A CONSULTATION AND DISCUSSION DOCUMENT - · PDF fileA CONSULTATION AND DISCUSSION DOCUMENT...

A CONSULTATION ANDDISCUSSION DOCUMENT

MIDLOTHIANCOMMUNITY PLANNING

PARTNERSHIP

Prepared by Midlothian Council and its nine partnersin the Midlothian Community Planning Partnership.

MidlothianMoving Forward

November 2001

MidlothianFederation ofCommunity

Councils

Social Inclusion

Cultural Identityand Diversity

EnvironmentalProtection

LifelongLearning

Health andWellbeing

EconomicCapacity Community

Safety

Foreword .............................................................................................................................. 1

Executive Summary ......................................................................................................... 2

Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 3

What is community planning? .......................................................................... 4 & 5

The founding partners ................................................................................................... 6

Where we are now.................................................................................................. 7 & 8

Our Vision for 2020 ......................................................................................................... 9

Health & wellbeing ................................................................................................10

Community safety ................................................................................................. 11

Lifelong learning ........................................................................................ 12 & 13

Economic capacity ..................................................................................... 14 & 15

Protecting & enhancing the environment .................................................. 16

Social inclusion ...................................................................................................... 17

Cultural identity & diversity ............................................................................. 18

Vision .................................................................................................................................. 19

Our first moves ................................................................................................... 20 & 21

Measuring our progress and success ........................................................ 22 & 23

Our consultation and discussion process ........................................................... 24

How you can comment .............................................................................................. 25

Appendices ............................................................................................................ 26 & 27

Contents

Social Inclusion



LifelongLearning

Health andWellbeing


Safety

1Draft Consultative Document • November 2001 • Midlothian Moving Forward

Foreword

I am delighted to be given the opportunity to commend this document to thecommunities of Midlothian. It brings together many exciting proposals underthe general heading of ‘community planning’, and as such is designed toprovoke debate and discussion amongst a wide range of potentialparticipants in the task of taking Midlothian forward.

These participants range from those public agencies such as the Council andNHS Lothian to community groups and individual people. Communityplanning in Midlothian will try and bring these interests together in order toplan for a better future. Although it seems likely that there will be a move ata national level to give community planning more of a legislative footing,there is no reason why we in Midlothian cannot start shaping our owncommunity planning process, in order to respond to our own needs andaspirations.

The whole point of the process will be to make a difference to people’squality of life. This will not happen overnight, although I hope that by Springnext year we will have in place the building blocks in order to start makingthat difference.

Councillor George Purcell

Leader of Midlothian Council

2 Midlothian Moving Forward • Draft Consultative Document • November 2001

Executive Summary

This document is the basis of aconsultation and discussion exerciseto accompany a set of proposals for acommunity planning process forMidlothian. The proposals have beencomposed by ten partner agencies, ledby Midlothian Council, from public,private and voluntary sectors andfrom community councils. Theconsultation and discussion exercisewill be a forerunner to the launch ofthe Midlothian community plan, andthe process overseeing it, in Spring2002.

Community planning is a process inwhich different interests in a localarea come together to plan for thatarea. It rests on four key concepts,thus:

• Community leadership

• A strategic vision for the wholearea

• Community involvement

• Partnership working

The Scottish Executive has announcedits intention to provide a statutoryunderpinning to community planningby Autumn next year.

It is proposed that the Midlothianprocess be based upon a vision ofMidlothian for the year 2020. Thevision is guided by two principles ofquality of life and sustainability.There are seven themes within theoverall vision. The first four themes

relate to quality of life, and are basedupon the following:

• Lifelong learning

• Health and wellbeing

• Community safety

• Economic capacity

The other three themes are basedupon sustainability, and providecontext for the vision, in that anyactions taken must reflect:

• Environmental protection andenhancement

• Cultural identity and diversity

• Social inclusion

This document sets out more detailedaims within each of these seventhemes.

When the plan is eventually launched,there would be a number ofimmediate tasks to be undertaken toensure that community planning inMidlothian actually works. These tasksrange from providing more detail tothe aims set out above, to exploringhow participation by individualcitizens in the wide range of planningmechanisms can actually bedeveloped.

There is already a lot of partnershipworking in Midlothian, and the pointof the community planning processwould not be to immediately changeany of this, but rather to make it workbetter. The early stages of the

community planning process,therefore, will see attempts to improvecurrent partnership working.

It will be important to find ways ofmeasuring the overall progress of thecommunity planning process. It isproposed that this be done usingcurrent strategies already in placewhich cover the seven themes set outabove, as well as through theestablishment of a set of indicatorswhich can be measured over time aswell as in comparison to otherlocalities elsewhere in Scotland and inthe UK. A citizens’ panel is also to beestablished to measure citizens’ ownviews on various issues affectingMidlothian, as well as their ownperception of the quality of life inMidlothian.

There will be various ways in whichstakeholders will be invited to takepart in this consultation anddiscussion process. These will includevarious meetings and workshops, andthe use of partners’ websites.


Introduction

Community planning is new. It is a chance to bring together all of those with aninterest in the future of Midlothian. The aim is to create a better Midlothian. Itwill be task in which all of Midlothian can take part.

This document sets out proposals on how we’re going to do it.

It is to accompany a wide-scale consultation and discussion process involvingmany different groups of stakeholders in Midlothian, from public, private andvoluntary sector bodies to communities and individual citizens.

The stages of this process are set out in more detail later in this document. Thequestions posed throughout are intended to stimulate discussion and debate,although views are sought on any aspect of the proposals.


What is Community Planning?

Community planning is a new way ofbringing different interests together –including agencies, people andcommunities - to plan for their area.As such, it rests upon four keyconcepts:

• Community leadership - providedby councils, who are expected tohave a key role in the communityplanning process

• A strategic vision for the wholearea – creating one overallapproach to the social, economicand environmental needs of thearea and its communities

• Community involvement –community planning should notbe an exclusive top-down process.It should involve the genuineparticipation of the manyconstituent parts of thecommunity and respond to theneeds of local community andvoluntary interests; and

• Partnership working – at the heartof community planning, thisrequires commitment from all thepartners to both a vision andaction on the ground.

