A host of exciting and innovative community projects have taken a step forward with the news they have been nominated to benefit from extensive grant funding.
Following a detailed evaluation process, councillors at Thursday’s (21 May) Policy and Resources Committee have now approved a range of projects which could potentially receive support from the Scottish Government’s Islands Programme and the Council’s Crown Estates Scotland revenue allocation.
The Islands Programme is a competitive grant fund administered by Scottish Futures Trust on behalf of the Scottish Government. Three million pounds of funding is available for capital projects on inhabited islands across Scotland in 2026/27. The fund focuses on projects which support population retention and growth.
Four projects have been put forward to receive funding from the programme including:
- Bendoran Marine Enterprise Hub, led by Southwest Mull and Iona Development - £350,000
- Achnacroish Affordable Housing, led by Lismore Community Trust - £165,135
- Tiree Vet Surgery, led by Tiree Rural Development - £340,000
- Ionad Gàidhlig an t-Sàilein (Salen Gaelic Centre), led by Ionad Gàidhlig an t-Sàilein - £100,000
The Council has been successful in securing more than £2m of Islands Programme funding over the last four financial years. This has helped to deliver flood protection, digital infrastructure, care facilities, housing infrastructure and other community projects on the islands of Mull, Iona, Islay, Tiree, Coll, Bute, Luing, Gigha, Ulva, Colonsay, Jura, Karrera and Lismore.
Crown Estates Scotland is an allocation of revenue from Scottish Crown Estate marine assets for projects that benefit coastal communities. Based on the same distribution as in 2025/26, Argyll and Bute’s share of £12.4m would be approximately £1.8m. Councillors have approved a proposal to commit up to £1.5m of the funding in advance of final confirmation of the 2026/27 allocation.
The proposed projects and associated allocation for Crown Estate funding in 2026/27 are as follows:
- Helensburgh Skating Pond - £55,000
- Tarbert Harbour Improvements - £250,000
- Business Grants - £350,000
- West Kintyre Cycle Pump Track, Tayinloan - £150,000
- Ledaig Car Park Flood Remediation - £30,000
- Otter Ferry pontoon - £62,000
The proposed projects are in addition to Crown Estates funding commitments for projects previously approved by the Council.
Leader of the Council, Councillor Jim Lynch, Policy Lead for Economic Development, Housing, Islands and Communities, said: “Funding from both the Islands Programme and the Crown Estates allocation is enormously valuable in taking forward a diverse and innovative set of community projects. It supports bring a range of benefits, upgrade essential infrastructure and enhance facilities across our remote rural and island communities.”
“We wish the best of luck to those projects in the mix for the Islands Programme funding and look forward to hearing the outcome later in the year.”
ENDS
Notes to Editor
Project details – proposed Islands Programme Projects 2026-27
- Bendoran Marine Enterprise Hub: Located on the coast of the Ross of Mull, the project will transform the Bendoran boatyard into a marine enterprise hub by creating a small retail space, shared office facilities, a marine engagement centre and a boathouse to support marine activity, local enterprise and community learning.
- Achnacroish Affordable Housing: Located on Lismore, the project will build two affordable family homes, providing an energy-efficient rental option to attract two young families to the island.
- Tiree Vet Surgery located at Crossapol: The project will convert and fit out the former Cobbled Cow café and adjoining space, within the Tiree Rural Centre, to create a permanent veterinary practice for Tiree.
- Ionad Gàidhlig an t-Sàilein (Salen Gaelic Centre): The project will renovate and extend a 19th century dwelling and former shop into a modern, accessible Gaelic Cultural and Community Centre for Mull and the surrounding islands. The Centre will provide a year-round hub for Gaelic learning, cultural production, community activity and sustainable tourism.
Project details – Crown Estate funding
- Helensburgh Skating Pond– Crown Estates funding would complete work to remove invasive species from the pond and open areas of water and to install interpretation.
- Tarbert Harbour Improvements: This is a £2.3m project, with £2.1m of match funding secured to date. This additional funding will enable the project to deliver essential improvements to the harbour infrastructure, supporting both commercial and recreational activity. It will create a new vessel launch and recovery slipway, a dedicated kayak and small craft launch platform, a boat wash down facility, create 2 new FTEs and extension of the existing car park, providing additional capacity for vessel storage and increasing village car parking capacity.
- Business Grants: Delivered by Business Gateway and the Council’s Empty Properties Officer, the grant scheme will support SME development and commercial property reuse in Argyll and Bute. Businesses will be able to apply to Small Business Capital Grants for £3k to £10k for premises refurbishment, machinery, equipment or tools, linked to growth, productivity or efficiency improvements and Empty Property Grants for £3k to £50k to unlock, redevelop, or repurpose empty commercial properties.
- West Kintyre Cycle Pump Track, Tayinloan: This Crown Estate funding will augment £190k match funding secured by the Tayinloan Youth Club to date to enable a fully funded delivery of a pump track in 2026. This project builds on previous investment in local Hall and Park.
- Ledaig Car Park Flood Remediation: Work to identify solutions to flooding issues at Ledaig Car Park, on Mull, including drainage surveys and flood defence design.
- Otter Ferry pontoon - Otter Ferry Maritime Community need to replace their current pontoon, which has reached the end of its useful life. The pontoon connects to other communities around the lochside and brings boats to upper Loch Fyne, benefiting the community and neighbouring areas.
