News
Giving to the local community and beyond!
You could be part of this!
- Volunteer with us
- Bring your preloved items and give twice!
- Firstly, to the person who buys a quality and affordable item.
- Secondly, the profit goes back into your local community and beyond!
Since The Giving Tree opened in November 2023, thanks to the generosity of our donors and the dedication of our staff and volunteers, the shop has donated:
£2,500 to Mary’s Meals
£88,910 to Dunblane Development Trust Large and Small Community Grants
Small grants have helped fund:
- New tents for Boys’ Brigade
- Goal posts for Newton Primary
- Vegetable planters for Dunblane Primary
- Seed funding for a family drop-in centre
- Plants for Weigh Ahead Community Garden
- Craft Central outreach project
- Equipment for Dunblane in Bloom
- Environmental clubs in local schools through the Rotary.
- Seeds and plants for the DDT Environment Group
- Musicians for the Three Rivers Classical Music Festival
- Christmas lights and work shed repairs for the DDT DIY group.
- Training and equipment for St Mary’s Repair Café
- Dunblane Community Speed watch equipment.
£15,106 to the Duncan Hospital Charitable Trust
The Duncan Hospital is located in Bihar, India — one of the poorest regions in the world.
Through our support:
- Two nurses were trained last year, strengthening local healthcare.
- This year, funding will help provide food and education for 50 street children in the communities around the hospital.
Please find the Agenda and Previous Minutes :
Stirling residents can apply for their 2026/27 annual Garden Waste Recycling Permit from Tuesday 10 March
The new permits will come into effect on 13 April, with councillors confirming that the permit will rise by £8 to £60.
The price of a permit for Stirling Council residents remains in line with many other local authorities in Scotland, averaging at £2.30 per uplift.The permit allows residents to have garden waste collected in the same bin as their food waste every two weeks.
For further details, visit: www.stirling.gov.uk/gardenwaste [2].
Works to install the raised table crossing will commence on Monday the 2nd of March and are expected to be completed by Friday the 13th of March.The priority for these works will be the installation of the raised table crossing in the vicinity of the existing pedestrian access to Springfield Car Park and the installation of the '20' road marking roundels. Should time permit, the dropped kerb tactile paving crossing points across the junction to Springfield Car Park will also be undertaken.
Due to time constraints the works to install a new section of footway at the Tesco Store delivery entrance will not be completed at this time, however it's anticipated that these works will be re-programmed in the future.
Dunblane Community Council will be discussing the last point at the next meeting as previously DCC has called for the footway by Tesco delivery entrance to be an urgent priority.
Please see the response attached to Mark Ruskell's queries about the Keir Roundabout.
Lord Provost Rosemary Fraser was among those to welcome The Prince and
Princess of Wales to Stirling yesterday (21 Jan) for a visit that
celebrated the area's sport, creativity and community spirit.
The Prince and Princess, known as the Duke and Duchess of Rothesay in
Scotland, started their tour at the National Curling Academy at the Peak
Sports Centre, where they were also greeted by Stirling Council Chief
Executive, Brian Roberts.
After meeting the Team GB and Paralympics GB Curling teams, who are
preparing for the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in MilanoCortina
in February and March, they also tried their hand at the sport that has
its roots in 16th-century Scotland and has become one of the country's
most successful winter sports.
Lord Provost Rosemary Fraser said: "It was wonderful to welcome Their
Royal Highnesses to Stirling and our inspiring communities and to be
part of this event."We are proud of our superb sporting facilities at the National Curling
Academy, managed and maintained by Active Stirling, which gives our
athletes the best opportunity to secure further success in this sport.
It also inspires more people across Stirling to take up curling and
other sports so they can enjoy the benefits of an active, healthy
lifestyle."I would like to take this opportunity to wish our curling teams and all
the Stirling-based athletes well at the Winter Olympic and Paralympic
Games in Italy."
Matt Bunnell, Active Stirling Chief Executive said: 'From an Active
Stirling perspective we felt extremely honoured to welcome the Prince
and Princess of Wales to The PEAK on their visit to the National Curling
Academy. It was wonderful to see them connecting with the community and
I am sure their visit would have further inspired the curling athletes
prior to their departure to the Winter Olympics next month."
The Prince and Princess then visited Radical Weavers, a working
handweaving studio and independent charity in Stirling city centre.Established in 2019, the charity aims to help to tackle social isolation
and support people affected by trauma and loss by offering the
opportunity to learn traditional Scottish tartan-weaving skills in a
safe and welcoming environment.After learning about the design and weaving process and tartan, Their
Royal Highnesses took up the opportunity to weave themselves, including
a small piece of an ambitious project by the Radical Weavers to create
the longest tartan scarf.