A Statutory Basis forCommunity Planning

At a national level, the ScottishExecutive announced on 5 September2001 its intentions to put in placelegislation which will give a firm basisto community planning. The Executivehas called community planning “theactive encouragement of localauthorities to work in partnership withother bodies and with the activeengagement of the communities theyare serving”. Such legislation isintended to be in place in Autumn2002.

Our consultation and discussionprocess fits well with this intendedlegislation, and will allow us, in theearly stages of our new communityplanning process, to react to it and touse it to help us shape our ownprocess further.

What is so different from whatalready happens now?

This is the first time that all of thefounding organisations mentioned onpage 6 have sat down around a tableand signed up to such an idea. Thereis already a lot of joint working goingon, but this has been done much moreon an issue-by-issue basis.Community planning will provide an“umbrella” to making that jointworking much more effective.

It is up to us in Midlothian how wewant to shape and develop ourapproach. We want to make sure thatthis process is owned by all of ourdifferent interests, and as such enjoyscommitment across Midlothian.


How will Midlothian benefitfrom the process?

There will be many benefits ofworking together, from a clearerunderstanding and co-ordination ofresponsibilities of the variousagencies, to making it easier for localpeople to influence the work of thesebodies. Essentially, communityplanning will improve how servicesare locally planned, prioritised anddelivered. In addition, it will allow allof the organisations operating in thearea to be more responsive to theneeds and requirements of localpeople. Moreover, communityplanning will increase the capacity ofpublic sector agencies to tackle crosscutting issues which require “joined-up” action (e.g. community safety orhealth), and prevent conflict betweenplans and strategies.

Community planning in the longterm will assist in the rationalisation,integration and streamlining ofservices, such as health and socialcare services, and also in thepromotion of possible multi-agencydevelopments such as one-stop-shops.

Ultimately, community planningshould help people see betterservices from a range of agencies.

Our Vision

The basis of the Midlothiancommunity plan will be a vision ofwhere we want to be in 2020. Thatvision is based upon two simplethemes: a better quality of life for thepeople of Midlothian, and changewhich is sustainable, in that it doesno harm to Midlothian itself and doesnot harm future generations.

In order to reach that vision, we wantto ensure:

• Better joined up working andservice delivery from the publicsector;

• Better collaboration between thepublic, private and voluntarysectors;

• Better involvement by citizens andcommunities in decisions thatshape their lives; and

• Better identification of andresponse to the needs of thepeople of Midlothian by allpartners.

The Challenges in Getting There

To get there, we will have to face upto some key challenges such as:

• Giving ourselves clear and realisticmilestones and targets within ouroverall vision to aim for inshowing how we have made adifference to the quality of life ofthe people of Midlothian;

• Taking our level of planning toone which is as close as possibleto those whom it affects (i.e. thedevelopment of “localityplanning”);

• Ensuring the different cultures,attitudes and outlooks of all thosetaking part are accommodated, oreven brought closer together;

• Sharing of information and ideas;and

• Trying to bring together ourbudgets and other resources towork more effectively.

What is Community Planning?


The Founding Partners

The partner agencies proposing this document are:

• Communities Scotland (formerly Scottish Homes)

• East of Scotland Water

• Lothian and Borders Police

• NHS Lothian (formerly Lothian Health)

• Midlothian Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise

• Midlothian Council

• Midlothian Federation of Community Councils

• Midlothian Voluntary Action

• Scottish Enterprise Edinburgh and Lothian

• Scottish Natural Heritage

Further details of these founding partners are contained in the Appendix 1 ofthis document.

A crucial part of the Midlothian community planning will be to widen this senseof partnership, to ensure participation by different interests in Midlothian. Itwill be task of those steering the direction of the process to ensure that this isdone with the full involvement of the wide range of other stakeholders.

In the immediate term, it is proposed that these partners should continue to co-ordinate the overall process, and will take forward those tasks set out later inthis document. One of those principal tasks will be to develop a mechanismwhich allows as wide an involvement as possible, whilst allowing enoughleadership to make sure that progress actually happens.

Questions:Are these the best set of “core”partners?

Are our proposals for a short-term mechanism suitable?


Where We Are Now

Midlothian is situated to the southeast of Edinburgh and covers an areaof some 355 square kilometres.Located right in the middle of theLothians it stretches from thePentland Hills to the Moorfoots andLammermuirs.

The development of Midlothian isinextricably linked to its neighbours,Edinburgh, East and West Lothian. TheLothians area has one of the fastestgrowing economies in the UK, and thecurrent Structure Plan (due to end in2005) is based upon continuedgrowth in the Lothian economy and inits population. Midlothian, despitebeing the smallest of the four Lothiancouncil areas, with 10% of theregion’s population and 20% of itsland area, is identified asaccommodating 40% of developmentproposed in the current StructurePlan, and is therefore at the start of aperiod of sustained growth. Thecurrent consultative draft of the newStructure Plan, to cover the period to2015, states that “the wealth createdin the capital city and surroundingtowns will be spread throughout theneighbouring councils over the next15 years”1.

The settlement strategy proposed inthe draft of the new plan focusesdevelopment in seven coredevelopment areas, one of which isNorth Midlothian, covering the

communities of Dalkeith, Mayfield,Newtongrange and Gorebridge, theA701 corridor and the Shawfair area inthe north-east corner of the district.The draft plan states that “NorthMidlothian’s accessibility would beconsiderably enhanced by theimplementation of road and railproposals, including the reopening ofthe Waverley and Penicuik rail lines,the grade separation of the Sheriffhalljunction and the A68 Dalkeithbypass”2.

