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Councillor Update, February/March 2023
There has been a slight delay to my monthly update this month as it’s been very busy both on a ward level and South Lanarkshire wide – but all good stuff, so read on! Contact me if I can help you with anything – a reminder that I don’t have surgeries in order to leave more time for community work, but I’d love to meet when and where it suits you or can come and visit your group. You can also Follow me on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates. Local Business (East Kilbride East) First up, Long Calderwood Parent Council and I have been working on an application to…
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South Lanarkshire Council to Vote on Space to Play
Scottish Green councillor, Kirsten Robb (East Kilbride East), is calling for more action on play when she brings the Space to Play campaign to a full meeting of South Lanarkshire Council this Wednesday 8th March. The campaign arose when community surveys in Kirsten’s ward highlighted the community’s wish for more spaces for young people to play. Since then Kirsten and the campaign have worked together to re-open multi-use games areas adjacent to schools outwith school hours, improve play parks and kickabout areas, secure funding for pitches and litter pick woodlands to improve play spaces. If the motion passes a full vote of South Lanarkshire Council, it will result in: The…
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Councillor Update, December 2022
After my energy efficiency motion was approved at full council in early December, I have continued to support constituents with their issues including lots of issues around housing emergencies and burst pipes with the cold snap before Christmas. Just contact me if I can help you with anything. In December I met with EK Home Carers to discuss their anger that the additional responsibilities they have taken on over the years, especially since Covid, have not been recognised as meriting an increase in the grade for the job. I support their protest and you can find out more about it here. The union will now make an appeal to the…
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Councillor Update, November 2022 (and a bit of December)
I have continued to support constituents with their particular issues dealing with mental health, housing, road safety, maintenance and green spaces. Just contact me if I can help you with anything. My ‘Cut fuel bills, cut carbon, kick start the green economy’ motion is approved: I managed to secure the support of other councillors to produce a council energy reduction plan so saving money for vital public services, to ensure new builds are as energy efficient as possible and to use the council’s build programme to create new green, long lasting, local, decent jobs. Check it out here. Help with the cost of living and keeping warm: I know there…
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South Lanarkshire Council Votes to Cut Carbon Emissions and Kick Start the Local Green Economy
On December 7th, Cllr Kirsten Robb (Scottish Green Party, East Kilbride East), presented a motion to the full council setting out further steps to cut council fuel consumption, reduce carbon emissions and kick start the local green economy in South Lanarkshire. The final text of the motion can be viewed below. South Lanarkshire Greens wish to extend thanks to Cllr Ross Clark (SNP, Larkhall) for seconding the motion and to Cllr Joe Fagan (Labour, East Kilbride Central North) for his constructive engagement and welcome amendment. The motion “Cut Bills, Cut Carbon, Kick Start the Green Economy” passed, amended, by unanimous consent in the last full council meeting of 2022. Motion:…
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Councillor Update, October 2022
Kirsten has continued to support constituents with their particular issues dealing with mental health, housing, policing, maintenance and greenspaces. She attended St Leonard’s Parent Council, St Leonard’s Community Council and Sanderson Parent Teachers Association. She also met with users of adult day centres and their carers and went to briefings on children’s rights and a fairer Scotland. She joined the runners for ‘Running Out Of Time’, the world longest baton relay in East Kilbride and Rutherglen and met children and young people from local schools, to raise awareness of climate change. Finally she will raise the desperate need for more affordable and social housing as part of the local housing…
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Councillor Update, September 2022
I have been continuing case and ward work, working with various organisations and charities in and around East Kilbride East, as they tackle the cost of living crisis. I have also helped support many of my constituents with their particular needs such as path improvements, road safety, particularly around schools, homelessness, home adaptations and planning. I have met with local housing officers to discuss, amongst other things, bike storage solutions. I am supporting local community groups and residents as they improve play and recreation facilities at Cornfoot Crescent and Long Calderwood. A start has been made on improvements to the football cage at Morrishall Road and I took part in…
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Councillor Update, July 2022
During July, as well as some family holiday time off, I’ve been visiting various groups, progressing more issues for residents and planning for the start of the full council year which kicks off mid- August. I’ve now dealt with over 75 items of case work for constituents. These include improvements to Brancumhall Pitch and Putt, helping with an urgent homelessness issue, path maintenance at Lammermoor Park, and getting the damaged substation at Ivanhoe cleaned up and made safe. Finally, after many months of me chasing it and years of it being in a dilapidated state, residents at Buchan Green have started seeing their wall repaired. I visited local charity Share…
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What will your councillors do on play? Space to Play is asking you to write to them.
The Space to Play campaign wants South Lanarkshire to be the best place to bring up children. So we want to know what our elected members will do to act on play. To do this we need your help. Please use this letter as a guide to contact your councillors where ever you are in South Lanarkshire. Change it to mention any particular issues around play in your community. And please send this Space to Play a copy of the reply on spacetoplaysl@gmail.com. The letter is also available as plain text if your device cannot read .odt files You can find contact details for your South Lanarkshire councillor here.
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South Lanarkshire Council removal of play park ‘unlawful’
South Lanarkshire Council acted unlawfully when it removed Hazelhead Play Park. They should have applied for planning permission to make this material change to land. When they acted without consultation, they also ignored their own planning guidance which states that communities should be involved in the management of their open spaces. These are the conclusions of the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland (https://www.ercs.scot) who have looked into the Hazelhead Park case. We have now submitted a formal complaint to SLC raising these points, as follows: Stage one complaint Removal of Hazelhead play park equipment I wish to make a stage one complaint as per the Council’s complaints procedure regarding the…
