Caithness & North Sutherland Regeneration Partnership (CNSRP) Business and community leaders heard an upbeat assessment of future prospects for the north as senior partners in Caithness & North Sutherland Regeneration Partnership (CNSRP) met last week in Wick with members of the Partnership's Advisory Board to discuss current issues. Following the meeting, CNSRP Chairman Sir Anthony Cleaver said "This was a particularly good time for our joint meeting as we were able to reflect on the three-year plan we set out in 2007 and to look forward to our current plan for the period 2011-2014.
The Highland Council has welcomed the high level of interest from members of the public applying for positions of directors 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. When the deadline closed on Friday 3 June, the Council had received 35 applications.
HIGHLAND Council's Independent Group held discussions aimed at removing the threat to classroom assistants. The main independent grouping are in coalition with the Lib Dems and Labour.
Council to consider impact of proposed moratorium on rural primary school closures The Highland Council is seeking a meeting with Scottish Cabinet Secretary, Mike Russell, to discuss his request that Scottish councils place a one-year moratorium on rural school closures. The Highland Council is currently reviewing its entire school estate with a view to maximising the educational benefit of all Highland pupils.
The Highland Council is seeking to fill three panel vacancies on the Social Work Complaints Review Committee, which gives impartial consideration to complaints raised by clients of the Social Work Service, their carers or representatives. Complaints may relate to assessments, to their outcomes or to the delivery of Social Work Services.
Pioneering agreements between Highland Council and Historic Scotland paves the way for improved service delivery Following a successful pilot project, the Highland Council is to apply to Historic Scotland for the Removal of Duty to Notify for certain types of category B listed building consent applications. Previously applications for listed building consent for category A and B listed buildings had been formally notified to Historic Scotland who then had an opportunity to review and call in for determination if they disagreed with the council's decision.
The Highland Council's Transport Environmental and Community Services Committee has confirmed a new scale of maximum taxi fares in the Highlands. If there are no appeals against the decision, the increases will take effect from Monday 27 June.
Members of the Halkirk Primary Eco-school committee together with P5 and P6 children, staff, the Highland Council Countryside rangers and local volunteers undertook a litter pick around the school grounds and Halkirk Village on Tuesday 17 May. Several plastic bags of litter were filled by everyone as part of the Keep Scotland Tidy Group's 'National Spring Clean' event.
Students at schools throughout the Highlands will have the chance to meet JLS or Olly Murs on Saturday 2 July by entering the "Your Choice to Healthy Living" competition. The X-Factor runners up will be playing at the Ross County Football Club, Victoria Stadium, in Dingwall this summer, with tickets still available.
Councillors praise Highland residents for success of new refuse and recycling collections The Highland Council says that the transition to the new refuse and recycling collection service introduced to Caithness, Lochaber and Skye at the beginning of April has run very smoothly, thanks in large part to the positive attitude of householders. The changes have seen the introduction to all residents of Skye and Lochalsh, Caithness and Lochaber of a fortnightly recycling collection for paper, cardboard, food tins, drink cans and plastic bottles, alternating with a fortnightly refuse collection.
Highland Councillors have agreed to consult with tenants, residents and social landlords over a proposal to extend Highland's pressured area status from five years to the new maximum period of 10 years to ensure that social rented houses are available to rent in the future. The outcome of the consultation will be reported to the next meeting of the Council's Housing and Social Work Committee on Wednesday 10 August.
Plans to spend £33 million on new school projects in the Highlands were welcomed today by members of The Highland Council's Education, Culture and Sport (ECS) Committee. The unprecedented spending on seven major school building projects is underway or due for completion in either this financial year or during the first half of financial year 2012/13.
Highland Councillors this week welcomed the early boost to the county's tourist season provided by the first cruise ships to visit Scrabster in what will be its busiest season yet for visits by cruise ships. The visits of the Ocean Countess and the Quest attracted hundreds of passengers to key sites in the county, with The Highland Council-funded shuttle bus service between Scrabster and Thurso town centre in particularly heavy demand.
Highland Council and NHS Highland take lead on Fairtrade and Health Promoting Schools guidance Guidance on the sale of Fairtrade food items in Highlands Schools has been endorsed by members of the Council's Education, Culture and Sport Committee. The sale or provision of Fairtrade chocolate as part of pupil education about global trade was one of the drivers in the production of the guidance.
Highland Councillors have agreed in principle to build 750 new council houses over the next five years. Members of The Highland Council's Housing and Social Work Committee have agreed to submit a bid for a programme of 101 new build homes for 2011/12 under the Scottish Government's Innovation and Investment Fund.
The 242 households in Wick which receive their heat and hot water from Caithness Heat and Power (CHaP) have been told that attempts by The Highland Council to find a private operator to take over the district heating system have been unsuccessful and that the Council will now work with residents to reinstate domestic heating systems in their homes. In a letter hand delivered to their homes earlier today (Friday), CHaP Company Secretary, Michelle Morris, Assistant Chief Executive of The Highland Council, advised households that the Council and the directors of CHAP have been striving over a long period to find an operator from the private sector to take over the district heating system The Council was initially involved in discussions with a company called Clearpower.
Motorists in the Highlands are being alerted by The Highland Council that Monday 16 - Friday 20 May is National Walk to School Week and over 11,000 pupils at 89 primary schools throughout the region could create an increase of pedestrians around schools. Walk to School Week is a national campaign with a simple aim - to encourage all parents and children to make walking to school part of their daily routine.
Almost 2,500 Primary 7 pupils from Highland schools will be immersed in the challenging issues of community safety and crime prevention when they attend Safe Highlanders and Islanders events in Inverness and four satelite locations including Fort William, Portree, Lairg and Wick. The Inverness event will take place in Cameron Barracks between 11 and 20 May 2011.
An opportunity has arisen for people with an interest in community learning and leisure services in Highland communities to become involved as Directors of the board of High Life Highland and its trading subsidiary to deliver these services on behalf of The Highland Council. The Council has agreed to establish High Life Highland as a company limited by guarantee (with charitable status) with the Council as the sole member and with a wholly owned trading subsidiary.
The Highland Council's Adult Basic Education Co-ordinator for Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey is seeking volunteers to help locals with their learning. Mohamed Hamada, ABE Co-ordinator is looking for people who might be interested in becoming voluntary tutors.