Over 140 delegates from across Europe will be arriving in Inverness next week to take part in a conference looking at ways European destinations can promote the growth of sustainable tourism in mountain areas. The Sustainable Active Tourism Conference is being organised by The Highland Council in partnership with Euromontana to put the spot light on current issues surrounding developing tourism in mountain areas across Europe.
Council to consult on draft supplementary guidance for small-scale wind turbine proposals The Highland Council, in recognition of the demand and potential of small-scale wind turbine developments has produced Draft Supplementary Guidance and now wishes to consult over the proposals. Chairman of the PED committee, Councillor Ian Ross said: "The development of small-scale renewables, particularly of wind generators, can make a significant contribution to meeting energy needs at a local level.
New tourism campaign promotes autumn and winter in the Highlands Inspiring ideas are part of the national tourism organisation's marketing campaign, Surprise Yourself, which aims to highlight the more surprising aspects of the Highlands to visitors in the coming months. A new direct mail campaign, created by VisitScotland and in partnership with the Highland Council, will be delivered to around 50,000 households this month, encouraging those who may already be familiar with the Highlands to discover more of what the region has to offer during the autumn and winter months.
A £7.961 million six month services fee has been set for the arms length organisation "High life Highland" which will deliver community learning and leisure services for The Highland Council. Members of the Council's Education, Culture and Sport (ECS) Service have agreed to a half year budget of £7.082 million and service level agreement costs of £0.879 million from 1 October 2011 to the end of March 2012.
The Highland Council is underlining its commitment to tackling flooding by issuing improved and more detailed guidance to developers on how to address flooding matters when they design and implement their proposals for development. During the autumn, the Council will ask the public and the development industry to comment on a draft of this new advice, which has been prepared in conjunction with technical input from various sources including the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.
Member of The Highland Council's Education, Culture and Sport Committee have welcomed a report on SQA exam results for Highland pupils in 2011. The report stated that: "overall the results were very encouraging, remain above the national average and show a consistent overall performance in most categories of exam results".
The Highland Council's Trading Standards is reminding all businesses selling tobacco that they have less than three weeks to register with the Scottish Government if they wish to continue to sell tobacco products. I October is the deadline for tobacco retailers to register on the Scottish Tobacco Retailer Register which has been open for registration since 1St April 2011.
Highland Beautiful Scotland winner announced Wick picked up a major prize on Monday 12th September 2011 at Keep Scotland Beautiful's prestigious Beautiful Scotland award ceremony in the Pavilion, Rothesay on the Isle of Bute. The award was presented by the Chief Executive of Keep Scotland Beautiful, Derek Robertson, and Scottish actor and comedian, Johnny Beattie.
The Highland Council is inviting suitably qualified and experienced contractors to apply for inclusion on a select list of tenderers for the statutory inspection and testing of taxis and private hire vehicles under one contract covering the entire Council area. The service to be provided covers 1,029 taxi and private hire vehicle inspections each year to both MOT and the current Council standard (equivalent to the Vehicle Inspectorate Car and Light Commercial Inspection).
Candidates wishing to serve their local Community Councils in the Highlands for the next four years have until 4 pm on Tuesday 4 October to present their nominations. The maximum membership of each of the 153 Highland Community Councils is determined by the population it serves and varies from 7 - 13 members.
South West Inverness Flood Relief Channel - Fourth and Final Phase Highland Councillors have given the go ahead for the fourth and final phase of a £16 million scheme to protect 600 houses, which are at risk of flooding on the south side of Inverness. The final phase of the South-West Inverness flood relief channel lies between Old town of Leys and the Alt na Skiah Burn to the south of Fairways Golf course.
Entrepreneurs from across Ross and Cromarty will be able to tap into the knowledge of an Internet wizard and a business expert when Business Gateway takes a stall at this year's Black Isle Gathering and A Grand Day Out which is being part financed by the Scottish Government and the European Community Highland LEADER 2007-2013 Programme with support from The Highland Council. It is the first time that the local office of Scotland's national business advisory service will be present at the gathering which takes place on Saturday September 24th at Fortrose Academy.
Councillor Thomas Prag, Inverness South, has been elected as a Director of the Board of High Life Highland, the new arms length company which will deliver community learning and leisure services on behalf of the Council from 1 October. Councillor Prag replaces Councillor David Fallows, Badenoch and Strathspey, who resigned his membership due to a conflict of interest with his role as Chairman of the Council's Audit and Standards Committee.
The Highland Council is to constructively engage with the Scottish Government as a matter of urgency to ensure that a single police service and a single fire service in Scotland reflects the distinctive needs of the Highlands. Councillors are eager to protect staffing levels in local communities.
First Minister Alex Salmond has announced that the Scottish Government will bring forward legislation to establish a single service for police and a single service for fire and rescue. In response, Councillor Ian Ross, Vice-Convener of the Northern Joint Police Board, said: "The Northern Joint Police Board presented a well argued case for a regional Police solution as part of the consultation process, but we must now respect the Scottish Government's right to take forward a single force structure in Scotland.
The Highland Council has appointed a new Depute Chief Executive. He is Steve Barron, the Council's Director of Housing and Property.
Week commencing 22nd August: Energy: Graeme Rankin of the NDA Competition team and Anna MacConnell, the NDA's Stakeholder Relations and Socio-Economic Manager, updated several local stakeholders on current position with the Dounreay PBO competition. It was good to have the timetable for the remainder of the competition process laid out clearly, with the preferred bidder announcement due in late November and share transfer from current to new PBO scheduled for the beginning of April 2012.
Ever wondered what goes on behind closed doors? Every September, the national Doors Open Days offers free access to landmark buildings, private homes and usually private work spaces that the public never normally get a chance to see. The Highland programme is co-ordinated by The Highland Council and Inverness City Heritage Trust.
North American signal crayfish, a small lobster-like species that can have a devastating effect on native wildlife has been found in a pond in Ballachulish Quarry according to The Highland Council. Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) has confirmed the find.
The Highland Council has appointed a new Head of Planning and Building Standards. He is Malcolm MacLeod, the Council's Development Plans Manager.