Adoption is a way of providing a new family for children who cannot be brought up by their own parents.  It is a legal procedure in which all the parental responsibility is transferred to the adopters. 

Once an adoption order has been granted it cannot be reversed except in extremely rare circumstances.  An adopted child loses all legal ties with their first mother and father (the 'birth parents') and becomes a full member of the new family, usually taking the family's name.  For more information see the section on adoption.

Attendance Allowance (AA)  is a benefit paid to people who claim after their 65th birthday and who need help because of illness or disability.  It is similar to DLA but it is only paid in respect of help with care.  For more information, contact your local Social Work office.

Copies of birth, death, marriage and civil partnership extracts (certificates) can be obtained from your local Registration Office.

As of January 2007 you can obtain copies of extracts from any part of Scotland at any Registration Office in Scotland.

The Borders Voluntary Community Care Forum (BVCCF) is an independent voluntary organisation which represents the interests of local people in the planning and provision of community care. The Forum has a Border-wide membership of interested individuals and groups who represent service users, carers and voluntary organisations.

The key aims of the forum are:

• to provide a focal point for consultation and representation
• to enable users/carers to have a voice in community care
• to support the development of new projects and services in community care
• to work in partnership with all agencies to improve the quality of community care services in the Scottish Borders.

The BVCCF also assists in the provision of information about community care and promotes training opportunities for its members.  If you have any concerns you wish to raise or, if you are interested in the work of the Forum and would like to get involved in any of their activities, you can contact them at:

Borders Voluntary Community Care Forum
34 Woodmarket
Kelso, TD5 7AX
Tel: 01573 226969
Email: admin@bvccf.org.uk
Website: www.bvccf.org.uk 
More information

The only benefit specifically for carers is Carer's Allowance (CA) which is paid to carers who are looking after a disabled person.  You may be able to claim other benefits if you are on a low income.

Community Care is the name given to the range of services which support adults (aged 16 and over, 18 and over for some services) who are in need of care and support.  Our aim is to assist people to live as independently as possible and to have choice about where and how they live their lives.  Assistance may be for a few weeks or longer and can be provided in a variety of different ways and settings.  In order to provide this support, we work closely with other agencies such as NHS Borders, voluntary organisations and private providers. 

More information about Community Care

Please contact your local Social Work office for more information about how to get a Community Care service.  You can also ask your Community Nurse or your key Health Worker. You can also ask someone else to contact Social Work on your behalf.

More information...

We would ask all respondents to use the Comments Form when submitting their response. This will help us record responses properly.

The deadline for the receipt of observations on the Consultative Draft Local Plan was the 29th October 2004.

The Scottish Borders Local Plan sets out the Council’s approach to the development and use of land. Together with the Scottish Borders Structure Plan (approved in November 2002) it forms the statutory development plan for the Scottish Borders. The Local Plan contains the Council’s policies and proposals to guide development over the period up to 2011.

The Local Plan is currently at the Consultative Draft stage. Observations on the Consultative Draft Plan will be taken into consideration in drawing up the Finalised Local Plan. This is the version of the Plan that is placed ‘on deposit’ for the receipt of formal objections. A public local inquiry into these objections has to be held by an independent reporter from the Scottish Executive Reporters Unit. Following the public local inquiry and the reporter’s findings, the Council is then in a position to adopt the Plan.

Yes, the Council Has a Corporate Property Asset Strategy and Management Plan which sets out the broad strategy for the management of the Council’s property assets in order to maximise their contribution to the Council’s corporate and service goals and objectives as economically, efficiently and effectively as possible. you can download a copy of this document

Services for people with dementia are supported by specialist teams within Social Work.  Please contact your local Social Work office for more information about how we may be able to help meet the particular needs of people with dementia and their carers.

Contact the Housing Strategy Team to find out how you can make your home more energy efficient.   You may also find useful information on the Housing Forum website (the link will take you to another site).

If you are, do not despair as the Money Advice Section can help you.

To get in touch please telephone Melrose (01896) 823922, or pop into the Trading Standards Office, St Dunstans, High Street, Melrose.  We are open from 8:45am to 5:00pm Monday to Thursday and from 8:45am to 3:45pm on Fridays.  You can also email us.

