SNP Councillor Drew Hendry

Drew welcomes Hausgauen Mayor Maurice Wiss

Following a successful visit by leading lights from Hausgauen in France businesses in Glen Urquhart are looking to further cement ties between the two communities. A small group of visitors, including the Mayor of the region and some of Hausgauen’s business community enjoyed the hospitality of local community representatives during a three day fact finding visit to Drumnadrochit. The French visitors were given a tour of the local attractions that included the Loch Ness Centre and a boat trip on the Loch in addition to seeing Urquhart Castle and being invited to dinners at the Fiddler’s Cafe and the Loch Ness Lodge Hotel.

The visit was judged to have been a great success and areas for future cooperation between the two communities are being developed. In order to build on these ties community and business leaders in Drumnadrochit are now planning to visit Hausgauen for their annual Tattoo in September.

Aird and Loch Ness SNP Councillor Drew Hendry said “I was delighted to be able to be involved in welcoming these visitors and we think that the Hausgauen folk left suitably impressed with both the natural beauty of the area and with the hospitality they received. It is a real indication of the way this community is willing to pull together to try something new and they have to be congratulated for their efforts. We wish them well as they take this forward”

Chair of Glen Urquhart Community Council, David Fraser said:

“We hope that our planned visit to Hausgauen will confirm the links  We are trying something new, this is not a traditional “town twinning” and we will have to go a bit deeper than normal to find lasting ties, but clearly there is a great base of affection and mutual interest between the two communities. We will look at how we involve our young people and how we can measure the benefits of further ties, but I am very optimistic that this will be good for the area”

he added “My sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to providing our French visitors with a wonderful introduction to Glen Urquhart and its people. The generosity of the businesses and the manner in which they are all worked together was a credit to our community. I firmly believe we have made a positive start in building an alliance that will bring benefits to the businesses of Glen Urquhart and equally importantly the wider community”

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With the pace of broadband and internet technology often overtaking current needs, the SNP group on Highland Council have welcomed a commitment gained from HIE Chairman, Willie Roe, to attempt to “Leapfrog” broadband technology for the Highlands.

Following questions regarding securing the advantage of cutting edge mobile broadband technology for the Highlands, a letter sent by Willie Roe, in response to SNP Councillor Drew Hendry, has confirmed a commitment to work with mobile operators to gain access to the developing 4G mobile broadband. 4G is cutting edge technology which aims to offer landline type connection speeds over the mobile phone network. This means that there is a potential to connect people in more remote areas, ensure that those on the move in Highland can do business anywhere and that, potentially, employers can set up businesses or employ more people to work from any location covered by 4G without losing out in terms of remaining competitive.

Drew said:

“We have been pushing for HIE to make a pitch for the development of this amazing technology for quite a while now and we are delighted that the issue is going to be taken up seriously. Mobile operators will need to make a real commitment to improved mobile phone coverage for mobile broadband to be a meaningful alternative in Highland, but, if done properly, development of this system will mean better broadband access and better mobile phone reception at the same time.

Highland businesses and consumers have been crying out for better service across our region and whilst improvements to existing technologies should still be pursued vigorously, we also need to look to the future. There is little point in upgrading networks only to find that when they are completed everything is on its way to being obsolete. Many people remember buying ISDN equipment as recently as 5 or 6 years ago only to rip it out months later. Any 4G development has the potential to catapult the Highlands to the very front of the modern communications world and has the potential to give business here a serious advantage as well as opening up a massive range of opportunities for Highlands people wherever the internet or communications are a factor.”

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Not quite "Bats in the Belfry" but a week or so ago I had bees in my chimney. The honey bees had been searching for a place to set up a hive and decided that they liked our place. Flattered as I was none of us relished sharing with these little natural wonders, especially as they had found a crack to come through, in numbers, into our bedrooms.

Honey bees are very important to our environement so we were determined to seek specialist advice to help them "choose a new home" rather than our chimney. If you call the council about bees then they will direct you to a group of enthusiasts and volunteers who both look after and help with bee incidents.

My call resulted in one of my own constiuents, Colin Robertson of Teandalloch, coming to the rescue with his roof ladder. After a bit of high wire bee wrangling and the discovery that thjere was no queen, the decision was made to discourage them by simply putting a plastic seal over the chimney. This simple act caused a bit of confusion amongst the bees but they moved away over the next 48 hours.

I am very grateful to Colin (as I am sure many others have been in the past) and it is of great credit to him and his fellow bee enthusiasts that they ask for no reward to help out. They are a shining example of those who help simply because they can.

In addition to his help I have now found a new source for free range eggs as Colin also keeps chickens as well as bees. Honey and eggs – I will be making a bee line over there.

