HIE invest in Hebrides communities

Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) is rolling out a programme to support the future of over 40 communities in its most fragile rural areas.

Building on its long history of support in remote areas, HIE is to invest in encouraging selected communities which want to develop and implement plans for local growth.

Working in partnership with local authorities and other public agencies, the initiative will create locally employed community development workers.

As well as assisting with community consultation and planning they will work with local groups taking forward projects included in the overall community plans.

In addition, a HIE staff member will work closely with each community to advise and support the process.

“Communities themselves will control and drive their development, with HIE on hand to provide the support they need.  Evaluations of previous LEADER and Initiative at the Edge/Iomairt aig an Oir regeneration schemes showed that groups which employed local officer support generated significantly greater benefits. This new programme will build on this success and add to it.

The intended outcome is communities undertaking sustainable community action planning and delivering projects of direct benefit to them,” said John Watt, HIE director for strengthening communities.

The agency plans to spend almost £1.5 million over the next three years on this aspect of its strengthening communities remit.  HIE is also utilising up to an additional one million pounds from the European Union’s LEADER programme and local authority sources.

In each area the community development officer, employed by a key local community organisation, will work to support social, economic and cultural activities to strengthen the community.

The amount of locally employed support required will be agreed according to the needs of the particular community, but HIE anticipates around 40 full and part time posts will be needed across the Highlands and Islands.

Communities are being identified through discussion with community planning partnerships. The first communities benefiting from the new approach are Barra, Vatersay and Callanish.

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