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On Monday 17 May, we expect mainland Scotland will be in Level 2 and ����ֱ�� and Bute’s outer islands will be in Level 1. Community and village halls will be able to restart activities which are permitted in those levels. In order for halls to re-open and operate safely, the Community Group or Appointed Organiser should take the following steps:

����ֱ�� is seeking bids from organisations wishing to deliver activity as part of the UK Community Renewal Fund. Aimed at stimulating growth and supporting people and communities, the Fund is part of the UK Government’s No one left Behind agenda. ����ֱ�� and Bute has been identified as one of the priority areas for the fund which involves the distribution of a total of £220 million of funding for 2021/22 across the whole of the UK.   

����ֱ��’s Policy and Resources Committee today agreed a £747,000 investment in growing the economy of Oban and the surrounding area.

Funding to support events and festivals for 2021/2022 across ����ֱ�� and Bute has today been agreed at the Policy and Resources Committee.

Scotland’s emerging space sector has secured more than £70,000 public sector match funding. ����ֱ�� and Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) have each awarded £36,985 to a joint venture between Machrihanish Airbase Community Company (MACC) and UK Launch Services Limited (UKLSL) for the Mach-21 CanSat competition and Space Careers Conference. 

����ֱ�� has taken a number of steps to ensure that young people feel well supported as they return to school after lockdown. The council’s educational psychologists have been delivering a nurture training programme across schools as part of its ‘Our children, their nurturing education’ strategy. Twenty primary and secondary schools have signed up, starting their journey to becoming a nurture and relationships-based community. The scheme has been a huge success and, as a result, is now being rolled out to other groups.

����ֱ�� has received an additional £2.3 million from the Scottish Government’s Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme Programme to help reduce fuel poverty in the area. The grant will be used by ����ֱ�� Community Housing Association (ACHA), in partnership with ����ֱ�� and SSE Energy Solutions to install external wall insulation to mixed tenure blocks of flats across Oban, Bute and Cowal.

  Update – 17:40   The results for the Highlands and Islands Regional List, which includes ����ֱ�� and Bute, are here:Scottish Parliamentary Election 2021 results for the Highlands and Islands Regional List | The Highland Council  

Jenni Minto, SNP, has been elected as the Member of Parliament for ����ֱ�� and Bute (constituency) in the Scottish Parliament election. Votes from the ����ֱ�� and Bute constituency have been counted and the result is below. Donald Cameron, Scottish Conservative and Unionist -7,645 Jenni Minto, Scottish National Party (SNP) – 16,608 Alan Reid, Scottish Liberal Democrats – 6,874 Lewis Whyte, Scottish Labour Party – 2,436

The Northern Alliance regional improvement collaborative is preparing for an ‘Include Me Week’ in May, providing opportunities for teachers and practitioners across its eight local authorities to take part in 30-minute ‘bitesize’ sessions on how best to engage children and young people in the planning and decisions that directly affect them.