Author: Sean Gordon

Minutes of Meeting of Cleish & Blairadam Community Council

7:30pm, 2^nd 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 27^th 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.
  • https://consultation.sepa.org.uk/evidence-and-flooding/frmp-phase-1-consultation/

• 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 6^th April 2026, at 7:30pm in Cleish Village Hall.

Extraordinary General Meeting of the Cleish & Blairadam Community Council

Held as a virtual meeting on Monday 24th November at 7.30pm

Attendees

• Cllr Willie Robertson
• Francis Principe-Gillespie
• Charles MacLaren
• Sean Gordon
• Jes Bunce
• Simon Jenkins

Apologies

• Cllr Richard Watters
• Cllr Dave Cuthbert
• Cllr Neil Freshwater
• Fred Whalley

Welcome

Cllr Willie Robertson welcomed the attendees and the elected members then convened the new sitting of the Cleish and Blairadam Community Council.

Francis Principe-Gillespie was elected Chair of the Cleish and Blairadam Community Council and took over chairing the meeting.

Roles

The members of the Community Council were then elected to the following roles:

• Francis Principe-Gillespie – Chair
• Charles MacLaren – Vice Chair
• Jes Bunce – Treasurer
• Sean Gordon – Secretary/Data Controller
• Fred Whalley – Planning
• Simon Jenkins – Member of the CC

Dates for 2026 CC Meetings

The following dates and locations were agreed for the 2026 meetings of the Community Council:

• Monday 2^nd February at the Tabernacle Hall in Keltybridge (7:30pm)
• Monday 6^th April at Cleish Village Hall (7:30pm)
• Monday 1^st June at the Tabernacle Hall in Keltybridge (7:30pm)
• Monday 3^rd August at Cleish Village Hall (7:30pm)
• Monday 5^th October at Tabernacle Hall in Keltybridge (7:30pm)
• Monday 7^th December at Cleish Village Hall (7:30pm)

AOCB

Pavement Parking: There is an ongoing problem with pavement parking in Keltybridge, and the CC undertook to investigate options for additional parking spaces in Keltybridge.

Accounts: The accounts of the Cleish & Blairadam Community Council for 2025 have been audited and accepted by PKC, so the Administrative Grant will be paid into the CC bank account later this month.

There being no further business, the meeting was closed.

Minutes of Meeting of Cleish & Blairadam Community Council

7:30pm, 6^th October 2025 – Tabernacle Hall, Keltybridge

Present:

• Fran Principe-Gillespie
• Charles MacLaren
• Fred Whalley
• Sean Gordon
• Jes Bunce
• Cllr Dave Cuthbert
• Cllr Neil Freshwater

Apologies:

• Cllr Willie Robertson
• Cllr Richard Watters
• PC Ben Samson

Previous CC Meeting

Matters Arising

At the last meeting the CC raised concerns about the lack of road markings at B9097/B996 junction, these road marking have still not been repainted.

Cllr Freshwater took an action to raise this with the PKC Roads Department.

Minutes

The minutes of the previous meeting were accepted.

Crime Prevention & Police Report

From 4^th August 2025 (last report) there have been approximately 23 calls to Police from the Cleish and Blairadam area and 12 crimes recorded on Police systems (9 of these relate to Road Traffic offences).

Reported Crimes since last CC meeting:

17/08/2025 – Causing death by driving without a licence and insurance (B996 Kinross to Kelty road)

• Subject to live investigation

24/08/2025  – Fail to stop / report RTC (Access road to Blairforge)

• Subject to live investigation

01/09/2025 – 02/09/2025 – Theft by opening lockfast motor vehicle (Chance Inn Farm)

• Subject to live investigation

Traffic

Community Police officers are aware of regular areas where there are complaints about speeding in and around Cleish and Blairadam. These have all been added to the speeding matrix and they will continue to make efforts to carry out speed checks across the area during patrols.

Recent complaints about speeding in Maryburgh which have also been added to the matrix.

Local officers and also Roads Policing officers have been carrying out speeding checks in the area, notably at Gairneybank, Gairneybridge and Lochran. These have been detailed below. As well as this, Roads Policing officers have also been doing checks on the M90.

