A FURIOUS mum has hit out at Scottish Borders Council over a lack of gritting near her home after she and her three-year-old daughter both sustained injuries after slipping on ice.

Denise Smart and her daughter were both left cut and bruised after tumbling on a pavement near Peebles town centre at the weekend.

They were attempting to make their way from Sainsbury’s towards the Cuddyside when the accident happened on Saturday, December 16.

The youngster banged her face on the pavement while her mum sustained a leg injury.

Denise told us: “The hill was like an ice rink with no salt in sight. I find it a disgrace that this area has not been gritted considering it’s a busy area and it is a well-used road heading to the Cuddy.

“I’m young and fit, so I’m lucky I wasn’t injured that much, but my daughter’s nose was scratched, swollen and bleeding. 

“Had that been an elderly person it could have been a lot worse.

“It is just a disgrace that the whole of Peebles is like an ice rink, both the paths and the road.”

Motorists also faced difficulties on Friday after several vehicles, including a bus, became stuck on the B710 near Clovenfords.

Police briefly closed the carriageway in both directions to allow for further gritting to take place.

And the freeze continued into the weekend. Scottish Borders Council has set routes for road and pavement gritting. 

A spokesman said: “The council has a priority system for footway treatment within the Scottish Borders. 

“Footways within main towns are our first treatment priority.

“These include main shopping areas and key routes to town centres, medical centres, schools and public buildings.

“There is also a secondary footway network but these are only treated when no further treatment of the primary routes is needed and resources allow.

“Peebles experienced difficult wintry conditions at the weekend, but all primary footway routes were gritted Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

“The primary footway routes in each town in the Borders, and more information on the council’s gritting priorities, are available at www.scotborders.gov.uk/gritting.”

Scottish Borders Council has 99 vehicles – 63 gritters and 36 path tractors – serviced and ready for winter call-outs. 

And a total of 1,105 grit bins – 53 more than last year – have already been positioned around the region.

Councillor Gordon Edgar (Ind), who is responsible for roads, told us: “If we do receive a prolonged spell of cold weather, the council has vehicles ready, salt stocked and grit bins across the Borders for the public to use.”