The population of Midlothian is82,2003 and this is distributedamongst a number of small andmedium sized towns. The populationhas risen gradually in recent years andis is projected to grow further over thenext fifteen years due to peoplemoving into the area as a result of thesignificant pressures described above.In addition, the population structurewill consist of a greater number ofpeople in older age groups – thepopulation of older people (i.e. aged65+) is set to rise by 33% compared to19% nationally4.

EconomyMidlothian’s GDP (Gross DomesticProduct), which is essentially asmeasure of its economic output, isestimated to be £668 million5.Presently, Midlothian’s GDP is ranked27th lowest out of 32 LocalAuthorities in Scotland. The

unemployment level in Midlothian is2.8%6. This compares to a Scottishaverage of 4.1% and a U.K average of3.1%. Although this suggests thatMidlothian does not have aparticularly high overallunemployment rate, it conceals longterm problems in specific areas thatcontinue to demonstrate higher thanaverage unemployment amongstmales. These include Mayfield/Easthouses (6.2%), Gorebridge (5.3 %),Woodburn (4.9%), Newtongrange(4.4%) and Dalkeith Newbattle (4.2%).

Lifelong LearningThe percentage of Midlothian schoolleavers for 1999/2000 that went on tohigher education was the secondlowest in Scotland at 24% comparedwith the national average of 32%.Moreover, in 1999/2000 Midlothianhad the highest number of schoolleavers that directly enteredemployment at 44% compared to thenational average of 26%7.

Health & WellbeingUnhealthy lifestyles are linked toillness and the Midlothian populationsuffers from a lack of healthawareness, exercise (particularlyamong women), a diet rich insaturated fat, refined carbohydrateand sweets and lacking in fresh fruitand vegetables. Heavy alcoholconsumption and tobacco use are alsokey issues. Consequently, many


Where We Are Now

people in areas of Midlothian sufferfrom heart disease and cancer. In1999, there were 228 deaths fromheart disease and 57 from lung cancerin Midlothian8. Teenage pregnancies inMidlothian last year were recorded at173 for the population or a rate of49.7 per 1,000 females in the agegroup. This compares with 127teenage pregnancies for East Lothianor a rate of 35.9 for the age group9.

Community SafetyLast year in Midlothian the number ofcrimes relating to domestichousebreaking were down by 36% to163. This compares to a reduction of30% in East Lothian to 124 cases10.There were a total of 343 roadaccident casualties in Midlothian(including four deaths), compared to339 (including seven deaths) in EastLothian11.

EnvironmentMidlothian has an attractiveenvironment with over 3,300 hectaresof woodland and over 200 hectares ofmanaged countryside. In total, around70.5% of Midlothian’s surface area isarable/grassland12. However,Midlothian’s environmental capacity isunder pressure from anunprecedented increase in proposeddevelopment planned for the futureand with the added pressure ofprojected increases in traffic volumeaccording to current national trends.In addition, particular areas inMidlothian may be more susceptibleto more floods or gales due to climatechange.

1 Lothian Structure Plan JointLiaison Committee, 2001,“Edinburgh and Lothian’sStructure Plan 2001 – Draft forConsultation”, p.6.

2 ibid., p.14.3 General Register Office (Scotland),

Mid Year Estimates, 20004 General Register Office (Scotland),

1998-based populationProjections (published August2000)

5 Mackay Consultants, 2001,“Estimates of Local EconomicOutput (GDP) in Scotland 2000”,Mackay Consultants, Inverness.

6 Office of National Statistics,September 2001

7 Scottish Executive, 20018 General Register Office for

Scotland, 1999, MortalityStatistics 1999.

9 ISD Scotland, 2001, “TeenagePregnancy in Scotland”, availableat: www.show.scot.nhs.uk/isd

10 Lothian & Borders Police PublicPerformance Report, 2001

11 Lothian & Borders Police PublicPerformance Report, 2001

12 Macaulay Land Use ResearchInstitute, 1998, The Land Cover ofScotland: Preliminary StatisticalReport.


Our Vision for Midlothian in 2020

Our vision of what Midlothian can bein 2020 is guided by the principles ofquality of life and sustainability.

The four key themes of quality of lifethat the group identified wereLifelong Learning, Health andWellbeing, Community Safety andEconomic Capacity. This will mean afuture for Midlothian in which allmembers of the community:

• Lifelong Learning - Have accessto rich and diverse lifelonglearning opportunities and thecapacity to take advantage ofthese educational opportunitiesand fully realise their personalpotential.

• Health & Wellbeing - Experiencelife circumstances and enjoy alifestyle consistent with a highlevel of personal health and havethe opportunity and the capacityto overcome any barriersprevented by a disability or illnessof any kind.

• Community Safety - Are free ofthe fear of crime and the effectsof crime and could life a safeexistence in their homes, at workand in the streets.

• Economic Capacity - Have theeconomic capacity to meet theiressential needs and to enjoy areasonable and dignified qualityof life, irrespective of whetherthey were seeking work, in work,retired or providing care andsupport for others.

It is important to provide context tothese key themes. This context is basedupon recognising and implementing afurther three themes of sustainability.This would mean that ANY actionstaken to achieve the conditions ofpersonal wellbeing for individualmembers of the community as definedabove should:

• Do no harm to the environment ata local, regional or global leveland, wherever possible,contribute positively toenvironmental restoration

• Fully respect the culture, identityand diversity of Midlothian

• Promote social inclusion for all,irrespective of age, sex, race orbeliefs, by progressively reducingthe differential between thequality of life enjoyed by the mostand least advantaged members ofthe community.

The proposed model shown by thediagram involves a balance of micro(quality of life) and macro(sustainability) level issues. The oneshould not be achieved at the expenseof the other. Another way ofexpressing this is to say that themeans for promoting a higher qualityof life for individuals withinMidlothian (measured in terms of thefour dimensions of education, health,safety and economic capacity) mustnot be achieved at the expense ofenvironmental damage, loss ofcultural identity and diversity and anincrease in social exclusion.

The following pages set out moredetailed aims under each of the seventhemes.


Health & Wellbeing

Where do we want to be?

