park, there was no evidence of a start on site. As there are only four weeks to go before the end of the financial year, I written to the Council to inquire about when the work is programmed and to ensure that commitment has not been forgotten.

Upgraded Car Park at Gillies Park on its Way

On Monday night the City Development Committee approved a tender for £48,358 for the surfacing of the car park at Gillies Park and some related lighting work.

I welcome this contract for the surfacing of the car park at Gillies Park. Many Barnhill residents have complained to me about the potholes and mud in the car park so I am sure they will welcome this upgrade.

It will also help parents and carers dropping off and picking up their children from Barnhill Primary School. The Nursery and P1 classes located in the new extension to the school are easily accessed from Gillies Park.

There will also be improvements to the lighting which should help all park users feel more confident about walking through the park at night time.

I have been assured that the work will be carried out before the end of March so thankfully folk won't have to endure the potholes much longer.

Building Works at Barnhill Primary School Behind Schedule

As we enter the last week of the school holidays, the extension and improvements at Barnhill Primary School are not yet complete with many building workers still on site. 

Teaching staff are programmed to undertake Professional Development and preparation on Monday and Tuesday next week with pupils due to start school on Wednesday 20 August. 

But will the school be ready to handover by the end of this week?  I have been informed that the contractors are running behind schedule but forecast they will now be finished on Friday 15 August. 

I am concerned that if there is any further slippage, the school may not be ready for the pupils and their teachers next week.

Sunset View from Barnhill Primary School and the Parent Council Meeting

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Last night I attended a meeting of the Parent Council of Barnhill Primary School which concluded at about 9pm. When I emerged from the school, looking north down the school driveway onto Falkland Crescent, the setting sun was slipping behind the Sidlaw Hills and illuminating the clouds in the sky.

The meeting was well attended by parents and carers as well as Teachers from the school including Acting Head Teacher, Sharon McQuillan. Also in attendance were Pam Nesbitt, (Head Teacher), who is currently on secondment from the school as a Quality Improvement Officer in the Education Department, Mike Quinn who manages the School Crossing Patrollers and Carol Jenkins, the Communities Officer for Broughty Ferry.

The meeting discussed a number of pupil safety issues including:

• the need for additional measures to restrict access to the school driveway and car parking at the top of the driveway;
• the availability of School Crossing Patrollers and
• the need for either flashing road traffic signs on Balgillo Road or a Puffin crossing to make the crossing of this road safer, especially when the Crossing Patroller is not in attendance.

The parents and carers also received a detailed Head Teacher's report from, Sharon McQuillan, which included staffing changes and insights into the latest focus of the School Improvement Plan. Pam Nesbitt answered questions about progress with the £2m+ extension to he school.  She reported that she was unable to arrange a site visit for Parent Council members until the early part of the Summer Vacation.

Barnhill After School Care Club Receives Very Good Grades from Care Inspectorate

Following an inspection in March 2014, the Care Inspectorate have recently published their report on the Barnhill After School Care Club. 

The club provides wrap around care and learning for children before and after the school day and during the school holidays. This vital service enables parents and carers with primary school age children to go to work or engage in further education and training.  

The Inspector's report is very positive with the service being awarded the following consistently high "Very Good" grades:

• Quality of Care and Support grade 5 - Very Good
• Quality of Environment grade 5 - Very Good
• Quality of Staffing grade 5 - Very Good
• Quality of Management and Leadership grade 5 - Very Good

Parents as well as children were talked to by the Inspector.
"Six parents were talked to during the inspection and all were very happy with the club, which they thought was very well run. They all commented on how much their child enjoyed coming and sometimes how reluctant they could be to leave. The parents were aware they could be on the Committee and were happy with the information they were given and sent by email. All the responses were positive about all aspects of the club."

Bearing in mind that the Club has had to move premises within the school during the current building works, I think the parents' comments and Inspector's report are a testament to the quality and commitment of staff and management. 

Looking to the future, when the School's extension is completed in the early summer, the Club anticipates moving into the portable classroom unit currently used by the Nursery. With exclusive use of this facility and access to additional accommodation in the school, it hopes to be able to create more places for children on the waiting list.

Read or download Barnhill After School Care Club's Care Inspectorate Reports

Increase in Reserved Places in Ferry Schools for 2014-15

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At the Education Committee on Monday 24 February 2014, the Committee approved proposals from the Director of Education to increase reserved places in eleven schools in Dundee including Grove Academy, Barnhill, Eastern and Forthill Primary Schools in The Ferry.

