East End Ward

Some updates on ongoing projects / issues in the ward,

The building work at the new Claypotts Castle Primary School is on schedule and has a provisional completion date around April 2008. The newly merged Rowantree Primary School in Mid Craigie is operating from the Mid Craigie Primary School site. Work on the new building is expected to start soon.

Craigie High School hosted the Annual Review Meeting of NHS Tayside. This was attended by the Scottish government Minister, Shona Robison and the Chief Executive of NHS Tayside. Staff are being encouraged to car share and pupils encouraged to cycle or walk to school. This fits well with the Health Promoting School ethos as well as easing traffic problems in the area. The school is looking at ways of improving attendance at parent contact evenings by having one in the local community centre.

Staff in the Hub Library and Learning Centre are awaiting a start date for the work which will transform the building.

Douglas Community & Library Centre continues to play host to a variety of opportunities for people in the area. A Christmas Coffee Morning is to be held on 8 December. The art group have been asked to do another mosaic - this time in the City Chambers. Next year is to be the Centre's 40th Birthday so a series of celebratory events are planned.

The CRF funded skatepark (Finlathen Park) is now complete and used extensively by young people with bikes, skateboards and other blades. Discussions are being held regarding safety improvements.is now complete and used extensively by young people with bikes, skateboards and other blades. Discussions are being held regarding safety improvements.

Community Safety. A major review is underway and a report is being prepared on its findings. So far, the overwhelming response by those surveyed is "that people believe wardens make a difference to their communities and in particular their high visibility presence on the street offers reassurance." Statistics also show that the Wardens are much in demand and involved in improving many aspects of community life.

Information regarding road layout changes below. Again as this junction progresses, please be patient. At Mondays committees I asked for assurance that this phase of the works will be completed on time. The completion date is scheduled to be the 21st December, however Morrisons are confident that they will have the work completed by the 14th.

Info below.........

Work at the new Claverhouse Junction continues at pace. We intend to change over from contraflow to fast lane closures tonight. This will allow completion of the central reservation work, barriers and traffic lights. The side roads will have to remain closed for safety and completion of traffic lights however this should help with traffic flows through the works.

As part of Dundee City Council’s celebrations for St Andrews Day, Wellington Consultancy & Friends of Wighton have arranged a programme of musical happenings in the city. I apologise for the short notice (and the informality of a group message!) but if you can manage along to any of the events you will be most welcome.

Warmest good wishes and have a Happy St Andrews Day, Sheena

PS Though I didn’t manage to get an event in every ward, all wards are represented amongst the performers!

Care Homes for Senior Citizens:

11am: Janet Brougham House, Robertson Street Dundee DD4 6EL Tel: 01382438819 (A Ministerial visit by the Minister for Public Health, ShonaRobison MSP)
2pm: St Margaret’s Home, Victoria Road, Dundee DD1 2NB Tel: 01382 223865
3.30pm: Wellburn Home, 118 Liff Road, Lochee, Dundee DD2 2QT Tel: 01382622212
Fiddle player Karen Read and singer Mike Kelleher will be the musiciansvisiting the Care Homes. Both artists have done a lot of work in this fieldand enjoy entertaining older people.
Karen Read (nee Hannah) is a highly accomplished fiddler with a sparklingpersonality. A former Celtic Connections Danny Award winner she has toured throughout the UK, Europe and New Zealand, appearing with musicians of the calibre of Aly Bain, Phil Cunningham and Alasdair Fraser. She is a member of the band Randan and several other groups.
Mike Kelleher hails from Ireland and is equally at home with Irish or Scottish song. A fine guitar player he also has a mellow, delightful voice and a winning way with an audience .He is also a member of Randan

Senior Citizens Clubs (Age Concern – 01382 825624)
11am Broughty Ferry Centre, 343 Brook Street, Broughty Ferry -
3.30pm Fiveways Centre, 2-4 Caird Avenue DD3 8AW.
Musicians entertaining at the Clubs are Maureen Jelks, singer, and Simon Chadwick, harpist
Dundee born Maureen Jelks is one of Scotland’s finest traditional singers,much in demand for festivals and concerts. She has recently returned fromthe International Celtic Women’s Festival in Milwaukee. Simon Chadwick is a world expert on the medieval harp, a recent winner of aprestigious Arts Trust of Scotland Award and proud possessor of a beautifulreplica of the harp which belonged to Mary, Queen of Scots.

