The Highland Council has been shortlisted for 4 APSE Service Awards which celebrate excellence in local public services. Chair of the Communities and Place Committee, Cllr Graham MacKenzie commended the Council staff, he said: "I am very pleased to advise that the Community Operations and Logistics Section has been short listed in 3 categories in the 2022 Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE) Awards.
The Highland Council is inviting communities to apply for a share of the 2022/23 allocation of the Nature Restoration Fund. Established by the Scottish Government, the Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) is a capital fund designed to help support projects that will deliver nature restoration, safeguard wildlife, and tackle the causes of biodiversity loss due to climate change.
The Highland Council warmly welcomed this year's new cohort of probationer teachers to the Highlands at Millburn Academy in Inverness. Highland's newly qualified teachers started work today (Monday 15 August 2022) in schools across the region.
Nominations are being invited from people seeking election to 15 Highland community councils covering areas in Caithness Sutherland, Easter Ross, Wester Ross, Isle of Raasay, the Black Isle, Inverness, Nairnshire, Badenoch and Strathspey and Lochaber. Community Councils are voluntary organisations that express the views and concerns of local people within their area across a wide range of issues from new buildings and roads to local services and facilities.
COSLA leaders meet tomorrow (Friday 5 August 2022) to discuss the local government pay offer and how they can avert substantial, long term, strikes in 1200 schools and early years centres and waste and recycling centres in councils across Scotland . UNISON is urging COSLA to use this leaders meeting to agree a substantially improved pay offer to avert serious disruption across Scotland - otherwise few if any councils will avoid some level of significant disruption.
The Highland Council is urging businesses - particularly those in the tourism and hospitality sectors - to be prepared for the end of relaxation of planning and building warrant controls on 30 September 2022. In line with changes to the COVID-19 guidance from the Scottish Government many of the pandemic mitigations that were put in place in terms of the provision of temporary structures and their uses – are no longer required.
The Highland Council has launched a public consultation to ask people's views on where and how they would like to see free period products made available in the Highland area. In 2021, Scotland became the first country to pass a law to make period products freely available and reasonably easily accessible to anyone who needs them.
At the Highland Council meeting held on, 30 June 2022, elected Members agreed to progress the submission of two separate bids for round two of the UK Levelling Up Fund, these include the North Coast 500 (Transport Bid) and Portree Harbour (standalone Heritage bid). Economy and Infrastructure Committee Chair, Cllr Ken Gowans said: "The Levelling Up Fund offers Highland an opportunity to bid for funds that will make a transformational impact across our communities.
At the Highland Council meeting held yesterday, 30 June 2022, elected Members approved a package of support totalling £3.639m for low-income households and economic growth. The approved package consists of: £0.591m - one-off grants of £125 each will be paid automatically for around 4,700 vulnerable children and young people in Primary 1 to 6th year who received school clothing grants as at 31 May 2022.
Councillor Ron Gunn, who represents the Thurso and Northwest Sutherland Ward of The Highland Council, has been appointed as Chair of the new Caithness Committee which met for the first time (Friday 1 July 2022). After taking the Chair, Cllr Gunn thanked Members for their support and then called for nominations to the roles of Vice Chairs and Civic Leaders for Thurso and Wick.
A report outlining the key points within The Highland Council's annual accounts for the year to 31st March 2022 was presented to full Council today (30 June 2022), ahead of their submission for full audit. The report shows that the Council continued to demonstrate strong financial management during financial year 2021/22, with an overall surplus of £9m recorded against the revenue budget for the general fund.
Members of full Council, who met yesterday - Thursday, 30 June – were presented with a report on the UK Government's Shared Prosperity Fund and provided with an update on the process currently underway to develop a Highland Investment Plan which will determine how the funding may be used locally. A financial allocation of £9,445,515 has been awarded to Highland Council over a three-year period, which runs from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2025.
At the first full Highland Council Committee meeting (30 June 2022), newly elected Members agreed that the Council will implement a trauma informed practice across all Council services. It is estimated that around 60% of the UK population has experienced psychological trauma in their lifetime.
A pioneering bid for Green Freeport status by the Opportunity Cromarty Firth (OCF) consortium today received seismic boost after Members of Highland Council homologated the local authority's cross-chamber support. Members agreed their continued support for the OCF project and Green Freeport bid and acknowledged the potential benefits to the Highland region.
Business operating in the short term letting market may think this is the worst time to add more cost to running what for many is a small business. The Highland Council has set in motion the plans required by the Scottish government to control who can an cannot operate in the region.
The Highland Council wants to hear the views of residents, visitors, interested groups and organisations on the Council's short term let draft policy statement and proposed additional conditions for a licence. Earlier this year the Scottish Parliament approved legislation to introduce a new licensing scheme for short-term let properties, which is due to come into effect on 1 October this year.
Scotland's Chief Statistician today released the latest Council Tax Collection Statistics which provides figures for Scottish local authorities up to and including the financial year 2021-22. In 2021-22 for Scotland as a whole, the total amount of Council Tax billed (after Council Tax Reduction) was £2.723 billion.
Highland Council Licensing Committee agreed today 20 June 2022 to an early review of taxi tariffs that could see a 15 and 20 per cent fare increase. Taxi operators want increases to offset the inflation and increased fuel costs recently.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) is joining forces with the Spirit of the Highlands and Islands project to provide funding support. Spirit of the Highlands and Islands aims to encourage visitors to see all parts of the Highlands and Islands in a sustainable way.
On April 22nd 2021, a custom-fitted articulated lorry was parked outside The Highland Council's Headquarters. The vehicle had been nick-named "Jabbernaut" and staff inside were assisting people in testing themselves for COVID-19.