The table shows that the allocation of reserved places for Barnhill, Eastern and Forthill Primary Schools for school year 2014-15 will be five places at P1 and one place in each year group P2-7. The allocation of reserved places for Grove Academy will be four places at S1 and two at S2.

Reserved places are defined as those which are reasonably required to accommodate pupils likely to become resident in the catchment area of the school in the school year to which the placing request relates.

This allocation of reserved places for Ferry schools will help to ensure that while parental choice is maintained wherever possible, that will not unduly restrict parents moving into the catchment area of a school from sending their child or children to their local primary or secondary school.


The following points should be noted concerning the deployment of reserved places:

• Reserved places are only created where space permits. Where sufficient Priority 1 pupils enrol to fill a class a reserved place cannot be created;
• No Priority 1 pupil will be refused a place while a reserved place exists and 
• When all reserved places have been used for Priority 1 pupils moving into the catchment area no more places can be granted. If a pupil then leaves the school roll that place will again be reserved for Priority 1 pupils moving into the catchment area and will be allocated to such pupils as required.

Link to the full paper presented to and approved by the Education Committee on Monday 24 February 2014 to read and/or download.

Steel Framework Assembly Begins for Barnhill Primary School Extension

On Wednesday, work began assembling the steel frame for the extension to Barnhill Primary School. Looking over from Gillies Park, you can see one of the the first steel beams being lifted by a crane into position. As these are erected, the scale and shape of the two storey extension to the school will become more apparent.

The £2 million extension is programmed to be ready for occupation by teachers and pupils for the new intake in August 2014.

Christmas Poster Competition Winners 2013 from our three Broughty Ferry Primary Schools

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Broughty Ferry Traders' Association have just announced the winners of their Christmas Poster Competition for 2013. 

• Lawry Angus from P7A at Barnhill Primary School, 
• Rosie Nicoll P5 from Eastern Primary School and 
• Sophie Merchant P2B from Forthill Primary School

will all collect their prizes from the stage at the Christmas Light Night in The Ferry on Thursday evening. 

Didn't they do well?

Work Starting on Extension to Barnhill Primary School in October Holidays

During the forthcoming two weeks of the October school holidays, work will begin on the £2.2 million contract to extend Barnhill Primary School.

This contract will deliver much needed additional classrooms and facilities to help the school cope with the rising demand for places.

The construction work, during the holiday fortnight, will include moving the Nursery building to its new location with the help of a crane. In addition the site compound will be fenced off and a temporary access road from Abercromby Street put in.

After the October 2013 holidays, work will proceed in a number of phases.

It is hoped that with regular communication between the contractors, the school and residents, the building of this extension will not be too disruptive. Hopefully it won't be too long before school pupils and staff can enjoy their enhanced and extended school.

Shortage of School Crossing Patrollers for our Pupils at Barnhill Primary School

There is currently a shortage of School Crossing Patrollers for pupils attending Barnhill Primary School. 

I was particularly concerned to hear on Thursday that the crossing point for children over Balgillo Road close to the junction with Falkland Crescent is currently unstaffed.  This is compounded by road safety issues in Falkland Crescent caused by house building opposite the front entrance to the school.

Balgillo Road is a very busy spine road and a bus route. Unfortunately it seems many drivers ignore the 30 mph speed limit. I would appeal to all road users to take extra care in the vicinity of Barnhill Primary School especially during this time when some crossing points are not staffed. I was reassured that all parents and carers have received a letter to warn them about the absence of a Patroller at this particular crossing point.

Barnhill Primary School has a good record of children walking or cycling to school. We don't want to undermine that because of a shortage of Lollipop men and women. I have been informed that interviews are already scheduled for the coming week with a view to making further appointments of Lollipop men and women. Let's hope that these gaps in service can be covered soon.

Finally, I written to the Education Department to ask again about progress with my previous proposal to explore combining the role of School Crossing Patroller with other paid duties in and around our schools to make this a more attractive part time job.

Settlement of Damaging Dispute with Staff who Were Reliant on Using Their Cars for Work

Last night the Council reversed another decision which also had caused inconvenience and disruption to valued public services. As part of their budget proposals in February 2013, the SNP administration included a cut in the 'Casual Car User Allowance' for all staff from 45p a mile to 25p a mile.

At the time, Labour Councillors warned the Council of unilaterally abandoning what was part of staff terms and conditions of work. 

