Local Authority News
3/2/2012
Council Injects Extra £2 million Into Road Maintenance
The Highland Council will be asked to agree an additional £2m for road repairs when it meets next Thursday (9 February 2012). Councillor John Laing, the Chair of TECS Services, said that the extra funding, recommended by the Administration for 2012-13, would be used to address the additional damage to the road network following successive winters when we experienced prolonged periods of very low temperatures, which resulted in damage to roads throughout Scotland.3/2/2012
Council Tax Frozen For Fifth Year
The Highland Council is being recommended to freeze the Council Tax for a fifth successive year and confirm a budget of £602 million for 2012-13 when it meets on Thursday 9 February 2012. Through its three-year budget setting process, the Council has already identified savings of £18.6 million for 2012-13.2/2/2012
Classroom Support In Highland Gets Major Cash Boost
The Highland Council will be asked next week at its budget setting meeting to inject an additional £650,000 into classroom support in primary schools. The recommendation to the full council on Thursday 9 February comes from a Cross-Party Working Group, which has been reviewing the role of classroom assistants in primary schools over the past year.31/1/2012
Dunnet Beach Clean
The north end of Dunnet Beach in Caithness now looks much tidier following a recent public beach clean (on Sunday 29 January 2012) organised by The Highland Council Countryside Rangers. In total throughout the day about fifty people volunteered their time to help pick the litter from the beach which had gathered in great quantities during the winter storms.
31/1/2012
Find Out If Your Business Can Supply Highland Council
Help is at hand for Caithness businesses to supply The Highland Council. A free event aimed at helping businesses to supply The Highland Council will take place on Thursday 9 February 2012 in Thurso.27/1/2012
Crofting Commission Election Attracts 29 Candidates
There will be a contest in five of the six constituencies within the Crofting Commission electoral area. A total of 28 candidates will contest the five constituencies of: · Shetland; · East Highlands (East Sutherland, Easter Ross, East Inverness and Moray); · Western Isles; · West Highlands (West Sutherland, Wester Ross, Skye and Lochalsh); and · South West Highlands (Lochaber, Argyll and Bute, Arran and Cumbrae, Small Isles).24/1/2012
Council select contractor for Stromeferry works
The Highland Council has selected TRAC Engineering Ltd to carry out stabilisation works on the A 890 Stromeferry Bypass which takes traffic between Wester Ross and Lochalsh/Skye and has been closed due to the danger of rockfall since 22 December, last year. Following a rockfall, emergency works were undertaken which did not leave a stable rock slope but which did protect the rail line.23/1/2012
Half million pound boost for Wick's Pulteneytown Area
With the Wick, Pulteneytown Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme (CARS) drawing to an end, The Highland Council's Planning , Environment and Development Committee has awarded two grants and agreed to submit a third to Historic Scotland for approval, worth a total of £486,585. The Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme (CARS), funded by Historic Scotland and the Highland Council, was launched in 2007 to regenerate the Pulteneytown Conservation Area in Wick through the reuse and repair of its historic buildings.23/1/2012
Woodland On Skye Begins Harvesting
Harvesting starts as part of Storr native woodland restoration. Tree felling and harvesting has begun at Storr Woodland, north of Portree on the island of Skye.23/1/2012
Sandown Design Charrette - 30 January - 2 February 2012
The Highland Council are pleased to announce further details of a design charrette to be held for the Sandown site in Nairn from Monday 30 January to Thursday 2 February 2012. The charrette, which will be facilitated by architects - Ironside Farrar - will take the form of an interactive design workshop which will allow the community, local authority and a wide range of stakeholders to come together to discuss and agree design ideas which will be translated into drawings to develop a masterplan for the site.22/1/2012
New Council Offices For Wick
The centre of Wick will see regeneration come to life when work on the new council office begins later this year. Most of the existing council offices at Market Square will be demolished to make way for a modern building whilst retaining Stafford Place - the curved building that is part of High Street.
21/1/2012
New Ferry Timetables at Stromeferry
The introduction on Monday 23 January of an early morning train service between Inverness and Kyle, arriving in Kyle at 8.40 am, has resulted in changes to the timetable of the passenger ferry service which has been introduced between North and South Strome to combat the closure of the A 890 Stromeferry Bypass. Monday - Friday, the 60-passenger Sula Mhor from Plockton will make two return journeys in the morning, leaving South Strome at 8.00 am and 9.20 am, and North Strome at 8.15 am and 9.30 am.20/1/2012
Plans to be drawn up to replace Stromeferry Bypass
As a matter of urgency, Highland Council roads officials have been asked to bring forward options for a long term solution that provides a secure transport link between Wester Ross and Lochalsh. The move came at the Council's Transport Environmental and Community Services Committee today (Thursday) as the result of the closure of the A 890 Stromeferry Bypass - which takes traffic from Lochcarron to Kyle/Plockton and on to Skye - due to landslides and the continuing danger of rock fall.20/1/2012
Deadline Looms For Crofting Commission elections
Eligible candidates are reminded that the deadline for returning nomination papers to seek election to the new Crofting Commission is 4 pm on Thursday 26 January. Six people will be elected by Scotland's crofting community to represent their interests on the Crofting Commission, which will come into effect on 1 April 2012 when it will replace the current Crofters Commission.18/1/2012
Public Meeting At Lochcarron Hears about Rockfall Solutions
250 packed into Lochcarron Village Hall on Monday night for a public meeting regarding the measures being taken short and longer term to combat the closure of the A 890 Stromeferry Bypass between Lochcarron and Kyle/Plockton due to the danger of further rock fall. The meeting was advised that the road was likely to remain closed until at least 17 February, when The Highland Council hoped to be able to reopen the road on a temporary basis.
18/1/2012
Presentation of Top Toilet Awards
Following The Highland Council's success at the Loo of the Year Awards, staff from the Education, Culture and Sport service responsible for looking after the award winning toilets were presented with their certificates at the start of last week's committee meeting. In total the Council won 8 National Category Awards, a further 3 National Awards and a trophy for Thorr House in Thurso.
18/1/2012
Dalai Lama To Visit Inverness In June -TICKETS SOLD OUT
NOTE ALL TICKETS WERE SOLD OUT ON THE FIRST DAY THEY WENT ON SALE FOR INVERNESS Inverness featured in historic visit to Scotland planned for His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Issued by The Edinburgh Inter Faith Association, The Conference of Edinburgh's Religious Leaders, The University of Dundee, Dundee City Council, City of Edinburgh Council, Highland Council and The National Library of Scotland At the invitation of The Conference of Edinburgh's Religious Leaders, The Edinburgh Inter Faith Association, The University of Dundee, Dundee City Council, The City of Edinburgh, Highland Council, and The National Library of Scotland, His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama will visit Scotland from Thursday 21st June until Sunday 24th June 2012.
18/1/2012
Focussing On Providing Opportunities For Young People
With young people facing increasing challenges in finding employment opportunities the Council is taking positive steps to help by launching an action plan to deliver on six key cross-service pledges. Speaking after today's Planning, Environment and Development Committee, Chairman Ian Ross said: "As a Council we are committed to young people and are being proactive in how we provide support.17/1/2012
Scrabster Selected To Be One of 14 Scottish Enterprise Areas
The Scottish Government today announced that Scrabster will be 1 of 14 sites in Scotland's New Enterprise Areas. There are four sectoral areas, and a total of 14 sites within those areas.17/1/2012
