Building Briefs – January 25th

Redevelopment works have now been completed at St Anne’s Parish Church in Corstorphine by Clark Contracts.

Clark Contracts, whose East office is in Newbridge, delivered the refurbishment and extension works over a 9-month period.

The refurbishment provides the church with internal wheelchair access to all areas, a modern fully fitted kitchen, upgraded office and meeting room, a new vestry and new heating system. The extension has also provided a new main entrance and hall area.

A weekend of celebration took place between Friday 24th and Sunday 26th November which included a concert by the Edinburgh Highland Reel and Strathspey Society, an open day and service of celebration and rededication. The team involved in the refurbishment works were honoured to join the congregation to take part in the celebrations.

The church, which is also home to a choir, various support groups, badminton clubs, book groups and many more, is now making full use of its newly refurbished facilities.

Edinburgh flood prevention scheme completion marked

Community members have officially marked the completion of phase two of Edinburgh’s major Water of Leith Flood Prevention Scheme.

Pupils from Roseburn Primary School joined transport and environment convener, Councillor Lesley Macinnes, to cut the ribbon on a new bridge across the river, built as part of the City of Edinburgh Council’s multi-million pound project, which has been delivered significantly under budget.

The second phase of the scheme has been under construction since July 2016 and covers 1.2km between Murrayfield and Roseburn. Amongst improvements has been the construction of new flood defence walls, embankments and flood gates, as well as two new bridges at Baird Drive and Saughtonhall Avenue.

The Water of Leith Flood Prevention Scheme is a key infrastructure project to protect hundreds of properties vulnerable to flooding. The first phase, completed in 2013, included defences at Veitches Square, Stockbridge Colonies, Warriston, St Mark’s Park and Bonnington.

Originally budgeted at £25m, the overall cost of the project is expected to be closer to £20m, subject to contractual arrangements being finalised. The underspend can be attributed to a number of factors, including in-depth project planning prior to construction, sound contract management, effective working relationships with the contractor and neighbours and favourable ground conditions.

Phase two provides flood defence for more than 400 homes and a number of commercial properties, including Murrayfield Stadium, Murrayfield Ice Rink and the Chinese Consulate, which were amongst the worst-hit during severe floods of 2000.

Throughout construction, contractors have worked closely with stakeholders and the local community to ensure project work runs smoothly.

As well as improving the quality of life for residents affected by flooding the project provides enhanced access to the riverside walkway, disability access and improvements to the environmental and amenity aspects of the area. Roseburn Park will also soon receive a new play park for use by the local community.

CMS works with Graham to transform listed former high school into new primary school

Window, door and curtain walling designer, manufacturer and installer, CMS Window Systems, has completed a major fenestration contract as part of a project to create a new state-of-the-art primary school in the Scottish Borders that has brought new life to an unused B-listed former high school.

The new £8.6 million Duns Primary School and educational campus, designed by Aitken Turnbull Architects and delivered by main contractor Graham Construction, provides a high quality learning environment for over 450 pupils, with the latest facilities and infrastructure required to support children from the ages of three to twelve. It is also home to the Berwickshire Locality Support Centre which assists children with additional needs by providing access to a wider range of staff expertise and integrated services.

The project enabled the school to move from its existing premises in the town, which were largely in a Victorian building that was no longer suited to the needs of modern education. Scottish Borders Council and hub South East Scotland initiated the project, with part funding from the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), to relocate at the former Berwickshire High School site had been unused since a new purpose-built school was developed in 2009, leaving the B-listed 1950s building vacant.

An extensive refurbishment programme was agreed which involved the complete replacement of the windows, doors and curtain walling throughout the two-storey building. Key to the success of transforming the school building, which has been described as ‘a fine example of a Modernist building’, the project was to preserve as much of the existing school as possible.

CGC plays its part in helping young workers

City Gate Construction is to play its part in a skills-related event to be held in Paisley in late January.

The company will be present at the forthcoming Modern Apprenticeship Information & Vacancy Event organised by Skills Development Scotland.

Paisley-based West College Scotland are Skills Development Scotland’s partners in the event at Paisley Town Hall on January 30 from 5.30 to 8.30 pm.

