Press Release from Clackmannanshire Council - for more information visit www.clacksweb.org.uk

Councillors have agreed to merge the management of Tower Nursery School with Park Primary School while retaining the existing building following a consultation exercise.

The Council consulted on two options during the process, which ran from 26th January to 16th March.

The first option proposed relocating the nursery class into Park Primary building and a second option proposed merging the management of the school while retaining the separate accommodation.

As part of the process, the Council held a public meeting where the advantages and disadvantages of each option were explained. A Parent Council meeting was also held to discuss the proposals. Discussions have also taken place with staff and pupils.

A total of 60 responses to the proposal were received and the favoured option was a merger of management. This means the head teacher of Park Primary School will also be the nursery head teacher. Tower nursery, which will maintain the same number of nursery places, will become the nursery class of Park Primary from August 2011 operating in the separate nursery building nearby.

Councillor George Matchett, Inclusion Portfolio Holder, said: "I am delighted to learn that children from Tower and Park were also consulted along with staff and parents as part of the exercise to hear the views of all.

"HMIE have found that there is a sound case for the proposal and they agree that there will be educational benefits for the children of both the nursery and the primary school with the management merger.

"I have every confidence that the head teacher of Park Primary School will welcome the addition of the nursery class and, with her staff, will ensure that colleagues from the nursery are quickly and warmly welcomed into the staff team of the school and, even more importantly, the children of both the nursery class and those in the primary school will benefit from this new arrangement."

Press Release from Clackmannanshire Council - for more information visit www.clacksweb.org.uk

The Council's first ESOL event in the service's new home at Alloa Library was a great success.

The informal 'coffee and conversation' event attracted 50 people and visitors were treated to a taste of Scotland thanks to donations of Mrs Tilly's tablet and clootie dumpling.

Learners of all levels, their families and friends were invited to attend. The Council runs the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) programme for migrant adults who come to live and work in Clackmannanshire.

Nations represented at the event included: China, Venezuela, Russia, Latvia, Poland, Spain as well as England and Scotland.

The event was a chance for these different nationalities to get to know each other and English language levels ranged from complete beginners to advanced.

As a result of the event the Council received 15 new inquiries for ESOL classes and also met potential volunteers interested in helping with the ESOL provision in Clackmannanshire.

For more information about ESOL provision in Clackmannanshire call 450000, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or go online to www.clacksweb.org.uk/learning/learningenglish/

Press Release from Clackmannanshire Council - for more information visit www.clacksweb.org.uk

A Council-run café has been presented with a Healthy Living Award for plating up healthier dishes for its customers.

The Centre Space café has been based at Elim Pentecostal Church in Alloa for the past two years. It was previously based at Click Learning Centre in Alloa. The café provides work skills training in catering for around 20 adults with learning disabilities and is run in partnership by Clackmannanshire Council's Adult Day Services and The Scottish Society for Autism.

The Healthy Living Awards recognise all kinds of catering establishments, from sandwich shops to staff restaurants, which help its customers to make better food choices. The award is managed and delivered by Consumer Focus Scotland and funded by the Scottish Government.

Working in the café provides an opportunity for Centre Space's service users to train for recognised qualifications in the catering and hospitality industry as well as gain hands-on experience working in a kitchen with the support of an experienced support staff.

Councillor Janet Cadenhead, Regeneration Portfolio Holder, said: "The café made subtle changes which make a big difference to their customers' health. They grill or oven cook food instead of frying; use low fat products and healthier choices are highlighted on menus using a traffic light system as advised by Consumer Focus Scotland. The café plays an important role in increasing our service users' confidence and skills, many of whom want to get a job in the catering industry."

She added: "My congratulations go to everyone involved in achieving this award. The Healthy Living Award is a brilliant way to help businesses and keep customers healthier and happier. It rewards catering establishments for dishing up healthier food and finding ways of helping their customers make better food choices. Eating out plays an important and increasing part in people's lives and what people are increasingly looking for is good healthier food. So by becoming involved with the Healthy Living Award the café is responding to consumer demand and playing a part in changing the Scottish diet for the better."

The café received a grant from NHS Forth Valley to buy equipment which helped them to obtain the award. A new fridge was bought to display fruit, yoghurts and healthy drinks and a new smoothie / milkshake maker was also purchased. The remainder of the grant will be used to buy food for tasting sessions to encourage customers to eat more fruit, veg, smoothies and milkshakes.

The café relocated from Elim Pentecostal Church to Greenfield House on 26th April 2011 where Centre Space are providing the same healthy menu to Council staff.