Do not ignore the problem, as it will not go away. Take action now and seek advice - the Money Advice team will be glad to help.

You can stop these by registering with The Direct Marketing Association at DMA House, 70 Margaret Street, London, W1W 8SS

For mail:  Mail Preference Services (MPS)
Telephone 020 7291 3310 Fax 020 7323 4226
or register by email at mps@dma.org.uk or through the MPS website

For telephone calls:  Telephone Preference Service (TPS)
Telephone 020 7291 3320  Fax 020 7323 4226
or register by email on tps@dma.org.uk or through the TPS website

For faxes: Facsimile Preference Service (FPS)
Telephone 020 7291 3330  Fax 020 7323 4226
or register by email at fps@dma.org.uk or through the FPS website

For e-mails register through the DMA website

You can buy your home if you have been a tenant for two or more years and your tenancy began prior to September 2002.  If your tenancy began after that date, you must be a tenant for at least five years before being able to buy the house.

Scottish Borders Council's council housing stock was transferred to Scottish Borders Housing Association on 3 March 2003.  If you were previously a tenant of the Council, you should contact SBHA Head Office on 01896 661500.  To find out more about the 'Right to Buy' your former Council house, contact your current landlord.

More information about housing is available on the Scottish Borders Housing Forum website (this link will take you to another site).

For further information on how to buy your house, please phone the relevant Area Office in Galashiels (01896 754751); Hawick (01450 375991) or Peebles (01721 720153).

This is a warning that the Housing Association may take Court action against you to recover your home. It does not mean you have to move out. It does not affect your right to stay in the home.

It does not affect your duty to pay your rent. It is the first step in the legal process which could lead to you being evicted if you don’t pay your rent or you break one of the conditions of your lease.

The only people who can legally buy the home are the people living there. If a relative lives with you, then yes they can be on the form or buy the home. In addition, a relative can help with the cost if they don’t live in the home but the purchase itself must be in the tenant’s name.

Please contact the relevant Area Office in Galashiels (01896 754751); Hawick (01450 375991) or Peebles (01721 720153).

The Guide to Housing Options on the Scottish Borders Housing Forum website provides information to help you make informed housing decisions (this will take you to another website).  You may also wish to contact the Housing Strategy Team.

The Local Housing Strategy is produced by the Housing Strategy Team.  Information can also be found on the Scottish Borders Housing Forum website (this will take you to an external website).

You can sell the home straight away but if you do this within one year of buying it, you will have to pay back all of the discount that you got when you bought the home. If you sell the home within two years of buying it, you have to pay back two-thirds of the discount. If you sell the home within three years, you have to pay back one-third of the discount. You need to hold on to the home for a full three years before you can sell it without having to pay money back to the Housing Association.

The price of a home is set by the District Valuer and will depend on things like how long you have been a tenant, the size and age of the home and any improvements that have been done to it.

If the person you look after is severely disabled and they are under the age of 65, they may be eligible for assistance under the Independent Living Fund.  They must be in receipt of the highest rate of Disability Living Allowance Care Component and have been assessed by Social Work as requiring more than £200 worth of community care services in order to remain living at home.  The maximum weekly payment for the Independent Living (1993) Fund is £420 per week and for the Independent Living (Extension) Fund, i.e. for those who first claimed after 1993, is £715 per week. 

Please contact your local  office for more information.

Meals at Home is a service delivering pre-cooked, frozen meals to you in your own home.  This service is for people with community care needs who are unable to shop or prepare meals for themselves.  Delivered direct to your freezer, the service offers an extensive menu of high-quality, nutritious meals, giving you the flexibility to have a hot meal when you want it.

This is one of a number of Care at Home services arranged by Scottish Borders Council Social Work Services.  We have commissioned the Women's Royal Voluntary Service (WRVS) to provide this service to you.

If the council feel that the noise is a nuisance in terms of The Environmental Protection Act 1990, they may serve notice on the person causing the noise, in order to rectify the problem. Contact the Environmental Health Service.

Either contact the Royal Mail Postcode Centre in Inverness direct on 01463 256213 or the relevant Area office. See the Home page for details.