25/08/2025 – Speeding (Gairneybank / Gairneybridge), 57 MPH in a 40 MPH zone:  1 x issued with a conditional offer (ticket)

25/08/2025 – Speeding (Gairneybank / Gairneybridge), 50 MPH in a 40 MPH zone:  1 x issued with a conditional offer (ticket)

25/08/2025 – Speeding (Gairneybank / Gairneybridge), 50 MPH in a 40 MPH zone: 1 x issued with a conditional offer (ticket)

25/08/2025 – Careless driving (B9097 at its junction with J5 M90), Pulling into the path of another vehicle and causing a collision:  1 x issued with a conditional offer (ticket)

13/09/2025 – Driver failure to wear seatbelt (B996 at Lochran):  1 x issued with a conditional offer (ticket)

13/09/2025 – Speeding (B996 at Lochran), 62 MPH in a 40 MPH zone: 1 x charged and reported to the Procurator Fiscal

13/09/2025 – Speeding (B996 at Lochran): 62 MPH in a 40 MPH zone: 1 x charged and reported to the Procurator Fiscal

Correspondence

Closure of Black Road causing traffic and safety issues

Black Road in Kelty is currently closed for major sewer works and is forecast to be closed for the next 5 months. Traffic has already started using the narrow road through Maryburgh and Keltybridge as an alternative way in and out of Kelty to the B996.

Multiple residents have expressed concern that much of the new traffic passing through Keltybridge and Maryburgh as a result of this road closure is traveling in excess of the posted 20mph speed limit.

This road is a school bus route where young children wait for the school bus and cross the road to and from the school bus. In addition, we have dog walkers, cats, red squirrels, deer and other local residents regularly using the road, which does not have a pavement for much of its length. As a result, they are required to walk on the carriageways, making the speeding and increase in traffic even more dangerous.

When the speed limit through Keltybridge and Maryburgh was reduced the plan was that ‘shared space’ signs would be put up reminding drivers to be aware that there would be pedestrians, horses or cyclists sharing the road but to date nothing has happened.

One option raised by the local councillors was to use the Local Speed Watch initiative, where local residents are trained to use speed detection devices and can report speeding to the Police. This has been successful in other areas, and the local efforts are being coordinated by Milnathort CC.

The CC will write directly to the Head of Roads at PKC to share their concerns and those raised by a number of local residents regarding this increase in traffic and speeding. The issue will also be raised with the Scottish Water coordinator in charge of the road works on the Black Road.

Inconsistent speed limits around Green Acres and Gairney Bridge

The Community Council received a number of representations from local residents concerned about the inconsistent application of the 40MPH speed limit around Lochran, Green Acres and Gairney Bridge. While the addition of the 40MPH speed limit through Lochran and Green Acres has been welcomed, a number of residents expressed concern that the speed limit had not been extended to join up with the existing 40MPH speed limit at Gairney Bridge. Meaning that the junctions between the B996 and the B9097 remain at 60MPH, despite the fact that these two junctions are the major accident hot-spots on this road.

Cllr Freshwater will raise this issue with the PKC Roads Department, and the CC will write directly to the Head of Roads at PKC to share their concerns and those raised by a number of local residents.

It was also noted that some the 40MPH speed limit signs have moved since they were installed, such that two of the signs are not readable from the road.

Drainage

Cleish

Blocked gullies are being reported, but the Council’s reporting system prematurely closes these requests, citing that the gully cleaning is “on the schedule”, but does not provide a clear timeline which is highly frustrating for residents reporting problems, but undoubtedly improves the PKC Roads Departments efficiency metrics!

A useful improvement to the reporting system would be to allow the gully cleaning schedule to be viewed by members of the public.

Financial Update

The CC bank balance at year-end is £88.26, with the final accounts prepared and ready for audit. Once the audited accounts have been approved, the CC bank account will receive the annual administrative top-up funding from PKC.

The Community Council still intends to move away from Bank of Scotland due to their increased fees; however, this move will be postponed until the top-up funding is received.