We want a Midlothian communityplanning process which has:

• Improved life circumstances suchas housing, transport andemployment, to ensure theoptimum outcomes in healththrough reducing inequalitiesbetween individuals andcommunities

• Enabled people to take controlover their own lives and wellbeing by offering everyone thesame opportunities in all aspectsof their lives

• Provided services in a form thatare accessible to all, throughensuring that services aremanaged, developed and deliveredin response to the culture, valuesand needs of the individuals andcommunities served.

How do we get there?Improving life circumstances:

• Support the implementation ofthe Midlothian Social InclusionPlan in its activities to addressinequalities, poverty, economicand personal wellbeing

• Support vulnerable tenants in theirtenancy eg young people who havebeen looked after by the Council,young mothers, frail and elderlytenants and people with disabilities

• Offer housing advice and supportto homeless households andpeople who are likely to becomehomeless

• Promote and support Scotland’sHealth at Work Award Schemeamongst local employers

• Support the development of aHealthy Living Initiative to applyfor funding from the NewOpportunities Fund

• Support healthy living throughthe New Community Schoolproject with initiatives such ashealthy eating and physicalactivity

• Direct resources towardsimproving employment prospectsfor disadvantaged groupsincluding people with disabilities.

Enabling people to take control overtheir own lives and wellbeing:

• Establish jointly managed healthand social care services thatprovide a more flexible and betterquality home care services thatrespond more rapidly to urgentneeds and enable people whochoose to do so, to remain in theirown homes and communitieswhenever possible

• Support the work of theCommunity Learning Partnershipin realising its vision for thepeople of Midlothian

• Enable people with a disability tolead lives as close to normal aspossible where they are at thecentre of informed decisionmaking and are able to have morecontrol over their care by theintroduction of direct paymentsand personal life planning

• Monitor and further developyoung people’s health and advicecentres

• Further develop services whichpromote mental health andwellbeing

• Support individuals andcommunity groups to makeinformed choices by the provisionof information in a language andform which can be easilyunderstood within the culturalbackground of all individuals inMidlothian

• Develop a range of physicalactivity projects for children andyoung people and encourage theuptake of physical activityamongst older people

• Support the development ofhealthy eating throughcommunity based initiatives.

Providing services in a form that areequally accessible to all:

• Monitor the outcomes of actionto reduce inequalities inMidlothian

• Ensure funds are targeted onareas of greatest need to equaliseaccess to services for people fromaffluent and disadvantagedcommunities

• Ensure that services are providedas locally as possible, close topeople’s homes and communities,consistent with good practice andhigh standards.


Community Safety


We have a vision of a safer Midlothian.In order to make this vision a reality,the aim of the partnership is tocontinue to work together to create acommunity which is a safe place tolive, to work and to visit. We want aMidlothian where the abuse of drugsis socially unacceptable, where there isa healthier attitude to the use ofalcohol and where young people areengaged as active citizens in positiveactivities.

How do we get there?

In order to achieve this we will aim to:

Reduce crime levels through

Targeted crime prevention and crimereduction measures

Problem solving policing initiatives

Targeting specific crimes such asdomestic housebreaking, antisocialbehaviour, crimes of violence andvandalism

Tackling specific problems such asdrug and alcohol misuse

Create a safer and more attractiveenvironment through

Safety in the planning and design ofbuildings

Road safety, traffic calming, lightingand landscaping for safety measures

Targeting litter clearance and graffitiremoval

Reduce the fear of crime through

Identifying new strategies for helpingpeople suffering domestic abuse

Supporting individuals andintroducing a variety personal safetyprogrammes

Introducing programmes to tacklespecific offences such as racism

Work in partnership withcommunities to make peoples livessafer by

Adopting an integrated andstructured approach to road safetythrough education, engineering andenforcement

Develop initiatives aimed at makingtravel safer for all

Targeted home and fire safetyinitiatives.


Lifelong Learning


The Midlothian Community LearningPartnership has set out our vision forMidlothian as an environment wherelearning throughout life is valued as apowerful agent of change and growthfor individuals, groups andcommunities. Learning opportunitiesmust be accessible to all and berelevant to the diverse sections of theMidlothian community.

• All individuals in Midlothianshould have access to the skills,knowledge and informationneeded for them to play a fullpart in their society and itsdecision making

• Individuals in Midlothian shouldbe provided with goodinformation about the choicesavailable for lifelong learning

• All adults in Midlothian shouldhave the opportunity to learn atthe right time; in the rightlocation and at the level theywant where possible

• All adults should have access tosufficient high quality andrelevant higher and furthereducation provision

• A diverse range of learningopportunities should be providedand promoted which meet theneeds and aspirations ofindividuals

• Every child’s full potential shouldbe realised during the years ofcompulsory schooling

• Provision should be made forevery young person on leavingschool, to have the opportunity toprogress into vocational training,further or higher education or ajob

• For individuals and their familiesit should be ensured that they areequipped with the education andskills needed to cope with thechallenges posed by our newtechnologies and global economy.


To reach these aims, we will try to dothe following:

Raise achievement and levels ofattainment through:

• Improving the level ofqualifications held

• Raising the number of peopleentering further and highereducation

• Accrediting learning achieved ininformal settings

• Increasing a range of measures toprovide learning support to pupilsand adult learners

• Encouraging adults to developskills and knowledge to gainemployment that improves theaverage income level inMidlothian

• Increasing access to andqualifications in informationtechnology

• By involving parents in theirchildren’s learning

• By encouraging pupils to stay onto fifth and sixth years.


By creating a framework for learningthat ensures that everyone canbenefit from education through:

• Delivering an effective curriculum

• Making provision for those withspecial needs

• Developing study support

• Implementing the CommunityLearning Strategy

• Providing a welcoming, wellresourced and stimulatingenvironment in all educationestablishments

• Promoting social inclusion

• Having highly motivated and wellqualified staff

• Promoting active citizenship andinvolvement in democraticstructures

• Promoting literacy and numeracywork

• Providing good quality pre-schoolprovision

• Providing a highly developedquality assurance system

• Working with library services.

