MORAY COUNCIL OFFICES will take a full two-week break with the local authority revealing that they will close over the Christmas and New Year holiday.
Staff will leave their desks at 3pm on Friday, December 23 and will not return until 8.45am on Wednesday, January 4. However, several staff will be on hand to deal with emergencies while different arrangements have been put in place to a raft of services through the holidays.
The emergency out-of-hours service will continue to operate throughout for all council services, including matters of child protection, and can be contacted on 03457 565656.
Community Care at Home will be in operation from December 27 to 30 and on January 3 from 8.45am until 5pm. The out-of-hours service will operated on December 24, 25, 26 and 31 as well as January 1 and 2 from 7am to 10pm.
Arrangements for other services throughout Moray will be as follows:
Swimming pools, fitness centres and community centres
Buckie Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre, Forres Swimming Pool and Fitness Centre, Keith Sports and Community Centre, Lossiemouth Sports and Community Centre and Speyside Sports and Community Centre will be closed from 1pm on Saturday, December 24 to Monday, December 26 inclusive. A holiday timetable will operate from Tuesday, December 27 to Friday, December 30 inclusive.
The centres will also be closed from Saturday, December 31 to Monday, January 2 inclusive, with a holiday timetable operating on Tuesday, January 3. Normal timetables will resume on Wednesday, January 4, with swimming lessons restarting on Monday, January 9.
Cullen Community and Residential Centre will be closed from Thursday, December 22 to Wednesday, January 4 inclusive. The normal timetable will resume on Thursday, January 5.
Forres House Community Centre will be closed from Saturday, December 24 to Tuesday, January 3 inclusive, with the normal timetable resuming on Wednesday, January 4.
Elgin Sports and Community Centre and Milne’s Learning Centre Fitness Room will be closed from Friday, December 23 to Tuesday, January 3 inclusive. Normal timetables will resume on Wednesday, January 4.
Football pitches and pavilions
All will be closed from Sunday, December 25 to Tuesday, January 3 inclusive.
Refuse and recycling
Household collections of residual waste (green bin) and garden/food waste (brown bin) will continue to alternate weekly and recycling containers will continue to be serviced fortnightly over the festive period.
Collections may be carried out earlier than normal and containers should be presented for 7.30am.
All services, including recycling centres, will be closed on December 25 and 26 and on January 1 and 2.
Collections which would normally be made on Monday, December 26 will instead be made on Saturday, December 31.
Collections which would normally be made on Monday, January 2 will instead be made on Saturday, January 7.
The special collections and waste hotline will be closed from 3pm on Friday, December 23 until 9am on Wednesday, January 4..
Excess waste, including old Christmas trees, can be taken to the recycling centres at Chanonry in Elgin, Gollachy at Buckie, Waterford in Forres and Balloch Road, Keith.
Public conveniences
All public conveniences will be closed on December 25 and 26 and on January 1 and 2.
Car parks
The St Giles and Batchen Lane multi-storey car parks in Elgin will be closed on December 25 and January 1. They will close at 7pm the previous evening and reopen at 9am the following day. Alternative street level parking is available.
Libraries
All libraries will operate normal opening hours on Saturday, December 24 with the exception of Elgin library which will close at 2pm. All libraries will be closed on December 26, 27, 30 and 31 and on January 2 and 3. Normal opening hours will apply on December 28 and 29.
The mobile library service will not operate from Monday, December 26 to Friday, January 6 inclusive.
Registrars
The Elgin office will close at 3pm on Friday, December 23 but will open, strictly by appointment, on Wednesday, December 28 and Thursday, December 29 for death registration purposes only. It will then close from Friday, December 30 to Wednesday, January 4 inclusive.
Should a registrar require to be contacted urgently, call 01542 887505 or 07923 552678.