SB Local comprises dedicated three man squads & specialist vehicles with a unique livery in the Tweeddale, Cheviot and Teviot & Liddesdale areas which provide a rapid response to minor day-to-day environmental issues that affect roads, parks and cleansing. These include minor road & footway repairs, litter control, dog fouling, small scale drainage issues, cleaning and repairing signs, bus shelter cleansing, cutting back vegetation and temporarily repairing potholes.

The squads can deal with minor safety matters quickly & efficiently and can help the police and other emergency services to clear roads following an incident, thus minimising the disruption to the public. Contact SBLocal by e-mail or call the dedicated Freephone number 0800 3761030.

Please write, telephone or fax the relevant Area Office:

• Duns Area Office: Council Offices, Newtown Street, Duns TD11 3DT - Tel: 01361 882600  Fax: 01361 886111
• Galashiels Area Office: Council Offices, Albert Place, Galashiels TD1 3DL - Tel: 01896 754751  Fax: 01896 662711
• Hawick Area Office: Council Offices, High Street, Hawick TD9 9EF - Tel: 01450 375991  Fax: 01450 364711
• Peebles Area Office: Council Offices, Rosetta Road, Peebles EH45 8HG - Tel: 01721 720153  Fax: 01721 726311

The Wilton Centre provides support for children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties who are unable to access full-time mainstream education.  The Primary resource is managed solely by the Education and Lifelong Learning Department, while the Secondary resource is managed by both Social Work and Education and Lifelong Learning.

If you would like more information, please contact your local Social Work office and ask to speak to a member of the Children and Families team.

You can contact any of the Plans and Research team at Council Headquarters (Tel. 01835 825060) or the Area Development Control Officer in the Council’s Planning & Economic Development offices.

Alternatively you may email us.

The Structure Plan and the Local Plans cost £25 plus £5 for postage and packaging. The Village Plans cost £10 plus £5 for postage and packaging.

The Scottish Borders Finalised Local Plan is available on CD-Rom for £5. A hard copy of this plan costs £60.

Make out a cheque for the correct amount payable to Scottish Borders Council. Write to the Council, stating which plan(s) you would like to buy and including a cheque for the correct amount. Write to Plans and Research, Planning and Economic Development, Council Headquarters, Newtown St Boswells, Melrose TD6 0SA.

Check the A to Z list of settlements below and their Development Plan documents.

There are reference copies of all these documents at local libraries and PED receptions at Council Headquarters. The relevant Council Offices are :

• Newtown Street, Duns,
• Albert Place, Galashiels,
• High Street, Hawick,
• Newtown St Boswells,
• Rosetta Road, Peebles.

The Structure Plan is also available online.

The Structure Plan, which is approved by Scottish Ministers, provides a long term vision for the Scottish Borders, looking forward at least ten years. It provides an overview of the area’s development requirements, and considers the functions and inter-relationship of places. It expresses the settlement strategy for the area and identifies priorities for urban and rural regeneration.

There must be a genuine need for LEADER+ funds. EU grants are only to be used as gap funding (the minimum funding required to allow the project to proceed and where no other funding can be secured). LEADER+ will not fund continuation of projects, but can make things bigger and better!

Yes. Voluntary and community groups can apply for up to 30% of their first year’s grant allocation. All other grant is reclaimed after it is spent.

Further information is available from the LEADER+ co-ordinator.

Unfortunately we didn’t make up the rules! The rules for administering LEADER+ grants are set by the European Commission. All European funds are carefully monitored and controlled. The EU (or Scottish Executive) auditors will only accept original invoices and proof of payment (ideally receipted invoices, or bank statements to prove the money was spent on those items). By carrying out monitoring visits and studying your claims carefully, we hope to ensure any visit from the EU or Scottish Executive is as painless as possible.

Claims are normally processed in 7-10 working days.

You must keep all original invoices, bank statements, evidence of publicity e.g. press releases, newspaper articles, evidence of project progress and completion e.g. photos, reports/ studies, questionnaires until at least 31 December 2012.

Draft claims can be sent electronically, but a paper version (signed in blue ink) must be sent to the Secretariat.

