Minishant Community Action Plan 2014 - 2019

Minishant Community Action Plan 2014 - 2019 Welcome to Minishant's Community Action Plan This Community Action Plan lays out the community’s priorities for the development of Minishant over the next 5 years. These priorities have been established through an extensive process of community engagement carried out during 2012 and 2013 by various groups and agencies. Minishant Community Action Plan 2014—2019 This Community Action Plan is for people who live or work in Straiton and who want to plan for its future. The contents provide the results, conclusions and recommendations from various surveys which took place during 2013. The Action Plan is a statement about the type of place the community wants Straiton to be, and what needs to be done. It is also a starting point for future consultation and engagement as the community starts to address the priorities in this plan and on a rolling basis evaluate what has been achieved and what still needs to be addressed The Action Plan provides: An outline of our community profile A summary of our community‘s views A vision for the future, where the issues that matter most are priorities for action to be taken. The Action Plan will be our guide for what we as a community want to try to make happen over the next five years, laying the foundations for change over the longer term. Minishant Community & the Ayrshire 21 Project Our Community has worked with the Ayrshire 21 team, to undertake community consultations which have gathered the views of local people about their community and highlighted their interests. The consultation work has used a variety of methods including a householder survey to find out the opinions of local people about a range of topics. Various meetings have also taken place with community groups) in Minishant to ascertain their wants and needs. This process has fed into the action plan to clearly identify the needs the community has and its future aspirations and what it sees as being in need of change or improvement. The result of this work is an Action Plan with a list of recommendations for the future of the area. This plan is shaped by our community’s comments, aspirations and the wants and needs identified through much of the consultation work over the past 2 years. It will build on all the good things that people like about Minishant. This project has been part-financed by the Scottish Government and by the European Community Ayrshire LEADER 2007-2013 Programme, and has been supported by volunteer work within the community. Representatives from our Community have guided the consultation process and the development of this final report and action plan. Without the help and support of members of the community in re- sponding to the consultation process, this report and action plan would not have been possible. Equalities During the course of the consultation and engagement with this community, the consultants and other partners have been mindful to consider all equality issues and carry out all of the activities inclu- sively to ensure that throughout the community, all ages, genders and themes have been considered and represented in a positive manner. Page 2 Householder information During 2013, the Rural 21 team of community agents spent time talking to local people to get a picture of what they thought about their community. People outside the school and shop and in the residential areas were asked their opinion on a number of issues regarding Minishant. 31 people completed questionnaires along with another 11 people who were happy to discuss their community. Survey Summary and comments 80% of respondents stated that they felt that public areas in Minishant are generally clean and well maintained. 40% of those who responded were concerned that the mix of housing available in Minishant does not suit the local population demands as there is very little social rented housing available and first time buyers cannot afford to purchase in Minishant. There is also concern that where older folk have a larger house they will be penalised by the so-called ‘bedroom tax’ if they cannot downsize. There were good comments about the importance of the school and how it is in the centre of the community. Most people that responded commented on how friendly Minishant is and how they enjoy the village as a peace- ful location. Whilst over 90% of people felt safe in the community, several people commented that they felt unsafe be- cause of the traffic on the A77. Parents particularly commented that they feel the proximity of traffic with no barriers makes a trip to the shop a scary and intimidating activity. Over 80% of people surveyed felt that there was little to do in Minishant, for all age groups. They commentated that the community hall is in poor condition and that the school could be used for evening classes etc. Suggestions for activities included: art classes, more activities for under 5’s, more youth activities, more community events and more sports based activities such as a gym area, Tai Chi classes, Snooker, Carpet Bowls and a Bowling Club. There had been a suggestion that a social club could be formed above the Indian restaurant. However nothing has come of this idea. Page 3 Minishant Community Minishant is about 3 miles from Maybole on the A77. Its history depicts it as a weaving village with 2 fac- tories that specialised in blankets. The church in Minishant was erected in the late 1800’s, in memory of the late Gloriana Mackenzie. The church is no longer a place of worship but pays homage to good Indian cuisine. The community is welcomed into the restaurant and the school has been hosted to a Halloween party at there. There is poten- tial to use the function suite as a social space for events in Min- ishant and this needs further investigation. Minishant is served with a small village shop which sells newspapers and groceries. There are mobile banking services and a mobile post office service. Housing and Population in Minishant The village has grown in recent years, with new houses at the south end of the village. The population stands at around 750 and the school role at around 45 pupils There are 2 areas identified within the draft Local Plan that could see further development of around 120 houses which if developed would significantly alter the needs of the community in terms of infrastructure and services. At the moment there are no plans for development of either site. Local Plan Information can be found at: http://www.south-ayrshire.gov.uk/planning/ planlpdocuments.aspx Page 4 Economic Development in Minishant Minishant businesses include Ayr Spice, The Minishant Inn, Minishant Stores and Mower and Garden Tool Repairs and Services. Coupled with local agricultural businesses Minishant is economically active. Many residents commute into Ayr, or Maybole for work and being on the A77, is an accessible commute to Glasgow by car or train (from Ayr) . Should the larger housing site be developed, there would be scope to extend the retail services or locate another shop within the new development area. Minishant Primary School Minishant Primary School has a steady school role of around 38 pupils and is located in the centre of the village accessed through Mure Place. The school has an active parent council who are always looking to support the school to improve its facili- ties and equipment. The Parent Council’s latest initiative is a technology drive to fund raise for i-pads for learning. This will help class room studies as well as being a great tool for pupils with special educational needs. This would also allow the chil- dren to work with the community in 2 ways. Firstly, by developing their skills in in- terview, video and capture for an oral history project and secondly, by having a resource within the community that could help to introduce some of the older community members to social media and note pad technology. Both projects are intergenerational and would be ideal projects for the community to come together on. Page 5 SWOT Analysis Strengths Weaknesses Safe Community to live in A77 routed through centre of Village School considered nurturing by parents No Community Council formed Physical state of Roads and Pavements Lack of volunteers for new community projects Village Hall in poor condition—people don't want to use it Community Hall at school also in poor condition Opportunities Threats Set up Community Council Any A77 Bypass delays Develop community projects to create come vil- Economic downturn and local authority budget lage spirit constraints Utilise local community benefit funds alongside Current traffic issues on Main Street other local and national funding to fund new projects Local businesses work together to attract more tourism to Minishant Community Empowerment Bill—what it means to Communities The Scottish Government believes that its’ people are its greatest asset, and best placed to make decisions about their future. The proposed Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill aims to make the most of the talents that ex- ist in our communities; deliver high quality and improving public services; and support strong local democracy and local decision-making. It will be community organisations and volunteers, working to deliver first class public services or innovating in the private sector, who will deliver a more successful future for Scotland. It is likely that this bill will include: New opportunities for communities to become owners of land and buildings from the public sector, along with new legislation pertaining to the rural community right to buy New and greater opportunities for communities to be more involved in shaping and delivering better out- comes locally Strengthened Community planning, with public sector partners working better together for communities New powers and legislation on rate relief schemes, allotments, defective and dangerous buildings Community empowerment is about communities taking their own decisions about their futures.

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