SCOTTISH EDUCATION SECRETARY HAILS CROFT TRAINING PROGRAMME

The Scottish Government’s Education Secretary has hailed the success of a training programme for crofting which has been attended by more than 300 people in the last year.

The Scottish Crofting Federation’s introductory course is offering students the chance to learn how to become crofters, and has prompted a call for more action to be taken to meet a growing desire for crofting in Scotland.

Last night (Thursday), at an event held at Kilmartin House Museum in Argyll, Michael Russell, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, helped 13 successful participants mark their completion of the SCF’s introductory course. Attending the final night of the ten week evening class, Mr Russell presented each participant with their course certificate and highlighted the importance of such courses to crofting communities.

“I am delighted to participate in the celebrations of the successful induction trainees,” Mr Russell said. “The Scottish Government firmly believes in the opportunities that crofting offers in growing prosperous, inclusive and sustainable communities in the remoter areas of Scotland. The greater the number who are aware of the multitude of skills involved in crofting, through courses such as this, then the greater the personal and communal opportunities that crofting can bring.”

The course in Kilmartin is one of six similar courses taking place this spring, from the Isle of Mull to Ullapool, involving 108 participants ranging from long-standing experienced crofters to people who are thinking about starting out in crofting.

Su Cooper, who manages the SCF’s training programme, pointed out how recent courses have been flourishing.  “In the past year we have run 19 courses throughout the Crofting Counties, with over 300 people attending,” she said. ”This clearly demonstrates the enduring desire to learn more about crofting and the need for such a course, which allows people to make contact with others in their local area. Offering the course in a new two day intensive format has also proved popular, enabling people from small islands to access the course and also drawing interest from potential crofters from the Central Belt and England.  Participants hear from a wide range of knowledgeable speakers, on topics of interest to crofters of all levels of expertise.”

With each of the ten sessions covering a different aspect of crofting, including animal welfare, support schemes and diversification of croft businesses, participants are introduced to the skills and opportunities required to develop and maintain viable crofting communities.

SCF chief executive Patrick Krause said: “The SCF’s training programme has been an ongoing success for the organisation and we are delighted by the Cabinet Secretary’s endorsement of our work. The numbers that are coming through the training programme puts renewed urgency into the SCF’s call for 10,000 new crofts to be created by 2020 to meet the desire that exists for crofting in contemporary Scotland, and also to help instigate a necessary revolution in the country’s farming system in which crofting becomes the model for a sustainable small-scale agriculture which has strong communities at its heart.”

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