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Hermitage Academy has received gold accreditation from Investors in People, making it the first school in Scotland to gain national recognition at bronze, silver and gold levels. Investors in People is an international accreditation awarded to organisations that demonstrate a commitment to their employees, and to creating a great workplace experience for everyone. Assessors from Investors in People carried out a visit to Hermitage in January this year and praised the school’s continued commitment to engage and develop its young workforce.

Lismore residents today welcomed the arrival of a new passenger ferry. The Lady of Lismore arrived at Port Appin after a journey of 302 nautical miles from Pembrokeshire. ����ֱ�� awarded the £500,000 contract, funded by Transport Scotland to Mainstay Marine Solutions.

The full list of candidates standing for election to ����ֱ�� has now been published. The Notice of Poll for the Scottish Local Government Elections on 5th May 2022 can be found on the council’s website. In ����ֱ�� and Bute, people will elect 36 councillors to represent the area’s 11 council wards.

Local communities should be involved in putting excess council resources to good use – this is the key recommendation from an investigation into why materials including Gaelic books were put in a skip during the clearance of a council office. Findings from the investigation found that resources from the Council’s Education Office in Oban had in many cases been re-distributed across council services. Reasons for there being exceptions to this include: -          The council has moved to using on-line Gaelic dictionaries so requires fewer paper versions

����ֱ��'s Empty Homes Team has picked up the highly sought after ‘Outstanding Team Award’ at this year’s Scottish Empty Homes Awards. The awards recognise and celebrate the outstanding work and achievements of individuals and organisations in reviving empty homes across Scotland. The Council has enjoyed previous success at the awards and had five entries shortlisted as finalists this year, including two out of the three finalists in the Best before/after and Best Old Wreck categories.

����ֱ��’s Local Housing Strategy (LHS) has been formally launched following approval by the Scottish Government. The strategy outlines the Council’s vision and investment priorities for the area’s housing sector over the next five years, and received praise from the Scottish Government for demonstrating extensive engagement with a wide range of communities, community groups, and stakeholders.

The Scottish Government has extended the funding deadline for taxi/private hire drivers and operators to 25 March 2022. The grant is available for taxi drivers and operators who have faced financial challenges as a result of covid measures introduced to control the spread of infection.   Who can apply?Funding is available for new licence holders and for those who have not previously applied.   How do I apply?New licence holders /forms/taxi-driver-self-declaration

Are you interested in representing your local community?  Do you want to play a part in shaping the services that local people use? The Scottish Local Government Elections take place on 5 May 2022. Communities across Scotland will choose the 1,227 councillors who will represent them on the country’s 32 local authorities for the next five years. People in ����ֱ�� and Bute will elect 36 of those councillors to represent their communities.

The Scottish Local Government Elections take place on Thursday 5th May 2022. The Notice of Election for ����ֱ�� and Bute is now published and available on ����ֱ��’s website  /scottish-local-government-elections-may-2022 Voters in ����ֱ�� and Bute will elect thirty six councillors, representing eleven council wards. They include a mix of rural, remote and island communities as well as larger villages and towns.  

“People in ����ֱ�� and Bute have responded with overwhelming kindness to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.” Councillor Robin Currie, Leader of ����ֱ�� has paid tribute to communities across the area who are helping Ukrainians who are fleeing the war. Communities are showing their support by collecting donations of clothing and other vital supplies and arranging transport to Europe.