Rural Community Gateway

Here are some snippets that have caught the Rural Gateway's attention this week. Keep visiting the site for more round ups.

Two community websites in Skye and Lochalsh are going head to head in a national contest that recognises community efforts. Raasay Community Website and the Skye and Lochalsh Community Toolkit, which have both received funding from Skye and Lochalsh Enterprise (SALE) and the European funded LEADER+ programme, have been short-listed for the Community Enhancement through the Internet Award of the prestigious Calor Scottish Community of the Year Awards for 2005. As part of the project, members of the Raasay Community Association have undergone training to enable them to actively edit and update the website.

From Clive Grewcock: A well known Highland musician, Jennifer Port, has remained true to her rural roots by using her Sutherland home as her base for starting her music business of teaching and performing. Jennifer said: "The nature of my work is very heavy on travelling, particularly when performing, and my schedule is usually hectic so it is nice to keep my home in Golspie as a base and refuge to unwind and have time to deal with business matters."

She has played at a number of celebrity weddings, notably that of Madonna and Guy Ritchie. As well as being a finalist in the Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician 2002 she was commissioned by the Celtic Connections Festival to compose a piece, called “Silver Lining”, reflecting her time growing up in Sutherland. The Prince’s Scottish Youth Business Trust (PSYBT) and Caithness & Sutherland Enterprise have given her financial support.

The people of Mull have been raising funds to build a swimming pool on the island for twenty five years. Having organised many different fundraising initiatives over the years, including a sponsored swim across the Sound of Mull, the islanders are now resorting to selling off their own possessions in a last ditch effort to secure the final £70,000 needed for a £1.7 million public swimming pool.

The Mull Pool Together appeal has set up a community wide auction on eBay, which will run from November until Christmas. Locals are being asked to donate their unwanted treasures and donations are also being sought from a whole host of celebrities who have visited the island. Project fundraiser Maggie Buchanan has received many items for the auction, including autographed goodies from TV’s Terry Wogan, Carol Smillie, Lorraine Kelly, Rona Cameron, chef Rick Stein; sport stars Richard Branson, Ally McCoist, Colin Montgomerie, CDs from Capercaillie and Chris de Burgh.

The Highlands & Islands Equality Forum last week ran a hugely successful Employment Opportunities Event in Inverness, under the title "Diversity as a Resource".

In the course of the day well over a hundred people passed through, finding out about career opportunities from a range of public, private and voluntary sector employers. Seminars on a range of workplace issues were also well-attended and appreciated.

The event reached out beyond the usual audience for the equalities message and tied the theme into the practical reality of peoples' lives, seeking work and dealing with discrimination in the workplace

Scolty Woodland Park Association will hold its AGM on Thursday at 7.30pm in the Douglas Arms in Banchory. Anyone interested in attending the meeting is invited to attend. The association is a group representing the local community which manage Scolty woods together with the Forestry Commission. Scolty is the part of Blackhall Forest nearest to Banchory and is very popular with walkers, runners and cyclists. For more information contact Dan Cadle,Forestry Commission Community Ranger,01330 844 537 or email dan.cadle@forestry.gsi.gov.uk

We're obliged to Gordon Connochie of Perth & Kinross Association of Voluntary Service (PKAVS) for telling us about the everyclick website search engine, which passes 50% of its revenue to charity. We like its slogan, "Go on, give your mouse a heart!". The fundraising tool started in the summer and has already raised thousands of pounds for registered charities across the UK.

• Privacy
• Help
• Contact Us
• Disclaimer