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I brought a motion to Highland Council asking for the Council to reaffirm it's position that the Housing debt should be written off. This grossly unfair piece of financial blackmail has been roundly condemned by members of all parties and Independents since it was first employed to try to force Highland's tenant to accept a transfer of council housing to housing societies. The carrot was – transfer and we will write this off, don't and you will have to live with the debt (around £146 million pounds)

Just servicing the interest paid to Westminster costs Highland council around £15 million pounds per year, put into context, that roughly equates to the amount being advertised as needed in  "cuts" to Highland council's budget for the next three years by the Lib Dem led administration.

My motion was simple and simply called for the council to restate it's position. Although everyone agreed it had to be countered by an Administration motion, for political reasons, saying much the same but using around 3 times as many words (wriggle room? I will leave you to decide)

I was not unduly concerned by this "reverse" as the principle had been accepted and the council was still committed to calling for the "write off"

The path ahead should have been easy. As recently as December, during a period when everybody was aware of the financial situation caused by the mishandling of the UK economy, the newly appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury, MP Danny Alexander had described the debt as "unfair" and urged action to write it off.  Indeed, this was one of a few bullet points for the Lib Dem's demands for "A fairer funding deal for the HIghlands" Full details can be seen here

The issue was clear, this was a "fairness" issue – everyone was agreed, surely at last the issue would be dealt with as promised?

It seems not. In yet another reversal, yet another commitment has been blown away and suddenly MP Danny Alexander says ""the UK's "overall financial situation" must be resolved first."

That is one mighty kick into the long grass.

Highland must wait until all other UK issues are resolved may be a convenient way out, but remember, in his own words, this was an issue of "fairness" not simple economics. Surely the benefit of being able to deliver is to be able to deliver what is fair?

So, in other words Danny will do nothing about the "Fairness" of the situation, it simply is no longer a priority.

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SNP Highland Councillor, Drew Hendry, has asked for money to be made available for works to the bridge at Lower Foyers. Highland Council’s Resources Committee was told that £250,000 lies unspent from the stalled Ness Hydro project in the Capital Expenditure budget of the Chief Executive’s budget. The lifeline bridge has been out of commission for over 20 years and the community in Lower Foyers have had to make to with an ageing Bailey bridge which was only ever supposed to be a temporary measure. Recently even foot crossings over the old bridge were ruled out and concern was raised about access to Lower Foyers in the event of an emergency, especially after the dramatic landslide there in 2009. As a result of the concerns, Councillor Hendry forced the Emergency Planning department to create an individual plan for Lower Foyers and called, at that time for a permanent solution for access to Lower Foyers.

Speaking after the committee, SNP Councillor Drew Hendry (Aird and Loch Ness) said:

 “It is pretty clear that the Ness Hydro scheme is going nowhere in the near future and at the same time we have real need of attention in Lower Foyers. I have asked that these funds be made available for projects like the Lower Foyers bridge because this is really due some attention after over 20 years and there are funds to start some work. Although the sum involved is probably not nearly enough to get the whole job done, it could pay for investigation and preliminary work to be undertaken and then if there is further delay to other works it would be ready to benefit. It could possibly enable some measures to reintroduce the foot crossing closed last year.  I was pleased that the Chair of Resources, Carloyn Wilson agreed to consider this along with other suitable projects.”

He added “If there is money that is not working hard for the public at the moment then we need to identify it and apply the support to those things that can be delivered. I hope that the people of Lower Foyers are considered by the Administration and that we can finally see some progress on getting the bridge sorted before there is a critical problem.

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I was delighted to be asked to officially open the new "Drop off" point near Farr primary school in my ward of Aird and Loch Ness. Many people had worked hard to finally deliver this innovative solution to improving safety for children accessing the school and it has been a pleasure to help them whilst watching a school and community achieving this together.

Farr is an older school built long before today's traffic levels would have even been considered possible and as such was built on a raised area and near a bend in the road. When parents were dropping off pupils previously they had the joint problem of blocking up and double parking at the small school entrance and having to watch out for non school traffic, often travelling too fast for comfort.

Whilst discussing the issue with the headteacher, Sheila Lamont, in 2007, we chatted about how we might look at other ways to solve the problem and came up with an idea to investigate using the nearby community woodland (which is adjacent to the school). So the plan began to evolve. 3 years later and with huge support from Strathnairn Community Woodlands, spearheaded by Peter Christie and Donald Longden, Highland council's safer routes to school, the parent council, local community leaders and Sheila's and her staff's own efforts the drop off point is now a reality.

Pupils can now enjoy being dropped off safely near the school, play in a safe area whilst waiting and then join a "Walking Bus" with a teacher for the short and pleasant walk through the wood to school each morning. Early signs are that parents are adapting well to the idea and pupils are enjoying it immensely.

