Minutes of Meeting of Cleish & Blairadam Community Council
7:30pm, 2nd February 2026 – Tabernacle Hall, Keltybridge
Present:
- Charles MacLaren
- Sean Gordon
- Simon Jenkins
- Jes Bunce
Apologies:
- Fran Principe-Gillespie
- Fred Whalley
- Cllr Willie Robertson
- Cllr Richard Watters
- Cllr Dave Cuthbert
- Cllr Neil Freshwater
Previous CC Meeting
Matters Arising
There were no matters arising from the previous meeting.
Minutes
The minutes of the previous meeting were accepted.
Kinross High School Update
Jillian Shaw (Headteacher) and Nayyarah Bilal (School Captain) attended to provide an update on the activities and plans, and to connect with broader community which is served by Kinross High School.
Updates were provided on the activities of the S6 pupils and their work with local charities and community activities such as Polio Awareness and Rachel House
Future events include an afternoon tea on the 27th of February, which will be raising funds for this year’s school charities – UNICEF and Cancer Research UK. Tickets for the Afternoon Tea can be purchased by contacting Jillian Shaw (JillianShaw@pkc.gov.uk)
One of Kinross High School’s latest initiatives is “Ambitious Attire”, which has now been running for a of couple months. This is a school charity shop for a uniform, (separate to the uniform order system), and is targeted for pupils who may have forgotten their uniform on the day, and pupils in the school who are from financially disadvantaged backgrounds. Uniform packages can be ordered with, for example, two trousers, three shirts and a tie and a jumper or a cardigan.
Kinross High School also has around 20 pupil mental health ambassadors who help promote mental health, and who will be supporting the upcoming Mental Health.
Kinross High School also has a Pupil Parliament which engages the pupils in discussing key topics of importance to the pupils, including a recent debate on the use of mobile phones in schools; a topic which has been getting press coverage around the globe.
Crime Prevention & Police Report
No crimes reported since the last CC Meeting in December, however 11 speeding and traffic offences were reported on the M90.
Correspondence
- Planning – Several representations were received from concerned members of the community relating to planning violations – these are covered in the Planning Section.
- Request for Input from SEPA for input into the new flood risk management plan. At this stage the request for input relates to identified “at risk” areas, however there are none of these areas within our CC area. There are identified areas in adjacent CC areas, so the CC is encouraging individuals to review the plan and to comment if there is an impact on their travel or activities beyond our CC area.
- Kinross-shire Civic Trust copied the CC on their input to the recent Call for Sites in the PKC LDP.
- The Community Council will review this feedback and provide our own in relation to areas within our parish.
- Cyber Security Guidance was recently issued by Police Scotland in relation to the heightened Cyber Security threats across the UK. This is available to download from the CC website https://cleishandblairadam.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/police-scotland-cyber-security-alert.pdf
Drainage
Cleish
There are still on-going problems with the gullies in Cleish, particularly in the Borland area.
Multiple attempts have been made to raise a request to have these gullies cleaned via the PKC Portal, however each time a new request is entered the system automatically closes the request with a response that the gullies are on the existing cleaning schedule.
Financial Update
- Current state of accounts shows a balance of £897.70
- The CC are still paying ongoing bank charges to Bank of Scotland which are in excess of £60 per year, so the CC plans to move the account to RBS.
- The CC agreed to restart the subscription to the APRS (Scotland’s Countryside Charity) [https://aprs.scot]. This subscription was paused last year due to a lack of CC funds.
- CC agreed to purchase a laptop for use by the CC members, and to support the virtual meetings and secretarial work.
Kinross-shire Committee
- CC agreed to rotate the attendees to this committee to ensure that each CC member can attend.
Planning
Under the new guidance, an objection by the Community Council automatically refers an application to the Planning Committee; otherwise, it requires 6 objections from separate households to refer an application.
Applications Pending
- 25/01331/FLL – Siting of a residential caravan (in retrospect)
- Land 150 Metres North of Benview Benarty Road Kelty KY4 0HR
- Received: Wed 03 Sep 2025 | Validated: Mon 13 Oct 2025
Enforcements
- 25/00002/ALUNDV – Alleged unauthorised erection of a garden building at Hillview Kinnaird Blairadam Kelty KY4 0JB
- Blairforge – Concerns were again raised about the continued lack of enforcement by PKC of the numerous planning violations which have been allowed to proceed un-checked over the last several years.
- The residents and CC are requesting an update from PKC and the Elected Local Councillors.
- Borrowdale – Several residents have contacted the CC and PKC planning to raise concerns about the level of excavation carried out on this site, and the lack of any shoring up of the vehicle access track to the South of the plot. In addition, a large static caravan has now been installed in this plot without any planning permission, and a significant amount of damage has been inflicted on the pavement to the East of the plot, rendering it dangerous to use for foot traffic due to the amount of dirt and debris.
- The residents and CC are requesting an update from PKC and the Elected Local Councillors.
Local Place Plan
The registration of the Cleish and Blairadam Local Place Plan is proceeding. The CC has received a request for clarification on two points in the plan, relating to additional parking in Keltybridge and the actual routes of local paths. The CC will respond with the requested information.
Village Updates
Blairadam
- Pavement Parking – The problem with inconsiderate residents parking on the pavements and rendering them impassible to foot traffic continues!
Cleish
- Cleish Village Trust – Negotiations with Church of Scotland regarding purchase are continuing, and funding is progressing well with £20,000 still to find. Further fundraising events are planned.
Any Other Business
- Maintenance of the Secession Monument at Gairney Bridge – This monument is believed to be the responsibility of PKC and is in need of some maintenance due to the damage being caused to it by a nearby tree.
Next CC Meeting
It was agreed to hold the next Community Council Meeting on 6th April 2026, at 7:30pm in Cleish Village Hall.
Cleish and Blairadam Community Council 