Welcome to this first annual report on the Banff and Community Plan 2013-16. This summary captures what has been achieved by working together and with local communities during the past year.

Our Plan focuses on 7 local priorities for the area:

• Successful Inclusive Resilient Communities • Children Have the Best Start in Life • Reductions in Inequalities in Health Outcomes • is the Safest Place in Scotland • Older People • Transport • Aberdeenshire is Recognised as a Great Place to Live

The priorities have been identified through community engagement and we believe that they are key to improving the quality of life for everyone in .

Margaret-Jane Cardno Chair of the BBCPG Area Manager (Banff & Buchan) Aberdeenshire Council

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 2 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan This report is designed to give you an overview of progress on the Banff and Buchan Community Plan 2013-16 during 2013/14. The Plan is developed and monitored by the Banff and Buchan Community Planning Group, which comprises representatives of the following:

• Aberdeenshire Council • NHS Grampian • Police Scotland • Scottish Fire and Rescue Service • Older People Forum • Aberdeenshire Alcohol and Drug Partnership • Aberdeenshire Voluntary Services • Banff, Macduff & District Business Association • Banff Business Association • Scottish Enterprise • Banffshire Partnership • Fraserburgh Business Association • Fraserburgh Development Trust • Princess Royal Sports and Community Trust • Community Safety Groups

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 3 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Priority 1 Successful, Inclusive, Resilient Communities with the confidence and capability to tackle things that matter Fraserburgh Community Garden Project • Aim - to reduce inequalities in health outcomes between communities. A working group has been established and have been given the task to transform a vacant site into a community garden to help promote health and wellbeing, to improve adult cooking skills, volunteering and upskilling opportunities in the Fraserburgh area. Progress:

• A site was identified in Fraserburgh. Funding has been successfully obtained from the Regeneration Strategy Group for fencing, which has now been erected. Additional funding was successfully obtained from the Royal Horticultural Society towards the project, which will help fund tools and resources, and from NHS Grampian, Postcode Lottery and Community Learning and Development. • Recent developments have seen the commencement of a planting program, a disabled area hard cored, paths created and planting areas defined. Fruit trees and bushes are now in place. Two sheds have been bought, cleaned, painted and are in position. Compost bins have been donated by Waste Awareness and are now on site. In addition to the operational programme, a Facebook page has been created and is updated regularly. Partners:

• Fraserburgh Development Trust, Social Regeneration Worker, NHS Public Health Co-ordinator, Volunteering Sector ( Foyer, People First, Robertson Road Resource Centre, Home-Start NEA, Children 1st, Cair Scotland), Fraserburgh Hospital Mental Health Team, CLD (Community Learning and Development), North School, NESCOL Horticultural Students (including students with disabilities). The skills work will be incorporated within the volunteering linkage. BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 4 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Next steps:

• Signage for alcohol by-law to be sourced and displayed • Signage for disabled parking and dog fouling to be displayed • Bins to be sourced • Car park edges to be defined • Paths to be compacted with hard-core • Draft LEAP report to be worked on at future meetings with the partnerships • Volunteer packs to be developed • Risk Assessments to be carried out • Community groups to be invited along to view the garden • Rotas for community groups to be developed to enable consistency of work groups Priority 2 Children in Aberdeenshire Have the Best Start in Life through action with Parents and Children pre-birth to 8 years Why is this a Priority?

Migrant workers with young families will be more able to access the health, educational, emotional and social support, greater inclusion, equality of opportunity and ant-discrimination, recognising some people need more support to overcome the barriers they face.

What Action Has Been Taken?

• Fraserburgh CLD have developed a partnership with Homestart working with vulnerable families, where English is their second language. • Fraserburgh CLD have started the recruitment process for new ESOL tutors and their focus will be family learning especially with isolated young mums. The aim will be to work closely with partners such as Children First and primary schools and child care at the JIC community facilities building.

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 5 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Priority 3 Reductions in Inequalities in Health Outcomes between Communities and across Banff and Buchan Reducing alcohol related harm among young people in Banff and Buchan

Why is this a priority?

There are a number of issues relating to antisocial behaviour, alcohol, littering, dog fouling, road and fire safety, a number of actions have been identified by partners which have been included in the Community Plan.

What action has been taken?

