Disappointing News from Abellio ScotRail - No Plans for Enhanced Rail Services in Broughty Ferry

Dutch firm Abellio take over running ScotRail trains next year on a ten year franchise. It is very disappointing news for Broughty Ferry that even before they begin running our trains, Abellio ScotRail have indicated that they have no plans and commitments to improve the frequency of train services for Broughty Ferry.

Our regional transport body TACTRAN have played their part in making the case for an hourly service from Arbroath to Glasgow stopping at Broughty Ferry. Clearly, the Scottish Government, who approved the terms of the new franchise bidding process, did not make enhancing our local train services a priority.

Residents in Broughty Ferry will be wondering why Shona Robison MSP was clearly so ineffective in supporting her constituents aspirations for improvements to the frequency of stopping services in The Ferry.

Despite this very disappointing start by Abellio, I am seeking reassurance that the priorities and conditions of the new franchise does not mean that the door has been slammed shut on making any improvements to rail services in The Ferry for the next ten years.

Claypotts Road is Closed Due to a Gas Leak

Earlier today (Thursday 13 November 2014) the City Council announced that Claypotts Road had been closed at a point near to Claypotts Castle because of  a gas leak, The Roads Department have advised the road should be open again by Friday evening.

Unfortunately this additional emergency closure will add to delays for drivers at from the ongoing roadworks at the Claypotts intersection.

2015 Broughty Ferry Calendar Now on Sale

The Broughty Ferry Traders’ Association have just published the 2015 edition of their calendar.

The Broughty Ferry calendar features twelve beautiful photographs, one for each month. The photographs were all submitted to the Traders as entries in their Gala Week Photography Competition this summer.

The calendar photographs attest to the high standard of entries received and to the attractiveness of Broughty Ferry as a place to live, work and visit. Proceeds from the sale of the calendar will help support local good causes. 

The 2015 calendar costs £9.99 and is available from Eduardo Alessandro Studios, 30 Gray Street, DD5 2BJ tel 01382 737011 and many other shops in The Ferry.

Grove Parent Council Meeting 11 November 2014

Last night I attended the meeting of the Grove Parent Council held in the school's staff room.

The parents and carer members of the Parent Council discussed a range of matters with Depute Head Teachers Lesley Elder and Fiona McIntosh.

Amongst the issues covered were enhancing communications between home and school. Lesley Elder circulated and introduced Grove's revised anti bullying policy and procedures which had been updated in the light of the review of citywide policies by the City Council. Parents and carers can read or download this document (on the schools website) by clicking on this link.

The next meeting of the Grove Parent Council will be in January 2015.

Remembrance Day Service at Grove Academy

This morning I attended the Grove Academy Remembrance Service at 11am at the school's war memorial adjacent to the main entrance.

The short service was led by the chaplaincy team with a pupil trumpeter playing the last post and a young piper the haunting lament. Staff and pupil representatives joined in a thoughtful service, particularly drawing attention to the Grove FPs who died in two world wars and subsequent conflicts.

This year had added poignancy because of the centenary of the outbreak of World War One in 1914. At a personal level, it was brought closer to home following my visit to Flanders in July when my wife and I attended the daily act of commemoration at the Menin Gate in Ypres.

Countdown to Broughty Ferry Christmas Light Night Thursday 27 November 2014

Christmas Light Night in The Ferry – Thursday November 27th 2014 in Brook Street and Gray Street in the heart of Broughty Ferry from 6pm.

Sponsored by Gillies: featuring live music, carol singing and carnival attractions, with the lights switch on at 7pm!

NOTE Brook St and Gray St will be closed to traffic from 2pm-9pm

Remembrance Sunday 2014

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

Commenting on Supply Teacher Shortages in Dundee

The reported shortage of supply teachers in Dundee is putting additional pressure on Headteachers and their staff in our schools to cover classes when colleagues are absent.

The current supply shortage is a result of a very unfortunate combination of factors which have served both to increase the demand for 'supply teachers' and at the same time restrict the supply.

Firstly that the age profile of teacher until recently was skewed towards those approaching retirement. Their replacement with recently qualified younger staff in a profession where women are more numerous has meant that there has been a concurrent increase in the number of staff on maternity leave in any given school year. This year I understand that there are more than 45 teachers in Dundee on maternity leave, all of whom need replacement.

Secondly, there has been a rise in the number of rising five year old children in our city entering Primary School each year; about 300 extra children per year equating to 18 additional classes alll needing a teacher.

Thirdly, one of the SNP's most damaging cuts in education was to reduce the national rate of pay for short term supply teaching. This initially restricted the daily rate of pay for up to five days supply teaching to the lowest rung of the salary scale. For experienced supply teachers, this made short term supply work much less attractive so understandably some supply teachers withdrew from the supply list or became selective; avoiding taking short term supply work at the lower rate of pay.

This has put a strain on teachers and management teams in schools as they cover classes. When this repeatedly happens this takes them away from other roles and tasks that they would be otherwise undertaking. In secondary schools the internal 'please take' cover may be by a teacher who is not qualified in the subject taught. While this cover is satisfactory, if not ideal, for an occasional lesson, this it is not a satisfactory longer term solution for pupils in a class preparing for SQA examinations.

After several years of difficulties securing supply teachers throughout Scotland, the Scottish Government has finally agreed to establish a national task force to look into and come up with some solutions that increase the pool of supply teachers. The sooner this group report, the better.

In the meanwhile, we are exploiting the goodwill of our school teachers and understandably this is wearing thin. Parents I am sure will be anxious that the education of their child does not suffer as a result of these shortages.

