Author: Mandi Dorward

Fairer fares across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray 

Local bus operator, Stagecoach, has today announced plans to adjust tickets across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray.  

  • New zones introduced across Aberdeenshire and Moray making shorter local bus trips better value.  
  • Extended NHS Discount to include travel to Aberdeen from Ellon, Inverurie, Stonehaven and Banchory.  
  • New Flexi5 ticket – available only on the mobile app. Buy 5 dayriders for the price of 4.  
  • New child tickets for anyone 5 – 15 years old.  
  • Discounts on Megarider Xtra (monthly subscription) 

From Sunday 7th March a series of changes will be made to bus tickets across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray. The changes have been designed to bring better value to those making short or infrequent local trips.  

Travel advice from the Scottish Government remains to stay at home and only travel if your journey is essential. Bus services have operated throughout the pandemic for those who require the bus to keep connected – key workers and essential shopping trips have been at the heart of the journeys being made by bus.  

New zones will be introduced in Deeside, Mearns and Moray making bus trips more affordable for infrequent short journeys.  

Commenting on the changes, Peter Knight Managing Director at Stagecoach Bluebird said: “Before the pandemic we spent a lot of time analysing changes in travel habits seeing an increase in online shopping and more demand for shorter local journeys. The changes we are making to our tickets in March will bring better value to the local communities who still rely on our services. I’m extremely proud that as part of this change we’ve been able to extend our NHS discount to Inverurie, Ellon, Stoneahven and Banchory as a small thank you for the fantastic work the NHS staff have done throughout the pandemic.” 

The changes also include the introduction of a new flexible ticket offering better value to those using the bus less frequently. The “Flexi5” ticket will be exclusively available on the Stagecoach mobile app from Sunday 7th March and gives one free day travel in every 5 days. The Flexi5 ticket gives the user 5 days of bus travel to use over one calendar month from the date of purchase.  

From Sunday 7th March, child dayrider tickets will also be introduced across all zones as well as discounts for customers who subscribe to the monthly bus ticket “MegaRider Xtra”.  

For all the details on the ticket changes please visit stagecoachbus.com.  

Notes to Editor 

Where to buy your ticket –
On bus – singles, returns, DayRiders, 7 day MegaRider
On the app – DayRiders, Flexi5, 7 day MegaRider
On the website –  7 day MegaRider, MegaRider Xtra, 28 day MegaRider 

Planning Applications

Aberdeenshire Council – Weekly List 15 February 2021

The applications on the attached list have been Registered last week within the Kincardine & Mearns Area of Aberdeenshire Council and can be viewed using the online Planning Register (https://upa.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/online-applications/).

Any person wishing to make comment on an application should do so by the date specified in the list. Please note the date for comment will extend if neighbour notification or advertisement is required. Please quote the reference number and state clearly the grounds for making comment.

Comments can be submitted using the Planning Register when viewing the application. Alternatively, comments can be addressed to Aberdeenshire Council, Planning and Environment Service, Viewmount, Arduthie Road, Stonehaven, AB39 2DQ (or emailed to planningonline@aberdeenshire.gov.uk). Please note that any comment made will be published on the Planning Register.

Please note that some applications require to have site notices posted at the site. As a result of Covid-19, the Scottish Government has passed emergency legislation which now removes this requirement. The alternative is that these notices will be published in the documentation associated with the relevant planning application file published online on the Council’s Planning Public Access Register.

Head of Planning and Environment Service

2021 02 15 Weekly List of Planning Applications – Kincardine & Mearns

Trading Standards

Doorstep Crime, Scams & Safety Bulletin ~ 15

The Scottish Government’s ‘stay-at-home’ order remains in place, meaning that leaving home is only permissible for essential reasons. The order applies to everyone in Scotland, so if someone has cold called at your home they may be in breach of the order and should be reported to Police Scotland for their consideration.

Unsolicited doorstep callers, along with other trades/works people, must adhere to social distancing, hygiene measures and comply with the Scottish Governments Covid-19 requirements for ‘working at people’s homes’. Restrictions placed on the number of people allowed inside or outside of a property must also be adhered to.

