News

We are asking for the public’s views on four possible options to create a new walking, cycling and scooter path, linking Lochgilphead Front Green and the Crinan Canal. The public consultation, run by Argyll and Bute Council, will run from Monday 23 March to Sunday 5 April. You will be able to view the different options, and complete the consultation, online at www.argyll-bute.gov.uk/corran-path.

A group of pupils from Dunoon Grammar School beat off stiff competition from across the country to win the Apps for Good Scotland event for the fourth year in a row.  Apps for Good is an education scheme that is empowering young people to change the world with technology. The competition challenges pupils to work in teams to develop an enterprising technology product that will help to solve issues they care about. 

Pupils at Dunoon Grammar will be hosting a ‘Pop-up Mall’ next week to celebrate the end of their ‘Tenner Challenge’. The Tenner Challenge is a UK wide initiative where pupils receive £10 each and are tasked with making as much profit as possible. S2 pupils at Dunoon Grammar have been taking part in the scheme over the last few weeks and will be selling their products/services at a Pop-up Mall in the school forum on Friday 20 March. The event will take place from 10.45am until 11.45am and members of the public are welcome to attend.

Councillor Aileen Morton, Leader of Argyll and Bute Council, welcomed the announcement in today's UK Budget that civil service jobs are coming to Scotland. Councillor Morton said: “This is good news but could be great news if the UK and Scottish Government commit to a proportion of these jobs coming to the West of Scotland where the population is falling.

Pupils at Clachan Primary are celebrating after the school received its seventh Eco-Schools Green Flag.  Run by Keep Scotland Beautiful, Eco-Schools is the largest sustainable schools programme in the world and encourages young people to take steps to ensure we look after our environment. Clachan Primary signed up to the scheme 16 years ago and since then it has gone from strength to strength, with the school introducing a number of initiatives to become more eco-friendly.

A number of shopfronts in Campbeltown look set to benefit from a makeover as a result of funding from Argyll and Bute Council’s Shopfront Improvement Scheme.  More than 20 shops in the town centre have been awarded grants from the scheme to enable them to make external improvements, with work having recently started at McLean Place in Main Street - one of the first properties to benefit. 

Argyll and Bute Council is leading the way when it comes to phasing in 1140 hours of Early Learning and Childcare (ELC), with 76% of settings now delivering the additional hours. A total of 70 childcare settings and 14 childminders in the area are already offering 1140 hours and, as a result of the expansion work that has been done to date, 74.3 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) posts have been created.

Easdale Primary School’s Pre-5 unit has received a glowing report from the Care Inspectorate. Inspectors found that staff provided the children with warm, nurturing and responsive care that supported their wellbeing and development, and praised the way in which they had developed trusted, loving relationships with the children. The children who attend the unit were found to be confident about expressing their thoughts, views and feelings, and making choices and decisions about what they wanted to do throughout the day.

Making best use of technology available is changing the way the council delivers roads and infrastructure services, protecting travellers and staff, reducing carbon emissions, and saving time and money. The Economic Development and Infrastructure Committee heard on Thursday 5 March how technology is providing and processing data that helps deliver front line services. Electronic ticketing on council run ferries lets people book on line or by mobile phone app;

Argyll and Bute residents are now using a range of digital options to check when their bins are due to be uplifted, helping the environment by significantly cutting down on paper, and also making financial savings. Previously 48,000 paper calendars were delivered to homes throughout the area. This year, anyone who was unable to make use of the internet to check when their bins would be uplifted was able to request a printed calendar. Just over 3000 people took up the offer.