Author: Amalia
Dunvegan Housing, School and Pitch plans shelved by Highland Council: Joint Statement from Dunvegan Community Trust and Dunvegan Parent Council
While we all feared this was coming, given the financial backdrop, we cannot stress enough the severity of the situation in NW Skye resulting from the lack of long term rental and affordable housing, our substandard school buildings and complete lack of recreational facilities. This is a result of years of non-investment, and it has really reached a crunch point. As I know Skye councillors are acutely aware, we have virtually no long term private rental market in NW Skye (like everywhere in Skye). As has been the case for many years, we have local people homeless, sitting on the housing list, waiting to be housed in Dunvegan, while we also have staff shortages in every sector. The Dunvegan Primary School building is literally falling apart, and now serving such a large catchment area for sgoil-airich and Primary age that the carpark alone is a tragedy waiting to happen. These dilapidated, neglected, damp and mouldy buildings do not reflect the tenacity of the school community and staff, nor do they reflect the investment we want to make in our children’s future, in the most meaningful way we can which is through education. If the NW Skye doesn’t have some serious investment soon there will barely be a population to make use of any community sports facilities! To think a couple months ago Highland councillors voted against keeping any enhanced benefits from wind developments in Skye in a local Skye & Raasay fund, in favour of a Highland Council wide pot- that suddenly seems even more relevant when schools close to Inverness are prioritised for capital funding. To run down an area through lack of investment, centralisation and lack of attention, and then fail to provide the absolute basics for the people still here – a school which is safe for our children to learn in and their teachers to teach in – should be a source of great shame to Highland Council and the Scottish Government.
Defibrillator Project – with Dunvegan Community Council
Dunvegan Community Council approached DCT a few months ago to propose a project installing 4 defibrillators around the area. DCC have identified 4 locations : The tablet shed in Harlosh Replacement of the AED at The Atholl Filling Station Outside of the Dunvegan Community Cafe Roag- location TBC DCC are liasing with Lucky2bhere and are looking to get them installed as soon as possible. They will be added to a national map of defibrillators so residents and visitors alike can access their locations if necessary. TO their purchase and installation, DCC is contributing £2000 and DCT £8000. There is also a British Heart Foundation fund opening up in October for a funded defibrillator so DCT will be looking at potentially getting a 5th installed in another location.
Gaeltec Buildings – Community Survey
We are excited to launch a community survey as part of our ongoing efforts to pursue a community buyout of the Gaeltec building. Our ambition for the building is to transform it into a dynamic, multi-purpose community hub which best suits Dunvegan’s needs. This could include a community gym, craft workshop, men’s shed or repair shop, rented spaces for local businesses and home-workers, and so much more. The goal is to support local employment and provide much-needed facilities for everyone to enjoy. For us to be able to progress this opportunity we need your help to determine what facilities are most desired in the community. With help from the Impact Hub, we have launched a comprehensive survey to help demonstrate support for the project and for you to tell us what you want from a new community building. Your feedback will shape our project plan and help us create a space that truly serves our community. We are planning to apply to the Scottish Land Fund to finance the building purchase and it is crucial that we get as many responses as we can. Please take a few moments to fill out the survey and contribute to Dunvegan’s future, it only takes a few minutes. With your help we can make Dunvegan an even better place to live, work, and play! www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/dunvegancommunitytrust If you have any comments or questions about this survey, please contact Impact Hub Inverness who are carrying out the survey on our behalf, via inverness@impacthub.net. Thank you for your support.