Not surprisingly, many staff affected were unhappy that the reduced mileage rate hardly covered the cost of their petrol. Once it was implemented, the Council also found that many of our staff really needed their cars to do their job efficiently. How could these staff be deemed to be 'casual car users', when they needed to use a car every working day. For example, schools no longer have a single janitor to themselves but operate in clusters. In the Grove cluster, one Facilities Coordinator opens up all three Primary Schools. To get round quickly in the morning to open our schools, it's not practical to use public transport or walk between, Eastern, Forthill and Barnhill primary schools. 

When negotiations broke down, the Janitors, amongst other staff, worked to rule in protest. Not surprisingly breakfast clubs opened late because the Breakfast Club staff couldn't get in to their school until the Facilities Coordinator arrived using transport other than their own cars. The dispute was not helped when it was revealed that teachers in the schools were not subject to the same mileage rate cut as other Council staff. Care workers, delivering care services to vulnerable people in their homes were also affected and some clients apparently found that the time care workers could spend in their homes was squeezed by their care worker spending more time travelling between clients because they were not using their own cars.

Those members of the public who were inconvenienced by this ill conceived policy change will be glad that normal service will be resumed as soon as possible. Staff who really need their cars to do their jobs effectively will be relived that the Council has seen sense and recognised their across the board cut in the mileage rate was unfair and counter productive.

Call for Building Work at Barnhill Primary School to be Complete Before Pupils Return Next Week

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When I visited Barnhill Primary School on Monday evening, building work by the Council appeared to be seriously behind schedule for the new term beginning next Tuesday. 

Over the six week summer holiday, the temporary classroom that houses the Nursery Class was supposed to have been moved from its site close to the front entrance to a new location at the other side of the school. When I visited on Monday evening, I had expected to see the job done or merely the finishing touches to be completed. Unfortunately the site preparation for the relocated hut was still being undertaken and the Nursery Hut hadn't budged from its original location. The school looked like a building site with the playground on the Abercromby Street side of the school fenced off - see photograph.

Apart from the temporary classroom being moved to its new location, services will need to be connected, there are access ramps to fit, external play equipment to be moved, secured and fenced off all before the Care Inspectorate are called in to inspect and approve the relocated nursery unit."

I contacted the Director of Education to pass on my observations and seeking a reassurance that the re-located Nursery will be ready to welcome its young pupils next week and the school site ready for its staff and pupils.

On Tuesday morning, I was relieved to hear from the Director that the Nursery Unit move had been rescheduled. It will now be moved to its new location during the October holiday. It still looks like it will be a challenge to get the playgrounds and the external areas around the school tidied up before the beginning of term.

When members of the Parent Council were briefed about the extension of their School earlier this year, they were assured that the work would be carefully scheduled and monitored to ensure that disruption to the teaching and learning would be minimised. This does not appear to be the start that they were promised.

Barnhill Primary School Extension - Planning Permission

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At the Development Management Committee meeting on Monday 13 May, the Committee Approved the planning permission for the extension of Barnhill Primary School. 

This will provide the accommodation for the increased roll in the school to cope with the rising population of pre-school children in the catchment area of the school.

At the committee I welcomed the application but moved that on the grounds of pupil safety, good relations with resident neighbours of the school and respect for those attending burials or tending graves in the adjoining cemetery, the Council should take care when scheduling the construction of the temporary access road to the site from the turning head at the northern end of Aberomby Street. My proposal was accepted and approved by the Committee.

Read/download the Development Management Committee Meeting Papers

Reserved Places for Barnhill and Forthill Primary Schools and Grove Academy

At the Education Committee on Monday 25 February, the Committee considered a report on 'Retaining Reserved Places In Schools 2013/2014'. Councils can reserve places in schools in anticipation of children who may move into the catchment area of the school in-year. They must consider the overall demand for places at the school, and can only keep empty the number of places that they consider are reasonably required for pupils likely to move into the catchment area in the period up to and including the forthcoming school year.

The Committee papers contained the following list of proposed reserved places in school session August 2013 - June 2014. Addressing the Committee, I said:                                                                        

Click on table to enlarge

"I welcome this report. It addresses some of of the pinch points in demand for schooling in the city and tries to ensure that children whose families move into the school catchment area during the school year have a small number of reserved places potentially available at the Primary and 

Secondary schools in their area. On the basis of the criteria in this report, I believe that Forthill Primary School should also have 2 reserved places at P1 stage. At the Parent Council meeting last week, which the Director of Education attended, concerns were expressed about rising roll of the school. For people moving into the Forthill catchment area, the potential constraint would be in P1 where there the legal maximum is 25 whereas it is higher in P2 and above.

