Building Briefs - December 9th

• Consultation opens on proposed Kilmarnock housing development

The proposals, which have been developed by East Ayrshire Council’s developer CCG (Scotland) Ltd and its design team, would see 18 new homes being built on the site.

The development would include eight 2-bed cottage flats, six 2-bed homes, one 3-bed wheelchair accessible bungalow, two 3-bed homes and one 4-bed home, which have been designed for general and community care needs.

Plans for this area are set out in the Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP) 2020- 25.

MAST Architects have prepared a consultation booklet that can be viewed online or downloaded. The booklet provides details of the proposed site layout and floor plans for the houses, along with some indicative visualisations of what the development may look like, subject to securing planning approval.

The consultation is now live and will close on Monday 21 December.

• Plans lodged for B-listed buildings near Wallace Monument

Plans to convert and alter listed farm buildings in the shadow of the Wallace Monument and Abbey Craig have been lodged with the council.

Bridge of Allan-based Allanwater Developments has lodged plans to convert and alter listed farm buildings in the shadow of the Wallace Monument and Abbey Craig.

The firm is proposing to refurbish the main Craigton Farm building as residential accommodation for a firm employee and convert adjacent dilapidated farm steadings into offices.

The B-listed Craigton buildings, which also include a circular horsemill, date from the late 18th and early 19th century.

• Moray £180m flood investment schemes pays off as homes and businesses are protected

Days of heavy rain in the Moray area have proved the success of the local authority’s flood alleviation schemes.

Thanks to the £180 million investment by Moray Council and the Scottish Government, damage to homes and businesses running into millions has been avoided, along with the misery of flooding just before Christmas.

Alleviation schemes at Forres, Lhanbryde, Rothes and Elgin have performed well in keeping the rising rivers away from properties. The recent work at Dallas to contain the river has also successfully protected homes in the village.

The Elgin scheme was the last to be completed in January 2016 and provides protection to 860 residential and 270 commercial properties from the River Lossie. Before it was fully completed it was tested by a prolonged period of rain, passing with flying colours and preventing damage estimated at £29m in the process.

Moray Council engineers and roads teams have been monitoring the operation of the schemes this week and report that all are working as planned.

Some parks of Cooper Park and Morriston playing fields, which attenuate flood water within the scheme, may not be accessible until the levels subside.

• Homebuilders hand over essentials to East Renfrewshire charity

A trio of homebuilders has donated an array of toiletries and essential items for those in need to an East Renfrewshire charity ahead of the festive period. 

Local consortium Maidenhill has handed over a selection of items to East Renfrewshire Good Causes, including toiletries such as shower gel and toothbrushes, as well as household cleaning products, along with a £500 donation to purchase similar items throughout 2021. 

Maidenhill, which is made up of CALA Homes (West), Miller Homes West Scotland and Taylor Wimpey West Scotland, has an ongoing partnership with East Renfrewshire Good Causes, which sees a cash ‘roof donation’ for every home purchased within the first phase of the development pledged to the charity. 

In the run-up to Christmas, East Renfrewshire Good Causes is calling out for handovers of essential items as well as monetary donations to help locals across the community. 

The grassroots charity focuses on providing support to a range of worthy causes across the community, including individuals and organisations such as care homes and schools, which are in need. 

• Paisley Museum receives major funding pledge from The Hugh Fraser Foundation

Paisley Museum has received a £200,000 capital funding pledge of support from The Hugh Fraser Foundation towards its transformation into a world-class cultural destination, payable once the project is underway.

The Hugh Fraser Foundation, which is based in Glasgow, has for over 50 years supported a broad range of charities throughout Scotland.

The £42 million redevelopment of the museum is part of Paisley’s radical regeneration plan, and the redesign of the campus led by an international team including architects AL_A and exhibition designers Opera Amsterdam, will allow the number of objects on display to be increased by 100%.

When Paisley Museum reopens it is expected to attract 125,000 visits each year and provide a £79m economic boost to the area over the next 30 years.

• Pupils compete in school construction challenge

More than 120 pupils from secondary schools across the North East took part in a series of online, construction-based challenges, as part of an initiative to highlight the exciting and rewarding career opportunities within the sector.

The ‘Build Your Future’ challenge was launched by Grampian Construction Training in 2019, and teams of ten S2 pupils from every school in Aberdeen City and Shire were invited to take part. The event was completely free to enter thanks to sponsorship from local businesses, and initial heats took place at construction companies and colleges and universities that teach construction-based courses. The final was held at Aberdeen Football Club, and over 100 pupils took part in 10 practical tasks, covering a range of areas from construction law to civil engineering.

As a result of COVID-19, organisers saw that it would be impossible to run the challenge in the same way in 2020, but were adamant that the event would go ahead in some format, to reflect the resilience that the construction industry has demonstrated during lockdown and in the months that followed. Companies including main sponsors Halliday Fraser Munro and Barratt Homes, showed early support to ensure that the event could take place.

This year’s challenge saw pupils take part from the safety of their own school using video conferencing and competing in groups of three teams at a time. There were four challenges in total, ranging from “Guess Who?” a general introduction to the range of career opportunities within construction, to a health and safety task that required pupils to evaluate the increased safety measures on all building sites as a result of the pandemic.

Following a week of heats, teams from Banchory, Alford, Ellon, Aboyne, Mintlaw, and Hazlehead Academies will go through to the final, which is taking place online on Thursday 28th January.