The Highland Council has appointed Ruth Fry as Chief Officer - Human Resources and Communications and Paul Reid as Chief Officer – Facilities and Fleet Management. The appointment of Ruth Fry completes the new senior management structure of the Council's Corporate service cluster under the leadership of Allan Gunn, Assistant Chief Executive – Corporate.
The Highland Council is pleased to announce, that following a period of negotiation and due diligence, it intends to acquire the entire shareholding of D&E Coaches Limited. Provision of home to school transport is a high-cost statutory function of the Council which has caused significant budget pressures in recent years.
Nominations are invited from people seeking election to the Community Councils that have fallen into abeyance since the last round of interim elections and to reform those that have submitted a petition to be reformed. This is your chance to help represent the views of your community to The Highland Council and other public agencies.
At a meeting of the Caithness Committee on 20 January 2025, Members were given a progress update on projects receiving support from the Caithness Place Based Initiative Fund before homologating the re-purposing of £1,556 to the Wick Town Centre Regeneration Project. The £1,556 comes from an underspend in the completed Bus Shelter replacement project.
The information provided is a summary of reports from operational staff and is intended to give a general indication of typical conditions in each area at a point in time. It is not intended to imply that any individual route is entirely snow and ice free and drivers must be aware that conditions can change rapidly and make their own assessment of conditions for travelling.
At a meeting of the Highland Council's Caithness Committee (Monday 20 January 2024) Members have approved £292,162 of funding to make improvements to five play parks. Members agreed at Communities and Place Committee in November 2021 to allocate the funds received from the Scottish Government's Play Park Renewal Fund be apportioned to Area Committees based on a blend of play park conditions.
Members of the Caithness Committee (Monday 20 January 2025) agreed a list of prioritised programme of works for structural overlay/inlay works and surface dressing schemes which will be funded out of the Capital Budget allocation for 2025/26. In March 2024, Members agreed the Roads Capital Budget Allocation for 2025/26 as part of a 3-year investment into Roads.
This week the Council officially launches its new and improved InvestHighland website to promote the wealth of inward investment opportunities and attract the best talent to the area. Invest Highland is supported by The Highland Council and is dedicated to promoting and developing our region as an attractive and sustainable destination for business, international investors, talent and visitors.
Households across Scotland have received £4.1 billion in relief since the Council Tax Reduction scheme was introduced in 2013. People on low incomes are eligible for the benefit if they live in Scotland - there is no equivalent in England where most councils require each household to contribute a minimum amount of council tax, irrespective of ability to do so.
The ambitious yet focused ‘Highland Investment Plan' is committed to addressing our asset challenges over the next twenty years. By using a place based approach, to ensure a more integrated community offering through the creation of new community facilities.
The Highland Council is delighted to share that its Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme has won the Outstanding Project Award at the Scottish Green Energy Awards. Described by Scottish Renewables as a "pioneering clean power scheme", this £7 million project demonstrates the incredible impact that can be achieved through combined public and private sector investment.
A Highland-wide partnership launched earlier in 2024 to support people on their journey towards, into and within employment is looking forward to a New Year in 2025 full of exciting opportunities designed to help hundreds more people across the Highlands unlock their work potential. Work.
The Highland Council is preparing to carry out improvement works in Thurso at Ormlie Road and at The Mall riverside path adjacent to Janet Street. The scope of works on Ormlie Road will include junction improvements between Castlegreen Road and Juniper Drive with new drop kerbs and tactile paving and some surface repairs.
Applications to the Inverness Winter Payments Scheme, which is fully funded by the Inverness Common Fund, have already been awarded to 1,035 eligible households within the 7 specified Inverness Wards. Leader of Inverness Area, Councillor Ian Brown said: "Since the Scheme was opened to applications for this winter, already £114,885 has been awarded to people who live in the eligible Wards of Aird and Loch Ness, Inverness West, Inverness Central, Inverness Ness-side, Inverness Millburn, Culloden and Ardersier and Inverness South Wards.
The Service Centre will close at 5pm on Tuesday 24 December, re-opening on Friday 27 December (opening times 8am to 5pm). It will be closed on 1 and 2 January and open 8am to 5pm from Friday 3 January 2025.
The first Highland-wide virtual jobs fair held last month has proved to be a hit with participants and businesses. The week-long virtual event, which was delivered by the Local Employability Partnership for the West - The Highland Council, Skills Development Scotland, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Department for Work and Pensions, Developing the Young Workforce and UHI North West and Hebrides was timed to coincide with Scottish Careers Week 2024.