Forthill catchment area contains some new housing and with some recently built major new housing development such as the Ferryfields. It is a catchment area with a continuing reasonable level of turnover of homes as people move in and out.

Accordingly, I ask the Committee to approve this change to the list of reserved places for the next school year."

The Convener of the Committee, after consultation with the Director, accepted my proposal.

Weather Didn't Stop the Fun at Broughty Christmas Lights and Street Party

All the fun of the fair

The cold and wet weather didn't put off the crowds of families gathering in Brook Street and Gray Street last night to see the new Christmas Lights switched on by the Lord Provost.
A special thank you to Broughty Ferry Traders for once again organising the event with a wide range of voluntary, commercial and Council collaborators and sponsors.
A memorable night on the civic calendar for The Ferry.

Rachel Lindsay P7B Eastern Primary School
joint winner of the Bferry Traders'
Christmas Poster competition

Staff and pupils from Barnhill Primary School
 are presented with their charitable donation
from Broughty Ferry Traders

Gillies special Christmas window display

Additional Traffic Safety Measures Committed for Ferry Schools

Last Friday afternoon, I attended a meeting of the School Parking and Pupil Safety Working Group chaired by the Chief Executive, David Dorward.

The Committee received updates about progress with the implementation of safety measures already agreed. In the light of additional reports, some further safety measures were agreed.

The following safety improvements have been agreed for Ferry Schools:

Forthill Primary School

Work is ongoing in respect of traffic orders connected with the installation of a traffic barrier and use of Forthìll Sports Club Car Park (for staff parking) and would be completed by April 2013.

Grove Academy/Eastern Primary School
Work is progressing to implement the traffic order to make the northerly section of Church Street one way running north to its junction with Davidson Street.

The following additional measures were agreed:-

(i) Yellow box on Church Steet/Queen Street Junction.

(ii) Part-time 20 mph speed limit signage on Queen Street.

(iii) Re-locate Bus stop and Shelter on Claypotts Road (east side).

Barnhill Primary School

It was agreed that an updated risk assessment is to be carried out in light of the planned major building works at the school.

Annual Review
Finally, the Group agreed to meet again in June 2013 to review the effectiveness of the measures that had been introduced throughout Dundee to enhance road safety in the vicinity of our schools.

This has been an effective working group that has really got some things done at schools to hopefully enhance pupil safety in the vicinity of our schools. While some measures have taken longer to implement than we anticipated, I now recognise some of the complexities of introducing improvements that require traffic orders.

Christmas Poster 2012 - Winning Designs from each of our three Broughty Ferry Primary Schools

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Congratulations to our three winning young designers:

• Theo Romanowski Class P1A Barhill Primary School
• Rachel Lindsay Class P7B Eastern Primary School and
• Hannah Benns Class P6 Forthill Primary School

Barnhill Primary School Extension - Alternative Site Access

Narrow entrance roadway to
Barnhill Primary School

At the Education Committee on Monday evening 29 October, we considered a report on the proposed £1.9 million extension to Barnhill Primary School. This report spelled out the improvements to the school in addition to the original four classrooms that had been proposed.

I welcomed this report because I had backed the Parent Council in advocating that to adequately raise the capacity of this school, the Council would need to add more than four classrooms. I am delighted therefore that this report provides more nursery places and expansion to other facilities such as the dining hall which would otherwise be pinch points in a school with a higher intake.

While this is very satisfactory, I wanted to make a plea about safe access to the building site during the contract period. This had been informed by my prior meeting with the City Architect.

The entrance to Barnhill Primary School is on Falkland Crescent. The only current vehicular access to the school site is from Falkland Crescent and comprises a narrow roadway about the same width as a domestic driveway with just room for one car travelling one way. It runs parallel with a pathway for pedestrians which is fenced off. The roadway is currently used by staff to access their car parking spaces, the Janitor accessing his house, visitors to the school and parents dropping off children at the nursery. The pathway is the principal pedestrian access point for pupils and their parents/carers. The plan was apparently to also use this narrow road for the construction site access during the building works.

I requested that, in the interests of pupil safety, the design team should explore the feasibility of an alternative separate vehicular access to the building site in order to meet best practice advice arising from The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.

The Education Convener agreed that this would be explored.