Tourism

The installation of an artificial bowling green and a community hall refurbishment are the first two projects to benefit from funding from the Orkney LEADER 2014-2020 Programme.

The Kirkwall Bowling Club will install an artificial outdoor bowling green which will allow assurances of play irrespective of the weather, extending the playing season and increasing the opportunity for members and non-members to use the facility.

Book your place at the free 'Connecting communities in rural Lanarkshire' conference to find out more about Lanarkshire LEADER.

The new £4 million Lanarkshire LEADER programme will be launched at the event in Carluke on 1 September.

It will also be a chance to find out more about the priorities and objectives against which applications for funding will be assessed.

There will be three interactive workshops and a chance learn about successful projects from the previous programme.

You can now apply for European funding for 'town twinning' and 'networks of towns' projects.

These two Europe for Citizens funding streams are currently open for applications until midday Brussels time on 1 September 2016.

Europe for Citizens is a funding initiative to strengthen remembrance and to enhance civic participation at a European Union (EU) level.

The search is on for Britain's best high streets and high street heroes.

The Great British High Street Awards 2016 are now open for entries, with categories including 'Village', 'Coastal Community' and 'Small Market Town'.

This year also sees the introduction of the 'Rising Star' award for high streets that are taking their first steps turning around their fortunes.

Registration is now open for the Scottish Rural Parliament 2016 event.

The Scottish Rural Parliament will bring together 400 people to discuss the issues of greatest importance to rural communities in Scotland.

The event will be held in Brechin, Angus from 6 to 8 October and is free for most people to attend.

The community-led Lanarkshire LEADER Local Development Strategy has been launched.

The strategy sets out the priorities and objectives against which applications for funding will be assessed by the Lanarkshire LEADER Programme until 2020. A new development is the inclusion of part of the North Lanarkshire rural area to the south of Cumbernauld and east of Airdrie and Wishaw.

South Lanarkshire Council Provost, Councillor Eileen Logan unveiled the new strategy at Clydesdale Community Initiatives (CCI) in Lanark recently.

The Scottish Islands Federation (SIF) is pulling together a report on the challenges and opportunities that matter most to Scotland’s island communities and needs as many groups as possible to take part in its survey ‘Meeting the Challenges – Scotland’s Island Communities’.

The Tyne Esk LEADER Programme was formally launched at twin events -  the Haddington Show on the 2 July and the Dalkeith Show on 9 July 2016.

Both events were well attended by, primarily, famers and families and the Tyne Esk LEADER stall was kept busy answering questions and entertaining children.  LEADER LAG members as well as the staff team were on hand at the stall throughout the two days.

The Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA) wants to hear your views on nine big issues in the Park including flood management, housing and economic development.

The Big Park Big Questions consultation has been launched to gather views on the key issues to be addressed in the next National Park Partnership Plan 2017-2022 - a management plan for the Park which sets out a vision and overarching strategy for managing the area.