Parents force rethink on security

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Ending the week on a positive story, though one constituents should not have faced. Yesterday I was contacted by parents at Summerston Child Care which is based within Bellcraig Community Centre which is managed by Glasgow Life (formerly Glasgow Culture and Sport). Earlier this year a fight between a group of young adults, involving knives, a machete and a hammer, spilled into the Centre. All too easily these people could have walked straight into the nursery as there was no security system to stop them. Fortunately, though not for staff, the fight stayed in the main reception.

Strathclyde Police subsequently carried out a full safety assessment at the Centre which resulted in the installation of a controlled entry system to the nursery area. Yesterday parents and staff at Summerston Child Care were told that Glasgow Life’s Health & Safety Officer had instructed that the system be removed as a Health & Safety issue. Yes, the same organisation that runs the Centre, and installed the security system, had now removed it.

Needless to say parents quickly contacted their Councillors to voice their concerns and I contacted Glasgow Life who advised that as the system wasn’t hard wired into the fire alarm system it posed an unacceptable risk to users of the Centre. Now you might think that Glasgow Life should have thought of this before they installed it, however to add insult to injury they then raised the prospect that Summerston Child Care might have to pay for any new system!

After several e-mails and phone calls, commonsense seems to have prevailed and Glasgow Life promise me that the original system will now be reinstalled on Monday morning, following this Glasgow Life will now review all of the recommendations in the original Police report and agree an action plan with the users of the Centre. Parents are obviously relieved by the news and hopefully Glasgow Life have taken some lessons on board.

New Homes for Maryhill

canal regeneration

Good news that the £16.2m 125 home Phase 2 development at Maryhill Locks is scheduled to start in September and will be managed by ISIS, who are likely to retain 19 homes which will be available for private sale; the other 106 will be for social rent by Maryhill and Glasgow Housing Associations’. 

As previously announced in the Evening Times this will be part of a £70 million plan to breathe new life into Maryhill. The masterplan, which includes 400 new homes, along with shops and restaurants, aims to transform the Maryhill canalside into a modern sustainable community. The Maryhill Locks scheme, which is being delivered through the Glasgow Canal Regeneration Partnership, Maryhill Housing Association and the Maryhill Transformational Regeneration Area (TRA), aims to breathe new life into 18 hectares of land in the north west of the city. As part of the plan, a mixture of social rented and private housing will be built on the banks of the Forth and Clyde Canal, set around the centrepiece that will be Maryhill Locks Park.

Grand Launch for Cleveden Community Club

Cleveden Secondary

Great news from Cleveden Community Club and I’d just want to pay tribute to my fellow Liberal Democrat ward councillor, Mary Paris, for the tremendous work she has done on this. 

The Cleveden Community Club (CCC) was started by Kelvindale residents who recognised the limited opportunities for sporting activity within the Kelvindale community.  The CCC pilot was supported by Kelvindale Community Council, Culture and Sport Glasgow, Education Services Department and the four local councillors.  Applications for start up funding to a number of bodies including Maryhill/Kelvin Area Committee were largely successful.  A local business has also provided sponsorship. 

The Club’s aims are to provide:

  • sporting and non sporting activities for all age groups within the community twice a month mainly run by volunteers
  • opportunities for young people to undertake training in sports coaching and then to experience using their skills to the benefit of CCC
  • a space within the community where residents can start their own interest groups if they so wish.

The structure and programme of the Club has been developed with the help of Culture and Sport Glasgow (now Glasgow Life).   

5 pilot sessions have been run with, to date, 141 people having completed application forms for membership.  67 are now fully paid up members.  The age range is from 3 – 78.  Under 10s require an adult to accompany them.  There is a mix of coached and free play available in most activities.  The café provides a forum where families can meet.  It will also be used as space for non sporting activities such as a book group and jewellery making.  Links with other sports clubs are being explored in particular with Kelvindale Bowling and Lawn Tennis Club.  Several of the members including young people have volunteered to undertake training in order to be able to work as volunteer coaches for various activities.

The formal opening of Cleveden Community Club by the Lord Provost will take place on Sunday 22nd August 2010 at 2pm at Cleveden Secondary School, 42 Cleveden Road, Glasgow G12.

Members can enjoy a variety of activities including swimming, basketball, badminton, football, table tennis, model making, jewellry making, book swap and ….. a cup of tea! 

Road Resurfacing

pothole

Land and Environmental Services have confirmed that Burnhouse Street, Winton Drive, Fairhaven Road and Cleveden Drive are now part of the second phase of road repairs and resurfacing in the Maryhill/Kelvin ward. I’ve had lots of feedback on the poor state of roads and pavements in the ward  so glad to see that, allowing the Labour Council don’t cut funding, the third phase of carriageway resurfacing will include Cumlodden Drive, Sandbank Street, Arrochar Street, Herma Street, Tresta Road and Thornton Street.

There’s still lots to do but I’m promised repairs within 2 weeks on any potholes identified in the ward so keep the calls and e-mails coming in.

Cadder parents keep free bus travel

Lochburn Road bridge

Parents in Cadder were relieved by the news that Education Services have accepted concerns over Labour’s home to school transport review which changed the distance at which pupils received free bus travel. Parents had raised concerns with me that the ‘safe route’ to Cleveden Secondary referred to by Education officials would have seen pupils have to walk underneath the Forth and Clyde canal bridge at Lochburn Road where the footway is extremely narrow .Concerns were raised over the heavy traffic on the road, the poor lighting, the flooding of the path under the bridge and general safety issues. Following concerns from parents Education Services have now advised that “In view of the current safety issues highlighted, and until future improvements to pedestrian safety has been addressed, it has been decided to award home to school transport on safety grounds to those pupils who would require to negotiate Lochburn Road on route to Cleveden Secondary School.”