Author: pencaitland
Pencaitland Community Council exists to represent the views of local residents about local issues that matter to them. This involves close liaison with other groups in the community and helps to develop a more coherent and dynamic village environment.
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A community car club for Pencaitland?
Pencaitland Community Council is looking into the pros and cons of having a local car that anyone can use. What do you think?
Car Clubs are becoming an increasingly important part of the personal transport mix. They offer a way to have access to private transport without the added hassles of insurance, maintenance, road tax and car recovery memberships.
Basically it’s all the benefits of private transport without the downsides of owning a car. That’s why your Community Council is asking you to give your views in a short survey.
In recent years private companies have sprung up offering Car Clubs around the UK. One such is the Edinburgh Car Club which has one vehicle in Musselburgh. However, the economics of running a commercially-based Car Club in rural areas makes it unattractive to for-profit shareholder businesses.
This is where community based car club schemes can make all the difference, providing local villages with the same benefits enjoyed by large urban areas, but with all the proceeds going into developing the service rather than paying shareholders.
Dunbar already enjoys the benefits of its car club scheme SpareWheels, launched in 2011 and now with three available vehicles. It operates as a not-for-profit, using any surplus to provide a better service to its members and keep member costs as low as possible. Shortly Haddington will do likewise with the launch of Easywheels later this month.
In Pencaitland, working with Carplus, your community council wants to assess the level of interest in having a car based in the village and accessible to any members for use for as little as half an hour up to several days at a time.
Carplus was established back in 2000 to support the development of car clubs across the UK, in response to growing environmental concerns around private car use.
Do the Survey
Please take a few minutes to take part in the short survey and help us assess the level of interest in this community becoming part of the wider network of community-backed car clubs developing in the county. Please also pass on the word to others — especially those who may not be online but would benefit from access to a private car.
Background: How do Car Clubs Work?
Car clubs typically provide members with access to pay-as-you-drive vehicles which are parked in reserved spaces and available for hire on an hourly or daily basis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The club covers all the costs of owning and operating the vehicles, such as insurance, tax, fuel, cleaning and servicing. Members usually pay an annual membership fee to be part of a car club and then pay an hourly charge (typically between £3 and £5) to hire a vehicle and a mileage charge (typically around 21p per mile) that covers fuel and vehicle wear and tear and are usually billed for their use monthly in arrears. Members book vehicles online or over the phone for as little as 30 minutes up to several days at a time and can access car club vehicles via a smart card or by a key, accessible via a key safe.
The PTA & Playgroup Fun Run takes place on Saturday the 13th of April from 2pm in the grounds on Pencaitland Primary School.
If you’d like to take part then follow the links to the forms. If you can spare time to help out as a Marshal (30 are needed) Contact Charlotte Taylor on 01875 340 987 or PPCPTA1@gmail.com.
Entry Forms
You can see a selection of snaps from last year’s Fun Run here.
Pencaitland Primary’s Parents & Teachers Association is holding a Ceilidh in the school hall on Friday 2nd March.
The fun kicks off at 5.30pm and finishes at 8pm. Tickets cost £4 for adults, £3 for kids or £12 for Families. Children under 2 go free.
Come along and enjoy a fun few hours, which not only provides the opportunity to take part in a social activity with others for a good cause, but also gives you an excuse not to collapse in front of the telly on a Friday evening!
For further detail contact Charlotte via email.
Pencaitland has seen its fair share of potholes and other pavement problems over the winter but thanks to email and the web it’s never been easier to report.
The final tally on last Saturday’s fundraiser for kid’s bereavement charity Richmond’s Hope came to £4,794.50
Update
A letter from Emma Hack from Monday 4th March 2013
“Dear everyone
I can’t begin to tell you how touched I am by everyone’s support and generosity. I hope (and think!) that those of you who were there last Saturday night had a really enjoyable evening, I certainly haven’t laughed as much in a long time! There were a lot of very special people who all worked very hard to make the event happen, so Jim and Lynn Fraser, Scott and Lydia MacDonald, Stella and Derek Birrell, Caroline Wolfe Murray, Shirley Hamilton, Christine Galvin, Natasha Ingram-Phoenix, Amy Baillie, The Domestics, Ray & Charlie and everyone who donated food and homebaking – a HUGE thank you for being so generous with your time, skills and support x.
So the part that everyone has been waiting for, we have managed to raise an absolutely amazing £5395.00 for Richmond’s Hope. That will enable Aimée and another 8 children from East Lothian to receive the help they really need following a bereavement, as well as having a bit left over to help towards the cost of the activities they do.