Cedar Road and Forthill Road Flooding

Unfortunately flooding at the junction of Forthill Road and Cedar Road in Broughty Ferry happens around a dozen times a year. In addition to the hazard the flood creates, especially for pedestrians, the murky water contains an unhealthy mixture of sewage and rainwater. When the water level eventually subsides, there is a disgusting residue of sewage on the ground. I have received complaints on behalf of the owners of properties in Cedar Road and Seafield Lane. These include penetrating damp into the stonework of a house built into a boundary wall, water damage to a driveway and sewage residues deposited on garden ground as well as the unpleasant experience of travelling up and down a polluted roadway and footpaths.

While Scottish Water organize a clean up of the mess when notified, they explain that they have no current plans to increase the capacity of the drainage system to cope with heavy downpours. They repeatedly say that their current investment plans focus on other priorities which are set by Ministers in the Scottish Government. I think it's time that Shona Robison, our MSP for Dundee City East and a Minister in that Scottish Government, used her influence to get these investment plans modified. There must be many other locations in other parts of the city and elsewhere which have similar problems that need some investment to sort them out. Until then, with climate change, flooding incidents at this junction will be more numerous. I think it's unacceptable that residents have to put up with an inadequate drainage system.

Barnhill Tenants and Residents Group Awarded Grant

For a number of years there has been a group of tenants meeting informally in North Barnhill. Their interest has been in representing residents living in Abercromby Street, Abernethy Road and Aberdour Place; principally about housing and environmental issues. 

About six months ago, the group agreed to formalise themselves into a fully constituted Tenants' and Residents' Group. With the support of Tenant Participation Officer, Nicola Mitchell and Communities Officer, Carole Jenkins and a considerable amount of detailed work by their committee members, the formalities have now been completed.

At the Housing Committee on Monday evening, the Committee were advised that the recently constituted Barnhill Tenants' and Residents' Association met all the criteria to become a Registered Tenants' Organisation (Housing {Scotland} Act 2001. As well as approving their registration, the Committee also approved an administration grant of £500 for 2014/14.

I wish Barnhill Tenants' and Residents' Association all the best for the future. I am committed to working with them on the issues that they raise on behalf of their local community.

New Website for Broughty Ferry LIfeboat

Broughty Ferry lifeboat have just re-launched their website following a major overhaul. Their website provides news and information from and for their volunteers and supporters. The revamped website is now accessible on a mobile, tablets well as a laptop and PC.
http://www.broughtyferrylifeboat.org/

Happy 125th Birthday Grove Academy 1889 - 2014

Today marks the 125th anniversary of Grove Academy. It was founded on 10th September 1889 when the Broughty Ferry School Board took over a school established in the 1880s in a house situated at the north east corner of the present site. The original house called the 'Grove' had been a private school known as Mr Swan's Grove Seminary. 

In 1889 the school staff consisted of the headmaster Mr A Hutt, and his two assistant teachers. Mr Hutt was appointed headteacher in 1889 aged 24. He remained in post for 40 years until he retired in 1928.

Grove began life as a response to the increased demand for school places triggered by not only the raising of the school leaving age to 14 in 1883 but also the rising population following the opening of the Dundee and Arbroath Railway in 1838.

During the intervening 125 years, Broughty Ferry and Grove Academy have changed dramatically.  Grove has developed from a small 'all through' school into one of the leading state secondary schools in Scotland.

Many happy and successful returns.

Grove Academy 125th Anniversary Celebration on Saturday 13th September 2014 - Tickets Still Available

Click on image to enlarge

On Saturday 13 September 2014 there will be a celebratory event to mark the 125th Anniversary of Grove Academy. 

During the evening, pupils will be putting on a number of performances including drama, music and readings from archive materials.

There will also be opportunities to see some of the artifacts from the school archive including photographs that date back to 1889.

The quest speaker is the distinguished Grove FP,  Tom Winsor, who is currently Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary for England and Wales.

Tickets are still available @ £14 each and are available from the Grove Office during school hours or you can contact Mr Doherty 01382 436800.

BERA Evening Class Enrolment Night - Monday 8 September 2014 at Grove Academy from 6:30pm

Enrolment night for BERA Evening Classes is Monday 8 September at Grove Academy from 6:30pm.

Broughty Ferry Education and Recreation Association (BERA) recently launched their Programme of evening classes in Broughty Ferry, which will run during the Autumn Term starting in week beginning Monday 15 September 2014.

The classes  are organised on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday evenings and take place in Grove Academy. 

Enrolment night is Monday 8 September at Grove Academy from 6:30pm.

Read or Download BERA's programme of classes on the link below or pick up a paper copy of the programme from Broughty Ferry Library.


Link to BERA Programme of Evening Classes for Autumn Term 2014

100+ Young Winners of Tesco Bank Summer Reading Challenge Scotland at Broughty Ferry Library

Click on image to enlarge

On Tuesday evening, I had the pleasure of presenting certificates to 103 children who had completed the Tesco Bank Summer Reading Challenge Scotland at Broughty Ferry Library. There were also certificates for 8 children who had completed the Book Bug Challenge for children under 4. The Summer Reading Challenge is designed for children between the ages of 4 and 11. To gain a medal and certificate, each young reader needs to read six books and visit their library three times over the summer holiday. Many of the winners on Tuesday evening had read many more than six books.

The Summer Reading Challenge recognises that, "Reading for pleasure is more important to children’s successes than education or social class. The Summer Reading Challenge gets .... children into libraries to keep up their reading skills and confidence during the long holidays." Clearly it also encourages many children and their parents and carers to their local library.

Congratulation are due to parents, grandparents and carers for supporting their young readers by engaging them in this programme. Thanks are also due to Sandra Westgate our Librarian and her team of staff who have organised the scheme within our library.