By promoting learning for lifethrough:

• Health education programmes

• Encouraging participation in thearts

• Understanding cultural diversity

• Encouraging participation in sport

• Encouraging participation inenterprise activities

• Working in partnership to provideadult guidance/youth informationservices

• Understanding the environmentin which we live

• Providing information whichallows options to be explored

• Providing learning opportunitiesat key transition points in life

• Measures to increase the valueplaced on education by pupils,parents and the wider community

• Increasing community-basedlearning opportunities

• Working in partnership withcolleges and universities

• Updating audits of need.

Lifelong Learning


Economic Capacity


We want Midlothian to have a vibrant,competitive and sustainable localeconomy, where the economicregeneration, from the coalminingand other traditional industrial focusof the previous century to a modernknowledge based area which fullycontributes to and benefits from thestrengths of the city region andScottish economies, is complete.


Through developing, implementingand updating our agreed strategy foreconomic capacity.

We shall do this by :

Developing a modern, dynamic,competitive and diverse company base

• encouraging the development of adistinctive role for the Midlothianeconomy

• developing a world class biotech-nology and life sciences cluster inMidlothian

• developing a distinctive inwardinvestment offering

• developing a role as a modernlocation for general manufactur-ing, services and distribution

• developing and promotingMidlothian’s tourism as a qualitybased sector

• encouraging the growth ofexisting small and medium sizedenterprises (SMEs)

• maintaining the increase in thebusiness birth rate for start ups

• delivering a seamless businessdevelopment service

• maximising the opportunities forthe use of ICT and e-commercefor business.

Creating and attracting a skilled,flexible and qualified workforce

• raising the level of skills andeducational attainment inMidlothian to and beyond thoseof Scottish and UK norms

• improving the school to worktransition and encouragingcontinuing participation ineducation and training through alifelong learning approach

• raising awareness and attainmentespecially amongst young peoplewith regard to the take up oftraining and educationopportunities

• identifying the emerging skillsrequirements at all levels for thebiotechnology cluster and otherkey sectors of the developingMidlothian economy

• improving human resourcedevelopment practice inMidlothian’s SMEs

• ensuring the benefits andopportunities of the developinginformation communicationstechnology approach to business,education and skills developmentare maximised.


Ensuring the provision of qualityinfrastructure for business growthand development

• developing a coherent andsustainable Midlothian propertystrategy for start up, expansionand inward investment businessneeds

• attracting private sectorinvestment in propertydevelopment

• through responsive Structure andLocal Plan policy which prioritiseseconomic development,developing new ready-to-developsites at attractive locations forbusiness focussing on NorthMidlothian (including the SouthEast Wedge) and the A720corridor as regionally significantemployment locations

• strategic development of abiotechnology / life sciences zonearound the A701 corridor

• creating a ladder of provision forindustrial and commercialproperty

• seeking the early implementationof strategic road, rail and publictransport infrastructure projects

Offering an outstanding anddistinctive environment for work,housing and leisure

• creating quality and sustainablebusiness environments

• continuing environmentalrenewal and upgrade of town andvillage centres

• giving particular attention to thefuture role and function of keysettlements such as Dalkeith,Penicuik and Bonnyrigg

• improving visitor attractions andconserving the heritage andcharacter of Midlothian

• improving the image ofMidlothian particularly gatewaylocations and strategic routes

• providing a range of quality,affordable housing for existingand future residents

• ensuring the highest qualityeducational and lifelong learningprovision for all

• seeking the necessary community,leisure, shopping, health andother facilities expected in amodern community such asMidlothian

Economic Capacity

Promoting regeneration and helpingall sections of the community enjoythe benefits of growth and prosperity

• through a communitydevelopment approach, ensuringthe benefits of economic changeare distributed throughout allparts of Midlothian

• positively assisting disadvant-aged groups and communities

• encouraging active communityinvolvement

• targeting areas of long-termunemployment

• supporting public transportprovision to enable access toopportunity

• addressing low wage and part-time employment whereimprovements can be secured

• seeking higher value employmentthrough knowledge-basedindustry and matching skillsdevelopment



Our vision of Midlothian is one of acommunity moving towards asustainable way of life with a highquality environment.


Through ensuring that communities inMidlothian protect and enhance thenatural environment.

To do this we need to:

• promote awareness of theimportance of environmentalissues in their contributiontowards a good quality of life inMidlothian

• improve local air quality throughactions identified in the AirQuality Strategy

• improve the quality and reducethe quantity of waste waterthrough use of Sustainable UrbanDrainage Systems

• encourage communities tobecome involved in shaping theirenvironment

• protect and enhance existingwildlife habitats.

Through improving the quality of lifein Midlothian by ensuring thatcommunities strive towardssustainability.

We will therefore do the following:-

• promote the most sustainable useof land within the framework ofthe Edinburgh & the LothiansStructure Plan and local plans;

• reduce greenhouse gas emissionsand encourage energy efficientbuildings and homes;

• reduce the quantity of wasteproduced and increase levels ofrecycling;

• increase awareness of sustainabletransport issues;

• promote a sustainable transportnetwork within Midlothian and tosurrounding areas includingEdinburgh, the West and theBorders.

Protecting & Enhancing the Environment



Midlothian’s Social Inclusion Plan,developed by Midlothian SocialInclusion Partnership, has beeninformed by the Scottish Executive’sSocial Inclusion Strategy (1999) whichoutlines the following vision of socialinclusion:

• Every child, whatever his or hersocial or economic background,has the best possible start in life;

• There are opportunities to workfor all those who are able to doso;

• Those who are unable to work orare beyond the normal workingage have a decent quality of life;and

• Everyone is enabled andencouraged to participate to themaximum of their potential.

The Social Inclusion Partnership is alsocommitted to consider the relevanceof the locally achievable elements ofthe Government’s national targets forsocial justice.

