Dunblane Community Council

Rachael Rennert
Secretary
cc@dunblane.info

Anthony Delleur
Chair
cc@dunblane.info

Minutes of the Dunblane Community Council held on Wednesday, 2
September, 2026, at 7 p.m. in the Library, Dunblane. This is a “blended”
meeting, with some attendees joining by Zoom.
Present: Anthony Delleur (Chair), Jonathan Failes (Vice-Chair), Rachael
Rennert (Secretary), Alan Booth, Karen Jenkins, Caroline McArthur, Peter
Swindon, Annelise Bakri, Rachel Nelson, Stewart Corbett. By Zoom: Anna
Jarchow-MacDonald.
In attendance: Councillors Thomas Heald, David Wilson and Alasdair
Tollemache, Steve Mason, Margaret Bragg (Minutes Secretary). By Zoom: Mairi
Santolini (Parent Council, High School) – for part of the meeting.

1. Apologies Apologies have been received from Councillor Robin Kleinman,
   the Police and David Whelan.
2. Conflicts of interest None were declared.
3. Adoption of minutes of 5 August 2026
   Terence O’Byrne has circulated an amendment to these. Under ‘Operations
   Report’ he wants to make it clear that, as previously notified to the community
   council, he will no longer be providing an Operations Report nor holding any
   meetings with Officers on behalf of the community council. With this
   amendment the Minutes were approved, proposed by Annelise Bakri and
   seconded by Peter Swindon.
4. Re-election of Treasurer
   Rachel Nelson formally resigned as temporary Treasurer and, there being no
   other candidate, Stewart Corbett was duly elected, proposed by Alan Booth
   and seconded by Jonathan Failes.
5. Co-option of new community council members
   No application forms have been submitted.

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6. Reports
Police Report: See attached.
The Chair reported that the Laighhills pavilion has been secured after a recent
break-in. Stewart Corbett proposed that the Police be asked to patrol in the
area, especially on Saturday nights.
Councillor Tollemache reported that Sergeant Dean MacKinnon has been
appointed and suggested he is invited to a community council meeting. He
noted that, because of shift patterns, it is difficult for the Police to attend
community council meetings regularly.
Speedwatch David Whelan has sent in the statistics from the August sessions
of Speedwatch. On the Doune Road, 31 vehicles were travelling over 25 mph
(highest speed 33 mph) and on Perth Road 99 vehicles were over 25 mph
(highest speed 45 mph).
Planning
The Chair gave a brief overview of planning applications.
With reference to Ledcameroch, it was noted that a new application has been
submitted for a small shed and greenhouse. However, no mention has been
made of the access road which has been put in without consent. Councillor
Tollemache suggested that the community council contact the Council’s
Enforcement Officer to bring this to their attention and Rachel Nelson agreed
to draft an email. Action: Rachel Nelson.
With reference to the two applications to remove trees at St Margaret’s Drive
it was agreed to find out if any were covered by Tree Protection Orders before
submitting an objection. Rachel Nelson will liaise with Alan Booth who agreed
to find out more. Action: Alan Booth.
Elected members
Councillor Tollemache reported on incidents of pollution in the Allan Water
(see Minutes August 2026). Scottish Water has surveyed their network and
identified a previously unidentified sewer overflow which was blocked. This
has now been cleared. SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency) has
reported that foam and bubbles in the river are naturally occurring which
eventually disperse. Community councillors reported that there are still
sewage smells in the town. Councillor Tollemache will draft a letter, and
circulate it to the community council, asking Scottish Water about their
sampling regime and for their promised report on the whole sewer system,
stating he is reflecting the views of the community council. He is not satisfied
that Scottish Water were unaware of the blocked sewer overflow. Action:
Councillor Tollemache. It was also suggested that the Rivers Trust could
provide support.
Councillor Wilson reported that he has been lobbying MSPs and MPs on the
long waiting time experienced by those waiting for a diagnosis of ADHD. The
delay can result in mental health problems in later life.

