FDCC Public Meeting Tuesday, 1st September 2026, 7:30 pm -- Moubray Hall, Powmill

The recording of each public meeting was adopted with effect from 3rd February 2026 as standard practice. GDPR will be adhered to. The recording will be securely deleted once the minutes are finalised.

Apologies: FDCCllr Karen Morrill (Chair); Cllr Willie Robertson; Cllr Richard Watters; Cllr Dave Cuthbert.

Attendees: FDCCllr Graham Pye (in the Chair); FDCCllr Anya Bacon; FDCCllr Angus Cheape; FDCCllr Mark O\'Bryen; FDCCllr Gary Whittington; FDCCllr Hugh Wallace.

Members of the public (MoP) in attendance: 10.

1. Community Police Report

• A written report was received on 30 August covering the period since the meeting of 4 August: approximately 23 calls from the Fossoway area and two recorded crimes, both road traffic offences. Both occurred on the A91 at Carnbo, one being a driver recorded at 53mph in the 30mph zone on 19 August and reported to the Procurator Fiscal.
• Members noted that this bears out long-standing community concern about traffic through Carnbo, and welcomed the fact that speed checks are being carried out and offences detected.
• A day of action on 25 August resulted in the arrest of one person on an outstanding warrant.

A resident subsequently reported an incident at Seamab School; this is recorded at item 9.3.

2. Approval of Minutes of the Last Meeting

• Minutes of the meeting held on 4th August 2026 -- proposed by FDCCllr Pye and seconded by Gary Whittington. Approved.

3. Progress and Matters Arising

3.1 The updated list of actions will be issued with these minutes. Minutes and actions are published to the Facebook page and, from this month, circulated by email. Residents wishing to receive them directly are invited to send their email address to FDCC.

3.2 Crook Moss -- refuse and waste

• Cllr Robertson circulated photographs on 10 August showing that the waste along the fence line extends for approximately 100 metres, with the depth and content unknown. A stream on the east side of the site has been reported to SEPA, with no action yet taken to have it cleaned up.
• An update has been requested on the action plan previously reported.
• Correspondence has been received seeking community involvement in a planned clean-up programme.

3.3 LDP3

• PKC advises that FDCC's detailed objections remain early in the process, the plan being at the evidence stage. The Council is awaiting the Housing Needs and Demand Assessment, which will determine how much land must be found and where. Consultation is not expected before later in autumn this year. A11 closed, with tracking of the autumn consultation carried forward as A36.

3.4 Rumbling Bridge -- road safety

• FDCC's letter to the ward councillors has been issued, setting out the near misses reported and asking that vehicle-operated traffic lights, speed limits, signage and the condition of the bridge be considered, together with any figures held for accidents or near misses.
• Cllr Cuthbert has forwarded the request to Darren McEwan in PKC's traffic engineering department, who has passed it to the road safety team.

3.5 Seamab -- MSP correspondence and committee date

• No reply has been received from MSP Jim Fairlie to FDCC's letter. FDCC will send him the minutes of each meeting.
• MoP advised that Mr Fairlie had been in contact that morning to say the planning application would be determined in September. FDCC has been notified that 25/01468/FLL is listed for committee on Wednesday 9 September at 9:30am, as a hybrid meeting held in the Council Chambers, 2 High Street, Perth and streamed via Microsoft Teams.
• Anyone may attend or watch without registering, but requests to speak must be made in writing to committee@pkc.gov.uk no later than 4pm on Friday 4 SeptemberAnyone intending to speak should agree in advance who will do so and what will be said. FDCC will post the details on Facebook (done).

3.6 X56 Bus Service

• Stagecoach had proposed to withdraw the service on 24 August. PKC's Finance Committee has agreed to fund the service until 31 March 2027, pending discussion of how it might be funded and supported thereafter. Action closed.

3.7 Kinross High School

• An email was received on the day of the meeting indicating that students would like to attend the next meeting to give updates on projects at the school, including work for community councils. FDCC will reply and arrange this for October.

3.8 Fossoway Gathering

• The Gathering takes place on Saturday 5 September, 11:30am to 4:30pm at Waulkmill Park, this year on a circus theme. Volunteers are sought to help with setting up and packing away and can express an interest via the Gathering's Facebook page.

4. New Business

4.1 A977 Gelvan Crossroads to North Kilduff and U221 Gelvan Moor Road -- carriageway resurfacing

• Verge scraping may take place on Friday 11 September under temporary traffic lights for one day. Resurfacing begins on Monday 14 September and is expected to take approximately 15 working days, under convoy traffic management.
• The U221 Gelvan Moor Road junctions will be fully closed for at least the first three working days, being 14, 15 and 16 September, with a signed diversion in place.

