School projects are given priority in the spending plans agreed by The Highland Council for the next five years and beyond. More than £150 million has been set aside for school improvements or new schools.
The public is being invited to a "drop in " session and a public meeting later this month to consider the options open to the Council for the upgrade/replacement of Wick High School. The "drop in" session is being held on Monday 28 June at the Assembly Rooms, Wick, between 10 am and 5 pm.
Have you ever thought about trying something new, artistic and creative? Take up music lessons from a qualified teacher. Tuition is given in Piano, Voice and 'Cello, and has no age limit.
FREE Business Gateway Workshops For New and Existing Businesses. Thinking of starting your own business in the next few months, or developing your existing business - then contact Jennifer Irvine, Regional Development Officer, Business Gateway, Caithness.
People who work with children and young people in Caithness have recently been trained to identify and understand the signs of solvent abuse. Training was organised and sponsored by The Highland Council's Youth Action Team and Caithness Drug & Alcohol Forum and delivered by the charity Re-Solv that specialises in volatile substance abuse training.
A £2.4 million project to place 350 fresh academic minds in ambitious businesses across the region is being introduced by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE). Over the next three years small and medium sized businesses and social enterprises from across the region will be supported to employ university students, graduates and post-graduates for up to a year.
A new group is to be set up to help shape the future delivery of local health services in West Caithness. A reference group is to be established to look at the health needs of local people and to consider the best way to meet these needs in the future within the available resources.
The Highland Council is to consult with the public over plans to extend the number of ways the public can pay Council bills, such as Council Tax, Non-Domestic Rates and rent. A bonus for the Council is that it can save at least £400,000 per year through changing the way it collects payments.
A total of 2,300 householders have signed up for the new Citizens' Panel established by The Highland Council to gauge satisfaction with Council services. A performance survey will this week be posted or emailed to panel members seeking their views on a wide range of council services, including contact with the council; satisfaction with services; community life; and how the council can save money given the challenging economic environment and reductions in public funding.
Escape Business Technologies has secured a contract worth up to £100,000 with the Pentland Housing Association in Caithness. This is the first new contract to be secured by the firm's Caithness office, recently launched to serve the growing Highland business community.
New harmonised and non-discriminating terms and conditions of employment for staff of The Highland Council have been agreed and will be implemented no later than 1 October 2010. Following a ballot, trade unions have accepted collective agreement on the Council's proposals and the wording of the agreement will soon be signed by all parties.
Bad habits damage the health of workers and the UK economy. New research from the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) shows that one in five people (21 per cent) in Scotland regularly work all day without taking a break, thereby putting their health at risk.
Old Pulteney Single Malt Scotch whisky is delighted to announce that its annual charity event, The Old Pulteney Prohibition Ball, raised over £5680 for the local RNLI Station in Wick, Caithness. The ball, which took place on Friday, 4th June 2010, commemorates the repeal of Prohibition in Wick and was held for the fourth time after its inauguration in 2007.
The Highland Council has agreed funding of £100,000 over the next three years to complete a funding package which will expand the marine tourism industry between the west of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland. This will see new infrastructure and ancillary harbour services provided at Mallaig and Lochaline and project development work carried out for Kinlochleven, Inverie and the Small Isles.
New measures and ambitious targets unveiled. The Scottish Government today set the nation on the road to becoming a zero waste society by announcing a series of tough new targets and measures to capture the maximum value from different materials, to conserve our finite resources and avoid landfill.
A long term error in the code for the Contact Us page on our Business Index site has now been identified and repaired. This should now mean that any reports of updates to Business details, changes or removals required of properties for sale or rent will now be able to be acted upon instead of being lost to the digital ether.
A specialist manufacturer based in Wick which produces cameras for use in some of the most dangerous and inaccessible places on Earth is focused on new opportunities after investing in cutting edge equipment. Kongsberg Maritime Ltd (KML) has spent over £150,000, including £61,000 from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), to install a Diamond Turning Lathe and monitoring kit which will allow them to develop their own custom built lenses.
Wick Airport is preparing for one of its busiest days ever on Friday (June 11) when it welcomes hundreds of cyclists who are taking part in the inaugural Deloitte Ride Across Britain event. Olympic gold medallists James Cracknell and Rebecca Romero will join Paralympic gold medallists Sarah Storey and Jody Cundy to lead 600 cyclists through Wick this weekend as they pedal their way to Lands End.
Property owners or managers of old or new fascinating buildings in the Highlands are being invited to welcome people of all ages to "get into" their establishments during the 20th annual Doors Open Days being held this September. Co-ordinated nationally by the Scottish Civic Trust, Doors Open Days takes place every September and offers free access to buildings and sites normally closed to the public (or that usually charge for entry).
Caithness and North Sutherland businesses and communities are set to benefit from a newly established renewables fund that will go to helping them deliver 'green' sustainable projects. The fund will be run by a subsidiary company established by Caithness Chamber of Commerce, with the intention that renewable energy developers within the Caithness and North Sutherland area eg wind, marine, tidal and biomass, will have the opportunity to pay into this.