City Square
1 -2 pm Dundee High School Pipe Band & Mains of Fintry Pipe Band.
DHS Pipe Band is a very promising young band. Mains of Fintry Pipe Bandhave been invited to represent Scotland at a major piping event in Japan in2008 and this will be part of their fundraising for the trip.

Wellgate Centre Entrance: Kinnear & McKay, pipes, banjo and a touch offunk!
Central Library
12.30 - 2pm Music from Wighton Singers with input from Maureen Jelks, SimonChadwick, Karen Read, Mike Kelleher
The Wighton Singers are a group of mainly senior citizens who meet withMaureen Jelks every Tuesday afternoon in the Wighton Heritage Centre tolearn Scottish songs.
3.30pm Children's Song workshop with Sheena Wellington

Meadowside St. Paul's Church Hall, West Marketgait
7.15 pm St Andrews Night Party (pipes, highland dancers, Sheena Wellington &stovies)
Tickets £5 including refreshments, available from Cornerstone Coffee House,Nethergate

Sorry for the short notice - See 2 posts ago -

Last Tickets Remaining

Shooglenifty with Tanya Tagaq Gillis

LIVE at Fat Sams
This is going to be an amazing gig:

Tanya has toured with Bjork and The Kronos Quartet, bringing the anient inuit vocal game of throat singing to the contemporary experimental music scene. Shooglenifty have been at the forefront of the folk/acid/electronica fusion scene for many years. This should make for a genuinely thrilling on stage collaboration.

It's the closing night of their Tune - Up tour around Scotland and it's going to be a fantastic party.

Details: 8pm Saturday 24 November
Tickets £12.50 in advance from City Box Office (01382 434940) or (if you're lucky) on the door.

It has been my pleasure to serve as a Director of Dundee Contemporary Arts since my election as a Councillor more than 4 years ago. This building is a great asset to the cultural quarter with many artists showing their work in the galleries, but the reason for this post is to give you some more information on the building and the work that it does.

I have included the two links below for you to have a look at

www.dca.org.uk
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=7245911548 (if you have a facebook account)

Many people are put off by the idea of Contemporary Art, but no matter what you think, you should go and take a look. The facebook link is open to anyone to join and currently has a description of the latest exhibition.

Not been able to post for a while due to a couple of reasons, getting married being the big one and having a small but painful DIY accident. Despite this, the ward is as busy as ever. Attended a good meeting with the Parents and Teachers of Craigie High School (PATCHeS) where the topics of conversations ranged from educational attainment to one of my favourite subjects, the Arbroath Road!

Have also been involved with discussing the ongoing problem of bins being left in the street, overflowing and smelly. This is a problem that all Councillors have and is a difficult one to get under control. It is down to residents to ensure that refuse is presented properly and on time but it is a battle we are all losing. More information to come on this!

Glad to report that a crossing is being installed on the Arbroath Road. The work on this project will start in the new year and should last about 2 weeks. The crossing is being installed close to Ruthven Road and will be a lifeline for people who live on this busy route as well as being an added safety measure for the pupils at the 2 local schools. I welcomed this in the press and will watch with great interest.

Have been involved in discussions concering the skate park in Fountainbleau Drive and possible additional safety features. A great concern has been that kids using the park could stray on to the road at high speed. Proposals are being put to the local safety panel soon and additional fencing and road markings could be installed soon.

It is also getting to that time of year again where the requests for meetings etc fly through the door. I will keep you up to date on what is happening.