Highland Council launches new platform to improve online engagement

22nd June 2026

Photograph of Highland Council launches new platform to improve online engagement

The Highland Council has today (Monday 22 June) launched a new online engagement platform which will transform how residents, communities and visitors engage with consultations.

The easy-to-use platform allows anyone to quickly see what projects and proposals are open for consultation and engagement. For registered users, there are interactive mapping and voting capabilities as well as a mechanism for the vital ‘feedback’ loop, to find out what has been agreed and why. People can also set up alerts, so they receive automatic notifications when any consultations are launched in a particular geographic area or on a topic, they are particularly interested in.

Chair of The Highland Council’s Communities and Place Committee, Councillor Graham MacKenzie, said: “The launch of our new engagement platform marks an important step forward in how we listen to and engage with our communities. The platform makes it easier for residents to have their say, share their ideas, and help shape the decisions that affect their lives. We’re committed to making consultation more accessible, transparent and inclusive, ensuring every voice can be heard.”

The first consultation to go live on the platform is about travel between Inverness and the Central Belt.

The Council is inviting residents across the Highland area to share their views on longer-distance travel from Inverness, including how they currently make journeys to places such as Perth, Edinburgh and Glasgow. A short survey is available which should take no longer than 10 minutes to complete. The survey will help the Council to understand what would make these journeys easier, more convenient and better connected in the future.

Cllr MacKenzie added: “I encourage people to register on the new platform as this will allow them to sign up for alerts about the consultations that are most relevant and important to them and to view online and in-person engagement events at a glance.

“Although the new platform will be a fantastic addition to our consultation tools, it does not fully replace other forms of engagement such as drop-in sessions and focus groups. Our Participation and Engagement Strategy consultation showed that people want to influence and shape the decisions that affect them and so we will continue to utilise all forms of engagement to ensure communities have the confidence and means for early engagement and to encourage community involvement wherever possible.”

The new platform can be viewed at www.engage.highland.gov.uk.

However, any current or ongoing consultations can still be viewed at https://www.highland.gov.uk/consultations-complaints-compliments/consultations

 

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