Latest news with #OrkneyIslandsCouncil
Press and Journal
3 days ago
- Business
- Press and Journal
Highland Park mural on Kirkwall shop may soon disappear as distillers plan new paint job
The large mural on the side of Kirkwall's Highland Park shop may be about to disappear. The whisky distillery has submitted plans to Orkney Islands Council which would see its Albert Street shop undergo a change in colour scheme. Much of the shop's exterior would be changed from the current blue-grey colour to 'Wimborne white.' This would have the shop align with the re-branding the company unveiled last October. Highland Park says the new look was created to allow it to celebrate its Orkney roots more. The shop's large Viking-inspired mural on the shop's gable end became an eye-catching addition to the high street when the company took over the premises in 2019. However, under the new plans, it would be replaced by a more basic Highland Park logo with 'single malt scotch whisky' underneath. The front-facing signage would also be repainted, maintaining dark colouring. New lettering would be fitted as well. While this may signal the disappearance of one mural from Kirkwall's high street, planning permission has just been given for another. The soon-to-open Garden Square development will be adding one designed by artist Lauren Morsley. Highland Park's shop serves as a town centre hub for visiting tourists while the distillery is located on the outskirts of Kirkwall. The shop has been particularly useful for the company over the past year while the distillery has been closed to tours and tastings. This was while work was done to make the distillery more environmentally friendly. It is estimated the project will cut the carbon emissions of the site by about 20%. Highland Park's planning application for its new mural on its Kirkwall shop is now with Orkney Island's Council's planning department, awaiting a decision.
The Herald Scotland
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
New Viking displays bring Orkney's Norse past to life
Designed to share and celebrate the region's Norse heritage, the exhibition has been supported by a generous legacy donation from a former Orkney resident who emigrated to Australia, who left an express wish for his donation to be used to support Viking heritage and history. 'This exhibition not only brings history to life but also reconnects our community with its Viking past,' said Nick Hewitt, Team Leader (Culture) at Orkney Islands Council. 'We've worked closely with local craftspeople, historians, and experts to create something truly special - something that belongs to the people of Orkney.' READ MORE: Astonishing exhibition proves there's still something about Mary Queen of Scots Scottish band to have track housed at virtual Spanish Civil War museum Perth Museum celebrates first birthday after 'remarkable' year of success A key feature of the exhibition is Ragna, an interactive AI-powered Viking woman, offering a first-of-its-kind experience in museums. Visitors can ask Ragna about Viking life in Orkney, bringing historical storytelling to life in a way that museums have been unable to do up until now. Her background story has been written by Tom Muir, local storyteller and Exhibitions Officer at The Orkney Museum for years, and Dr Siobhan Cooke-Miller, Archaeology Curator for the Council. Dr Siobhan Cooke-Miller said: 'Our Viking and Norse past has shaped Orkney's identity and has had a lasting impact on our islands which we can see in our landscape, place-names, language and our rich heritage. "For the people of Orkney, and the thousands of visitors who come to the islands every year, the artefacts and the world class experience made possible by James Groundwater's gift offer an unparalleled and tangible window to our Viking past and the people in a way that transcends the passage of time and brings it to life.' Other highlights include rotating displays of artefacts from the National Museum of Scotland and Orkney's own collection as well as new interpretation panels and multimedia experiences, providing fresh perspectives on Orkney's Norse history. A Viking-age brooch (Image: The Orkney Museum) Councillor Gwenda Shearer, Chair of the committee responsible for the Council's Culture Services said: 'This is a once-in-a-generation overhaul of galleries showcasing one of the most intriguing aspects of our heritage, made possible only by an incredibly generous bequeath. 'We hope everyone will come and see the results of this amazing gift to the people of Orkney. 'Our Culture Services team have sought to incorporate some of the latest understandings and display technology into the new galleries and we're counting down to the time when all can be revealed!' The new exhibition at Orkney Museum opens on Saturday, May 10. To celebrate the exhibition's opening, the museum is hosting special guided walk through tours and Q&A sessions with members of The Orkney Museums team.
