SMAG
Action in Marchmont
South Meadows Action Group (SMAG)
Newsletter
August 2025
‘Persistence is the driving force behind enduring success’
Dear SMAG Member,
Progress on Bin Hub Review
With the Review deadline closing in early June and the Summer holidays arriving, as expected, we have seen no official notice about the progress of the Review. So, now we have to re-open the discussion with the Council (CEC) to ensure that the topic stays on the agenda!!
If you haven’t already asked the question, we would like all SMAG members that made application for a Bin Hub Review to write to their councillors, with copies to their MSPs and MP, asking for a specific update!
Contact details for councillors etc., are as follows:
Councillors
https://democracy.edinburgh.gov.uk/mgFindMember.aspx
MSPs
https://www.parliament.scot/msps?ReturnUrl=&PostCode=G1G80
https://www.parliament.scot/msps/current-and-previous-msps/search-results?postcode=eh91en
MP/Secretary of State for Scotland
A simple note setting out your request should suffice:
Quote
Dear Councillor,
On June XX I submitted a request to the CEC for a review of the Bin Hub No YYY/located at ZZZ. I have heard no news since then and I would be grateful if you could engage with this process so that I can get a progress report from the Council body delegated to carry out this review.
Yours
A SMAG Resident.
Unquote
As we said before: If we miss this chance it may take years to get another one. The next CEC Election will be in 2027, so we don’t want to have to wait until then!!
Liaison with Marchmont & Sciennes Community Council (MSCC)
SMAG will attend MSCC Meetings to look after our interests and will report back. There was no meeting in August.
Noise around the Bin Hubs
We are also still waiting for news of the ‘review’ from the CEC and their intentions about the glass noise around the Bun Hubs. Once the main location review is progressed we will start to address this noise issue.
Reporting Bin Hub Mis-Use(flt-tipping/overfilling/etc)
These activities all damage our environment and detract from our ‘Conservation Area’ status. In order to improve this we encourage SMAG members to report such abuse (preferably with photos) to the Council via the web link to the CEC Bin Complaints section:
https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/communalbin
Other Bin Hub Issues
Apart from fly-tipping there seems to be an issues with graffiti drawing on the hubs. To this end, please let us know, on the email, of any newsworthy incidents or events that you find, so that we can alert our press contacts.
Using and Promoting the SMAG website
The website www.smagsco.org is our official site. Please visit, and tell your friends and neighbours.
Please send a copy of your photos of any Bin Hub abuse to the SMAG website here:
[email protected] .…….so that they can be posted publicly.
We intend to use the SMAG website to highlight current issues and to make regular reports. We plan to publicise our situation again, later in the year. So, please pass any thoughts or ideas to:
New Town Waste
We are in contact with some of the New Town residents that are engaging with the CEC as the Bin Hub programme expands into their area. We will keep you posted of any developments.
Next SMAG Committee Meeting and your own Ideas
Our next SMAG Committee meeting will be in Mid-September. Any thoughts / ideas you may have, or any views you wish to share with the Committee, should be emailed to:
Help us to make these changes and our thanks for your support
Kate, Alastair, June, Silke