Friday, 28 July 2023

FIVE THINGS FOR A FRIDAY

We are still in the grip of the summer holidays but things are ticking over.

STAFF

I hope to announce our new Marketing and PR Officer (who joins Jillian with a job share) and Community Action Plan Project Officer very soon.  These roles are externally funded for three years.  The process takes time.  There was the application for the funding, which started mid 2022. We were given an indication we had the funding in November 2022. The official sign off in Spring 2023 once we had agreed outputs and outcomes for the next three years using the CAP as evidence.  We began the recruitment once we had our first payment.  We have to report to Scottish Government / Funder every quarter before funds are released.  They are even coming to see us.  These roles will support Trust activities but largely are there to support the volunteer groups in making short audio visual presentations about their work and to support volunteers in making things happen a little quicker and to gather information for Fundraisers to make robust applications for further funding.

ERROGIE

We met and had a very productive meeting about our Errogie Church Planning Application.  It filled me with great confidence, particularly as this has been hours of consultation and discussion from the community which took time but was worth it.  Also the endless discussions about the look of the building externally provided the evidence why some decisions had been made over others.  The community should be proud of the design presented thanks to their input.  Many empty churches are being developed by community groups on a weekly basis.  Empty and neglected buildings do not inspire communities and can be an eyesore for those growing up here.  Both the Wildside Centre, Foyers Toilets and Errogie are coming back to life thanks to you.  That is amazing!  I took SSE, our funders, around all the sites so they can see for themselves what we have been up to and can picture what the future may look like.  All every exciting.

PLAYPARK

Talking of Wildside we got the planning agreement for the playpark at the Centre.  We also have half the funding for the PlayPark from an external source, which is also brilliant.  Thanks to all the volunteers who have worked on this and to all the parents/carers and children who have had their say on what they want to see in the playpark.  BTW the next Bring and Buy Sale at Wildside is on 12th August.  Check the news site for more News | Stratherrick & Foyers Community Trust (stratherrickcommunity.org.uk)

BOARD MEETING

The Board Meeting is on Wednesday after the summer break last month.  Our Board is made up of individual community members. It struck me that half weren’t on the Board when I started two years ago and some were relatively new members then.  They do, as you would expect, reflect community opinion and have differing views during their collective discussions. As a Board they all come to a consensus based on listening, engagement, consultation, advice and all relevant information to hand. Put together by the community for the community it is an ever changing construct but bound by policies that glue it all together.  We may make mistakes along the way but we learn from them and do it better the next time.  To do that we have also asked the Accelerate Programme (through Scottish Government) to give advice to the Board as they become more strategic, look at our Errogie Business Plan to strengthen it and review our current status to see if other options may be beneficial or not to the community.  Watch this space!

WHAT NEXT?

The Community Council and the Community Trust will be meeting soon to see how we can take forward the Place Plans which were submitted on behalf of the community by the Community Council before the summer.  The plan is based on the community consultations that have take place over the last year.

The Trust Board and Staff Team have been working tirelessly over the last two years and we have gone from ‘why is nothing happening’ to ‘why is so much happening?’  We are trying to balance the aspirations of the community while maintaining local grants for study, sport, activities and more. The community, with the support of the Trust, has a track record of success.  The community has provided COVID and cost of living support (and are likely to do again this winter), broadband which kept business running and individuals in contact with each other during the pandemic, working with the Community Council on the toilet project, help to maintain Stratherrick Hall, bringing neglected buildings back into community ownership, getting planning for the slipway and planning in principle for recreation and sport facilities, providing a rent free building to a local charity and community members working on projects from housing to pathways and after school clubs to support families.  Not to mention all those groups who attended the recent Success Night and told their stories about what they have achieved over the last year.  It is truly inspiring and being active is great for your mental health and well being.

So with that in mind breathe, relax and if you can take a walk, run, cycle or horse ride and enjoy the fabulous countryside with one of the Pathway Groups Walks that have appeared on our website over the summer.  It will do you the world of good.  Check it out here Walk our Walks | Stratherrick & Foyers Community Trust (stratherrickcommunity.org.uk)

2025

February (12 stories)

22 February 📣 ** TODAY ** 📣 - Forest School Meeting

Interested in the future of the Forest School building? From 2pm   Come and speak to us about your thoughts for the Forest School and wider opportunities fo...

21 February Congratulations to Whitebridge Hotel

Whitebridge Hotel are finalists in the National Hotels of the Year - Scotland awards!   The ceremony takes place in Glasgow on the 26th February at The Cr...

19 February 📣 Youth Club returns this Thursday 📣

Youth club is for anyone in P7 to S6 ✅ After a bit of a break, we are delighted to say that Youth Club is back!! ⭐ Important info ⭐ Date - Thursday 20th Februa...

19 February Communications 2025!

We are making a some improvements in the way we share important information with the community in 2025. The SFCT Board and communications team have made the dec...

13 February Mailing List Update

We hope you received your copy of the February newsletter and enjoyed reading through it. The team are busy updating our mailing list and we understand that there may ...

12 February Next Sat 22nd February

Next Sat 22nd February   Inverfarigaig Forest School, Farigaig Forestry Carpark IV2 6XR - From 2pm   Come and speak to us about your thoughts fo...