Scotsman
05-05-2025
- General
- Scotsman
A future living among friends
Social isolation and the rural housing crisis is being tackled in a bold housing experiment on Orkney Sign up to our Scotsman Money newsletter, covering all you need to know to help manage your money. Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... A bold housing experiment is underway in Orkney that could redefine how communities live and thrive. In the far north of Scotland, a group of residents, many in their 70s, are leading a Scandinavian-style co-housing project aimed at tackling social isolation and the rural housing crisis. Their vision is simple yet profound: create a neighbourhood of private homes alongside shared spaces, fostering close-knit living. The project, Hope Cohousing, would be Scotland's first fully rental co-housing development, and it's already shovel-ready after six years of determined effort. As this innovative venture gains momentum, it challenges traditional thinking on planning, property values, and community cohesion. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Co-housing is an intentional housing model where residents design and manage their neighbourhood collectively. Originating in Denmark in the 1960s, it combines self-contained private homes with shared facilities like a common house, gardens, and recreation spaces. Daily life is semi-independent, promoting both privacy and regular social connection. The new cohousing project is centred on St. Margaret's Hope on Orkney (Picture: Adobe) Denmark has made co-housing mainstream, with around 50,000 Danes living in such communities, and similar models have spread across the US and England. Until now, Scotland has lagged behind, with funding and planning hurdles. Hope Cohousing is poised to change that. Hope Cohousing illustrates how this model addresses both loneliness and housing affordability. The founding members, older residents of Orkney, sought alternatives to isolated, hard-to-heat homes. By clustering six eco-friendly houses together in St. Margaret's Hope, the project ensures independence alongside community support. Importantly, these homes are all affordable rentals – not for sale. This opens cohousing to long-term tenants who might not have the means to buy, offering a secure home in a supportive environment. It also addresses broader pressures like fuel poverty and the ageing population, providing modern, energy-efficient homes at affordable rents. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Hope Cohousing demonstrates grassroots community development in a rural area often overlooked by mainstream builders. Initiated by a Community Interest Company formed by local residents, the project secured land from Orkney Islands Council and garnered planning permission after years of advocacy. All the Hope Cohousing homes are affordable rentals, says Rob Aberdein Support from Robert Gordon University architects and Scottish Government funding further enabled the project. Echoing Denmark's success, Orkney's model shows how rural councils and communities can collaborate to deliver alternative housing solutions. The Hope Cohousing journey exposed systemic barriers for community-led developments, requiring creative navigation through grants and permissions. Its success could inspire councils elsewhere to adopt more flexible planning approaches for community-driven housing. Hope Cohousing homes won't affect open-market prices directly, but their presence could unlock under-occupied homes as residents relocate, freeing up existing housing stock for families. Cohousing also reframes housing not as a mere commodity, but as infrastructure for well-being – offering long-term community benefits without undermining property markets. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad At its heart, Hope Cohousing is about combating loneliness by designing community into everyday life. Residents will share communal meals, gardens, and decision-making, creating a daily fabric of neighbourly support. In a rural area like Orkney, this closeness is vital for quality of life, especially for older residents. The initiative also empowers local people to tackle social challenges directly, setting an example for other communities. Its success could inspire wider uptake of community-led models across Scotland. This is more than a housing project – it's a proof of concept for a different way of living in Scotland. If successful, it could influence planners, policymakers, and other rural communities to embrace co-housing as part of the solution to Scotland's ongoing 'housing crisis'. While funding challenges remain, there is growing governmental and public support. The Orkney model suggests a more Scandinavian-inspired approach to housing – one rooted in community and well-being – could become part of Scotland's future.