Windfarm information- Latest News
Muirhall has submitted an application for the Windfarm Glen Ullinish II. The following is information on their drop in sessions and timeline: “We have been preparing to submit the full Glen Ullinish II planning application to the Scottish Ministers (via the Energy Consents Unit) for some time, with this submission slipping slightly from our original timeframe. We are pleased to be able to confirm that the application was submitted on Monday 31st July 2023 for up to 47 wind turbines with an indicative output capacity in the region of 310.2 Megawatts (MW), a battery energy storage system with an indicative export capacity of up to 120MW, and associated infrastructure. Next Steps and Timeline Subject to any request for an extension to time, the next steps for the application are: · 10/08/2023 – First advert will be placed in the West Highland Free Press on our drop-in sessions which are happening in the third week of August. · 17/08/2023 – A second advert will be placed in the West Highland Free Press on our drop-in sessions which are happening in the third week of August. · 17/08/2023 – The first official “Press Notice” advising of the application will be published. In accordance with the regulations this will be in the West Highland Free Press (as a “newspaper circulating in the locality”), The Herald (as a “national newspaper”) and The Edinburgh Gazette (known as “The Gazette” online). · 22/08/2023 – Drop-in session at Minginish at Minginish Community Hall between 0900-1300. · 22/08/2023 – Drop-in session at Struan at Struan Primary School between 1600-2000. · 23/08/2023 – Drop-in session at Portree at the Skye Gathering Hall between 1600-2000. · 24/08/2023 – Drop-in session at Dunvegan at Dunvegan Community Hall between 1100-1500. Drop-in Sessions Muirhall Energy invite local residents and community groups to join the team at one of our community sessions for the proposed Glen Ullinish II Wind Farm. The drop-in events will allow the Muirhall team to answer any questions and help you find out more about the proposal. Please note that comments made to the Project Team at the drop-in sessions are not representations to the Scottish Ministers. Consultation Period During the consultation period a full copy of the application documentation will be available for viewing at Portree Community Library (during their normal opening hours) and a further copy available at Struan Primary School. Access to Struan Primary School can be requested through Struan Community Council, 3 Coillore, Struan, Isle of Skye, IV56 8FX (by telephone 01470 572357 or by email) We are grateful to Struan CC for making this space available. These will be available from w/c 14th August. A full copy of the application documentation will be uploaded to our website by Friday 4th August and to the Energy Consents Portal by 11th August. Representations on the proposal can be submitted via the Energy Consents Unit portal, by email, or by post to the Scottish Government, Energy Consents Unit, 4th Floor, 5 Atlantic Quay, 150 Broomielaw, Glasgow, G2 8LU. All representation should be received not later than 23rd September 2023 although the Scottish ministers may consider representations received after this date. Our team are always available, so please get in touch with our Project Manager Kirsty Battu with our or our Head of Communities and Communication Lesley McNeil with any queries you may have. “ Information on these developments can be found in the following links: Ben Sca – Planning Approved Ben Aketil https://benaketilwindfarm.co.uk – Application for repowering and extension submitted and comment deadline now passed Glen Uilinish 2 https://www.muirhallenergy.co.uk/glen-ullinish-2 https://www.energyconsents.scot/ApplicationDetails.aspx?cr=ECU00003449&T=0 Respond to the Energy Consents Unit representations_mailbox@gov.scot quoting ECU00003449 Vatenfall https://group.vattenfall.com/uk/what-we-do/our-projects/edinbane Balmeanach https://balmeanachwindfarm.co.uk Waternish https://waternishwindfarm.co.uk Cllr John Finlayson john.finlayson.cllr@highland.gov.uk Cllr Drew Millar Drew.Millar.cllr@highland.gov.uk Cllr Calum Munro calum.munro.cllr@highland.gov.uk Cllr Ruraidh Stewart Ruraidh.Stewart.cllr@highland.gov.uk Kate Forbes MSP Kate.Forbes.msp@parliament.scot Ian Blackford MP ian.blackford.mp@parliament.uk
Windfarm information
As most residents of the Dunvegan Community Trust community will be aware, there are multiple companies with proposals for new windfarm developments and repowering/extension plans to existing farms, at various stages of planning in the NW of Skye, including the erection of 53 200m high turbines in the ‘Glen Uillinish 2’ project in Struan CC area. The proposed repowering and extension of the Ben Aketil farm would be the first 200m turbines built in Skye. DCT was set up in 2009 to distribute the community benefit funds agreed with Falck from Ben Aketil Windfarm at the time, for a 25 year period. This agreement was made before the introduction of the SG Good practice Guidance (2014) which currently recommends Community Benefits of £5000 per megawatt produced (or equivalent) plus the opportunity for shared ownership the windfarms (5% or 10%). This is just guidance, and companies are under no real obligation to adhere to it – as DCT is not the landowner, our leverage in all aspects is limited. We are a charity run predominantly by volunteers, and not a replacement for active, strong, publicly funded, genuinely local government. As an organisation we can’t represent every opinion of our membership in a complex issue like this, but we can try our best to get the best deal for the community we serve. Even as a committee we have diverse views on the