How do we get there?• Increase participation In the

labour market

• Tackle poverty through localaction

• Ensure that every child enteringprimary school is ready to learnand make best use of its schoolyears

• Reduce the numbers of childrenwho leave school unqualified or illequipped to cope with life

• Widen participation in anddemand for lifelong learning

• Tackle specific barriers faced bypeople, including ill health, lowself esteem, homelessness anddrug or alcohol misuse

• Eliminate discrimination on thegrounds of gender, race, sexualorientation or disability

• Reduce inequalities in health

• Ensure that decent and affordablehousing is available to all.

• Tackle inequalities betweencommunities by empowering andregenerating deprivedcommunities

Social Inclusion

• Support and encourage thecontribution of private business tothe well being of communities

• Promote a culture of activecitizens, in which self-development, taking part incommunity and civic life andcaring for our neighbours are keyfeatures

• Widen participation in sport,recreation and the arts.


Cultural Identity and Diversity


We see Midlothian as being a place inwhich its diversity of physical,spiritual, material, intellectual andemotional characteristics arepromoted and celebrated. We want tolive in a Midlothian where everyone,irrespective of their race, colour orgender, has the same equality ofopportunity and treatment.

How will we get there?• By promoting and celebrating the

diversity of the people ofMidlothian

• By promoting civic pride inMidlothian

• By promoting human dignity andrights, and the values ofdemocracy, fairness, tolerance,social justice and equality

• By taking action where theserights and values are notrespected

• By promoting creativity, the arts,and other cultural activity

• By encouraging all Midlothian’scitizens to realise their creativepotential

• By ensuring that all cancontribute to, enjoy and benefitfrom Midlothian’s culture

• By recognising the central role ofeducation in cultural developmentand the promotion of equality

• By increasing culturalparticipation and awareness ofdiversity, particularly, by childrenand young people in school andbeyond

• By increasing participation by allmembers of the community incultural opportunities

• By increasing opportunities forcelebrating Midlothian’s culture,both within and outwithMidlothian.


It is obvious that this proposed vision only gives us some direction and aframework upon which to take forward many activities. It does allow us,however, to start trying to address such important issues in a more joined-upway. As set out later, one of the main tasks in the first year of the process willbe to put in place more realistic and measurable milestones and targets, and toaddress how each of these themes relate to each other.

The aims set out under each of the themes have been composed by variouscurrent partnership groupings. Consequently, there is scope for making themmore consistent and addressing issues such as overlap and gaps betweenthemes.

Questions:• Is our vision the right one?

• Does it adequately reflect ouraspirations?

• Is a 2020 timescale too longfor our purpose, oralternatively, is it not longenough?

• Does it make sense?

• Is it workable?

• Should we include otherthemes?

• Are the suggested themesclear enough, and should weaddress the obvious areas of‘overlap’ or duplicationbetween them?


Our First Moves

What do we want to do?

As soon as we launch our process inSpring 2002, the work will begin todevelop it further. There are cleartangible tasks that we can set forourselves. These are set out below:

Refine our aims

We will need to take each of the aimsset out in this document and attachclear targets, not only for where wewant to be in 2020, but in the shortterm, by identifying what resourcesare currently available, and how theseresources can be used effectively inpartnership. Further, we will need toaddress how to tackle the obviousareas of overlap between the themes.

Establish the needs of Midlothian

We will establish a betterunderstanding of the needs of thepeople of Midlothian, and then workout how to try and meet them, andhow this affects our vision.

Develop community involvement

We intend looking at how we canwiden current partnership working tomake it more open and participative.

Ask Midlothian citizens

We will set up, in early 2002, aMidlothian Citizen’s Panel, made up of

some 800 citizens from acrossMidlothian, who will be askedregularly for their views on how theprocess should continue, as well aswhether it does make a difference totheir quality of life.

Address the national implications ofcommunity planning

We will work with the ScottishExecutive and agencies from public,private and voluntary sectorsthroughout Scotland to give moresupport to community planning as aprocess to be taken forwardthroughout the country.

Improve partnership working

We will look at how we all currentlywork in partnership to achieve theaims set out in the vision, and look atways of making this even morejoined-up and effective.

Achieve ownership amongst partners

We will look at ways of giving thosewithin all participating agencies theopportunity of contributing to theaims of community planning.

Raise awareness

We will find ways of maximisingawareness of the Midlothiancommunity planning processthroughout our communities.

Questions:• Are these tasks achievable?

• Is there anything else weshould be concentrating on?


Our First Moves

How will we do these tasks?

Primarily, we intend to take forwardthese tasks at the centre of theprocess through a core group (asdiscussed earlier in this document).We do, however, also want in our firstyear to make use of the partnershipworking already taking place.Appendix 2 illustrates the hugeamount of such current partnershipworking. There is, however, muchscope for more joined-up thinking onhow to deliver the aims set out inthese many strategies. We propose,therefore, to use the planningstructures and groups already inexistence to take forward the tasks setout in the previous section.

The following groups will be used inrelation to the themes:

• The Midlothian EconomicStrategy has been developed byMidlothian Council and SEEL(Scottish Enterprise Edinburghand Lothian). There is a LothianEconomic Forum which bringsdifferent interests together inrelation to economicdevelopment, but we will look atthe need for such a forum at aMidlothian level.

• There is a Community LearningPartnership, made up of all thoseagencies involved in providingcommunity learning opportunitiesin Midlothian, which isresponsible for taking forward the

Midlothian Community LearningStrategy. There will of course be aneed to bring together otherimportant partnership groupsalready in existence, such as theMidlothian Children’s ServicesPlanning Group and theMidlothian Childcare and EarlyYears Partnership. Further,schools themselves will have tocontribute to such working.

• The Midlothian CommunitySafety Strategy is supported by aCommunity Safety Partnership,and we will be looking at howthis partnership works, andwhether it could include otherstakeholders.

• There is a Social InclusionPartnership and a SocialInclusion Forum which are takingforward Midlothian’s SocialInclusion Plan. The Partnership ismade up of statutory bodies,while the Forum has a muchwider membership involving arange of bodies from differentsectors, including groups directlyfrom Midlothian communities.

