Agenda

Minute of Meeting of the Sutherland Local Access Forum held in the Ben Bhraggie Hotel, Golspie on Tuesday 6 June 2006 at 2.00pm

Present

W G Johnstone, Access User (In the Chair)

C Whealing, Estate Manager, Sutherland Estates (Vice Chair)

W Beattie, Forestry Commission

J Gall, Landowner/Crofter

M Macpherson, Assynt Mountain Rescue Team

Dr R G Park – Edderton Community Council

A Wood, Scourie Community Council

H B Field, Sutherland Walkers Group and Sports Council 

C MacCulloch, Forestry Commission

J Ross, Easr Sutherland Canoe Club

In Attendance

L O’Neill, Area Administrator, Highland Council

M Dent, Access Officer, Highland Council

C Clark, Paths for All Partnership

A Macrae, Administrator, Highland Council

1.

Apologies For Absence

Apologies for absence were intimated from Councillor D Allan, Councillor F Keith, I Mitchell, Scottish Natural Heritage, W Sutherland, Crofter,

2.

Forestry Commission Scotland – Representation

There had been circulated letter dated 2 May 2006 advising that S Pocock, the Forestry Commission’s representative on the Forum had left his post and recommending that Catherine MacCulloch, Recreation Forester for Dornoch Forest District be appointed as his replacement.

It was AGREED to approve the appointment of C McCulloch, and the Chairman welcomed her to the meeting.

3.

Minute Of Meeting Of 6 April 2006

The Minute of Meeting of 6 April 2006 was APPROVED.

With reference to the Item 4, appearing under the heading ‘Local Access Issues’, M Dent advised that the situation at Sandsite Estate had been resolved, and that the deer gate would be installed in the near future.

With reference to Item 5 appearing under the heading ‘Wildlife Park, Croick’ it was reported that the Estate had revised its plans and a much smaller scale scheme is now proposed. Dr G Park expressed concern at the potential impact on hill walking.  The Chairman reassured that there appeared to be no access issues arising from the revised scheme, and it was agreed that M Dent circulate the report considered at the previous meeting on this issue to Dr Park.

4.

Local Access Forums – A Guide To Good Practice

There had been circulated draft Code of Guidance for Local Access Forums.

C Clark sought feedback on the document in terms of its content, relevance of information, and the case studies contained therein.

The Chairman expressed concern that the Forum has not been fully appraised of its responsibilities and that the Guide could be used as a benchmark in terms of its remit.  He stated that there is a need to clarify the role of the Forum, monitor progress and consider how it should evolve.

H B Field questioned who will act on behalf of the Forum in terms of the publicity, and whether the Forum has a training budget.  It was reported that both Paths for All and Scottish Natural Heritage provided different forms of training free of charge.  M Dent advised a good business case could be made to demonstrate that funding for training is necessary to deliver the Access Strategy.  The question of publicity would be addressed as part of Item 5 below.

The Chairman observed that while mention is made of partnership working, there is no mention of the other parties the Forum should liaise with, or where overlaps between partners exist, and this should be clarified.

C Clark advised that she would take these comments back and suggested that if there were any further comments Members wished to express these be submitted via e-mail, as soon as possible, to rona.gibb@pathsforall.org.uk. 

The Chairman suggested that a sub group be established to consider in detail how the document be applied to the Sutherland Local Access Forum.

It was AGREED to establish a Sub Group comprising the Chairman, Vice Chairman, H B Field, Dr R G Park and C MacCulloch, with the remit to report back to the next meeting on 15 August 2006.

5.

Communications Strategy

There had been circulated a draft communications strategy for the Forum.  M Dent expanded on the main elements of the Strategy, and advised that comments would be reported back to G Robson, Head of Environment.

M Macpherson explained that he had recently been contacted by the press on an issue and had been unsure whether or not it was appropriate for him to respond directly.

The Area Administrator suggested that if it was a Member’s area of expertise it would be appropriate to respond, but otherwise suggested that any press contact be referred to the Chairman or Vice Chairman. 