Can I also put a shout out on Richmond’s Hope behalf – they are looking for pasta bake type jars to use for the children to make memory jars out of. If you have any you were going to put into recycling I can pick up and take into Richmond’s Hope.”
You can see more photos of the event by clicking on the image below.
Or just view them right here…
A new website is attempting to help Scots band together to bulk buy energy and save money.
Here’s how it works:
1. Find a recent utilities bill
2. Go online to scotstogether.com
3. Enter your details and have a look at the deal Scots Together has organised by getting lots of people in Scotland together to bulk buy electricity and gas. The more people that sign up, the better the deal gets. If there’s a different deal that’s better for you or you’re already on the best possible price then they will let you know.
4. Decide whether to switch or not. There is no obligation. If you decide you want to switch, you need to accept the offer by 17 March 2013.
5. Pass it on. The more people that sign up, the better the deal for everyone else.
If you want to talk to an adviser first or you want to refer someone that doesn’t have internet access, there’s a freephone advice line 0800 408 0155.
Environmental charity Changeworks is co-ordinating the initiative in Scotland and will engage with householders in areas covered by the five partner Councils — one of which is East Lothian Council. There is also a Consumer Frequently Asked Questions PDF you can view for further background on the scheme.
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Great night for Richmond’s Hope raises £4000
A fundraiser was held at Pencaitland Bowling Club on Saturday the 23rd, raising around £4000 for child bereavement charity Richmond’s Hope.
Unfortunately the charity, which receives support funding for places for bereaved kids in Edinburgh and Midlothian, receives nothing from East Lothian Council despite past requests. The money raised yesterday will help bereaved kids from the county to receive counselling they would otherwise be unable to access.
The cash was raised through a combination of ticket sales for last night’s event and a range of raffles, auction prizes and a coin toss. Fundraising culminated in a ‘slave’ auction where willing local volunteers offered their expertise as a prize to the winning bidder.
Music came in the form of singer-songwriter Amy Baillie and local (one-time?) band The Domestics.
Expertly compering the evening’s activities was Pencaitland’s Jim Fraser who all agreed did an excellent job and helped make the event all the more entertaining. Jim is available for births, deaths, bar mitzvahs and funerals but only on the 29th of February during leap years.
We have a selection of snaps from the evening which you can view here or just below.
UPDATE: Mon 25th Feb 2013
The final tally on all the funds raised at the Saturday event has come in at £4,794.50.
After a number of years at the helm of Pencaitland Guides Lorna Craft is soon stepping down as Group Leader. To remain open Guides needs new people to step forward.
When current Group Leader Lorna Craft moved to the area there had not been any Guides for a number of years. Lorna reopened Guides for business in 2009 with eight girls and gradually grew to a massive group of 42 at its peak. Currently there are 18 girls and a waiting list for Brownies.
That’s why we are putting out the call for new volunteers to help keep Guides open in Pencaitland. To remain open they need one or a group of women over the age of 18 to be able and willing to run the Unit and to work towards a leaders warrant. Male helpers are also very welcome.
A leader runs a varied, interesting, girl-led weekly programme. Amongst other things, they keep basic records up to date, plan and organise activity weekends and ensure the safety of the girls in all that they do. Attending area meetings roughly once per session are also required, as well as taking part training sessions for those new to Guiding leadership.
About Guides
In the past four years Pencaitland Guides have had several weekends away — from a weekend in Stirling visiting the tourist spots, to a weekend in Mull, camping and wild camping, sleepovers, weekends at activity centres and day trips into towns and cities. Last summer three of the girls had the experience of a lifetime on a ten day trip to Switzerland with East Lothian Guiding.
Two of the oldest Guides recently completed the Baden Powell Award, the highest award a Guide can achieve. This has taken nearly two years to complete, proving how dedicated our girls can be!
Why volunteer?
A past outdoor wild camping trip consisted of a hill walk, camping rough, star gazing and survival skills which was lead by a qualified instructor who worked with Pencaitland’s Group Leader. This can either be a qualified volunteer or a company with relevant qualifications. Pencaitland Guides frequently contact agencies such as the Ambulance Service, Zoo Society, Women’s Refuge, etc., to visit and involve the girls with their cause/role.
Make a difference — get in touch now
Potential volunteers can initially contact Lorna for more information via email .
Minutes for Pencaitland Community Council’s December 2012 meeting can now be found online.
Since moving pencaitland.org to its new home on Ourlocality.org all recent and future Community Council minutes can be found on the web thanks to Google Drive.
To view all minutes for 2012 just click this link. To save a copy of any minutes, view the document in your browser and select the option FILE >> DOWNLOAD.
Pencaitland Community Council Minutes 2012
Earlier minutes can be found here.