• There is already a huge amount ofpartnership working inMidlothian in relation to health.Partnership working is to bedeveloped further with theproposals contained in the newarrangements for the NationalHealth Service for each localhealth board to develop localhealth plans for each Council areaas part of the communityplanning process.

• In relation to environmentalprotection and enhancement,there will be a proposal to form apartnership group, bringingtogether a wide range of agenciescurrently involved in such issues.

• Further, for cultural identity anddiversity, there will be a proposalto see how all of those taking partin the community planningprocess can contribute to thistheme. For example, the EqualitiesForum of Midlothian Council willbe asked to play a prime role inbringing together those interestsin this issue, as well as Midlothiancommunities themselves.

An important task will therefore be tobuild better links amongst these manygroups and strategies, while providinga clear direction at the centre of theprocess. In other words, while wewant to continue progress in all of thestrategies shown in Appendix 2 (andindeed in others beyond), we alsowant to show progress towards ourvision as a whole.


Measuring our progress and success

If community planning in Midlothianis going to work, then we have to beable to show progress, and indeedwhere we have been successful orunsuccessful. We are proposing twodo this in three ways:

Firstly, we will gauge the progress of theexisting strategies discussed earlier.

Secondly, we will be using theMidlothian Citizens’ Panel to gaugewhat people see as the importantaspects of quality of life for them, andthen measuring whether theirperceptions are changed as a result ofour collective efforts throughcommunity planning.

Thirdly, we wish to introduce a set ofindicators on all aspects of the qualityof life in Midlothian, and these will beused over time to demonstratechanges and trends. We have drawntogether a range of indicators from anumber of sources. In doing so, wehave considerd a wide range ofindicators from a number of sources.We have tried to select those whichreflect the most important issues forMidlothian and that can be influenced,collected and measured on a localbasis. We have also tried to ensurethat our indicators will be directlycomparable with those developed on aScotland and UK wide basis. In thisway, we can measure local progress aswell as being able to compare ourprogress with other areas.

We are aware that there is a hugenumber of indicators that could beused, some more appropriate thanothers. For example, the ScottishEnvironmental Protection Agency(SEPA) is currently devising a series ofScottish Environmental Indicators andthese may be suitable to beincorporated into our final plan.

The suggested list is open to commentand suggestions, and will be refined asa result of this consultation process.

The suggested indicators showing theareas which we think should becovered are:

Environmental

Improving management of theenvironment

1. Energy Use (AC, DETR, SE)

2. Energy efficiency measures inhomes (SE)

3. Water use (AC, DETR)

4. Waste arising by sector (SE)

5. Management of different wastestreams (SE)

6. Materials recycling (SE)

Reducing Pollution

7. Air pollution (number of days) (AC,DETR)

8. Rivers of good and fair quality(AC, DETR)

9. Percentage of different waterenvironments classified aspolluted (SE)

Protecting the diversity of nature

10. Net change in natural/semi-natural habitat (DETR)

11. Trends in Local Biodiversity ActionPlan priority species (AC, DETR, SE)

12. Loss of natural habitat fordevelopment (SE)

13. Development of vacant or derelictland compared to total available(AC,SE)

14. Sustainability of new buildings (SE)

Improving the local environment

15. Parks and green spaces (AC)

16. Clean streets (AC)

Economic

Combating Unemployment

17. Employment/Unemployment (AC,DETR)

18. Long-term unemployment (AC)

19. Unemployment among youngpeople (AC)

Encouraging economic regeneration

20. New business start ups (AC, DETR)

21. Workforce expansion (AC)

Social

Tackling poverty and social exclusion

22. Deprivation level (AC)

23. Households on benefits (AC, DETR)

24. Children living in low incomehouseholds (AC)

25. Social and community enterprises(DETR)


Lifelong Learning

26. Qualifications of young people(DETR)

27. Adult Education (DETR)

Improving Health & Well-being

28. Death rate by cause (AC, DETR)

29. Infant mortality rate (AC)

30. Teenage pregnancies (AC)

Improving Housing opportunities

31. Homes judged unfit to live in (AC,DETR)

32. Homelessness (AC, DETR)

33. Affordable new housing (AC)

34. Tenant satisfaction/participation(DETR)

35. Ability of homeowners toadequately heat their home (SE)

Strengthening CommunityInvolvement

36. Access to key services (AC, DETR)

37. Community well-being (AC, DETR)

38. Childcare provision (AC)

39. Social participation (local voluntaryaction) (DETR)

Improving Transport

40. Travel to work (DETR)

41. Travel to school? (AC)

42. Overall traffic volumes (AC, DETR)

43. Safety of transport options (SE)

44. Cycle paths (AC)

Community Safety

45. Recorded crime per 1,000population (DETR)

46. Fear of crime (DETR)

47. Reducing drug-related crime (AC)

48. Noise (AC)

Key:

AC: Audit Commission, 2001, “VoluntaryQuality of Life and Cross-CuttingIndicators for Local Authorities:Feedback”, Audit Commission, London.

DETR: Department of Environment, Transportand the Regions, 2000, “Local qualityof life counts: A handbook for a menuof local indicators of sustainabledevelopment”, DETR, London.

SE: Scottish Executive, 2001,“Sustainability Indicators for Waste,Energy and Travel for Scotland”,Scottish Executive, Edinburgh.

Questions:• Is this the best way of

measuring our overallprogress?

• Have we chosen the rightmeasures?

• Do they adequately reflect localconcerns?


Our Consultation and Discussion Process

We want to have as wide a discussionon our proposals as possible. Wetherefore want to discuss ourproposals with as many stakeholdersas possible, in the following ways:

Partner agenciesThere have already been a series ofmeetings, based upon each theme ofour 2020 Vision, involving thoserelevant core or “proposing” agencies,as well as a range of other invitedagencies, who have been asked tobecome partners in the process. Theirimmediate task was be to review therelevant part of the vision, and todiscuss how they can take part in ourprocess as it develops.

