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At its last meeting Edinburgh Council agreed that a public consultation process be undertaken in advance of the proposed submission of a Private Bill to the Scottish Parliament in early 2013 to address the legal issue that currently stops the Council using Portobello Park as the site for the new Portobello High School. It is intended that, following the conclusion of the consultation process on 31 January 2013, the outcome of the process and any proposed Private Bill would be taken to Council for consideration on 14 March 2013 and, if approved, any Private Bill lodged with the Parliament as soon as possible thereafter.
The details of the intended consultation process were set out in the report to Council
http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/download/me ... ary_school however I thought it might be helpful for you to have some further information on this process which starts today and will run through to 31 January 2013 by when any responses have to be received.
Information Leaflets and Questionnaire
An information leaflet has been produced which will be delivered to around 15,000 households on the Portobello area starting from today and will probably take most of the week to complete. Copies will also be available from local libraries and schools and will also be available online via the Council website. An electronic copy of the leaflet is attached; the version which is actually issued will be A5 size. The leaflet sets out what we consider to be the key facts including what the Council proposals are, what a Private Bill is, where people can find out more and how people can tell us what they think.
There are a number of ways in which people can tell us their views including the usual ways of responding by letter or email. We have also produced a simple questionnaire which will be available in both hard-copy (a copy of which is also attached) and can be completed electronically via the Council website . Copies of the information leaflets and questionnaires will be available in local libraries and schools together with the opportunity for people to hand in their completed questionnaire.
Exhibitions and Road-shows
Presentation materials have been produced to allow a series of exhibitions and manned ‘road-shows’ to be held during the course of December and January the purpose of which will be to publicise the consultation process and allow the opportunity for questions to be answered (where possible). Copies of the information leaflets and questionnaires will be available at these events and the opportunity will also be available for people to hand in their completed questionnaire.
Some venues have already been arranged including at Portobello and Piershill libraries (where it is intended that there will be a recurring event each week) and a number of the local primary schools (mainly the Christmas fairs). There is a concentration of events in schools during the initial stage as this is a very busy time in school calendars and it is important to arrange visits around other events. By concentrating on school fairs, plays and concerts rather than drop off/pick up times we would hope to reach a wider audience than simply parents. We will also identify pre-Christmas opportunities in local Community Centres with events to be scheduled in Portobello Community Centre; Bingham Community Centre; Magdalene Community Centre and Northfield/Willowbrae Community Centre.
Week 3 will be a busy time for pre-Christmas shopping so we will speak to supermarkets about talking to customers/advertising events and we are seeking permission from other users of Portobello Town Hall to attend in the foyer when they have events running. In January the focus will move from school to wider community venues and sports centres including Portobello Golf Course; Craigentinny Golf Course; Portobello Swim Centre; Portobello Bowling and Leisure Centre and Meadowbank Sports Centre. We will specifically look for opportunities to talk to older people such as Milton Court Sheltered Housing; Portobello Older Peoples Project; Older Adults Social Club; Get up and Go Swim and Knitting/crafts circle at Willowbrae Bowling Club.
Once the venues and timing for these events is confirmed they will be advertised in libraries, on the Council website and via Tweets.
Community Council Meetings
We will attend the following Community Council meetings over the next few months to give a presentation on the proposals and to answer any questions:
Northfield/Willowbrae Community Council Tuesday, 18 December 2012
Portobello Community Council Meeting Monday, 7 January 2013
Public Meetings
As part of the consultation programme we intend to hold two public meetings the intention being that, after a short presentation from the Council, both PPAG and PFANS would be given the opportunity to outline their views on the proposals to the audience, before participating in a question and answer session. Both organisations have been invited to participate. We would envisage each group should nominate up to three members of their organisation to join the top table for the discussion. Colin Mackay, Political Editor at Radio Forth, has agreed to be our independent chair for each event. It is the intention that these meetings would be formally minuted to ensure that a full record of proceedings was produced.
The public meetings are due to take place in Portobello Town Hall on 9 January 2013 and at Meadowbank Sports Centre on 17 January 2013 with each meeting running from 7pm to 9pm.
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