A series of Information Days will take place across the Highlands to give people the opportunity to find out how they can get involved in shaping the future of the Highlands. These events have been arranged to complement the official ten week public consultation on the Highland-wide Local Development Plan which starts on Monday 31 August.
Forthcoming Seminar at the ERI, Thursday 3rd September 2009, 17:00 A requiem or renaissance for mixed-pine forest ecosystems in the northern Lake States of the USA? Speaker: Dr Charles Goebel - Ohio State University Dr Charles Goebel is an Associate Professor of Forest Ecosystem Restoration and Ecology in the School of Environment and Natural Resources at The Ohio State University in Wooster, Ohio, USA. His research program focuses on understanding how natural and human disturbances influence the composition, structure, and function of forest ecosystems.
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (August 27th) sold 7,475 store lambs and breeding sheep at their annual sale. Suffolk cross lambs (2,706) averaged £50.06 and sold to £63 gross from Bogallan, North Kessock.
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (August, 25th) sold 65 prime cattle. Prime bullocks (30) averaged 170.8p (-2.9p) and sold to 189p per kg and £1,292.85 gross.
Two small areas of radioactive contamination have been detected during a survey of grazing land adjacent to the former nuclear research site at Dounreay. They were excavated and removed to the site for analysis.
More than a hundred fragments of spent nuclear fuel were removed from the seabed in the latest phase of work to clean up and shut down the former nuclear research site at Dounreay. The particles were detected and retrieved by a remotely-operated vehicle that systematically scanned an area of seabed equivalent in size to more than 10 football pitches.
The Highland Council has received a Certificate of Excellence for its work relating to authenticity testing of branded spirits. Trading Standards Officer, Glenys Brown has received an award from the International Federation of Spirit Producers UK, (IFSPUK) in recognition of her work as an enforcement officer in protecting the consumer from illegal spirit substitution.
Residents, Community Councils and community representatives in the Caithness Wards of Wick, Thurso and Landward have the opportunity to say what they think the area should be like in the future at their Joint Ward Forum on Tuesday 8th September. In the run up to this meeting there will also be an opportunity for people to take part in two special information days as part of the Council's consultation on the new Highland-wide Local Development Plan.
A new information resource has been produced by The Highland Council on its web site: www.highland.gov.uk to help customers better understand Council Tax. The Focus on Council Tax, which has been written by Business & Technical Support staff in the Finance Service, is a useful reference site on all Council Tax matters.
This is the latest challenge Dounreay's Prototype Fast Reactor decommissioning team have had to conquer. Once an integral part of the heat transfer system, the first of the four colossal metal tanks was safely removed from the redundant plant last week.
IMI Announces Increase To ATA Network Following Agreement With City & Guilds The Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) has announced an agreement with the qualification awarding body City & Guilds to further extend the network of centres offering Automotive Technician Accreditation (ATA). ATA is a national, voluntary accreditation scheme designed to test the current competency of individuals working in the automotive sector and is regulated by the IMI, the industry Sector Skills Council and professional association.
Inverness College UHI has opened today a new and innovative enterprise centre based in the Highlands of Scotland, called CREATE. The centre will be dedicated to enterprise learning and enterprise initiatives for all students.
Poor advice from rail staff means that some passengers could be paying more than double the cheapest train fare, reveals an investigation by Which? The consumer champion asked staff at station ticket offices and the National Rail Enquiries (NRE) call centre about the cheapest way to take specific journeys by train*. Two thirds of station clerks and four in ten call centre staff failed to quote the cheapest fare, with the correct answer given in just 93 out of 200 questions**.
Members of The Highland Council's Resources Committee have approved a proposal which will streamline its property maintenance services and clarify the roles and responsibilities of its maintenance teams. Three similar post types have been merged into the generic post of Maintenance Officer.
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (August 20th) sold 8,204 store lambs at their annual sale. Cheviot wedder lambs (5,395) averaged £43.12 and sold to £60 gross for a single from Raasay Home Farm, Isle of Raasay.
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (August, 19th) sold at its weekly store sale 169 store cattle, 45 breeding cattle and 66 OTM cattle. Bullocks (69) averaged 188.1p and sold to 255.2p per kg and £870 gross.
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (August, 18th) sold 77 prime cattle. Prime bullocks (33) averaged 173.7p (+6.2p) and sold to 186p per kg and £1,271.00 gross.
A new £1.2 million centre has opened in Inverness to improve outcomes for children and young people with Autism Spectrum Disorders and their families throughout Highland. The Pines is a purpose-built building, which has been funded by The Highland Council and NHS Highland to provide improved diagnostic, assessment and support services for children and young people who may be affected by autism.
Workshop 1 Topic: Entrepreneurial Sales and Product Marketing Date: 3rd - 4th September 2009 Location: The Drumossie Hotel, Inverness Cost: £395 Workshop 2 Topic: Recruiting and Building a World Class Sales & Management Team Date: 23rd - 24th November 2009 Location: TBC Cost: £395 Workshop 3 Topic: Leadership and Operational Excellence Date: March 2010 Location: TBC Cost: £395 Workshop 4 Topic: TBC Date: June 2010 Location: TBC Cost: £395 Workshop 5 Topic: Entrepreneurial Financial Strategies for Sustainable Growth Date: August 2010 Location: TBC Cost: £395 Background MIT is one of the world's pre-eminent research and entrepreneurship universities, dedicated to advancing knowledge and educating students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century. It has an open business model that welcomes partnerships and collaborations from businesses, organisations and governments around the world.
Councillor Bill Fernie, Chairman of the Council's Education, Culture and Sport Committee, and Hugh Fraser, The Highland Council's Director of Education, Culture and Sport, welcomed 112 probationer teachers who will be working in Highland schools in the new session at their induction day in Inverness. The new teachers will be starting work in schools across the Highlands on Monday (17 August).
