October 2025 update

BRSA Housing Engagement Phase 1 Update: Community Activity: Residents’ Group

Ten local residents attended the meeting. Through discussion it was agreed which issues were of primary concern. These included a build-up of leaves in drains, street lighting and bins and general appearance of railings and planters.

It was agreed we would explore how Angus Council could help address some of the issues and consider how the group can proactively contribute to reducing litter and improving flower planters. There was also an agreement by the group that they would take part in a research project about Police visibility.

The date of the next meeting is 27 October at 6:30pm in JARS, Brechin. All are welcome.

If you are interested in getting involved, and want further information please contact communityresilience@angus.gov.uk

Everyone is welcome.

Resilience Group

The resilience group met on Wednesday 17 September to further explore what the needs were in the local community that can be included in a resilience plan and what can be purchased from the resilience fund to benefit the community in response to any emergency incident. The group explored what would happen in a community and what would be needed if there was a National Power Outage (NPO) in the United Kingdom. Grant from The Crickety also outlined what equipment/ resources they had purchased from their recent successful funding bid from SSEN and how that can contribute to the group’s plan.

The next meeting is Wednesday 22 October at 7pm at The Crickety – all welcome and if you have any questions or ideas contact communityresilience@angus.gov.uk or just come along. We look forward to seeing you then.

Infrastructure

As promised, we’ve made a short video which explains how the flood defences work, including the role of the railings in the historic Inch wall and the pumps.

Housing Engagement

Phase 1 of the BRSA Housing Engagement Plan began after Angus Council approved key recommendations on 26 June 2025. This stage focused on listening to tenants and residents living in BRSA currently or ex Council stock, including those who resided there at the time of Storm Babet, and gathering their views on the future of the area.

Engagement activity

• What we did: written updates, questionnaires, local drop-in sessions, and one-to-one conversations.
• Who we spoke to: tenants and residents in BRSA housing stock, including households affected by Storm Babet.

Why we consulted

• Statutory requirement: the Council must consult tenants and other affected residents before disposing of, transferring, or making significant changes to Council housing under Scottish Government Guidance and related statutory requirements.
• Tenant Participation: this engagement also meets the commitments in our Tenant Participation Strategy to involve the people most affected at an early stage and ensure their views shape any proposals.

Options discussed

• Complete removal of Council housing in the area
• Removal and replacement elsewhere in the town
• Remodelling of the existing housing stock.

Next steps

• Early findings from Phase 1 consultation, including survey results, will be reported to the Housing Committee on 18 November.
• The committee will also consider recommendations to move into Phase 2, which will set out detailed consultation and design work.
• No final decisions will be made without further formal consultation with tenants and residents.

Environmental Improvements

Thanks to valuable feedback from residents received during the housing consultation we’ve taken action to restore and improve the look of the area, specifically to:

• Remove surplus bins
• Clear fly-tipping and debris
• Dismantle damaged fencing

Parks’ staff are also planning ongoing maintenance and one-off improvements that will improve the look of the area for everyone.

Additionally, work is progressing to clear or secure disused sheds and cellars, helping to make the area safer and more welcoming.