Communities of interestThere will be a series of meetings andworkshops involving a wider group ofcommunities and community groupsto discuss each theme of our vision.

Individual citizensThere will be a series of meetingsbased locally around Midlothian, atwhich members of the public will beinvited to come along and discuss andoffer their views on our proposals andon the process as a whole.

Community Conference:

Ultimately, at the end of thisconsultation and discussion process,we wish to seek wide-rangingendorsement for our finalisedproposals. This is to be done throughour proposed Midlothian CommunityConference, which will take place inSpring 2002. If it is felt worthwhile byparticipants, there may be scope forensuring that such a conference takesplace say every year, as an opportunityto bring together a wider range ofstakeholders and interests to reviewprogress and influence the shape ofthe process.

Our Timetable

Ultimately, we would like to launchany new community plan forMidlothian in 2002.

Our timetable for the process is asfollows:

Agency meetings:October-November 2001

Launch of consultation and discussionprocess

December 2001

Community/public meetingsJanuary 2002

Meetings for communities of interestand other agencies

January - February 2002

Community ConferenceMay 2002

Launch of Midlothian’s communityplan

June 2002


How you can comment

We have set out a range of questionson all aspects of the proposedcommunity planning process, uponwhich we seek responses from all thestakeholders set out in this document.Those stakeholders are thereforeencouraged to play a part in theprocess using any of the means setout in the previous section.

Moreover, responses are invited in thefollowing ways:

By writing:

Midlothian Moving ForwardMidlothian HouseMidlothian CouncilBuccleuch StreetDalkeithMidlothian EH22 1YL

By phoning:

Directly to Corporate Policy Team,Strategic Services Division, MidlothianCouncil, on 0131-271-3445.

By E-mail:

[email protected]

Comments can also be posted at theCouncil website atwww.midlothian.gov.ukor alternatively through any of theother core partners’ websites.

Comments should be submitted byFriday 22 February 2002.


Appendix 1. The Core Partners

Midlothian Council was set up in1996 as a result of local governmentreorganisation. It is one of 32 localauthorities in Scotland and has 18elected councillors. It has an annualbudget of £150m and has 4,500employees. It provides a range ofservices including education, socialwork, housing, leisure and recreation,planning and development, refusecollection and road maintenance tothe people of Midlothian.

Lothians and Borders Policecomprises some 3,600 employees andhas an annual budget in excess of£100m. It provides a policing serviceto more than 800,000 people over anarea of 2,500 square miles. The Forceobjectives for the period 2001-2002are to combat drug dealing, reducecrimes of violence, target crimes ofdomestic housebreaking, reduce roadaccidents involving fatal and seriousinjury and reducing disorder in publicplaces.

Scottish Enterprise Edinburgh &Lothians is the local economicdevelopment company. As part of thewider Scottish Enterprise Network itsmain responsibilities fall under threemain goals outlined in the ScottishExecutive’s strategy for Scotland’sEnterprise Network: GrowingBusinesses, Global Connections andLearning & Skills.

NHS Lothian is responsible forimproving the health and wellbeing ofthe people of Midlothian inpartnership with local communitiesand organisations and for providinghealth services for the population.Within NHS Lothian, Lothian PrimaryCare NHS Trust is responsible forprimary, community and mentalhealth services, including Loanhead,and Rosslynlee Hospitals inMidlothian. Lothian UniversityHospitals NHS Trust is responsible foracute hospital services, includingaccident and emergency, in Edinburgh,East Lothian and Midlothian. InMidlothian, the Midlothian LocalHealthcare Co-operative is a managednetwork of health professionalsworking in primary care, mentalhealth, older people, learningdisabilities and maternity and children.

Communities Scotland, formerlyknown as Scottish Homes, isresponsible for communityregeneration through neighbourhoodrenewal, community empowermentand housing investment.

Scottish Natural Heritage exists topromote the care and improvement ofScotland’s natural heritage in order toallow its responsible enjoyment,greater understanding andappreciation, as well as its sustainableuse, now and for future generations.

East of Scotland Water is a publicwater authority, providing water andwaste water services to around700,000 households and large to smallbusiness. The authority’s priority is itscustomers, with a commitment to theprinciples of sustainable development,of which a clean and healthyenvironment is an important part.

The Midlothian Federation ofCommunity Councils acts as a voicefor a large number of Midlothian’scommunity councils, and providesmore direct links to MidlothianCouncil’s decision making processes.

Midlothian Voluntary Action(MVA) is the umbrella body forvoluntary organisations in Midlothian.It provides a practical advisory serviceand seeks to encourage local people toparticipate in voluntary work andcommunity affairs.

Midlothian Chamber of Commerce& Enterprise provides support toexisting businesses in Midlothian, aswell as helping people to establish anddevelop new businesses. Such supportincludes business planning, grantsupport and advice to people startingin business under the ScottishEnterprise Small Business Gatewaycontract.


Edinburgh and Lothian Structure Plan

Home Energy Conservation Act Plan

Joint Strategy for Services for Older People 1995-2005

Midlothian Childcare & Early Years Plan

Midlothian Children’s Service Plan

Midlothian Community Care Plan

Midlothian Community Economic Strategy

Midlothian Community Learning Strategy

Midlothian Community Safety Strategy

Midlothian Economic Strategy

Midlothian Environment Strategy

Midlothian Housing Plan

Midlothian Joint Mental Health Plan

Midlothian Road Safety Plan

Midlothian Social Inclusion Plan

Midlothian Social Work Services in the Criminal Justice System

Midlothian Sports Development Strategy

Midlothian Substance Misuse Strategy

Midlothian Tourism Action Plan

Midlothian Young People’s Sexual Health Strategy

Recycling Plan

Shawfair Local Plan

Waste Management Strategy for Midlothian

Appendix 2. Partnership working:Our current key strategies

Social Inclusion



LifelongLearning

Health andWellbeing


Safety

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