Local Authority News
11/7/2024
Highland Councils Multi-award-winning Hydro Ness Lands Another Prestigious Award
Highland Council's multi-award-winning renewable energy installation, Hydro Ness, has scooped another national design award. Hydro Ness and designer Leslie Hutt Architect received a prestigious Royal Institute of Architects in Scotland award at a ceremony at the National Galleries of Scotland on 3 June 2024.
8/7/2024
Ecology Strategy And Action Plan Consultation Now Open
Highland Council today (8 July 2024) launched a 12-week public consultation on its draft Ecology Strategy and Action Plan. The draft Ecology Strategy and Action Plan was approved at May's meeting of Highland Council's Economy and Infrastructure Committee and sets out an ambitious set of actions to tackle biodiversity loss and address the ecological emergency. Chair of the Economy and Infrastructure Committee, Cllr Ken Gowans, said: "The climate and ecological emergencies are interconnected, and biodiversity loss threatens our well-being and survival.
4/7/2024
Wick Centre Main Streets - 3 Weeks of Road Resurfacing and Drainage works
Highland council have announced resurfacing & drainage works being carried out on A99 Cliff Road, Bridge Street, High Street, George Street & North Road in Wick from Thursday 4 Jul 24 for approx 3 weeks. Road closure will be in place from Wed 10Jul - Sat 14 Jul between 10am & 3pm daily for the corner of Bridge Street & High Street to enable works.2/7/2024
New Public Toilets Finally Opened In Wick
A shining example of partnership in action has enabled the reopening of a much-needed public convenience in Wick which was closed for two years due to significant vandalism and anti-social behaviour. The town of Wick has over 7,500 residents, is a community hub for the surrounding local rural area of East Caithness and has seen a considerable increase in the number of visitors due to the popularity of the NC500 and the increase in staycation visitors.
2/7/2024
Roads Across Highland To Benefit Over 20 Years From The £2.1bn Highland Investment Plan
Highland Council's £2.1 billion twenty-year investment plan will add significant capital on top of existing and additional new commitments of £50 million for roads and transport infrastructure agreed as part of the 2024 budget setting process. £63.4m will be spent on roads and infrastructure improvements over the next 3 years.
1/7/2024
The Highland Campervan And Motorhome Scheme - £40 For Seven Days
A new voluntary scheme is now open to all campervan and motorhome users travelling across Highland, with the principle aim of delivering sustainable and responsible tourism in the Highlands. Earlier this year, the public, partners, and the Highland Council's staff were invited to take part in a survey and share suggestions ahead of the Council's budget for 2024/25.27/6/2024
Addressing The Housing Challenge In Highland
Highland Council has agreed a number of strategic objectives with the aim of finding solutions to a Highland Housing Challenge. It is anticipated that 24,000 new houses will be required in Highland in the next ten years.26/6/2024
Staff Recognised In Highland Council Staff Recognition Award Ceremony 2024
Council staff have been recognised in the Highland Council's Staff Recognition Awards on Friday 21 June. Convener, Bill Lobban said: "Congratulations to everyone, both those who won awards, but also to all those who were nominated and shortlisted for the Highland Council Staff Recognition Awards 2024.
26/6/2024
Local Government 2023-24 Provisional Outturn And 2024-25 Budget Estimates
The Chief Statistician has released figures on 2023-24 provisional outturn and 2024-25 budget estimates for revenue and capital services provided by local authorities. In 2023-24, net revenue expenditure on local authority services was provisionally reported as £14,627 million in 2023-24 and budgeted as £15,005 million for 2024-25.19/6/2024
Council Tax Reduction Supports Over 450,000 Households
Scotland's Chief Statistician today released the latest annual Council Tax Reduction statistics. In March 2024, Scotland’s Council Tax Reduction scheme supported 461,550 households (an increase of 1.6 per cent from 454,350 in March 2023) and the total weekly income forgone by local authorities was £7.543 million (an increase of 2.4 per cent from £7.364 million in March 2023).18/6/2024
Local Feedback Sought For The Highland Local Living Tool
Communities and businesses are being called on to help inform an interactive tool which assesses how well Highland places meet the principles of local living. ‘Local living' aims to provide people the ability to meet the majority of their daily needs within a reasonable distance to their home.
13/6/2024
Applications Open For Education Maintenance Allowance 2024/25 - 4th-6th Year Pupils - allowance of £30 per week
All eligible young people are being encouraged to apply for a weekly, term time allowance of £30 per week from August 2024. The Highland Council administers Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) in respect of eligible young people from across its 29 secondary schools.12/6/2024
Final Business Case For Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport Endorsed
Members of the Council's Economy and Infrastructure Committee have endorsed the Final Business Case (FBC) for the Inverness and Cromarty Firth Green Freeport, signifying another major step forward in the development of Highland as a global centre for Green Energy and inward investment. Chair of the Economy and Infrastructure Committee, Cllr Ken Gowans welcomed the report.8/6/2024
Candidates Confirmed By Highland Council For UK Parliamentary General Election 2024
14 candidates are seeking election on Thursday 4 July 2024 for the two Highland UK Parliamentary constituencies:. 7 candidates are standing in the Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency 7 candidates in the Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire constituency.6/6/2024
Highland Voters Urged To Prepare For Upcoming UK General Election
Residents in the two Highland Constituencies - Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross and Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire are being urged to prepare ahead of the UK parliamentary general election taking place on Thursday 4 July. Anyone who wants to have their say in the UK general election must be registered to vote by Tuesday 18 June.
31/5/2024
Parents And Carers As Partners In Their Children's Education
The Parental Engagement Strategy aims to build on good practice and create further opportunities for partnership working between schools and parents/carers; supporting parents and carers as partners in their children's education and welcoming their involvement in school life. Cllr John Finlayson, Education Chair said: "There are great benefits to parents/carers being involved in their children’s learning from helping them with homework and forming stronger connections with the school through events and volunteering opportunities.31/5/2024
Young Carers Statement - Help From Highland Council
A simple and digitally accessible plan is available to any child or young person in Highland who cares for another person. Cllr John Finlayson, Education Chair said: "Young Carers do an incredible job to help look after those closest to them, and it can be a challenge to find time or the words for conversations around their own wellbeing and future.30/5/2024
Visitor Levy Bill Passed By Scottish Parliament And Highland Council Welcomes It
MSPs have backed legislation giving councils a new power to introduce a visitor levy that would raise funding for local visitor facilities and services. The Visitor Levy (Scotland) Bill will enable local authorities to apply a levy on overnight stays with all money raised to be reinvested in services and facilities largely used by tourists and business visitors.30/5/2024
Draft Community Wealth Building Strategy - Your Chance To Have Your Say
The Highland Council has today (Wednesday 29 May 2024) launched a survey to capture comments on its' draft strategy on Community Wealth Building. Community Wealth Building provides an alternative approach to economic development and a practical response that aims to keep wealth within a local area.
28/5/2024