Their final engagement saw them stop by at the 'The Gothenburg', a
community-run pub in Fallin. Founded in 1910, 'The Goth' is one of the
few remaining pubs in Scotland still run under the Gothenburg system,
which aims to funnel profits from pubs back to the community.Their Royal Highnesses met 'The Goth's publican Rob Donaldson and
learned how 95% of the pub's profits are donated to community causes,
from families in need and food banks, to local charities and hospices.The Lord Provost added: "It was fantastic that the Prince and Princess
got an insight into the incredible people and organisations across
Stirling who make a real difference in our communities."The visit also highlighted how Stirling's remarkable culture and
creativity changes lives, inspires innovation and supports economic
growth."
Residents are being urged to have their say on proposals to help address Stirling Council’s estimated £12.25 million budget shortfall next year (2026-27).
A new survey has been launched that sets out potential ways for the council to raise more income, make savings and deliver services differently.The consultation continues the council’s Big Conversation with its communities about how it negotiates the ongoing and unprecedented financial challenge impacting local government in Scotland.The main reason for this is that the council’s funding and income is not meeting the rising costs needed to deliver its vital every-day services, from educating children and young people, to maintaining a vast road network, or collecting and recycling household waste.
Despite bridging a similar shortfall last year through an 8.8% increase in council tax and a range of savings totalling £7.7 million (mainly fficiencies), the council and other local authorities across Scotland must make further difficult decisions this year to balance their budgets.Residents can help inform this process by taking part in the survey on the Engage Stirling website [1], with paper copies available in libraries shortly.
The closing date is Sunday 1 February.
To see the full list of the proposed savings and take part in the online survey, visit:https://engage.stirling.gov.uk/en-GB/projects/big-conversation-26-27
For more information, please visit www.stirling.gov.uk/bigconversation
More...
The Gwen Mayor Trust, a charity established in memory of Dunblane Primary School teacher Gwen Mayor, has announced the nursery and primary school arts, sports, culture and community projects it is providing funding support for this year.
The charity was established by, and is administered by, the EIS and has supported hundreds of nursery and primary school projects benefitting thousands of children since it first awarded grants in 1998.
The aim of the Gwen Mayor Trust is to provide financial support for the type of projects which were important to Gwen Mayor and her pupils at Dunblane Primary School.
Since its inception, supported by the Mayor family and made possible by generous donations from individuals and organisations across the country, the Gwen Mayor Trust has supported a diverse range of arts, cultural, community and sports based projects in nursery and primary schools across Scotland.
Commenting on the work of the Trust, EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said, “Gwen Mayor was a passionate and dedicated educator, who was truly committed to providing the very best for the pupils with whom she worked.
"It was this spirit which led to the establishment of a charitable trust in honour of the memory of Gwen Mayor and her pupils at Dunblane Primary School.”
Ms Bradley added, “Today, the positive work of the Gwen Mayor Trust continues. All nursery and primary schools across Scotland are eligible to apply for funding from the Trust, and hundreds of projects and thousands of young people have benefitted from the support of the Trust over the past three decades.
"The Trustees recently authorised the funding of eighteen projects in schools across Scotland, and everyone associated with the Gwen Mayor Trust looks forward to hearing and seeing more about the progress of these very worthy projects in the months ahead.”
Read more here
Cromlix, the five-star country house hotel in Kinbuck owned by Andy and Kim Murray, will be closing this January for major building work. From 4th January 2026, the hotel will be shutting its doors as the next phase of construction continues until May 2026. The hotel is adding two new restaurants, a wellness facility and three new suites, including a ground floor accessible suite.
Building work on one of the new restaurants began in October this year with a significant proportion of the major construction work already completed, ahead of the worst of the winter weather. Cromlix appointed the Doune based Kings Group for the construction work, employing up to 65 local people from within a 15 mile radius of the hotel, including many highly-skilled local artisans. Perthshire based Fergus Purdie is the architect and Suzanne Garuda is overseeing the interiors.
Updates on the project can be found on the Cromlix page on Instagram and via the website. The hotel's booking team and online shop will still be open throughout the closure.
For more information please visit www.cromlix.com
The Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 as amended by Planning etc (Scotland) Act 2006
RE: Formation of 400kV substation comprising erection of control building, engineering operations, formation of hardstanding, access track, temporary laydown/work compound areas and drainage, installation of plant and machinery, alterations to existing track and associated works Shindour Feddal Hill Wood Braco for Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission Plc
I write to inform you that after considering the proposal, including your letter, the Council has decided to Approve the application.
If you would like to obtain further information the decision notice, report of handling and other information relating to the application can be viewed using the following link at https://planningapps.pkc.gov.uk/online-applications/search.do?action=simple&searchType=Application by entering the following reference number 25/00490/FLN.
Kristian Smith
Development Management & Building Standards Service Manager