issues – membership of DCT does not indicate support or opposition for windfarm applications. Right now we can: Get together with community groups across Skye to form a united front with a louder voice and better make demands of politicians and external companies, and to share opportunities Lobby our elected representatives to put pressure on UK & Scottish Government to increase the community benefit to 5% of profits, and make it a requirement – not a guideline. Lobby our elected representatives to put pressure on the UK & Scottish Government to address the disproportionately high electricity and standing charges in the Highlands and Islands Seek professional legal and financial advice to explore shared ownership options for any approved windfarms We will share information of planning applications for windfarms as they go in as a reminder of the opportunity to object or support. We have already been in contact with other community groups in Central Skye around the Muirhall Development ‘Glen Uillinish 2’ , and there will be more discussions to come. There will be the option of shared ownership of some approved projects for DCT and other community groups. The first will be Ben Sca as its planning permission has been approved already. We have been receiving advice about this option from Local Energy Scotland, and the next step is to put out a tender for legal advice, which is funded by a grant through CARES. The route of shared ownership would require a large financial outlay (and would generate considerably more income than ‘community benefits’) and it will not happen without a demonstrable level of community support. We’ve included a link to the Ben Aketil application to , which can be viewed and responded to. We have also included the email addresses of councillors and MSPs, and our MP. If you support or object to any of the proposed windfarms we would urge you to write to them, they are elected and paid to represent us all, and to fight for our best interests. We would also urge everyone to write MSPs specifically to implore them to update the community benefit ‘guidance’ to a percentage of profits rather than a fixed amount per megawatt, and to make it a requirement rather than a recommendation. Information on these developments can be found in the following links: Ben Sca – Planning Approved Ben Aketil https://benaketilwindfarm.co.uk – Application for repowering and extension submitted https://www.energyconsents.scot/ApplicationDetails.aspx?cr=ECU00004552 Respond to the Energy Consents Unit representations_mailbox@gov.scot quoting ECU 00004552 Glen Uilinish 2 https://www.muirhallenergy.co.uk/glen-ullinish-2 Vatenfall https://group.vattenfall.com/uk/what-we-do/our-projects/edinbane Balmeanach https://balmeanachwindfarm.co.uk Waternish https://waternishwindfarm.co.uk Cllr John Finlayson john.finlayson.cllr@highland.gov.uk Cllr Drew Millar Drew.Millar.cllr@highland.gov.uk Cllr Calum Munro calum.munro.cllr@highland.gov.uk Cllr Ruraidh Stewart Ruraidh.Stewart.cllr@highland.gov.uk Kate Forbes MSP Kate.Forbes.msp@parliament.scot Ian Blackford MP ian.blackford.mp@parliament.uk
Annual Grants to Dunvegan Community Council and Dunvegan Primary School Fund
DCT provide an annual grant to DCC as a way to get funds out into the community in as efficient a way possible. “The Community Council are always grateful to the Dunvegan Community Trust for the yearly grant which allows the Community Council to support various deserving causes throughout the year, for example supporting the cost of maintaining grass cutting through the summer months both in the community and in St Marys Church and old cemetery. Assisting with the Christmas lights. Amazon Vouchers for all the children in the district at Christmas. Support for the Breakfast club, the Community Cafè, Make Dunvegan Beautiful, the Turkey earthquake appeal, Dunvegan show. Also assistance with our hardship fund and Fuel Fund and general support for Community Council activities during the year.” We are also trialing an annual grant to the Dunvegan Primary School fund, as a response to the increasingly high cost of living. We conferred with the head teacher as to what activities we could fund that would have the greatest impact, and funding for School Trips, establishing a Breakfast Club plus additional funding for teachers, staff and the pupil council to spend at their discretion. “For the very first time, we have sent a group of Gaelic Medium pupils on the EdinburghGaelic Week Trip, run and organised by CNAG. 6 Pupils and 1 teacher went along and hada fantastic time exploring Edinburgh and attending events that were fully immersed in Gaelic.We hope that we can continue to send pupils on this trip every 3 years, meaning that every child in the GM will go on the trip once in their time at Dunvegan Primary.The end of term school trips will take place in the last few weeks of term. One of our classes is heading to Inverness for the day, and a few more will be going down to Sleat. We have managed to set up a Breakfast club in the school canteen which runs mostmornings from 9 – 9.15am (volunteer dependant). We have bought a fridge freezer andvarious other kitchen items to be able to set this up properly. The children are offered cereal,toasted bagels, and fruit juice. This has proved very popular with the children, and hashelped boost the children’s learning throughout the day.The pupil council are currently budgeting and planning for the discretionary funds. Theyhave voted to upgrade the outdoor equipment which may include recycling and new picnic benches, a sand pit and to upgrade the pond area. We would also like to rewild the area between the nursery garden and the forest area, and put some stepping stones in place.”
