Award Winning Alness Facility opened

An award winning community facility in Alness officially opened its doors today (Thursday 30 August).

The Westend Community Centre in Alness, run by the West Alness Residents Association, was officially opened by Jamie Stone MSP at a ceremony with invited guests.

Earlier this year the West Alness Residents Association won the Community Action award at the Annual TFN Awards that are organised by the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations and voluntary sector newspaper Third Force News.  The award recognised the hard work of this small group of mainly Council Housing tenants who, without any experience, successfully managed this £270,000 project.

The Westend Community Centre is the only community facility in the middle of a 1000 household neighbourhood.  The project to extend and refurbish this much used meeting place started in 2003 and was only completed recently. 

Before declaring the Community Centre open, Jamie Stone congratulated the group on providing such a wonderful resource for local residents. 

“I’m very proud to have been invited to open this wonderful hall.  I know that it will be a much used and much loved centre at the heart of the whole community,” he said.

Jennifer MacLeod, Chair of the West Alness Residents Association, said the group’s next aim is to make sure the new facility is even more used than the old hall.

“We were busy before with youth clubs, lunch club, bingo, tenants group meetings, art club and other community groups but now we have extra rooms we want to make sure they are used well for the community and would welcome any new organisations that want to start something in the area,” she explained.

Funding for the extension and refurbishment of the hall came from the Big Lottery Fund; Highlands & Islands Enterprise; HICEC; Community Economic Development; Community Regeneration Fund; The Highland Council; Garfield Weston Foundation and the Robertson Trust.

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