Skills Development Scotland has delivered a very successful Modern Apprenticeship event for the past two years working alongside the college.

This event provides a valuable opportunity to bring employers & potential apprentices together.

There will be guest speakers and Modern Apprenticeship ‘Ambassadors’ explaining how they have benefited from choosing this career path as well as a myth-busting session around Apprenticeships and how to secure a place on one.

The event is aimed at Renfrewshire & East Renfrewshire senior school pupils & their parents and a variety of local employers interested in recruiting Apprentices.

The young people, family & friends will have the opportunity to speak with employers who are currently aiming to recruit or will be in the near future.

Plans submitted for night shelter for refugees in Glasgow

A night shelter for asylum seekers or refugees could open in Glasgow if plans are approved by the city council.

Glasgow Night Shelter has submitted a planning application for the new facility on the corner of Fairley Street and Carmichael Street.

The organisation said it urgently needs to move to a new building so they can also offer a safe place for women. Currently the shelter operates out of a church in the west end.

The Glasgow Night Shelter would be run by volunteers every night offering those who use the service food, shelter, clothing, advice and a community.

In a planning statement, the organisation said: “We have been looking for a suitable building for over a year and had been unable to find somewhere that met our requirements until now.

“The rent and cost of fitting it out are within our budget.

“The two-floor layout of the building will allow us to provide separate social and quiet spaces and a much needed secure women-only area. The current layout is open-plan and can be easily adapted to our requirements.

“As we work with vulnerable people, for security purposes our street-level presence has to be discreet. This is possible here thanks to the property being above the ground floor.”

A decision is expected on the plans in March.

CCG to commence window replacement contract for Govanhill Housing Association

Construction specialist CCG (Scotland) Ltd has commenced a window replacement contract with Govanhill Housing Association in the south side of Glasgow.

The firm will utilise its integrated group structure to perform the works with the windows being designed and manufactured by their in-house manufacturing division and will be installed by specialist upgrade and renewals contract division, Specialist Building Services (SBS).

The Timber Fully Reversible Window will be utilised for the contract with over 500 windows manufactured for a total of 74 properties in North Govanhill. The installation led by CCG SBS will be undertaken over a 20-week programme.

East Lothian Council to consult on Draft Local Housing Strategy

A public consultation has been launched over East Lothian Council’s Draft Local Housing Strategy.

The document sets out the council’s strategy, priorities and plans for the delivery of housing and related services across the region until 2023.

Following approval by local councillors, residents are now being invite to give their views on the plan, which sets out a range of actions to address identified housing issues across both social and private sector housing.

The wide ranging strategy also addresses homelessness, fuel poverty, energy efficiency, housing quality and support, and specialist provision for people with particular needs.

The consultation will run until March 9.

To view the draft strategy, visit here.

Work continues on Prospect Community Housing kitchen replacement programme

Prospect Community Housing’s kitchen replacement programme is in full swing with this year’s phase due to be completed in March.

Together with contracting partners JTC and SH Properties, the Association will invest more than £120,000 by installing more than 60 kitchens, mostly in Clovenstone Gardens.

Watchdog highlights ‘serious concerns’ over Clackmannanshire Council finances

Clackmannanshire Council must take “urgent and decisive action” to sort out its financial problems as it faces making savings of £29 million over the next three years, the Accounts Commission has warned today.

In a new report, the local authority watchdog highlights “serious concerns” about the financial position of the council, which has an annual budget of just £118m.

Clackmannanshire is Scotland’s smallest mainland council and has relatively high levels of deprivation. It is one of three of the 32 councils that the Commission recently identified at risk of running out of general fund reserves within two or three years, if they continued to spend reserves at the same rate in recent years.

The Commission said strong leadership is now essential in the wake of previous political instability. This also requires close working between councillors and officers. In addition, the Commission recommends the council seeks external support, for example from other councils.

The report focuses on how Clackmannanshire is meeting the duty on all councils to demonstrate Best Value in what it does - a duty that needs to be fulfilled by the whole council by councillors working collectively.

The council works well with other organisations to identify local priorities and deliver services. Against a backdrop of budget reductions and service cuts, Clackmannanshire has maintained service performance and customer satisfaction in a number of key areas, although this isn’t the case across all services.