Call to extend consultation
A woman has called for North Lanarkshire Council to extend its consultation period for its proposed new town hubs.
L ouise Murphy has looked over the plans for Shotts but believes not enough people know about the widespread changes which are set to take place.
She is calling an extension to the consulation period on the hubs .
Louise said: “Given the fundamental and radical changes proposed to Shotts I do not believe the level and type of consultation carried out so far meets the threshold of good governance, openness and transparency.
“The public consultation process I believe has fallen below established standards and my fear is that these fundamental and radical plans for Shotts will be pushed through effectively under the radar without proper public consultation with the council using Covid as an excuse.
“It’s a strange stance to take really since North Lanarkshire Council were able to run two by-elections recently, including one in Shotts, and the Scottish Government are pressing ahead with the national elections in just six weeks time?
“The council also managed to get everyone’s council tax bill through the post.
“Why could they not have sent out information about the town hubs and even just point them to the North Lanarkshire Council website.
“I’ve asked for the consultation process to be restarted as the current consultation closes on April 7.
“I would start the consultation process again but this time hold a series of in person meetings at various community venues in Shotts.
“I would like them to please ensure that these public events are well publicised and provide more than one method for providing feedback.”
The council envisage three different types of hub.
Town hubs are likely to include primary and secondary education and an early years’ facility.
Other services on offer will be larger in scale, such as more comprehensive sport, culture and leisure facilities and a wider range of council and partner services.
Community hubs are likely to include at least one learning establishment and may include other zones such as sport and leisure.
Small community hubs may exist in areas where there is no requirement for new education facilities but where there is a need to replace older facilities like libraries, community centres and health centres.
A council spokesperson stated that two separate consultations were underway at the same time.
One is on the town visions, the other is for the location of the proposed town hubs.
The spokesperson continued: “The consultations on the proposed locations for the new town hubs have been widely publicised and we’ve had a huge amount of interest from the North Lanarkshire public.
“Town hubs represent a multi-million pound of investment in our communities and are key part of our vision to create a coherent, vibrant and sustainable future for North Lanarkshire.
“The hubs are likely to include primary and secondary education and an early years’ facility.
“Other services on offer will be larger in scale, such as more comprehensive sport, culture and leisure facilities and a wider range of council and partner services.
“The consultations are being arranged in accordance with the current public safety guidance and the surveys allow everyone to share their views.
“People can find out more by visiting www. northlanarkshire.gov.uk/”