4.2 FDCC website

• FDCC currently occupies space on the fossoway.org website, which it does not own. A change in the technology used means FDCC can no longer make its own updates, so publication is indirect and not prompt.
• It was agreed that FDCC will build its own site in order to regain control of its content. Progress and a likely launch date will be reported to the October meeting.

4.3 Correspondence -- FDCC engagement on Seamab matters

• The Chair introduced correspondence received on 11 August raising concerns about the perceived impartiality of FDCC's engagement on Seamab matters, and in particular that meetings arranged with the intention of bringing residents and Seamab together had taken place without all residents being informed or invited.
• FDCCllr Cheape advised that no one had been excluded from any meeting; that the meeting of 29 June was arranged with the resident at whose house it was held; and that in suggesting that items at the access be moved he had been seeking to improve relations rather than recording any agreement. He confirmed that what FDCC had done was done in good faith and expressed regret that it had not helped.
• MoP set out concerns regarding a private water supply crossing land proposed for a permanent car park and the terms of a servitude agreement offered by the school. These matters relate to private property and civil rights between the parties and, consistent with the guidance recorded at item 6.1, fall outside FDCC's remit. They are recorded here as raised, and not as matters FDCC has investigated or determined.

4.4 Crook of Devon Shop and Post Office

• Correspondence has been received from residents concerned about a reported change of ownership. Members noted that the shop has been closed recently and without power, that stock levels have reduced, and that FDCC had previously seen and queried a licensing application relating to the premises.

5. Consultations

5.1 Draft Visitor Levy Scheme for Perth and Kinross

• PKC opened a 12-week statutory consultation on 19 August, closing on 11 November. There is no levy at present and no decision has been taken; under the legislation a levy could not take effect until at least 18 months after any decision is announced.
• The draft scheme proposes a fixed charge of £4 per room per night, which the Council estimates would raise around £8 million a year, ring-fenced for visitor-related spend. Accommodation providers would retain 2.5 per cent of the levy collected towards the cost of administering it. Residents registered for council tax within the Perth and Kinross area would be exempt, along with other exempt groups.
• A drop-in session will be held at Loch Leven Community Campus, Kinross on 24 September, 4pm to 7pm.
• Views were invited and no support for the proposal was expressed. MoP considered that a levy at all would be a bad idea, that Perth and Kinross is not comparable to destinations which are overrun with visitors, and that a charge risks deterring the visitors the area seeks to attract. It was noted that a lower nightly cost can generate more revenue overall, and an instance was cited of a visitor to the Edinburgh Festival choosing to travel in each day rather than stay in the city following the introduction of the levy there. A resident attending the drop-in session offered to report back on the wider view.

5.2 Green Living Fund 2026

• Applications opened on 24 August and close on 5 October, with £252,000 available across Perth and Kinross. Awards are decided by a public vote held between 26 October and 23 November. In the previous round 29 projects shared almost £152,000.
• The Development Trust's paths group is considering a bid for equipment to help maintain the core paths. Suggestions for any other project were invited from members and residents.

5.3 A977 traffic calming -- Crook of Devon, Powmill and Blairingone

• FDCC's response was submitted to PKC on 15 June. A substantive response is still awaited.

6. Community Council Business

6.1 FDCC remit -- written guidance from PKC

• FDCC sought confirmation from PKC of its terms of reference. The guidance confirms that FDCC's role is to gather and represent community opinion, and that it should not involve itself in matters relating solely to private or civil disputes which fall outside the interests of the community as a whole. FDCC may decide not to devote meeting time to such matters.
• Residents are asked to send items for the agenda to FDCC in advance, which assists in preparing the agenda. FDCC will also publicise forthcoming meetings and consultations on the Facebook page and, in due course, the new website, so that residents are not left unaware of matters affecting them.

6.2 Small Fund

• FDCCllr Pye reported that TSB has suspended the fund's account pending the provision of documentation about the fund and its origins.
• A list of the funding priorities on which the fund currently operates will be prepared and brought back to FDCC for approval and possible amendment, with the opportunity for residents to comment.

6.3 Fossoway Development Trust

• The Trust's project covers removal of silt from the Mill lade, repointing of the stone bridge over it on the way to Fossoway Primary School, replacement of parts at the Scout Camp swimming pool, and replacement of two sluice gates with simpler stop logs, primarily at the Scout Camp end where most of the silt lies. Members advised that much of the work has already been carried out.

6.4 Sustainability Group

• The group meets four times a year. The next meetings are on 19 November 2026 and 18 February 2027, both at 7:00pm, venues to be confirmed. FDCCllr Bacon volunteered to attend on 19 November.

6.5 Councillors' travel expenses

• FDCCllr Pye reported that FDCC previously met councillors' travel expenses for attendance at monthly and other meetings, but that payment was suspended two years ago. PKC's grant has increased this year, and the original approval has never been rescinded and so remains in place.

Action agreed: That payment of councillors' travel expenses recommence, subject to sufficient funds remaining at the year end. Proposed by FDCCllr Pye and seconded by FDCCllr Cheape. Approved.

