1st July Update: MCC’s request to have the consultation period for street naming extended has been approved by the Council.

The extension gives residents, and our groups and organisations, more time to discuss and propose suggested names and for MCC to prepare and submit a consolidated list of suggested names.

All suggestions, together with a brief explanation as to why the name(s) were chosen, should be sent to Mike Wilson, Secretary – MCC [email protected] by Friday 9th July.

Thank you, again, in advance for your support.

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MCC has been invited to participate in a street naming consultation for the new housing development now approved for Muckhart. We have also been advised that the Amenity Society, Muckhart Primary School and our Ward Councillors have also been invited to participate.

However, we only have 14 days to respond with any suggestions for street names and members are keen that our community should have the opportunity to be involved, hence this invitation to participate.

Given the brief period that the consultation will last, MCC would like to receive your suggestions by next FRIDAY 2^nd JULY which will give us time to consolidate and submit our response.

The following paragraphs, which are taken from the Council’s consultation letter, provide some further information and advice on street naming and the process to be followed.

“Street names are generally composed of two sections, the first section being a name commonly derived from, for example, a local historical event, a well known and respected employer, a famous piece of architecture or building, local folklore, a well respected member of the community or local landmark… the use of persons’ names who are still alive is discouraged as is the use of living politicians’ names. In summary, this first section of a street name, should ideally possess some historic, geographic or topographic connection with the area in question.

Furthermore, where larger developments are proposed these will often require several street names to be assigned, and in order to help give such multi-road developments a sense of character and identity, street names assigned often take the form of a common theme, examples of such can be seen in the “Bard’s Way” development in Tillicoultry where the theme revolved around Scotland’s national poet, Rabbie Burns, or in the south of Alloa where the various courts took the theme of being given the names of Scottish islands. These are, however, merely suggestions and you should feel free to use your imagination when proposing a street name.

The second part of a street name is normally the descriptive element and in order to ensure that new street names best reflect the design, location, layout or topographical features of the road being named, the second part of a street name will be provided by Local Authority Officers.

All proposals received shall be given equal consideration, and we ask that all suggestions be accompanied with a brief note, of no more than a page of A4 paper, giving an explanation as to why the particular street name was chosen and stating any relevant history behind the name. You may also wish to enclose any accompanying background material which you consider to be relevant to support the suggestion.”

Please forward any suggestions that you would like MCC to submit, on behalf of our community, together with a brief explanation as to why the name(s) were chosen, to Mike Wilson, Secretary – MCC [email protected] by next Friday 2^nd July.

Thank you in advance for your support.

Mike Wilson

Secretary – Muckhart Community Council

[email protected]

This post is to advise residents and visitors of some work that will be carried out, early tomorrow (Saturday 19th June), to remove the on-site shed at the former bowling green site.

Further to investigations, Health and Safety consultants have advised that the roof tiles on the shed may contain contaminated materials and that a specialist contractor has been commissioned to deal with this matter. Neighbouring properties have been advised of this work, in earlier discussions, however, given the proximity of the shed to the stone wall on the A91, residents are advised to try to avoid this area whilst the work is being undertaken.

MCC has been advised that the Council’s Planning team have confirmed that the works can be carried out under current planning guidelines and do not constitute the start of development of the wider housing proposals.

Mike Wilson

Secretary – Muckhart Community Council

[email protected]

We are taking part in the annual Scams Awareness campaign, which is running from 14 – 27 June. This campaign, which also includes Police Scotland, Trading Standards and a host of other agencies, aims to give people the skills and confidence to spot scams and report them.

We lead Citizens Advice Scotland’s Scams Action service alongside Stirling CAB which has been operating since September 2019. During this time, we have seen a wide range of scams, for example cases where people have transferred money to fake bank accounts, or builders taking money to do work and then disappearing. During the pandemic, we’ve seen the rise in online scams from text message delivery scams, fake Covid-19 vaccines to websites/texts pretending to be from HMRC offering self-employment grants. What is most pertinent to mention is that these scams are becoming more and more sophisticated.

CAB Advice on How to Spot a Scam
Here are some of the main warning signs of scams we are encouraging people to look out for:

• It seems too good to be true – like an email saying you’ve won a competition you don’t remember entering
• Someone you don’t know contacts you unexpectedly
• You’re being urged to respond quickly so you don’t get time to think about it or talk to family and friends
• You’ve been asked to pay for something urgently or in an unusual way – for example by bank transfer or gift vouchers
• You’ve been asked to give away personal information

Who people can contact
We are encouraging people to seek advice immediately if they think they’ve been scammed. There’s a number of ways they can do this:

• Contact Clacks CAB (or their local CAB if not resident in Clacks)
• Contact Citizens Advice Scotland’s Scams Action Helpline on 0808 250 5050 or the Web Chat service
• Report scams or suspected scams to Police Scotland (dial 101)

Yours sincerely,
Jonny Miller
Managing Director

Following the recent official launch of the Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) project, to help celebrate Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022, and further to discussion at last week’s meeting, MCC is pleased to announce its full support for this initiative to help ensure that this project fulfils its potential across the Muckhart area and beyond.

According to the Chief Executive of the project, “the aim of The Queen’s Green Canopy is to thank Her Majesty The Queen for her exceptional service, celebrate her Platinum Jubilee and promote the importance of trees to the environment, through the encouragement of tree planting and tree preservation across the nation.”

In support of this project, MCC has already established a Working Group, consisting of members who volunteered during our meeting at the end of March, which will be supporting Tim Allan, in his position as Deputy Lieutenant for Clackmannanshire, with this initiative in the coming weeks.

