News

Pupils from St Columba’s Primary School in Oban have been putting their culinary skills to the test over the last few weeks, creating delicious food for a lockdown charity recipe book. Children from primary one through to primary seven have all taken part, each writing up a variety of delicious recipes, from sweet treats to fabulous main meals. Every pupil has their own handwritten recipe in the book, alongside a photo of their mouth-watering finished article.

Space rockets built by pupils from Port Ellen Primary School on Islay have caught the attention of NASA! The children created the rockets as part of their home learning activities during lockdown and were over the moon when they received congratulations from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration on Twitter.

Many services and organisations are having to develop new ways of working as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. With more people working from home, the use of digital communications has never been more important in maintaining vital services.  Argyll and Bute Council has been pioneering the use of secure digital communication for ten years and was the first UK local authority to use Skype as a communication tool to help connect employees who are working in remote parts of the region including our islands and to maintain business as normal with full remote access to council systems.

“This is a good report. It shows that the council has continued to improve since the last inspection, dealing with challenges unique to Argyll and Bute and working to support both the present and the future of the area.” These were the words of Councillor Aileen Morton, Leader of Argyll and Bute Council, following publication today (21 May) of the Accounts Commission’s Best Value review findings.

A group of senior pupils from Lochgilphead Joint Campus are urging the people of Argyll and Bute to help them in their bid to become Scottish Enterprise’s Company of the Year. The school’s ‘B-Eco Team’ is one of 15 regional finalists competing for the coveted title in this year’s Festival of Enterprise, but they need public votes if they are to succeed.

The Leader of Argyll and Bute Council joined the Community Food Project this week at Hermitage Academy in Helensburgh, as they prepared and distributed weekly food parcels across the area. The Leader saw first-hand, the sheer scale of the operation and paid tribute to all those who have come together to help people during the pandemic. Councillor Aileen Morton said:

Plans are being made to reopen all of Argyll and Bute’s Household Waste Recycling Centres, with the exception of Helensburgh and Lomond, on June 1.  This reflects the First Minister’s statement today on the easing of lockdown measures, dependent on the continuing suppression of the COVID-19 virus. Helensburgh and Lomond will have a temporary facility set up at Helensburgh Pier Head Car Park for the short term. This is to manage traffic safely in what we expect will be a busy time when customer demand to use the centre is high.

People in Argyll and Bute who are unemployed and want to find work during these challenging times, are being encouraged to sign up to Fair Start Scotland. Fair Start Scotland is delivered by PeoplePlus and trusted local delivery partners – in this case, Argyll and Bute Council’s Employability Team. Together, they have a lot of experience helping people back into work in a variety of ways, including:  helping to break down the barriers that might be stopping you from working;

Pupils in primaries five, six and seven at Dervaig Primary took the phrase, ‘the show must go on’, to a new level last week when they performed their school play to parents last week using a digital platform. The talented youngsters had all rehearsed their parts for Alice in Wonderland before lockdown and, in full costume, they presented their show via Google Meet. Teachers watched with pride and admiration as the children delivered their lines and produced the relevant sound effects using violins!

With schools across Scotland closed until June, Argyll and Bute Council is preparing for pupils returning in August, subject to COVID-19 safety requirements. At a meeting of the council’s Business Continuity Committee, members heard about work which is ongoing to prepare for the re-opening of schools, as part of a discussion about the steps the council is taking to support businesses and communities affected by COVID-19.