Main Issues Report - have your say!

East Lothian Council commenced public consultation on its Main Issues Report (MIR) on Monday 17 Nov 2014.  

This means that if you’re an East Lothian resident or have an interest in the future development of the area, the council want to hear your views!

The MIR is the first formal stage leading to the new East Lothian Local Development Plan.  

The consultation document sets out possible strategies for accommodating new development such as housing, business and retail in East Lothian. 

Following the consultation, the council will consider all responses and use these in preparing the Proposed Local Development Plan, which is expected to be published in late 2015.  

The consultation period will run from Mon 17 Nov 2014 to Sun 8 Feb 2015.

A public consultation event takes place today, Thursday November 20, in Prestonpans Community Centre from 2 until 5.30 (drop-in at any point).

Responses to the consultation should be made via the Consultation Hub.  

Find out more about the MIR and the public consultation via the links below.

More on Local Development Plan

1. Main Issues Report (MIR)
2. Main Issues Report consultation events
3. Main Issues Report documents
4. Main Issues Report FAQs
5. MIR summaries and maps
6. Responding to the MIR consultation
7. Initial consultation and site submissions (2012-13)
8. Contacts and further advice

The summary for the Prestonpans area can be viewed here.

What does this mean for Cuthill Park?

Briefly, Cuthill Park is protected by a Minute of Agreement - a robust yet flexible legally-binding document designed to protect green spaces in perpetuity.

Before a development could take place, permission would have to be sought from Fields in Trust whose aim is to protect open spaces for future generations to enjoy.

Trustees' Week 2014

Trustees' Week is an annual event to showcase the great work that trustees do and highlight opportunities for people from all walks of life to get involved and make a difference.  

Trustees play a vital role in a charity like the Friends of Cuthill Park, and few people realise just how much responsibility they shoulder.   

The main duty of charity trustees is to maintain general overall control of the charity. 

Trustees need to ensure that the charity is administered effectively, and is able to account for its activities.

A charity Trustee must:

•  act in the interests of the charity
• ensure that the charity operates in a manner that is consisent with its objects or purposes
• act with the care and diligence that it is reasonable to expect of a person who is managing the affairs of another person
• ensure that the charity complies with the provisions of The Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005, and other relevant legislation.

In addition to these general duties, Trustees have specific duties relating to:

• charity details on the Scottish Charity Register
• reporting to OSCR
• financial record keeping and reporting
• fundraising
• providing information to the public

In other words...the buck stops with them!  

Thank you to all the Trustees of the Friends of Cuthill Park ((Scottish Charity Number SC040402)!

Pans Labyrinth?

Following on from the consultation we did which showed a maze as one of the most wanted things for the park, Friends Secretary, Carole, met with Di Williams, the UK master trainer in labyrinth facilitation, who instigated the labyrinth in Edinburgh's George Square.

Labyrinth or Maze?

A maze is a confusing pathway that has many branches, choices of path and dead-ends.  To create a traditional maze where people could actually get lost is a huge commitment and one that seems impracticable at the current time.

At first glance, a labyrinth might look like a maze but actually has a single through-route with twists and turns but without branches.  It may be long but there is only one path. Because it doesn't involve making left/right choices, the walker can just clear their mind and follow the path. It can be a very calming experience, but equally, very exciting for children who love zooming along the path!

What now?

Our plans are at a very early stage but here is what we are thinking...

The size would be approximately 20 x 18ft (6 x 5m).

The location would be to the west of the lone sycamore, tucked up near the fence to make the most of the views across the Forth.

The materials used will largely depend on the council's advice re maintenance but could be:

a brick/stone path & turf edges like this:

or, compacted gravel for the path with bricks/stones partly sunk in to mark the path edges like this:

 or,  grass paths with sunken bricks (though frequent use tuns the grass to mud):

 

Labyrinths come in different styles including the 7 circuit classical labyrinth, that have been around for about 4000 years:

Then, there's the simple medieval labyrinth (like the famous one at Chartres Cathedral) which can be prettier but more difficult to build.

 

We would love to hear your views.  Email friendsofcuthillpark@hotmail.com or come along to the next work day, Saturday 8th (11 a.m. until 1 p.m.) and talk to us.

  

 

Playpark: revised layout

As we mentioned in our previous post, the layout for the play park has had to be changed.

Here is the revised layout.

All the equipment details remain the same but are shown again for ease of reference (click on the description to go to the manufacturer's website):

A. Double Swing 2.1m high with cradle seats

B. Nest Swing

C. Standing See Saw

D. Aurich Playset

 D. Aurich Playset comprising:

• 2 Triangular platforms with monopitch roof, PH 1.45 m / 1.70 m
• 1 Climbing wall 1.03 x 1.75 m, wood, with wooden handles
• 1 Stainless steel fireman’s pole
• 1 Vertical wooden ladder
• 1 Sloping scramble net
• 1 Triangular lying net made of polyamide Hercules ropes

plus E. Tower Slide

 

F. Embankment Slide

G. Ramp Ascent

H. Scramble Net

I. 'Charles Dickens' Climbing Station

I. 'Charles Dickens' Climbing Station comprising:

• 2 Diamond-shaped platforms, PH 1.45 / 1.95 m
• 1 Rail slide
• 2 Triangular nets made of polyamide Hercules ropes
• 18 Ropes made of polyamide Hercules ropes
• 2 Ladders
• 1 Free-climbing wall
• 6 Posts, partly with climbing notches

J.  12 x Jumping Blocks

K.  'Shock-headed Peter' Upside Down Tree Trunk

L. Stilts Course

M. Beach Treasures

N. Infinity Bowl

O. Oak Orb

P, Q, R & S. Sprawl seating

P. Sprawl Seat 1.2m long x 0.4m high
Q. Sprawl Seat 1.2m long x 0.6m high
R. Sprawl Seat 1.2m long x 0.8m high
S. Sprawl Seat 2.0m long x 0.6m high

T. Pendulum Tyre Swing, Round Post

U. Picnic Table

V. Horizontal Bar, double, with ladder bars

The excavated soil will be used to create three mounds.