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SNP Councillor, Drew Hendry, Aird and Loch Ness, has welcomed the planned refurbishment of Aldourie Primary School near Dores. There will be refurbishment to the older building to provide a new classroom, dining area and office accomodation. There will also be a modern double demountable classroom added to the provision.

Speaking at the Education, Culture and Sport Committee he said "The problems highlighted in the recent inspection showing major fabric issues such as dry and wet rot do not tell the whole story. There have been on-going accommodation problems at the school including poor toilet accomodation and big difficulties with the layout. It is a huge credit to the teaching staff at the school that they have mainted a vibrant learning environment whilst coping with these difficulties. I hope that the work will allow the children to enjoy an improved learning experience."

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Another Aird and Loch Ness school, Dochgarroch Primary school, has come in for praise after a Quality Improvement officer visit. Focussing on Learning and Teaching the report points out the some key areas where the school has done very well.  I am a firm believer that relationships are at the centre of success for schools and at Dochgarroch there is a strong bond between the Parents, the pupils and the staff. The school really is the centre of the community.

Highlights from the report state that Dochgarroch pupils are generally "well motivated and treat each other with respect" it says that "Standards of attainment in general are impressive" and "Learners are proud of their school, work very well cooperatively and and support each other effectively"

I would like to congratulate Mrs Donald, her staff and the pupils at the school, for the recognition in the report and it serves to underline what I have always found when I visit.

The quality of education in the schools in our ward, Aird and Loch Ness, is very good and has been, in most cases, for years. I look forward to taking the opportunity to highlight further successes for Dochgarroch and the other schools as reports come in.

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Work to begin on Wellington lay by “within the next two months” Aird and Loch Ness SNP Councillor welcomes outcome of meeting with Transport Scotland.

A meeting requested by Aird and Loch Ness SNP Councillor, Drew Hendry between Transport Scotland and Aird and Loch Ness Councillors has been described as “helpful” after commitments to begin work on repairing the Lay By were given by Transport Scotland officials “within the next two months”. The Lay By, an important tourist stop has been closed to traffic following a collapse of the retaining wall. The wall, built long ago, is a mixture of Mortar and Drystane construction and has been under more pressure than would have been intended when it was built. This has led to the collapse of parts and concerns about safety. Any new work on the retaining wall will be carried out in sympathy for the location and will be designed to fit with the lochside.

Aird and Loch Ness SNP Councillor, Drew Hendry said “I am delighted that we will finally get some action as a result of the meeting and we have been given a commitment that work will begin soon to reinforce the collapsed area with rock to build it back up again. Depending on how this work goes we have been advised that the Lay By, or a good part of it may be open during the remainder of the tourist season.

My ward colleagues and I have also asked for work to be done to make the Lay By better for the future. We have suggested that there is a new pathway down to the beach, better signage and that to prevent future damage that an order to prevent Heavy goods vehicles parking there is put in place. After hearing from Transport Scotland I am hopeful that these measures will be taken forward. They have promised in future to make their plans and work for the site visible on their website.”

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It may be a long time ago, but I remember well taking my first school report home. It was in a sealed envelope and, at my school, none of us had been given a clue as to what was in it and what it said. It led to a nervous couple of miles walk home and I am sure it took twice as long as usual.

Whatever it did say is long forgotten and nowadays it is reports on Schools themselves that I am handed to take home and read.

I have, since becoming a Councillor in 2007, been an admirer of the way things are done in many of my ward's schools. There are are a number in Aird and Loch Ness that manage to create a great environment for learning and a sense of community. One of these is Kirkhill Primary.

Along with other visits, I often hold my surgeries there and talk with the headteacher and staff, see happy, involved children and the results of their work and projects.

I think it is important, amongst the bad news that we hear so much of, that we pause to celebrate those things that are a source of strength in our communities.

The children and teachers at Kirkhill school have just received a great report from the School inspectors and I would urge anyone interested to read a copy of the report. Reports these days don’t always mark things as A, B or C but if they did then I think that the work being done in Kirkhill school by both the staff and pupils would get an A plus.

Christine, the School’s Head teacher deserves a lot of praise for her work, but when congratulated she immediately points out the work of all involved, including those who help to maintain the school right through to the parents both in the parent council and out with.

There are tough times ahead for education and other services, as budgets get stretched, and schools such as Kirkhill  will also face challenges as a result. I hope that the right decisions are taken when it comes to supporting our schools in Highland.

In hard times we need strong education and we must all work to ensure that the jewels in the crown of our communities are protected from expediency and short term decisions that could lead to problems over time.

I am always happy to discuss any issues, including education, and would be delighted to hear your views if you would like to get in touch.

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