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Councillor Wilson also reported on the review of school catering services (see
Minutes, March 2026). For over a decade the Council’s school catering team
has held the prestigious Food for Life Silver Award and it remains
unconfirmed, following the budget decision taken earlier this year, if these
standards can be maintained by any external provider. If not, the motion
whether to continue with this proposal will come to Council on 8 October.
This has been reported in the Stirling Observer, and Annelise Bakri suggested

that parent councils be contacted to raise awareness. Anna Jarchow-
MacDonald pointed out the difference between ultra-processed and processed

foods, that frozen food prepared elsewhere could be either and that the main
problem is in the reheating of food. Councillor Tollemache has asked for more
details before the October meeting of the Council.
Councillor Tollemache has requested a camera be installed at Kinbuck Bridge,
after further incidents there.
Councillor Heald reported on damage and anti-social behaviour at the empty
Fairview and Royal Hotel premises in Bridge of Allan.
Operations Report
Councillor Tollemache confirmed he will be looking into various issues.
Councillor Tollemache reported that he has received a commitment from
Alistair Schofield (Roads Maintenance, Stirling Council) that the gullies on the
Perth Road will be cleared and the area will be monitored to identify any
further problems.
Following a complaint from a resident, the surface of Daniel Road on the
approach to the cemetery will be cleared and brought up to standard.
Alan Booth recognised the huge job Terence O’Byrne has done and the many
contacts he has. Jonathan Failes proposed that the community council should
formulate a plan on how to deal with issues and the Secretary suggested that
items can be divided up between different councillors. It will be necessary to
find out the issues that need to be kept an eye on, and how many people are
willing to be involved. Steve Mason stressed that Terence O’Byrne is still going
to do the work, but is not willing to prepare the report. After discussion with
Karen Jenkins and Alan Booth, Rachel Nelson will contact Terence O’Byrne to
clarify how to go forward. Action: Rachel Nelson.
7. Community
Meeting between the community council and the Dunblane Development Trust
(DDT). This took place on 31 August to discuss how the council and the DDT
can work together on the Community Priorities Action Plan (CAP). Following
on from the Local Place Plan (LPP) and the Local Development Plan (LDP3),
focus will turn to how to implement the projects identified by these that the
community can progress itself. Jonathan Failes highlighted the importance of
having good data, e.g. on infrastructure, to support any response to new

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developments. Stewart Corbett agreed that data would provide evidence of
the reasons why certain projects are needed, by identifying what is missing in
the town and how to support tourism. The Chair also stated the need to
identify sites which, for example, could be used for sports facilities rather
than housing. The importance of engaging with community groups was
stressed while Alan Booth said the CAP provided evidence of community
aspirations even if they are not immediately realisable. In reply to a question
from Rachel Nelson, the Chair confirmed that Minutes from this meeting will
be circulated. Action: The Chair.
Schools The Chair is meeting with the High School to help with the
procurement of a minibus through the DDT.
Laighhills Overall, the development of the Laighhills toilets is a project of
the DDT with support from the community council.
Football pitches Steve Mason reported on a meeting held that afternoon
between the Chair, Stewart Corbett, Alan Booth, himself and Scott Bottomley,
Chair of the Dunblane Soccer Club (DSC), to discuss the future of the
Laighhills pitches and the pavilion. In Scott Bottomley’s view the problems of
parking for matches at the Laighhills are insurmountable and he had
commented that vehicles belonging to away teams would drive in to the park.
Anna Jarchow-MacDonald suggested that other areas in Dunblane could be
designated for parking, with people being transported in shuttle buses. The
pitches at the High School are also not up to standard and the Club has been
looking at other sites all over Dunblane suitable for new pitches. Steve Mason
encouraged the community council to support the expansion of the DSC by
helping them to identify other sites for pitches or even a Sports Centre. Alan
Booth said the DSC were proposing three football pitches, one with a running
track and one under cover which could be used for other sports and they have
identified a possible site between Dunblane and Ashfield. Jonathan Failes,
agreeing on the importance of sports, said this would be a significant project
and the council has to ensure it is representing the views of the community.
He suggested consulting with Imagine If, but felt that this idea would have to
be further developed before taking it to the community for feedback. Thought
would have to be given to the future use of the two pitches at the Laighhills.
Rachel Nelson pointed out that there are other priorities outlined in the LPP
Councillor Wilson agreed to contact Active Schools to enquire about a
replacement for AstroTurf which is not as detrimental to the environment.
The Council is undertaking a review of pitches at the moment.
Pavilion and toilet It was noted that, even without the DSC, the use of the
changing rooms in the pavilion and the provision of toilet facilities are still of
vital concern. The Chair agreed that looking at different options for using the
pavilion should be drawn up in a business plan, but in the meantime the focus

