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MERKINCH PARTNERSHIP MEETING HELD IN MERKINCH COMMUNITY CENTRE ON TUESDAY 26th JULY 2005 COMMENCING AT 4.00PM

PRESENT:

Ross MacGillivray, Colin Downie, Anne Sutherland, Jamie McJimpsey, Peter Corbett, Alistair Locke, Graham Strachan, Bette McArdle, Alison Berg, Vic Rawlins, Marie MacIntosh, Fiona Robb, Bob MacKinnon.

APOLOGIES: Alistair Murray.

ABSENTEE: Joan Tracey.

• Welcome - Peter Corbett

  Peter opened the meeting and thanked everyone for attending.

• Appointment of Chair and Vice-Chair

  Alistair Locke nominated Peter Corbett as Chair, seconded by Vic Rawlins. Peter nominated Alistair as Vice-Chair, seconded by Bette McArdle. Both nominees duly accepted and were formally appointed.

• The Role and Structure of the Partnership

  Graham Strachan gave an overview of the role of the Partnership, particularly as to how it will relate to the wider community. He stated that as the Partnership was now up and running, albeit with an informal structure, it was necessary to agree its objectives and the strategies required to achieve these objectives. Graham then referred to the " Questions and Answers" document he had previously drawn up (Anne handed out copies). He felt this document would clarify the role of the Partnership and address any doubts/questions raised by the Partnership members and the agencies involved. Graham stressed the importance of engaging with the community, talking to the various community groups and initiatives and ensuring that any discussions were disseminated and circulated. It was agreed that the "Questions and Answers" document would be simplified and edited and included in the September issue of "News and Views".

  Graham then commented that the Partnership might need to draw up a constitution. Although it would not have direct access to any funding, the Partnership would certainly be able to express it's views on how any available funding is utilised in the Merkinch area. Graham emphasised the fact that the views of the Partnership should be the views of the community as a whole. Graham also touched on the question of membership of the Partnership - should it be open to individuals, groups or representatives of community organisations? Peter commented that it was important to ensure that it was not perceived as "another Community Council".

  It was generally agreed that the Partnership should be an informal group with a 1-page constitution, similar in format to Arts in Merkinch. Graham suggested that 3 members (Anne, Colin and Graham) should work on a draft constitution, which would be presented to the Partnership at the next meeting. The possibility of becoming a Ltd Co. would be for future discussion, although Graham stated that there were very good reasons for going down that road. At the moment it was important to keep things simple - the Partnership must have a constituency and a purpose, it must be seen as being open, accountable and democratic. Alistair stressed the importance of avoiding the pitfalls of being seen as a "closed shop".

• Community Action Plan

  Bob stated that the first step for the new Partnership was to clarify its purpose. For this reason it was important to draw up a "Mapping Plan", which would provide up-to-date information for the Partnership and which could be used as a basis for discussion regarding future available funding and how best to use it. This exercise would also ensure that the people who are active in the Merkinch community would have an understanding of the Partnership.

  Jamie then enlarged on the work involved in drawing up this "Mapping Plan". Anne and Jamie would contact all the groups/organisations working in the community, completing a questionnaire-type document, which would clarify issues such as future funding requirements, aims and objectives and current projects. A list of all the relevant groups was circulated. On completion of this part of the exercise Jamie and Anne would pull all the information together, to create an overall picture and draw up an "Action Plan". Reference would be made to the Community Appraisal, with emphasis on any further action which needs to be taken. Graham commented that this exercise should not be too time consuming and should help clarify the key projects in Merkinch which could come to fruition in the next 3/5 years.

  A general discussion then ensued regarding the Welfare Hall in Grant Street. Questions were raised as to who was progressing this project and it was felt that the "Mapping Plan" could help in moving this forward. Colin clarified the position regarding the Trustees and the Scottish Executive.

  It was agreed that Anne and Jamie would report on the progress of the plan at the next Partnership meeting. Bette suggested that the September issue of News and Views could inform the community groups of this mapping exercise and the information that will be required.

• The Role of the Project Officer

  Graham was of the opinion that the role of the Project Officer was to assist in the process of evolving and strengthening the Partnership. Colin explained that Anne's remit was to support 4 groups in the Merkinch community - Merkinch Development Ventures, South Kessock Environmental Co., Arts in Merkinch and the Merkinch Partnership. It was envisaged that the Partnership would become the main focus.

  Anne then asked the Partnership members for their ideas on communicating with the wider community, how this dissemination of information could best be achieved. Alistair requested that information, such as minutes of any future meetings, be added to the Merkinch Community web site. A monthly report could also be included in the News and Views. A separate Partnership newsletter could be produced, although Bette pointed out that this would entail a lot of hard work.

• A.O.B.

  Bette noted that there were only 2 Resident's Associations on the "Planning Document" list, although there are more Associations active in the Merkinch area. It was agreed that Housing Regeneration should be an issue discussed by the Partnership, but that the members would not get involved in individual resident's problems.

  It was felt that the Partnership should be open to groups that do not necessarily fit the Community Group criteria, such as sports groups. Bob felt it would be useful to categorise each group/organisation within the 4 themes which form the focus of Community Planning - Health and Well-Being, Our Environment, Wealth Creation, Cultural Development.

• Date and Time of next meeting

  The next Partnership meeting will be held on Tuesday 27th September 2005 at 4.00pm in the Community Centre. Peter thanked everyone for attending and closed the meeting.

This project is being part-financed by the European Union under the Inverness and Nairn CED programme.