Clean Air Day is the UK's largest campaign dedicated to raising awareness on air pollution and the focus this year is on educating the public about air quality and encouraging active travel and alternative transport options. To celebrate the day, the Council's Environmental Health Team are organising an event at Falcon Square, Inverness which will be a good opportunity to raise awareness on air pollution and share knowledge on sustainable travel options.
Unemployment in the UK rose to 4.4% at the end of April 2024. While this is by no means a worrying level of joblessness for an economy, it is the highest since September 2021, in the second year of the COVID pandemic, when it reached 4.4%.
The Sutherland Area Committee has allocated funding from Community Regeneration Fund (CRF) underspend at a recent committee meeting (14 May 2024) to enable a team of four Seasonal Access Rangers to begin patrolling the NC500 and coastal areas until the end of October, and possibly some continuation over winter. Rangers will patrol sites and engage with visitors to ensure awareness of the Outdoor Access Code, and other legislation, such as parking and environmental health.
A number of applications were awarded Community Regeneration Funding totalling £195,872.38 in Sutherland. Community Regeneration Funding is an umbrella term for a number of funds that are available for communities and organisations to access in Highland.
Progress at Sutherland Spaceport continues at pace and we're happy to share the latest developments that have taken place over the last few months, working alongside our Principal Contractor, Dynamic Concepts. Here's a quick overview our recent achievements, some behind the scenes photos and an update about what lies ahead.
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The Highlands and Islands Food and Drink Awards 2024 is being launched today, with 16 exciting categories open for entries. Now in its 19th year the awards aim to acknowledge and celebrate the breadth of industry talent based in the Highlands and Islands.
The Scottish Government is currently conducting a substantial review of permitted development rights (PDR) as part of its wider planning reform programme. The review is being taken forward on a phased basis, with each phase focusing on new and extended PDR for specific types of development.
As the number of adverts on digital platforms promoting illegal waste collection services hits an all-time high, Scotland's environmental regulator is tackling environmental criminality in the online world. The digital regulation pilot led by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has already identified that between 50 to 60% of businesses advertising on social media could be breaking the law by operating without holding the required waste carrier licence - and people handing over their waste may be contributing to flytipping and other waste crime.
The number of overdue invoices in Scotland reached a 16-month high in February, according to new research from R3, the UK's insolvency and restructuring trade body. R3's analysis of data provided by Creditsafe shows that business in Scotland had 428,824 unpaid invoices on their books last month - the highest monthly total since October 2022’s figure of 593,114.
Orbex, the only UK owned orbital launch services and rocket manufacturing company, has successfully patented its REFLIGHT reusable rocket technology following patent approval in several European markets as well as the United States. This protection was based on the patent grant by the European Patent Office.
A new high-quality toilet facility to help alleviate pressures at Gairloch has now opened. The project was brought to fruition by a community partnership driven by Gairloch Area Development Ltd, supported by The Highland Council and Visit Scotland.
A community project to extend a museum in Dornoch has been able to enhance its environmental credentials after securing a £30,157 investment from HIE. The £560,000 project to extend the Historylinks Museum is being taken forward by Dornoch Heritage SCIO, the community group that operates the attraction.
On 14 March, the Highland Council took the decision to permanently close Gergask Primary School. All school closures in Scotland must be ratified by Scottish Ministers.
A woman in her 80s was cold called this week and told that she was due to pay £189 as a final instalment for a TV repair contract. The woman was unsure which company was calling but was worried that she owed them money, so agreed to provide her card details and make the payment.
I am a conservation biologist who studies emerging infectious diseases. When people ask me what I think the next pandemic will be I often say that we are in the midst of one - it's just afflicting a great many species more than ours.
ScotRail is showing its support for Scottish Apprenticeship Week by announcing more apprenticeship opportunities for young people in Scotland and championing the achievements of those already on an early careers' pathway within the train operator. New apprenticeships will be created to provide valuable employment and training for young people across Scotland, with positions available in sectors ranging from engineering and administration to customer service.
Apprenticeships, spirits and culture were on the agenda as UK Government Minister for Scotland John Lamont embarked on a series of stakeholder engagements. To mark the start of Scottish Apprenticeship Week (Monday March 4, 2024), Minister Lamont dropped in to multinational financial corporation JPMorgan Chase & Co in Glasgow to meet with apprentices and hear about the firm's work.
A review of Community Rights to Buy will begin this summer to look at how effective current powers are. Community Right to Buy has now been in use for 20 years.
A record number 95.3% of Highland school leavers in the last year have gone into a positive destination including employment, higher education, further education, training, personal skills development and voluntary work. Education Chair, Cllr John Finlayson said: "I am delighted that this year we have more young people than ever before leaving school into a positive destination.
