Thorburn Group
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
Expansion is on the agenda for an engineering company based in Berwickshire.
The Thorburn Group Limited has submitted an application to Scottish Borders Council for the construction of a steel portal-framed workshop extension at its base on Duns Industrial Estate.
The Thorburn Group is a long-established business and employer operating from Duns and other locations within the Scottish Borders.
Its activities include structural steelwork, construction, engineering, livestock equipment and manufacturing.
The expansion would create four new direct full-time jobs; approximately 10 indirect jobs and help safeguard 100 existing jobs across the wider business.
A report with the application states: “The extension is required to support the continued growth of the business and to facilitate investment in modern automated machinery and additional fabrication areas.
“The development will increase manufacturing capacity, improve operational efficiency and provide additional capacity for employment growth.
“The proposal will enable the applicant to make more efficient use of its existing site, buildings, access arrangements and supporting infrastructure while maintaining the business’s presence within Duns.”
Bank Street Gardens, Galashiels
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
Galashiels will enjoy a festive fillip if councillors agree this week to a request to use a prominent town centre site to stage a Christmas gathering.
It is estimated that last year a total of six thousand visited stalls and enjoyed the entertainment at the market in Bank Street Gardens.
When members of Galashiels Common Good Fund Sub-Committee meet on Thursday, September 10, they will be asked to agree a request for use of the site again on November 21 for the market, a light switch on and parade from 10am to 5pm.
The request is from BID For Galashiels, a not-for-profit business organisation launched in April last year.
The town’s Volunteer Hall is to be the venue for a holding and changing area for children taking part in the staged activities.
Art and crafting activities will be available for children and there will be 12 stalls in Bank Street Gardens.
Further attractions would include street theatre and other performers in addition to a pop up balloon station.
Portaloos are to be situated on the fountain side of the Gardens and The Salmon Inn will be the main point for any information for volunteers.
West Lothian Civic Centre in Livingston. The council’s Anti-Poverty Service helped residents tackle more than £8m of problem debt over the past year.
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Stuart Sommerville
Staff in West Lothian’s Anti-Poverty Service helped people across the county deal with more than £8m of debt in the last year.
It is one of a list of eye-watering figures revealed to councillors, the latest on the Livingston North Local Area committee.
And it shows that while unemployment is relatively low in the county compared to national and UK figures, the number of households sandbagged by debts, and reliant on welfare to support them remains depressingly high.
The number of working households reliant on Universal Credit benefits climbed by almost 200% in a year.
A report to the committee highlighted that the Advice Shop has supported 13,848 customers with support with income maximisation, energy, debt and housing advice in the last year.
This led to:-
– £31,547,311 financial gains through entitlement to social security benefits.
– £529,595 savings secured through energy efficiency advice and access to financial support with energy costs.
– £8,221,802 problem debt handled by debt advisors leading to reduction in debt repayments of £4,205,552.
– 120 potential evictions prevented following advice and court representation to ensure that tenants can remain in their homes.
The North Livingston ward – one of the poorest in the new town- accounted for 9% of all Anti-Poverty Service customers. In this ward almost £2.5m was gained for customers through entitlement to social security benefits.
Energy efficiency savings of £64,364 were won through access to financial support and advice. Debt advisers gave support to deal with £859,137 of problem debt resulting in reduction in debt repayments of £449,656.
Council staff issued 226 emergency food vouchers and 218 fuel vouchers for households at risk of disconnection.
Further details make for a grim picture of the daily lives of thousands in West Lothian. More than 7,000 people claiming Universal Credit are actually in work. This figure is a 167% surge on last year.
Just under a quarter of children – 24.1%- live in poverty. Across the county 18% of households experience fuel poverty, which sits below the wider Scottish average.
A family is considered as being in fuel poverty when more than 10% of its net income (after housing costs are deducted) is required to pay for reasonable fuel needs to maintain a satisfactory heating regime.
Almost 10% of the population is considered as being in extreme field poverty facing costs of more than 20% of their income to pay for heating.