7. PKC Business -- Councillors' Reports

No ward councillor was present. The following matters were raised for referral to the ward councillors.

• Footpath flooding at the Devon bridge -- a road drain identified as one cause was repaired by the Council last year. Surface water also runs off the car park and adjacent building opposite, where there is no grid to intercept it, carrying gravel and mud across the road and flooding the footpath. As this requires new infrastructure rather than repair of an existing asset, and PKC now clears drains only on failure, residents were asked to report the matter through MyPKC and to provide the case reference, and FDCC will ask the ward councillors to make a formal representation to Highways for a permanent solution.
• MoP also reported a drain at the foot of the Aldie Road, opposite the lane, which is permanently flooded and has not been cleared, and which may contribute to the water reaching the road below.
• Water quality in the River Devon -- MoP reported grey discolouration during a prolonged dry spell, distinct from the brown colour seen after heavy rain. A member noted that fields upstream have been cultivated for reseeding and that runoff into the Gairney Burn could contribute. MoP will report the matter to SEPA with photographs, noting the location observed, and will advise FDCC of the outcome. Difficulties in using the SEPA reporting website were noted.
• Deer on the A977 -- MoP reported several sightings of deer crossing the A977 near Powmill and Crook of Devon, and road casualties, including a red deer stag. Members noted that there are no wild red deer locally and that the animals are likely to have come from the deer park, suggesting a gap in the fencing. FDCC will raise the matter with the ward councillors, ask whether any incidents have been reported, and ask whether the fencing and the case for warning signage should be reviewed.

8. Planning Matters

8.1 Planning applications

Objection submitted since the last meeting

26/01097/FLL -- Erection of 2 dwellinghouses and associated works, Land 45 metres north-west of County Fabrics, The Watermill, Crook of Devon. FDCC submitted an objection on 19 August. The objection does not oppose the principle of residential development, established by an earlier application, nor the fact that two dwellings are now proposed in place of one. It rests on the adequacy of the information provided on flood risk and drainage, protection of the Mill lade, neighbouring amenity, and access and road safety, the local road network being used by children and families travelling to the school as well as privacy concerns. FDCC indicated it would be likely to withdraw its objection if the application is amended or the information expanded to resolve these matters.

New

26/01000/FLL -- Erection of a replacement dwellinghouse, Fish Farm Cottage, Crook of Devon. Comments by 11 September. No information or views were offered; no comment to be lodged.

26/01121/FLL -- Erection of storage building, Unit 1, Devon Business Park, Rumbling Bridge. Comments by 11 September. Members recognised the site as the recently established builder's yard off the main road and considered a storage building unsurprising for a business operating from it. The site was described as tidy. A query was raised as to whether further development is intended, and the outdoor storage racks at the rear were noted. No objection.

26/01167/FLL -- Extension to dwellinghouse and erection of garden building, Kingswood, Drum. Comments by 10 September. No information or views were offered; no comment to be lodged.

Ongoing

25/01468/FLL -- Children's play area (temporary), formation of 36 car parking spaces, 4 EV chargers, bicycle rack and associated works, Seamab School, Rumbling Bridge. The application is listed for committee on 9 September with a recommendation for approval. Details of the meeting and of the arrangements for speaking are recorded at item 3.5.

8.2 Planning decisions -- No decisions were announced since the last meeting, either at committee or under delegated powers.

9. Wider PKC Business and AOCB

9.1 Milnathort & Orwell Community Council

• FDCC has been copied into their letter to the planners seeking an embargo on large-scale development north of Springfield Road, Kinross, pending infrastructure improvements. Noted, members expressing general agreement with the position despite the site lying outside the FDCC area.

9.2 Devonshaw Quarry, Powmill (23/00491/FLM) -- drainage

• Correspondence received from a resident on 28 August reports that SEPA has granted a permit for discharge to ground rather than to a watercourse, moving the discharge point to a soakaway near the Gartwhinzean SSSI and reducing the capacity of the scheme.
• PKC advised on 31 August that the applicant cannot meet Condition 31 and will submit a new planning application for the drainage arrangements, which will be subject to the usual consultation and public comment. FDCC objected to the original application and anticipates responding again unless satisfied by the revised arrangements.

9.3 Seamab School -- absconding incident

• MoP reported that on the previous Friday a child left the school grounds, crossing an adjoining field and onto the A977, with traffic backing up towards Powmill until the police attended. It was noted that residents locally are aware of this, that passing drivers have no reason to expect children at that point, and that the school perimeter is not fenced.
• It was agreed to report the incident to Police Scotland and to suggest that the school's perimeter security be reviewed.

10. Date, Time and Venue of Next Meeting

Tuesday 6th October 2026, 7:30 pm -- Crook of Devon Hall. During the meeting an AGM will be held.

Action List