BBC News
07-03-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Orkney floating wind farm plan to go before Highland councillors
Plans for a 125-turbine floating wind farm off the north Caithness coast are to go before Highland West of Orkney Wind Farm site is 31 miles (50km) north west of Thurso and about 18 miles (30km) off the west of Scottish government, which will have the final say on the planning application, has sought Highland Council's at the local authority have recommended councillors raise no objections when they discuss the project at a meeting next week. Floating wind farms have turbines on platforms on the surface of the sea which are anchored to the on Offshore Wind Power Limited's project could start in 2028 and be operational in 2031, if it gets planning wind farm would generate power for about two million homes and have a life span of 30 developer has identified a port at Scrabster, near Thurso, as a potential servicing base for the site. Infrastructure needed to link the farm with the mainland's electricity grid would be constructed on the Highland coast. Community benefit Orkney Islands Council was asked for its views as a statutory consultee last said a number of issues would need to be resolved through the planning process, including community benefit and the impact of the development on local benefit from renewable energy projects often comes in the form of grant assistance for local projects.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SNP planning tax on cruise ships
Cruise ships could be taxed for docking in Scottish ports under proposals floated by the SNP-led government. The levy – which would be the first of its kind in the UK – is being considered amid evidence that more cruises and passengers are visiting Scotland than ever before. Ministers have ruled out a compulsory blanket tax, but said legislation could be passed that would give councils discretionary power to impose a cruise ship levy. A consultation paper by the Scottish government argues that cruise ships bring economic benefits to places such as Invergordon, Orkney, Edinburgh, Lerwick in Shetland, and Greenock. It also warns that they bring 'pressures' to some coastal and island communities which, though not spelled out in the paper, typically include concerns around overcrowding, strain on local infrastructure and potential environmental damage. Launching the consultation on Thursday, the Scottish government said: 'We are aware that a cruise ship levy in Scotland would be [the] first such levy in the United Kingdom, and we will need to carefully consider market implications and the effect on local economies and communities of such a levy.' Orkney Islands Council already backs the idea in principle after hearing that a £5 levy on passengers could raise £1 million a year. It is also supported by the Scottish Greens. Ariane Burgess, the party's local government spokesperson, said: 'Cruise ships are one of the dirtiest and most polluting forms of travel, and it is right that we tax them.' She added that a levy 'is an important step for our climate and for local government [and] will make a big difference for port communities across Scotland, from Ullapool to Greenock, Kirkwall to Edinburgh, Stornoway to Rosyth. 'The tourism that these ships bring can have a lot of benefits, but we also know that it can put a lot of pressure on the local environment, infrastructure and services.' The SNP said the idea of a cruise ship tax was first raised during work to explore levies for tourists in 2019. It did not feature in the Visitor Levy Act passed by the Scottish parliament last year – which allows a tax to be charged on certain overnight stays – but was discussed at four round-table events hosted by the Scottish government in Greenock, Inverness, Kirkwall, and Edinburgh. The consultation paper states that the 'intention behind any cruise ship levy would be to have the levy apply to those ships that are carrying paying passengers, on a journey involving two or more nights on the ship, and which give the passengers the option to disembark from the vessel onto the Scottish mainland or a Scottish island.' It said ferry services in Scotland and those visiting Scottish waters in private boats or yachts that are not carrying paying passengers would be excluded. The paper explores how a levy might be calculated and suggests it could be based on the gross tonnage of a vessel, its total passenger capacity, the actual number of passengers on board when it moors at a port or on the number that disembark. It highlights that there were about 1,000 cruise ship visits to Scottish ports in 2024, bringing 1.2 million passengers, up from 2019, when an estimated 893 cruise ship calls brought 817,000 passengers. The paper states that cruise passengers make up about 2 per cent of the total number of overnight stays by visitors in Scotland but points out that some regions are more impacted than others. In 2018, 84 per cent of overnight visitors in Orkney, and 79 per cent of those in Shetland, were cruise ship passengers. The busiest day identified at a single port in 2024 was in Invergordon, where 9,600 people were due to arrive on one day in September. Shona Robison, Scotland's finance secretary, added: 'The tourism sector is a crucially important part of the Scottish economy and cruise visits are increasing. 'The consultation will help to inform the Scottish Government's decision over whether or not to bring forward legislation and it is really important that we hear from a wide variety of voices on this matter. 'Last year, we held events to hear the views of the cruise ship industry, local government, and others. We want to continue the helpful dialogue which started at those events, and explore further what a cruise ship levy could mean in a Scottish context.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
