Building Briefs - July 9th

• Russell Roof Tiles receives special visit from Secretary of State for Scotland

The firm was chosen to welcome Alister Jack MP to the 11-acre Halleaths site in Lochmaben yesterday – a year since UK Government published its Plan for Jobs.

Russell Roof Tiles is now the largest independent manufacturer of concrete derivatives in the UK pitched roofing market and employs approx. nearly 60 staff in Lochmaben plus two other sites in Burton on Trent.

Alister Jack, Secretary of State for Scotland, said: “It was great to visit Russell Roof Tiles today, to meet their staff and hear first-hand about their ambitious expansion plans. They are a great example of a business which has benefited from the UK Government’s furlough scheme and are now taking on staff and looking to the future now the economy is reopening.”

• Barratt East Scotland raises £5,000 for LifeCare Edinburgh

Barratt Developments East Scotland has donated £5,000 to elderly care charity, LifeCare.

Following its success in Barratt Developments’ company-wide virtual 500k challenge for the Prince’s Trust, the Barratt East Scotland team, which walked a combined total of 1,721km, was awarded £5,000 to donate to a charity of its choice.

It selected LifeCare, a renowned local charity which offers registered care, outreach activities and help at home services for older people living across the North of the city. Established in 1941, the organisation supports hundreds of elderly clients a year, including those suffering with dementia, mobility issues, those experiencing isolation and loneliness, food poverty and mental health problems, and offers dedicated support for carers. The charity also runs the successful community café, CafeLife on Cheyne Street.

The donation from Barratt East Scotland will help LifeCare’s ongoing efforts to support those who have shielded during the duration of the pandemic to return to life beyond their own four walls and back to the communities they hold dear.

The team is also committed to providing assistance to groups that contribute to the communities it serves in many other ways. A recent benefactor was Rosslyn Bowling Club, which Barratt East Scotland supported with the donation of a new notice board.

• Premier Inn opens in Thurso

A new 85-bedroom hotel in Thurso in the Scottish Highlands has opened today creating the most northerly Premier Inn in Whitbread’s growing network.

The opening, which is the fourth new Premier Inn hotel to open in Scotland this calendar year, is well-timed for a busy summer of staycations and adventure tourism in the UK.

Located in the heart of Thurso on Ormile Road, the hotel brings Premier Inn’s latest format bedrooms to the town made famous by the North Coast 500 and has created 35 new permanent new jobs.

Richard Aldread, head of construction for Whitbread in the UK regions, said: “We have been extremely busy in Scotland this year with four new hotel openings in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Hamilton and now Thurso.  Together the new hotels add 566 Premier Inn rooms to our growing network in popular urban and leisure locations in Scotland and we are continuing to invest with a further 60-bedroom extension to our popular Edinburgh Princes Street hotel which currently on-site.

“Our guests have always sought out Premier Inn hotels for their leisure trips and holidays. Thurso adds another unique location to our network, and with many new Premier Inn’s opening in other adventure and leisure hotspots this year, we are able to offer our guests even more choice for their get-away or extended break.”

Fred Berman, director at Pentland Property Ltd who developed the hotel for Whitbread, said: “We are delighted to see the Premier Inn Thurso hotel open. It has been a pleasure working with the Whitbread team and our contractors Morrison Construction who have delivered an excellent new hotel. We wish Premier Inn Thurso every success and hope all their guests have a most enjoyable stay.”

• New study to inform plans for Laggan affordable housing

Communities Housing Trust is to carry out feasibility work to develop affordable homes in the Badenoch village of Laggan on behalf of Laggan Community Housing (LHC).

The Cairngorms National Park Authority has accepted in principle the idea of building on the picnic site/playground area of the village and is assisting in taking the feasibility study forward.

Laggan Community Housing Ltd (formerly Laggan Community Trading Ltd established in 1984) was formed in 2020 under the rules of the Registrar of Friendly Societies. It is a shareholder co-operative presently with 147 shareholders - who are based locally, are past residents and friends of Laggan.

LCH’s main activities centre on the provision of accommodation in the area - specifically the ownership of six of the 12 former Forestry properties at Strathmashie. At present, these are managed by Highland Council, with the six properties tenanted.

LCH is presently investigating the possibility of building a further four or five houses in Laggan, perhaps continuing the line of the Albyn houses at Gergask Avenue.

The project is being facilitated by the Communities Housing Trust, which carried out a local survey at the end of 2019 as well as a wider survey of neighbouring communities in March 2020.

• Further consultation on Galashiels Community Campus goes live

A further consultation on more detailed plans for Galashiels Community Campus is now available to view online.

The consultation can be viewed at www.scotborders.gov.uk/galacampus.

This online space offers the opportunity for members of the public to view more detailed plans for the replacement of Galashiels Academy.

It focuses on Scottish Borders Council’s proposal to build the Community Campus within the existing school boundary and a portion of the town’s Scott Park.

Visitors can view more detailed plans for the Campus including updated site plans and designs which have been further developed and refined following a period of informal consultation with the local community.

Members of the community can also revisit the materials presented as part of the informal consultation which took place in March and April, including videos outlining the vision for the proposed campus, animated fly-throughs of what the facility may look like and interviews with pupils and members of the community.

Exhibition boards outlining the updated designs will also be positioned at Galashiels Transport Exchange from 9 July to 19 August.

Online public meetings are being held on 28 July and 4 August where the Council will showcase the designs for the Campus in detail and explain their decision making for the project.

It will also provide an opportunity to update the public on progress made by the Scott Park working group which is working in collaboration with the local community to help shape and influence the final design of the reimagined and expanded park.