C Whealing proposed that no immediate response be given, and that Members consult with the Chairman in the first instance.

The Chairman expressed the view that the Strategy should state how the Forum should communicate as a point of principle.   It was AGREED that this point be made to the Head of Environment.

Following on from this M Dent advised that he had established his own database for core path planning, which he could make available via an e-mail link to Forum members.  He emphasised that the information contained in the database is for personal use only and not for public consumption, nor should be passed onto any third party. 

6.

Members Model Code Of Conduct

There had been circulated Members Model Code of Conduct setting out the standards of conduct that should be applied.  The Area Administrator expanded on the various provisions contained in the Code.

C Whealing expressed that conflict of interest is an important issue for the Forum in that Members are also representing their own particular interests. The Area Administrator acknowledged that while individuals are expected to act as part of the Forum there will be cases of conflict, and M Dent clarified that if a decision is required on an access issue it will form a separate item on the agenda, allowing Members to consider in advance if a conflict exists.

Dr G Park queried the distinction between lobbyists, and local individuals and groups giving information necessary to provide the Forum with an understanding of key local issues. The Chairman observed that the Code of Conduct is referring to professional lobbyists.

The Area Administrator indicated that the distinction lies in the nature of the approach and that judgement should be exercised if an approach relates to a specific issue they wish to be progressed.  He indicated that if unsure Members should refuse to speak to the person or refer the matter elsewhere. 

This was NOTED.

7.

Core Path Planning

M Dent provided an update on progress with the Core Path Planning consultation process.  Progress with the Local Plan had been delayed and the public exhibitions will now be held in August/September although no specific dates had been set.  A public notice would be placed in the local press notifying the commencement of the Plan and thereafter the core path planning questionnaire would be would be issued in the form of targeted mailshots to service points, libraries, post offices, shops etc.  He emphasised that as part of the consultation process he was interested in all paths and not simply existing networks.

The Forum noted that the Plan is at an early stage with the first round of consultations involving basic information gathering.  As part of this J Ross indicated that it would be appropriate to advertise in the local press in Caithness and Ross-shire in addition to Sutherland, given that many access takers live outwith the area.

It was AGREED that M Dent investigate preparing a press release for circulation in the Sutherland , Ross-shire and Caithness local press.

The Chairman advised that tourists represented an important sector in terms of access takers and should be part of the consultation process. Accordingly he suggested that the questionnaire be issued to tourist establishments such as B&Bs, hotels, guest houses.  It was noted that the Council holds a directory of such businesses and it was agreed M Dent obtain a copy from the relevant official and arrange for the questionnaire to be circulated.  M Dent also stated that the Ranger Services and Tourism Information Centres have an important role in this regard.  Reference was also made to visitor attractions such as Ferrycroft, Timespan, Dunrobin Castle etc.

8.

Local Access Issues

With reference to Item 4 of the Minute of 4 April 2006 M Dent reported that SEERAD had convinced the local crofter at Strathy Point to accept the amended sign and therefore the matter had been successfully concluded.

While there were no specific issues to raise, M Dent reported that he had been dealing with a range of one-off enquiries from access users relating to the mechanics of access such as provision of gates, keeping paths clear etc though there had been no instances of landowner disputes.  However such information would be recorded as part of the core path planning process.

This was NOTED.

9.

Any Other Competent Business

W Beattie reported that the Forestry Commission grants for access or recreational purposes would not be available until Spring 2007.

The Chairman reported that the site visit held in the morning at Ben Bhraggie to view the new mountain bike trail had been extremely beneficial and he commended the organisations involved and welcomed the major impact the development will have on Golspie.  Arising from this C Whealing referred to the dangers of having walkers using the flyover/rollercoaster section of the trail and sought the Forums view on the erection of signs on this part of the route. The Chairman stated that in this case health and safety issues concerns are paramount and suggested the signs should be as strongly worded as possible to prevent walkers using the route.  Members concurred with this view.

10.

Date Of Next Meeting

It was AGREED that the next meeting be held on 15 August 2006 in Skerray.