 
 Further information can be found at –

https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/

https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-general-guidance-for- safer-workplaces/pages/work-in-other-peoples-homes-faq/

  • Aberdeenshire Trading Standards have ‘No Cold Calling’ stickers that can be displayed at homes to discourage cold callers and inform them that they should not be calling at the property and if they continue to do so they commit a criminal offence. If you would like one of these stickers, please contact the service using our details below.
  • A resident reported receiving a message via Facebook messenger from a friend who advised that if they made an application to the Department of Human and Health Services (DHSS) they could be awarded a substantial sum of money. The resident was asked to purchase £1000 worth of Amazon vouchers and provide a note of the serial numbers to release the £150 000. A further £2500 was requested in Steam vouchers at which point the resident realised it was a scam. The DHSS do not run a scheme like this and no government department will ask for any form of payment by gift voucher.

 

  • Residents continue to report HMRC tax scams. One resident reported receiving a phone call informing them that there was a ‘tax fraud attached to their name’ and another resident received one alleging they were the subject of a tax evasion enquiry and that a warrant has been issued in their name.

More information can be found here –

https://www.scamdetector.com/hmrcscamcall/#:~:text=It%20is%20also%20know n%20as%20the%20Tax%20Evasion,and%20013%2032199360.%20This%20sc heme%20has%20two%20variations

  • A resident was contacted via Instagram with an opportunity to trade in forex using crypto currency. A small amount was traded with this rising exponentially to £12000. When the resident requested to withdraw their money, they were told a fee of £3000 in bitcoin had to be paid.

 

  • Social media platforms are increasingly being used by scammers to target individuals who are looking to invest in crypto currency, shares and other investments. None of these will be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and losing your money is highly likely. A reputable trading or investment company will be regulated by the FCA and will not ask for payment to release funds and certainly not by bitcoin, any that do are most likely scams.

More info can be found here – 

https://www.fca.org.uk/scamsmart/how-avoid- investmentscams?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIlvH0oJDd7gIViu3tCh0O4QfPEAAYASA AEgLY_vD_BwE

  • A local business received an email purporting to be from a senior manager requesting a sum of money and bank details. The email address was very similar to the genuine email but there were subtle differences and it was these that alerted the business to the scam.

 

Contact : 

For urgent Trading Standards matters, contact Aberdeenshire Council’s Trading Standards at 01467 537222. For non-urgent enquiries, please contact Consumer Advice Scotland at https://www.consumeradvice.scot/ or on 0808 164 6000.

Contact Police Scotland on 999 if you need urgent assistance or 101 for non- urgent matters.

For more information about scams please visit Friends Against Scams at

https://www.friendsagainstscams.org.uk/

Please direct any media queries to news@aberdeenshire.gov.uk or 01467 538222 during office hours.

 

Cyber Scotland Webinar

As part of Cyber Scotland Week Neighbourhood Watch Scotland brings you a webinar by Police Scotland.

The  webinar will be delivered by Sergeant Beverly Bowles of Police Scotland and is intended to help raise members’ awareness of their exposure to online risks and providing practical steps they can take to make themselves safer.

This is a practical presentation and no technical knowledge is required. The following topics will be covered:

• What to consider when setting up devices
• Sharing and Privacy when downloading Apps
• What parents should look out for
• Scams
• Q & A

The event will take place on Wednesday 24th February at 11am.  You can register through Eventbrite by clicking the following link – https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/neighbourhood-watch-scotland-cyber-security-basics-tickets-139916525093

Community Development Webinar

The Aberdeenshire Town Centre Toolkit has been developed to showcase successful case studies developed by members of the public, businesses, community councils, voluntary organisations, and the public sector, along with the relevant advice on where to start should a group have an idea, they would like to seek funding for.

This toolkit will be a working document and only gives a snapshot of the exemplar projects that have been developed within Aberdeenshire.  The toolkit also offers advice on funding and showcases supporting partners and agencies.  For further information please see our toolkit here:

https://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/business/support-and-advice/communities/town-centres/town-centre-tool-kit/

To launch this toolkit, Aberdeenshire Council are looking to run a set of webinars to support communities and business groups plan and prepare for any projects or ideas they have and how to take the idea to a shovel ready project.  The first webinar will be on the 3rd March.  The aim of this webinar is to bring together key speakers from a national level to a local level to give community groups and organisations ideas and inspiration on how to ensure their town or group have the right tools, skills, and knowledge in place to make goals and visions a reality.

 

Link for booking:   Community Development Webinar Hints, Tips and Funding