11 February ⚠️ Update regarding the upcoming works taking place at The Wildside Centre ⚠️

We can now confirm that the scheduled works on upgrading the toilet facilities in the Wildside Centre is starting this Thursday – 13th February.   The Wi...

11 February 🙌 JOIN OUR TEAM 🙌

We are currently recruiting a part-time (30 hours per week) Community Action Plan Project Officer to join our small team, based in the Wildside Centre in Whitebridge, on ...

8 February 📢 THE DAY IS FINALLY HERE 📢

Later today the Pathways Group are hosting their Community Engagement event at the Wildside Centre from 13.30pm.   For the past year, the Pathways Group has be...

6 February Errogie Church Statement

As you will be aware, an announcement was made by the Trust in mid December 2024 that we were unfortunately unable to host three events that were due to take place at Err...

6 February Wildside Wednesday Success!

🙌THANK YOU 🙌 We want to say a big thank you to those of you who popped along to our first Wildside Wednesday event yesterday! It was great to see you all 😃  ...

5 February !! WILDSIDE WEDNESDAY - TODAY !!

Join us TODAY at the Wildside Centre, between 9.30am – 12.30pm where the first Wildside Wednesday of 2025 will take place.  You can shop local, with local p...

January (22 stories)

31 January !! Next Saturday !!

On the 8th Feb The Pathways Group host their Community Engagement Day at the Wildside Centre from 13.30pm.   The group have setup a dedicated Facebook event pa...

30 January Refurbishments to toilets in The Wildside Centre

Following many months of work behind the scenes we are pleased to be able to share with you that work on upgrading the ladies toilets and creating a larger disabled toile...

30 January Fancy a sing song with Monadhliath?

The Monadhliath Choir invites all singers to a charity singing event on the 27.04.2025 at Stratherrick Public Hall. If you would be interested in join...

29 January February Newsletter

We are pleased to share that our Feb newsletter should be making its way through your door next week! 🙌   Please look out for the white envelope addressed to ...

25 January Do you use Instagram?

Did you know that Stratherrick & Foyers Community Trust are on Instagram? If you too have an account, why not give our page a follow. We’re keen to build up ...

24 January Foyers Community Fire Station

🚒 Foyers Community Fire Station 🚒   Foyers Community Fire station has a competent crew of 7 personnel, but we are in real need of new recruits, to keep the s...

23 January Wildside Wednesday is returning!

Join us on the 5th February at the Wildside Centre, between 9.30am – 12.30pm.   Here is your chance to shop local, with local produce from Lyne Mhor Crof...

22 January Loch Ness Luvvies - Traditional Burns Supper

This Friday, 24th Jan the Loch Ness Luvvies are hosting their very own Traditional Burns Supper at Stratherrick Hall, Gorthleck at 7.30pm. Tickets are £20 per he...

22 January Timings have been announced!

As you may have recently seen, The Pathways Group are running a Community Engagement event on the 8th February from 1pm at The Wildside Centre. In our previous post, t...

21 January ** Mobile Library Update **

Mark, our local librarian has kindly sent over a full list of dates when he will be stopping in the area. You can find the full list here: https://www.stratherrickcommuni...

20 January Invitation to tender - Health & Safety Consultant required

We are looking for an experienced Health & Safety professional to carry out a comprehensive survey on Errogie Church to ensure that the building is fully compliant fo...

19 January Send in your dates for the Community Calendar!

Did you know we have an online Community Calendar? If not, you can find it here: https://www.stratherrickcommunity.org.uk/calendar/   We would love to inclu...

18 January What's the next step?

For the past year, the Pathways Group has been working hard to promote the local path network, paths that lead through rich landscapes, historical sites, and biodiversity...

15 January Community Engagement Day - 8th Feb

Over the last month you may have noticed that the Pathways Group are holding a Community Engagement Day on the 8th February. You can find out all about the event by follo...

14 January Mobile Library Update

Below you will find a list of updated Dates/Times where you can visit the Mobile Library at The Wildside Centre.   We will add these dates to the Online Commu...

14 January Indoor Carpet Bowls makes it return as of today!

** TODAY ** Indoor Carpet Bowls makes it return as of today! The group return to their weekly session after the Xmas break. Please note: The group will now ...

10 January Community Engagement Event - 8th Feb

The Pathways Group invites you to a community event that explores the potential development of a pathways based app. This is your opportunity to help shape an app which w...

9 January Deadline for Jan/Feb Newsletter Content!

The deadline to send in any content for the Jan/Feb Newsletter is Friday the 17th of January 2025. Please email marketingofficer@sfctrust.org.uk with your articles inclu...

9 January Send us in your photos from the Winter Festival

A HUGE thank you to those of you who have already uploaded photos to our shared community photo gallery during the festival.   If you have any wintery snaps th...

8 January Reverse Advent Calendar Success!

Santa's little helpers would like to thank everyone who contributed in any way to the overwhelming success of this project. The generosity shown by our community was ...

8 January ** MOBILE LIBRARY VISIT TODAY CANCELLED **

Sadly, due to the current road conditions, Mark who drives the local ‘Mobile Library’ will NOT be stopping at Wildside today. All books will be renewed, and h...

7 January Welcome Back

Hello, we hope you had a relaxing time during the festivities. As it’s now time to get back to work, we thought it would be a good idea to update our online communi...