Inverness area community projects to benefit from unspent Covid funds

COMMUNITY projects in Inverness area are to benefit from a repurposed Covid fund, members of the City of Inverness Area Committee have agreed.

Leader of Inverness and Area Committee, Cllr Ian Brown said: “As we continue to recover from the pandemic, the impacts of Covid continue to be felt across our communities.

"The importance of outdoor activities for health and wellbeing are vital and these allocations will provide opportunities to develop active recreation for young people.”

At a meeting of Highland Council in January 2021, councillors agreed that areas with unspent Covid funds could decide to spend this on projects that would assist children and adults post-Covid, especially within deprived areas.

Councillors agreed to repurpose Covid funds to the following projects:

In Inverness West - Muirtown Growing Project at Muirtown Primary School was awarded £6,285 to replace a polytunnel with a new more sustainable polytunnel which will allow the school to re-establish a culture of Growing Our Own in the school and nursery. This will improve outdoor activities for the school and community and aligns with the aims of the council’s Community Food Growing Strategy agreed last year.

In Culloden and Ardersier, £21,000 was awarded to support the purchase of three items of play park equipment at Croy Playpark on Ardcroy Road. Croy has been identified as a priority for improved access to outdoor play and the project will provide a play park with natural, sustainable, inclusive and high play value equipment with an expected minimum 15 years life span.

Also approved was the decision to allocate Place Based Investment Funds

(PBIF) from an identified project underspend.

Aird and Loch Ness will have £46,800 reallocated to support the re-instatement, for 12 months, of the Inverness to Kiltarlity / Kiltarlity to Inverness early morning and evening public bus services.

The remaining unspent PBIF of £6,625, were allocated for play parks across the ward.

Cllr Brown added: “This committee previously agreed Ward 12’s Place Based Investment Fund allocations in August 2021.

“With an identified PBIF underspend across a previously approved commitment we are pleased to be able to maintain this allocation to these important community projects by reallocating that underspend.”

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