should be on providing a public toilet. There has been a site visit to a stand-
alone toilet block at Gargunnock; a similar one could be obtained for £13,000

plus the cost of transport and installation. When a permanent toilet is

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available in the pavilion, this could be moved elsewhere. Councillor
Tollemache has been assured that services (electricity, water and sewerage)
are still available.
Asset transfer Alan Booth questioned whether the Corporate Assets
department at the Council should be allowed to use common good money to
upgrade a facility, the pavilion, which they have allowed to degrade over the
past 20 years. In his opinion, it was their responsibility to look after this
common good asset. Over ten years ago when Councillor Tollemache had
asked if assets are transferred from the Council to common good would they
be transferred in a good state of repair or brought up to that standard, he had
been told that in the majority of cases an asset will be transferred in its current
state. He has asked if Councillors can have sight of the legal advice this is
based on and has looked at how other Councils deal with this. Alan Booth,
reiterating his criticism, suggested asking Ailsa Gray for help in formulating a
tighter legal question for the Council to answer. It was agreed to ask someone
from the Assets department to attend a meeting outside the normal diet of
community council meetings to answer such questions, including how do they
assess the value of a building for asset transfer.
Councillor Tollemache emphasised that discussions over the pavilion should
not delay progressing the installation of a public toilet.
Schedule for Vaison-la-Romaine group visit Annelise Bakri reported on the
programme organised for this visit over the weekend of 25 -27 September.
This comprises school presentations, historical tour of the town, official
meetings, tour of Stirling, ceilidh and pétanque and lunch at the rugby club.
She asked councillors to let her know if they wanted to attend and help. She
is still expecting the grant from Stirling Council. The sign at the entrance to
the town publicising the partnership between the two towns has been delayed.
Rachel Nelson led the community council’s thanks for the work Annelise Bakri
has put in to organise this.
8. Environment and sustainability
Stirling and Tayside timber transport group visit A visit to Kippendavie took
place on 13 August to discuss timber transport and forestry. Alan Booth
reported that he had seen a demonstration of the loading of a timber truck
and discussions were held about the transport route down the Glen Road.
There is no obligation for the trucks to have adjustable tyre pressure, and
there will be three trucks per day for six months coming down from
Kippendavie. There was some discussion about damage to the road surface
but trucks should be travelling at no more than 15 mph. The same route will
be used when timber harvesting starts from the Jerah site in future.
9. Treasurer’s report: See attached.
The Administration Grant from the Council has been received.
As reported in last month’s Minutes, the money that Annelise Bakri was
successful in obtaining from the Council for community gardens is being held

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in the DDT’s accounts. She will be able to find out how much is there, as she
will be applying for funds soon.
10. AOCB
Alan Booth said that it would be useful if relevant reports were posted with
the Minutes on the dunblane.info website.
11. Date, time and place of next meeting
The next meeting of the community council will take place on Wednesday, 7
October, 2026, at 7 p.m. in the Library, Dunblane.
The meeting ended at 9.30 p.m.
This is a true representation of the meeting.

Anthony Delleur …………………………………………….. Date 21.09.26
Chair
Rachael Rennert …………………………………………….. Date ……………………