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

• 25/01416/CLP – Installation of replacement windows (proposed) at 20 Main Street Keltybridge
• 25/00333/FLL – Renewal of permission 21/02257/FLL (Erection of salesrooms, workshops, formation of parking, access road and associated works; erection of replacement domestic stables, storage building and associated works) at Land 90 Metres North Of Nivingston West Cleish

Applications Approved

• 24/01751/FLL – Change of use from agricultural land to form extensions to storage facility including erection of 5 buildings containing 36 storage units, formation of bund, hardstanding and associated works (in part retrospect) at Fruix Farm Gairneybridge
• 25/00441/FLL – Erection of an agricultural building for free range egg production with separate manure store building, siting of residential caravan (for a temporary period), formation of vehicular access and associated works at Land 300 Metres North Of Mawmill Farm Bungalow Cleish Kinross KY13 0LN

Community Action Plan

The Cleish & Blairadam Community Action plan is now out for consultation until 29 October 2025. Documents are publicly available and can be found here: CAP and LPP – Cleish and Blairadam Community Council

Village Updates

• On-going pavement parking problems, particularly in the section of Keltybridge where the road is at its narrowest.
• Forestry office at Blairadam has been confirmed as closed, with all services and personnel moved to rented offices at Halbeath.
• Cleish Village Trust – To date, pledges from the local community have matched the value of the church building and fundraising ongoing. The trust is also awaiting the outcome of funding decisions from Architectural Heritage Trust. The plan is still to try to purchase the church, glebe and cottage, but that will be dependent on the ability of the trust to raise the necessary funds.
• The successionist Church monument in Gairney Bridge has become overgrown and is in a generally neglected state. Cllr Freshwater took an action to investigate the monument’s ownership and who is responsible for the maintenance.
• Scottish Woodlands are planning to undertake work on the forest paths around Cleish, including some which form part of the Core Path Network.

Next CC Meeting

2025 is the year of the Community Council Elections in Perth & Kinross, so the next Community Council meeting will be the EGM where the new Community Council will be convened.

This will be a short meeting and will be held as a Virtual Meeting – details of this meeting can be found on the CC website – https://cleishandblairadam.org.uk/

Following the EGM, the dates for the new Community Council meetings will be announced.

Virtual / On-line CC Meetings

The Community Council uses Microsoft Teams for the on-line meeting. Details of how to join the virtual CC meeting will be published in the normal way, and if you are interested in attending virtually, please e-mail the CC Secretary for details (cc-sec@blairadam.net)

CC Web Site

All information relating to the activities of the Community Council are published on our web site – https://cleishandblairadam.org.uk/ where you can also subscribe to receive updates whenever any new information is published on the site.

Minutes of AGM of Cleish & Blairadam Community Council

7:30pm, 6^th October 2025 – Tabernacle Hall, Keltybridge

Present:

• Fran Principe-Gillespie
• Charles MacLaren
• Fred Whalley
• Sean Gordon
• Cllr Dave Cuthbert
• Cllr Neil Freshwater

Apologies:

• Cllr Willie Robertson
• Cllr Richard Watters
• PC Ben Samson

Chairman’s Report          

It has been my privilege and pleasure to serve as Chair of Cleish and Blairadam Community Council for another year. I wish to thank all of the Community Councillors for their continued diligence, support, guidance and for the time and effort that they give freely to our local Community.

I would also like to thank our elected Councillors for their full and conscientious support. I know their job often thankless, however their continued support for our community is much appreciated and they all have my thanks.

My thanks also go to all those members of the community who attend our meetings, read our notices and minutes and participate in the ongoing discussions.

We hope in the next few months to complete the Community Action Plan and Local Place Plan and see that document become a reference for the next Local Development Plan. We also hope to improve communications with the community and encourage new members to join the Community Council.

I wish you all success in your endeavours for the coming year.

Sincerely, Francis Principe-Gillespie, Chair, Cleish and Blairadam Community Council

Treasurers Report

The accounts for 2025 were presented, with the year-end CC bank balance at £88.26. The final accounts will now be submitted for audit.