Boulders, supplied by East Lothian Council, will be place around the Infinity Bowl (shown on the plan as grey circles).

To keep up to date with the latest developments, follow us on Twitter (@cuthillpark)

Play Park Update

Representatives from East Lothian Council, Jupiter Play and the contractors had a meeting on site on Wednesday 29 October to talk through the construction of the project.

It became apparent on site that some of the equipment would need to move to suit the ground contours and minimize the amount of “cut and fill” needed to carry out.

It also highlighted some existing drains on the tarmac that would need to avoided, so again some of the equipment would need to move to make sure we stay clear of these and their underground pipes.

None of the equipment has changed only the positioning has been adjusted.

Shown below is a working drawing showing the changes.  We will update with images in due course.

 

The Play Park...in detail

As we mentioned in our previous post, the final design for the play park has been agreed.

Here is the layout.

And here are the individual items (click on the description to go to the manufacturer's website):

A. Double Swing 2.1m high with cradle seats

B. Nest Swing

C. Standing See Saw

D. Aurich Playset

 D. Aurich Playset comprising:

• 2 Triangular platforms with monopitch roof, PH 1.45 m / 1.70 m
• 1 Climbing wall 1.03 x 1.75 m, wood, with wooden handles
• 1 Stainless steel fireman’s pole
• 1 Vertical wooden ladder
• 1 Sloping scramble net
• 1 Triangular lying net made of polyamide Hercules ropes

plus E. Tower Slide

 

F. Embankment Slide

G. Ramp Ascent

H. Scramble Net

I. 'Charles Dickens' Climbing Station

I. 'Charles Dickens' Climbing Station comprising:

• 2 Diamond-shaped platforms, PH 1.45 / 1.95 m
• 1 Rail slide
• 2 Triangular nets made of polyamide Hercules ropes
• 18 Ropes made of polyamide Hercules ropes
• 2 Ladders
• 1 Free-climbing wall
• 6 Posts, partly with climbing notches

J.  12 x Jumping Blocks

K.  'Shock-headed Peter' Upside Down Tree Trunk

L. Stilts Course

M. Beach Treasures

N. Infinity Bowl

O. Oak Orb

P, Q, R & S. Sprawl seating

P. Sprawl Seat 1.2m long x 0.4m high
Q. Sprawl Seat 1.2m long x 0.6m high
R. Sprawl Seat 1.2m long x 0.8m high
S. Sprawl Seat 2.0m long x 0.6m high

T. Pendulum Tyre Swing, Round Post

U. Picnic Table

V. Horizontal Bar, double, with ladder bars

The excavated soil will be used to create three mounds.

Boulders, supplied by East Lothian Council, will be place around the Infinity Bowl (shown on the plan as grey circles).

Exciting!

The Play Park plan....REVEALED!

In choosing the design of the play park, we had to balance the preferences shown in the consultation, with budget and physical constraints (such as slopes of the park), ease of maintenance and play value.

We also didn't want to echo what had been done in Drachrig Park at nearby Rigley Terrace so worked closely with the Prestongrange & Cuthill Tenants & Residents Group.

East Lothian Council were hugely helpful in making our £87,000 budget go further by offering to purchase bark on our behalf (because of economy of scale, the council can buy it cheaper than the play equipment companies can).

We felt Jupiter Play had interpreted our request particularly well and, with a couple of changes, we agreed the design at our meeting on 9 October.

To see the individual pieces of equipment in more detail, click here.

So, what happens now?

It will take at least three months for the equipment to arrive and then installation is weather dependent - not ideal in the winter months!  So, realistically, we will be looking at a play park being ready to use in spring 2015 with an official opening in the summer.

October update

October has seen some milestones achieved and some changes to our committee.  In summary:


We met with Jupiter Play and approved the final play park design (more info to follow).

We held a meeting of the Friends.  Tom Ewing agreed to take over as Treasurer from Celia Mainland who is moving to North Berwick.  

Thank you Celia for all you have done.  You will be missed!

We agreed that recruiting volunteers was to be a priority in the year ahead.

We held our monthly work day and weeded the paths in the community garden.


We researched prospective funding bodies.

Discussions continued regarding the possibility of relocating to railway bridge from Prestongrange Museum and the reinstatement of the path between the two sites.

We put together a draft programme of 'biodiversity' themed events for next year.  If you would like to organise an event, we would love to hear from you!

We updated and reminded people about park issues via Twitter
(@cuthillpark).

Davie Rutherford and the Community Payback Order team cleared the undergrowth by the front gate which means that people will be able to see into the park which reduces anti-social behaviour (and hopefully encourages passers-by to become visitors!)

East Lothian Council delivered several boulders to the park.  

These are great for natural play and also as informal seating.



Approximate volunteer hours this month: 60

Making Wildflower Seedbombs

At this time of year, all but one of the wildflower beds in Cuthill Park have been cut back.

From the remaining bed (deliberately left to provide a source of nectar for our insect friends) we have gathered some of the seeds to make seedbombs.

It's very easy and makes an unusual gift.

Mix together:
1 part non-invasive wildflower seeds
3 parts peat-free compost
3 parts bentonite-based cat litter
2 parts water

Mixture should resemble brownie dough and have a firm consistency

Form into small balls, somewhere between the size of a marble and a golf ball

Leave to dry

Store in a cool, dark place

They will be ready to throw in the spring.