These are themes which run through all EU funding schemes, including the LEADER+ Programme. Environmental protection is a key part in the promotion of sustainable development. Equal opportunities ensures that everyone is included in project activities.

Yes. It is important that projects spend money as projected. There are annual programme targets to be achieved in the Scottish Borders LEADER+ Programme. If targets are not reached, money will be lost from the Programme. This means less money is available for future projects in the Scottish Borders.

Yes, contributions ‘in-kind’ (or volunteer time) can be used. The levels of ‘in-kind’ contributions must be agreed as part of the project approval process and must be reasonable to the tasks being carried out. Further information is available from the LEADER+ co-ordinator.

You can use Lottery funding, your organisation’s funds, landfill tax, etc.

You cannot use other types of European funding e.g. Objective 2, Objective 3.

The EU is very careful to ensure its money is spent appropriately. It needs to see the money has been spent (hence original receipted invoices) and it needs to see how the money has been spent. Outputs show how the project is progressing, and the end result. The Scottish Borders LEADER+ Business Plan has target outputs to achieve by the end of the Programme.

Yes, if the application is for a new project.

The EU auditors will only accept original invoices and proof of payment (ideally receipted invoices, or bank statements to prove the money was spent on those items).

The project manager is responsible for ensuring the project runs smoothly, all paperwork is correct, and the targets are achieved.

Claims must be submitted quarterly as a minimum (you can claim more often). This ensures regular draw-down of funds which helps the LEADER+ Programme meet its "N+2" expenditure commitment. If "N+2" targets are not reached, money will be lost from the Programme. This means less money is available for future projects in the Scottish Borders.

The Programme has 3 deadlines each year. Applications are normally processed within 5 weeks of these deadlines. Please contact the LEADER+ Co-ordinator if this will cause problems.

Your organisation should identify someone who will take responsibility for the project.

LEADER+ funding comes from the European Union (EU). The EU is very careful to ensure its money is spent appropriately, but it can take some time before it can do all its checks. The EU and the Scottish Executive can audit any project they choose, at any point, up until 31 December 2012. If paperwork is not in order, the grant can be reclaimed.

Projects receive an initial monitoring visit to check they fully understand the claim process and how to monitor their project. The Secretariat also provides advice on the correct completion of claims.

The Scottish Borders has an area of 4743 square kilometres which is 1831 square miles.

You should tell the Area Network Officer who is based at your local Area Roads Office. He or she will have the pavement inspected and made safe if it is considered a serious hazard. It will then be prioritised

for permanent repair in a future pavement maintenance programme.

In the first instance contact our Traffic and Road Safety section. There are a number of factors that need looked at before any decision could be made.

You should tell the Area Network Officer who is based at your local Area Roads Office. He or she will have the pothole inspected and temporarily repaired and then prioritise it for permanent repair in a future road patching programme.

The Environmental Health Service has a duty to deal with abandoned vehicles, and can carry out the necessary procedure to have notices placed on the vehicles and the vehicle removed. Contact your Environmental Health Office who will deal with this matter.

The Archaeology Officer deals with all matters concerning archaeology. The Archaeology Officer can be contacted by telephone (01835 825060), by email or in writing to:

Planning and Economic Development

Scottish Borders Council

Council HQ

Newtown St Boswells

Melrose

TD6 0SA

Biodiversity is another term for Biological Diversity, that is the whole variety of life on Earth.

The then Scottish Executive launched the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy in May 2004. One of its main concerns is to get more people involved in saving our natural heritage. This is where you can help out.

After the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, the UK Government took a leading role and produced the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UKBAP) in 1995. Locally this is put into practice by the Scottish Borders LBAP which was launched in 2001.

You can report any problems concerning dog fouling in public places to the Council by telephoning our Cleansing Service on 0800 376 1030 or by e-mail . If you want us to act upon a specific incident or incidents we need as much information as you can provide.

Yes, the council can sample the water and have it analysed. Contact your Environmental Health Office for information on costs or to arrange a visit.

Employers are required to keep their business premises at a reasonable temperature in terms of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. This Act is administered by Environmental Health officers and if you contact them they will advise you further on how this may be resolved.