• Police Scotland have recently run operation Rhylstone in the Fraserburgh area to tackle street drinking and anti-social behaviour. It has been running in intervals since November 2013 and successfully targeted various acts of criminality in Fraserburgh and Banff over a series of nights. Phase 2 of Rhylestone was in March and extended into the Easter Holidays, which targeted anti-social behaviour and street drinking. There was also a drop in session held at the Fraserburgh Sports and Community Centre to which the local elected members were invited, along with the public. This was well attended, with a steady flow of people. Next Steps

• Operation Sandside was underway in June 2014, tackling assaults and domestic abuse, and developing prevention measures for anti-social behaviour in licensed premises and with licensing officers. • In July 2014, there was a focus on road traffic offences, speed checks and anti-social driving.

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 6 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Priority 4 Aberdeenshire is the Safest Place in Scotland Young people in Banff and Buchan who need our help most, will be supported through difficult transitions in their lives

Why is this a priority?

The need to reduce crime statistics in relation to young people in Banff and Buchan as identified in the Strategic Assessment, this is particularly relevant to Banff and Buchan since there are deprived areas within the Fraserburgh area.

What action has been taken?

• Fraserburgh Princes Trust team offers young people a supportive group environment and a chance to gain SQA accreditation in Personal Development, Access 4 Communication, REHIS, First Aid, Dynamic Youth Awards and C2C. • CLD and Schools deliver transition group activities in both Banff and Fraserburgh Academy. • Fraserburgh CLD offer a number of youth projects including “Step Up”, “Friday Night Project” and “Music Project”. The music group are now a regular attraction at Super Saturday events and this has had a very positive impact on their confidence. • CLD Banff, in partnership with Skills Development Scotland (SDS), have been offering an employability drop-in for young people aged 16 – 24 who are not in education, training or employment. Here they can share their problems, learn new skills and get support with CV writing and job applications. • All young people are offered a Dynamic Youth Award or a Youth Achievement Award and all young people’s achievements are recognised and recorded using Curriculum for Excellence Experiences and Outcomes.

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 7 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Next steps:

• Fraserburgh Learning Community Partnership agreed that in its first year the initial focus would be on improving outcomes for young people aged 15-20 in Fraserburgh. They have a clear time line in place with clear outcomes, including analysis of data, to create a needs assessment for planning areas of focus. They are using mapping exercises, needs assessments and self-evaluations to create a draft plan to show how this will be achieved. • Banff Academy Transition work is undergoing a review. Over the next academic year, a number of new transition activities are being introduced. Additional support and information sessions for parents will also be offered. • CLD and SDS are looking at ways of identifying employability needs for young people at a much earlier stage. Plans for next year include CLD staff taking part in PSE classes at Banff Academy and working more closely with guidance staff to ensure the earliest intervention. In Fraserburgh, they are exploring the use of the new benchmarking tool being introduced this academic year. From September 2013, roll out of Clean Dog Walking Initiative (now known as Green Dog Walking Initiative) to community councils and groups throughout Banff and Buchan

Clean Dog Walking in Banff and Buchan

Community led initiative supported by the Banff and Buchan Local Community Planning Group. It has been running in this area since April 2012.

Why is this a priority?

This has been identified as a local problem with feedback from our local community councils and associations as well as being identified in the Strategic Assessment for Banff and Buchan with a significant proportion of respondents consider dog fouling to be a problem (25% say a major problem and 34% a moderate problem) in Aberdeenshire as a whole.

Progress to date

• Information collected from the Pledge Forms will provide a means for monitoring and evaluation of the Initiative for instance, number of volunteers and demographics. Linking in with communities and local partners has helped to monitor progress of the Initiative to find out what is BANFF & BUCHAN working well, and to hear ideas and suggestions on how to develop this in COMMUNITY the future. PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 8 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Promotion of the Clean Dog Walkers Initiative within Banff and Buchan – The initiative has been highlighted through the following:

• Local events & by visiting local Community Groups, local Councillors support • Word of mouth by local communities • Articles in the local press • Super Saturday events in Fraserburgh Local Partners who have helped to establish the Clean Dog Walking Initiative in Banff and Buchan:

• Local Dog Warden - Advisory role along with ongoing support where required to promote the scheme to local communities e.g. Spring Fayre • Banff and Macduff and Fraserburgh Community Safety Group – ongoing support • Fraserburgh and District Community Council – ongoing support, set up pilot ‘Pick up or Pay Up’ in the Broadsea area of Fraserburgh, promoting a zero tolerance of dog fouling. • Local community Feedback to date

Overall feedback is confirming that the initiative is helping to promote an attitude amongst communities that they have pride in their local areas and want to see this standard continue and improve.

The action was successfully delivered within its target date of March 2014; work on the action is continuing with the launch of the ‘Green Dog Walking Initiative’.