Dunvegan Playpark Committee Fundraising News
Dunvegan Playpark Committee has been fundraising tirelessly to raise funds for the much needed new park! On the 27th of July they will be running a cafè serving lunch, baking and teas and coffees to the visitors over for the Macleod Parliament (the four yearly world gathering of the clan Macleod hosted by Dunvegan Castle) – any donations of baking will be gratefully received! They are also looking for more volunteers to help out on the day, setting up, serving and clearing up – email dunvegancommunitytrust@gmail.com if you’d like to get involved and help raise money for the new park. The Playpark Committee will also have a stall at Dunvegan Show on the 29th of July where you can have a look at the plans and give your feedback- you might even be able to get your face painted!
Opportunity at Cruachan woods for Woodland Crofts and Community Owned Housing
As most folk locally know, HIE is selling Orbost Estate, and it was always the intention that it would go into community ownership. When HIE first approached DCT about the sale several years ago, DCT commissioned a feasibility study to look into buying the whole estate (excluding the farm and small holdings , which are not part of the sale), as well as several surveys to gauge community support. The feasibility study and surveys are on the DCT website to view. The general reaction to the proposed purchase of such a large piece of woodland was mixed. Although more responded favorably for the proposal than not, the enthusiasm and support necessary for such a large community commitment was lacking. This seemed to be for a number of reasons- the price tag of £2 million (this has almost certainly increased over the last few years) and objection to HIE proposing to sell it back to the community at such a price, the amount of work and expertise such a large scale project would require, and a feeling that owning it would not address some of the major issues facing the area, like a lack of affordable housing. Without strong community support, it is not ethical or even possible for DCT to undertake such a project. DCT have continued dialogue with HIE over options in Orbost, and in lieu of a purchase of the entire forest, HIE is prepared to sell the smaller area of Cruachan Wood to DCT. DCT has engaged their assistance in drawing up a draft business plan, which in its draft form includes the creation of 3 woodland crofts plus 1 or 2 house sites. It is proposed that these would all be subject to the Rural Housing Burden. DCT is also discussing with LSHA the possibility of an asset transfer of a plot of land which they originally intended to build 2 additional houses for affordable letting. The last valuation for Cruachan Wood has expired and will have to be revalued, and there are a few options in the route to a purchase, but we still think this is a positive and manageable project that will offer good value to the community and be a step in the right direction of addressing depopulation locally. DCT met with Orbost residents and smallholders several weeks ago to discuss these plans; it was a positive and supportive meeting and they were keen for Bluebell Hill to also come into community ownership. HIE is open to this idea too, so we will await a revised and up to date valuation. We would like to open this discussion up to the wider community, with the goal of surveying members to gauge support in the coming weeks. There are links below to the draft business plan, information on Woodland crofts, the communities housing trust and the rural housing burden. www.woodlandcrofts.org Communities Housing Trust Website Draft Business Plan Cruachan Wood Rural Housing Burden Factsheet