Residents of Crieff turned out in droves on Saturday at a local community Open Day. The purpose of the day was to decide what should be on the town’s ‘to do list’ for the next five years. The event was organised jointly by the Crieff Community Trust Steering Group (CCT), Crieff Community Council and the Crieff and Upper Strathearn Partnership (CUSP).

Organisers estimate that around 500 people attended the event. The day was particularly well-attended by families — with children and young people from the local schools and other community music groups providing entertainment throughout the day.

The Crieff Community Trust Steering Group received Lottery Funding earlier this year to develop a community action plan. Interviews and focus groups took place over the summer with a wide range of community representatives of all ages. A survey of local businesses was also carried out. The findings have been distilled into a list of potential community projects.

Ailsa Campbell, Vice-chair of CCT, said: “The purpose of the Open Day was to feed back to the people of Crieff the results of the research which has been taking place over the past few months, and to get people to vote for what they see as the priorities for action over the next few years. We are delighted that so many people turned out on the day and that more than 300 adults took part in the voting. We’re also pleased that more than 100 people have already signed up to become members of the Crieff Community Trust. The Trust can’t be effective unless it has a large membership and is seen to have solid support from the community.”

Angus MacDonald, Chair of CUSP, added: “The results of this exercise will provide the basis for community groups to begin to tackle some of the big issues in Crieff.”

The action plan will be finalised over the next few months and will be officially launched early in the new year. In the meantime, the next step is to invite people to come forward to be part of the different working groups that will take the projects forward.

Graham Donaldson, from the Crieff Community Council said: “This event showed what we can achieve in Crieff when we all work together. This is just a first step, but there was a real community purpose on the day and a sense of gathering momentum.”

Anyone who couldn’t make it on Saturday, but who would like to get more actively involved, should email the Crieff Community Trust at crieffcommunitytrust@gmail.com.

The organisers would like to thank everyone who came on the day. A huge thank you is due to the all artists, musicians, dancers and community groups who gave their time and efforts to make the day such a success, and to the Strathearn Community Campus, which provided the room and refreshments on the day.