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 9 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Implement a joined up approach to tackle anti-social behaviour issues in respect of drinking, drug misuse, vandalism of property and the reduction of deliberate nuisance fires

The Community Planning Group have been working in partnership with Police Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and our local Community Safety Groups to implement a joined up approach to tackle anti-social behaviour issues.

Why is this a priority?

The pattern of anti-social behaviour incidents across Aberdeenshire has not changed over the last 5 years, Banff and Buchan have a higher level of anti-social behaviour complaints and more environmental problems (Household waste, dog fouling, fly tipping and litter).

Actions taken so far

A Wilful Fires Reduction Group was formed in October 2013, this compiled of a two stage campaign:

• Firstly, tackle wilful fire raising in the beach area of Fraserburgh using patrols and a poster campaign. • Secondly, launch a wider reaching campaign covering the Banff and Buchan area. The aim was to raise overall awareness of the dangers of wilful fire- raising in the media, by launching the campaign at Fire Station where key partners were invited to witness a real fire demonstration using a wheelie bin, this was followed by an eight week radio advert campaign using a local radio station. • Both campaigns saw a notable reduction in the number of fires during the campaign, compared to the same time in previous years.

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 10 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Priority 5 To promote volunteering for Older People by providing information on volunteering opportunities to encourage older people to remain socially connected Why is this a priority?

The aging population across Aberdeenshire, coupled with inaccessibility to transport, lower income and rising fuel bills which leads to older people unable to socialise and attend community events and engagements, has allowed for a rise in social exclusion of older people. This can include a lack of contact with other people, poor access to services and lack of involvement in neighbourhood activities.

What action has been taken?

To share information on volunteering opportunities with older people and encourage participation a Volunteering Connexions event which was planned and hosted by Bridge CVS took place in April, members of the community aged 50 plus, were invited to come along to a ‘Connexions Marketplace’, where there was information form a range of partners, local, regional and national organisations with volunteer information and opportunities.

The event was a great success, with good networking opportunities and information sharing between all the participating organisations and public. Priority 6 Transport To work with Service Providers and Communities to Implement Community Based Transport

Stagecoach have increased their service between Banff and Fraserburgh, offering more journeys. These will be reviewed on a three monthly basis, to adapt to BANFF & BUCHAN emerging needs of the community. COMMUNITY PLAN Through the Change Fund, the Royal Volunteer Service are providing support to the elderly by taking patients to hospital appointments locally. ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 11 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Priority 7 Aberdeenshire will be recognised as a Great Place to Live, Work, Invest with Opportunities for all Welfare Reform Sub Group Why is this a priority?

With the Welfare Reform Bill coming into effect, it is assessed that certain sections of the community will be disproportionately affected, they will be more vulnerable to financial hardship and homelessness, this includes; children and young people, lone parents, disabled people and the most deprived communities

Progress to date

Banff and Buchan Welfare Reform Sub Group was formed in August 2013 after identifying a need locally with the aim to assess, develop and deliver a local action plan to meet the local challenges arising from the implementation of Welfare Reforms through a multi-agency approach.

• An action plan has now been developed and approved, the partnership are looking at the feasibility of starting up Fuel Clubs in the Banff and Buchan rural areas in partnership with NESCU. • Weekly drop in sessions are currently being set up in Banff and Fraserburgh, with services and organisations coming together with advice and support. • A ‘Rapid Response’ information leaflet is being produced of local information on support services in the local area. The leaflets will be distributed through Job Centre Plus, Housing Services, Citizens Advice, local Council Offices and buildings to give out of hours support and advice. Super Saturday Events

Why is this a priority?

The Fraserburgh Local Regeneration Group, set up to deliver the Fraserburgh Action Plan, is currently involved in a number of projects working towards achieving this outcome, including developing new facilities, improving the attractiveness of the Fraserburgh town centre and working with local tourism needs. Projects include public realm improvements in the vicinity of key attractions and to routes linking them to the town centre as well as initiatives with private, public and third sector BANFF & BUCHAN parties which may result in tourism facilities. COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 12 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Progress so far

A pilot was run in 2013 of four ‘Super Saturday’ events in Fraserburgh town centre, following the success of these a two year program of six ‘Super Saturday’ events has now been approved with the following being delivered:

• Super Saturday Co-ordinator appointed and now in post • Events taking place from May – September 2014, with a Christmas event in December • Funding for market stalls successfully secured from the Fraserburgh Regeneration Action Group • Funding successfully secured from Banff and Buchan Community Planning Group for trailers.

BANFF & BUCHAN COMMUNITY PLAN ANNUAL REPORT 2013 / 2014 13 www.ouraberdeenshire.org.uk/banff-&-buchan Produced by Aberdeenshire Council GDT22949 September 2014