Skye and Lochalsh Project Wins COSLA Excellence Award

A Skye and Lochalsh project has won a top award at the annual Convention of Scottish Local Authorities’ Excellence Awards.

The Skye and Lochalsh Toolkit – an interactive online facility providing up to date information to help community groups – won the category entitled Advancing Community Wellbeing.

John MacDonald, The Highland Council’s Area Manager for Skye and Lochalsh, and his team were presented with the award at the ceremony in St Andrews on Thursday night (8 March).

The project was identified in 2004 by the Skye and Lochalsh Community Learning Plan Partnership. It attracted European funding from the LEADER+, matched by contributions from The Highland Council and Skye and Lochalsh Enterprise.

Skye and Lochalsh Council for Voluntary Organisations provided the project management and Sitekit Solutions were the web developers.

A dedicated project worker was employed to consult with a wide range of community groups in Skye and Lochalsh, research content and develop the web site, pulling together the knowledge and expertise of the partners as well as the local groups themselves.

The web site www.slcvo.org.uk/toolkit averages 8,000 hits per month and has proved invaluable not only to local community groups but also the agencies who assist with community capacity building.