Shona Robison and Scotland's "Obesity time bomb"

Shona Robison is the SNP Minister for Public Health and Sport in the Scottish Government.

She has just launched the strategy document, "Preventing Overweight and Obesity in Scotland - A Route Map Towards Healthy Weight" to tackle Scotland's “obesity time bomb” which specifically includes:

...working with schools to continue encouraging young people to take up healthy habits.

What hypocrisy!

Is this the same Minister for Public Health and Sport who supports the Dundee SNP administration in building an £11.5m new local West End Primary School for 450 children that:

• Has no playing fields (in contravention of Government Regulations)?
• Has no outdoor sporting facilities and thus requires all exercise to be undertaken in a planned top floor Gym?
• Is on a site that is too small (which has been confirmed by the Scottish Government)?
• May even fail to meet the minimum playing area per child for school playgrounds?

We asked MSPs, on behalf of those least able to speak up for themselves, to question Shona Robson on why she and her SNP party are specifically preventing adequate playing space from being allocated for young primary children to play and exercise in in the West End of Dundee.

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con) has kindly done so, in a debate on Preventing Obesity, 24 February 2010:

"I understand that new schools in Scotland are still being planned with no playing fields or outdoor sporting facilities and on sites that might fail to meet the requirement on the minimum playing area per child. I hope that the partnership with COSLA will ensure that, in future, there are adequate facilities for children."

Will Ms Robison please decide which camp she is really in?

"Excambion [exchange] of property at Blackness Road"

On Monday 22 February 2010, the City Development Committee were asked to meet "as a matter of urgency" to discuss in private, excluding the press and public, "Excambion of property at Blackness Road". We understand this refers to the city council's discussions with the Al-Maktoum Foundation to exchange part of the grounds (stages 1 and 2) of St Joseph's for the Logie site (which the council originally owned and sold to Al-Maktoum in 2004), as well as the sale of the remainder (stage 3) of St Joseph's grounds once the school building is vacated.

Papers circulated earlier last week had cancelled the Committee meeting stating, "there is no outstanding business which cannot be dealt with at a later date", and we could not understand the urgency, so we asked the city council the following questions. The response from Roger Mennie, Legal Manager, and Patricia McIlquham, Depute Chief Executive (Support Services) are included below, and West End councillors have confirmed that these may be shared with the public.

Q1. Why does this item needs to be "considered as a matter or urgency...in view of the timescales involved"?

A. The proposed terms for the excambion have only just been concluded and the parties wish to proceed as soon as possible. The report could not have been drafted in time for the usual notice to be given for the meeting [on Monday] - hence the Convener agreed that the item be considered as a matter of urgency in terms of Standing Order 17(b).

Q2. What is the nature of the "exempt information" that will be involved?

A. The exempt information is as defined in paragraph 6 (information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (other than the authority) and paragraph 9 (any terms proposed or to be proposed by or to the authority in the course of negotiation for a contract for the acquisition or disposal of property) of Part 1 of Schedule 7A to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.

Q3. What would be the specific reasons under which the Committee "may resolve...that the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the undernoted item"?

A. The reasons are as identified in paragraphs 6 and 9 aforementioned.

Q4. Why is this excambion being tabled before planning consent has been sought and how can it proceed when there is a school using the facilities?

A. The excambion will be conditional on planning permission being obtained. The legal documentation to be entered into will ensure that the new school is built before the transfer of ownership takes place.

Q5. What assurance can be given that the city council actually owns the land at St Joseph's and is entitled to complete the excambion? Was any part of the land gifted by people through bequests and are there any conditions that restrict the terms of its disposal?
A. The Title Deeds have been examined and there is nothing in the way of conditions or burdens which would prevent the intended sale and use of either piece of ground.

Q6. Why is the land not being offered to the open market, to ensure best value for public funds?

A. The two areas of land have been valued independently by the District Valuer having regard to open market value to ensure that the Council is receiving value for money.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank the West End councillors who took these questions forward on our behalf, and to the council officers for their prompt reply. Let's hope this is the beginning of more open dialogue with the council.

