Balerno Community Council: email us on balernocc@gmail.com
Public meeting
Thursday, July 9 (7.30)
on local place plan
The clock is ticking towards submission of the Local Place Plan and your attendance at the public meeting is requested so you can let us know exactly how you wish Balerno to look in the future.
The venue is St Joseph Hall next to Balerno Parish Church. We look forward to seeing you there.
Balerno Community
Council
We PROVIDE a point for information, MAINTAIN a record of Balerno Community Council (BCC) business and OFFER a vehicle for the whole community to engage with BCC
key date for your diary
Residents are invited to a key public meeting which will help shape the future of the village.
It is in the St Joseph Hall at Balerno Parish Church on Thursday, July 9 at 7.30 and Balerno Community Council (BCC) are convening the meeting as a follow-up to a recent survey which attracted around 250 responses.
Mark Galloway, project lead for the Local Place Plan being put together by a working party of BCC volunteers and interested parties, said the plan was in the final stages of preparation before being handed over to the City of Edinburgh Council.
He added: “That should be in early September, so time is short.”
The council want views as they plan for 2040 and that seems a long way ahead, but they want local views NOW.
Galloway said: “We have heard the voice of local people in the survey, now, as we reach the final stages, we need to hear from the public again.
“That is why a good attendance at the public meeting is so vital.”
Galloway said: “People have commented that the Local Place Plan does not impact on them. It does, as what we tell the council now will have a big impact on what happens to our village going forward.
“If we don’t make a submission then we cannot criticise the council going forward so please put the date in your diary. We need to hear from you.”
The project leader added: “Some may comment that the meeting is in the middle of the holiday season. A fair point, but we don’t set the deadline date for submission and we must make our plans to suit that.”
Survey results
Balerno is pro-improvement and the local residents want better schools, healthcare, facilities, affordable and appropriate housing, and environmental enhancement. Balerno is not anti-change but clearly anti-expansion.
That is the overriding finding of a recent survey conducted as a working group prepares a Local Place Plan (PPP) to submit to the City of Edinburgh Council by September.
Residents firmly oppose Green Belt development, large-scale housing growth and infrastructure lagging behind development.
Locals want preservation over expansion, better basics (roads, access, healthcare) before new development and a more inclusive, accessible, and community-focused village .
The responses on the Main Street point clearly toward physical prevention and consistent enforcement, a real change, as without both, rules are ignored and safety concerns persist
The feedback for Balerno High School is unusually consistent and this is not a “minor upgrade” situation.
The community expects either a new school or a transformational overhaul, combined with safer transport and stronger community integration.
Physical infrastructure in Dean Park School is lagging behind population growth, traffic is the most urgent day-to-day problem and people want a modern, community-focused, future-proof school.
The biggest opportunities are youth provision, upgrading of existing assets (parks, school, library) and the creation a true community hub.
On the potential proposal for a church being built opposite Balerno High School, residents want any future proposal to demonstrate careful consideration of alternative sites, robust mitigation of traffic and parking impacts and clear justification for development on greenfield land, in the context of strong community resistance. Failure to address these issues is likely to result in continued and significant local opposition.
The Pentlands are highly-valued, but visitor pressure is now exceeding what current management can handle. People are not asking for major development, they are asking for stronger protection, better basic infrastructure, clear rules with real enforcement and careful balance between access and preservation
Ravelrig Quarry, operated by Tarmac, produced a layered opinion. The community isn’t divided and everyone wants green/nature, most want access, some want activities, almost none want housing or landfill.
The safest and most supported direction is a rewilded, accessible country park with carefully integrated recreation.
Overall, residents are saying: “We like Balerno, but the infrastructure hasn’t kept up, and what we have needs modernising.”
Residents are not asking for major transformation, they overwhelmingly want protection of what exists, better maintenance, targeted improvements (paths, play, trees, amenities) and any strategy should therefore focus on “protect, maintain, enhance” rather than “develop.”
BCC want to thank everyone who responded to the consultation and a working group continues to review all responses. They will put forward draft proposals based on comments submitted.
BCC are hosting a public meeting at St Joseph Hall next to Balerno Parish Church on Thursday, July 9 (7.30). We look forward to meeting you there.
Balerno, Gateway to The Pentland Hills
Where city meets country
Balerno is a village about seven miles south-west of Edinburgh's city centre and is an area steeped in history.
It sits had the foot of the popular Pentland Hills allowing easy access to the Capital's outdoor playground.
Balerno hosts a Farmers' Market in the Main Street on the second Saturday of every month, apart from January, and there is also an annual Children's Gala.
A feature of the week-long event is a grueling six-mile Rigg Race which attracts leading athletes from all over Central Scotland and Fife.
History of Balerno
Balerno derives its name from the Gaelic, Baile Airneach, which means lowland/town of the hawrhorns. The earliest written records date back to the late 13-century.
The 18th-century brought substantial development, with many new flax, snuff and paper mils around the Water of Leith and its tributary, the Bavelaw Burn. The largest mill, Balerno Bank Mil, closed in the early 1980s.
House building began in earnest after the First World War and it has continued to the present day as Balerno has become one of the places to live in the Lothians.
schools, shops, restaurants and sport
Balerno High School and Dean Park Primary are our two schools and the village also has a Co-op Supermarket and a smaller store nearby.
The Main Street has a pizza and Indian restaurant, fish and chip shop and two popular pub/restaurants plus a chemist and dog grooming parlour and hardware shop.
A well-stocked library is situated in the heart of the village and there is a Community Centre which has recently been given a facelift.
For those interested in sport, there are tennis courts, a bowling green, a rugby club hosting Currie Chieftans, as well as access to fishing in nearby Harlaw and Threipmuir reservoirs.
Golf can be played at Baberton, Dalmahoy and Ratho Park, and there are a number of cycle tracks and walks in the hills and on the nearby Union Canal.
We are also only a few miles from the climbing centre and the Lost Shore surfing centre.