This project will see communities, charities, schools, youth groups, councils and landowners planting trees across the four nations to create a lasting legacy in honour of The Queen’s leadership of the Nation that will enhance our environment and the landscape for generations to come. The campaign will encourage the planting of healthy, native trees that will thrive in their environments.

The following is a link to the recent BBC article on the campaign launch of the Queen’s Green Canopy: BBC news – Queen’s Green Canopy

And the following is a link to Tim’s earlier post, on the Muckhart Gets Together Facebook page, announcing his plan to help support this initiative:

Muckhart Gets Together – QGC

Further details on the Queen’s Green Canopy can be found on the official web-site:  https://queensgreencanopy.org/

Please feel free to contact the MCC Secretary [email protected], forwarding your contact details, if you would like to join the local Group supporting this initiative.

Mike Wilson

Secretary – Muckhart Community Council

[email protected]

MCC is pleased to announce that the Open Gardens Day May 2021 event has been a record-breaking year !!

The Muckhart and Glendevon Amenity Society has reported that the number of visitors was up on previous years with approximately 300 people attending, split equally between the two days, compared to 191 people who came in 2018.

Ticket, guide book and Rumbling Bridge Nursery sales, combined with donations made, totalled just over £2,100 which will be spread across the Scotland Gardens Scheme, the Coronation Hall and the School.

A special thanks goes to everyone who helped to organise and co-ordinate this year’s event, as well as to those who visited.

Mike Wilson

Secretary – Muckhart Community Council

[email protected]

As announced at last night’s Meeting, MCC is delighted to confirm that the Burnfoot Hill Community Fund (BHCF) panel has awarded Muckhart a further £2,500 grant. This is in addition to the Event, Winter and Micro-Grants also recently awarded to MCC by the BHCF panel.

In support of the Muckhart Community Plan, this latest grant will be used to create a Nature Trail that will run from the Pool of Muckhart along to the Primary School which is intended to benefit today’s school children, as well as other residents and visitors, and the generations to come.

The design of the Nature Trail will focus on educational content and value to support the school’s outdoor learning programme and, as the Trail will run along a Core Path, it is also hoped that the peaceful, rural setting will become a local attraction to all those seeking a stress-free and restful location to visit.

The grant awarded will be used to purchase native trees, wild flowers and bulbs, nesting boxes, interpretation boards and a picnic table and bench.

With this funding and the anticipated relaxation of Covid restrictions we intend to address one of the Aims of the Muckhart Community Plan, i.e. to prepare for an entry into the Beautiful Scotland Competition, by implementing this Nature Trail project over the next 12 months.

Our thanks go to MCC member Peter Wyatt who is taking the lead on this project and who prepared and submitted the successful grant application on behalf of our community.

Peter will be checking with those people, who previously volunteered to help with the Beautiful Scotland proposal, for their continued interest. Should you wish to join this group to help carry out the works associated with this project then please contact Peter (at: [email protected] or on Facebook via Muckhart Gets Together) who will be very pleased to hear from you !!

Mike Wilson

Secretary – Muckhart Community Council

[email protected]

MCC has been made aware of a new campaign being supported by the Citizens Advice Bureau.

The following information has been taken from a letter issued by the Managing Director of the Clackmannanshire Citizens Advice Bureau and provides links to information intended to support anyone who may be affected by the issues raised or who may be looking for advice on financial support.

As you know the disruption and uncertainty resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic have had a severe impact on the incomes and living costs of citizens in Clackmannanshire many of whom may already have been facing economic hardship.

To support our community the Citizens Advice network in Scotland is running a national ‘Money Advice Matters’ campaign from 31 May to 11 June.

As part of this campaign, we will be raising awareness of the support we provide to people worried about bills, arrears or debt piling up. We want people to know that our trained volunteers and staff are here to help with their money worries.

Our advisers will talk through options, check for ways to increase income and help make a plan to improve their situation. In addition to this free, confidential and impartial advice we also provide a range of free and easy to use online tools:

• Our public advice site which includes information on getting help with debt, mortgage problems, budgeting and what to do if you can’t pay your bills
• Our Money Map tool directs users to online help and ways to make the most of their money, decrease their bills and help meet the costs of daily living
• Our Council Tax tool tells citizens quickly if they’re entitled to a discount, reduction or exemption

Yours Sincerely,

Jonny Miller
Managing Director, Clackmannanshire Citizens Advice Bureau

Once again, Muckhart are having a village open gardens on 29 & 30th May organised by Scottish Gardens Schemes and the Village Amenity Society. Watch this space for more details!

Saturday 8^th May, Coronation Hall Car Park, 9:00 – 11:00 am

Further to recent posts regarding MCC membership of the Burnfoot Hill Community Fund, the Light Up Muckhart team have arranged to hold a Drop In event to consult on possible options for Christmas lighting. This is your opportunity to have a say in the kind of Christmas lighting and decorations that you would like to see in Muckhart and both Light Up Muckhart team and MCC look forward to seeing you there.

MCC is happy to share the following which has been prepared by Light Up Muckhart regarding the event:

Muckhart Community Council, has recently secured Muckhart as a beneficiary of the Burnfoot Hill Community Fund. As a consequence, Muckhart will receive an annual winter grant from the fund for use by the community. MCC have asked the Light Up Muckhart Team to investigate using the winter grant monies for some village Christmas Lights to complement our fabulous individual displays.

The LUM team have worked up some options and would welcome your feedback before progressing.

We know it’s only May but there is a lot to do……and there will only be 231 sleeps left until Santa arrives.

So please stroll down to the hall carpark on Saturday and give us 10 minutes of your time. We will have a number of materials available for you to view and discuss with the LUM team and give us your feedback.

After that the elves will get busy.

Alison, Dawn, Kirstie, Cindy, Sheila and Val