Notes from the West End Local Community Planning Partnership - 18th February 2010

Following our request inviting the public to attend last week's West End Local Community Planning Partnership meeting, we're pleased that there was a good turn out. We report below some notes from this meeting:

It seems that the council do not intend to comply with the recommendations from HMIE regarding provision of playing fields, as Dundee City Council have nothing in their budget for playing fields at Victoria Park despite telling the Scottish Government that this was their intention. When asked why they were ignoring HMIe’s recommendations, the Project Director said that it was not her department, but that the Education Department could answer this query.

One of the West End councillors stated that when this point was raised at the Project Board meeting (27th January) a representative from the council indicated that they would contact the Scottish Government to state clearly what the council would have to provide in Victoria Park.

They are still awaiting this response.

A member of the public pointed out that if the council do not provide playing fields then they are in breach of the Schools Premises (Scotland) Regulations and they cannot therefore proceed with the project. A member of the St Joseph’s Parent Council brought up the fact that in a questionnaire completed by parents (soon to be issued to the Parent Forum of St Joseph's school), more than 90% of the parents want outdoor space and outdoor activities for the children on the new site.

Parents are still very concerned about the road safety aspects of the site, yet the police remain to see the plans so could not offer an opinion on the safe pick up and drop off of children.

Members of the public raised concerns about the consultation process by the Council and Diocese. They were told that it was the committee's understanding that both the parish, and school had been consulted, and not only was the Diocese in favour, but so were the parish and majority of parents.

A member of the St Joseph's Parent Council refuted this information based upon their own survey of parents and a parishioner of St Joseph's Church added that the parish were not consulted on support for the proposal.

The Project Director referred to the report to Education Committee on 11 May 2009 when the consultation ended and was then passed by the Education Committee, with no objections.

It was then pointed out by a member of the public that the report she referred to, did not include the fact that 81% of respondents with comments about the proposal were firmly against the proposal, yet this information was not mentioned in the report.

Another member of the public said they were very concerned that the land deal was still proceeding even although planning permission had not been granted. What if it was refused? St Joseph’s school grounds would be seriously diminished.

The Project Director gave a timetable of milestone dates re planning and tendering, which appear to be optimistic based on current EU regulations.

The topic of contamination was also raised and it was asked if any study was done to date. The answer was that is has not and the council was questioned why the land swap process was taking place even before a study was made.

New school design obtained from Freedom of Information

On 26 January 2010, the West End Parents Committee received material from Scottish Government as a response to a Freedom of Information request. This material included early stage designs for the Logie site (June 2009) as well as detailed designs submitted by Dundee City Council to Scottish Government as a follow up to their application for dispensation in August 2009.

We confirmed with Scottish Government on 10 February 2010 that this material is now deemed to be in the public domain, and specifically that we are permitted to print/publish the site designs, which we have done below.

Note that the city council have shared the same design with the new Project Board, which convened on 27 January 2010.

Please consider these designs and make an effort to attend the West End Local Community Planning Partnership meeting on 18 February 2010, 7pm, at the Tartan Cafe

(53 Perth Road, Dundee) where the project director will give a presentation of the schools project.

West End Schools Project presentation 18 February at 7pm, Tartan Cafe

The West End Schools Project is now in the pre-planning application stage (under the new planning regulations) and the local community has an opportunity to comment on this initial stage of planning. Brief details of the application (10/00048/PAN) are available from the city council's website at:

http://bwarrant.dundeecity.gov.uk/publicaccess/tdc/DcApplication/application_detailview.aspx?caseno=KX64KMGC03500

Note that the detailed site plans, which show the allocation of space for the building, playgrounds, green space, access road, car parking and areas of unused land, along with internal classroom layouts, are not included on this website. Hopefully the city council will share these soon.

As a statutory consultee, the West End Community Council was served with the Proposal of Application Notice and has a period of 21 days (which started on 1 February 2010) to comment.

Also, the next meeting of the West End Local Community Planning Partnership will include a presentation on the West End Schools Project from the Project Director, Ms Gillian Ross Pond.

18 February 2010 at 7pm

in the Tartan Cafe, 53 Perth Road, DD1 4HY (Google Map)

This is an opportunity for all members of the public to ask about the council's plans for these new schools and the use of Victoria Park for the provision of school playing fields.

Please come along if you can.