News / Hillswick hall’s long wait is over
A SHETLAND community are celebrating after their long wait for funding to refurbish their community hall has come to and end.
Last summer it was a different story, when years of work putting together a £350,000 plan to install disabled access, new toilets and kitchen facilities and insulation at Hillswick public hall, in Northmavine, were stopped in their tracks by the Scottish government.
Two days after the hall committee finally submitted their detailed application to the government rural development programme, rural affairs secretary Richard Lochhead announced its closure.
Last Friday their patience and determination paid off when the Shetland local action group (LAG) decided to award £245,519 from the European LEADER fund towards the ambitious plan.
Hall committee secretary Laureen Manson said: “We did a huge amount of work to get that application in, it was just mega, and then two days after we submitted it Richard Lochead closed the package. Nobody knew, it was just terrible.
“This is fantastic though and we’re hoping to be able to get expressions of interest to do the work early next year and have it finished in the second half of 2012.”
The committee has had the backing of the local community and have put in a huge amount of work fundraising for the improvements.
Ms Manson said there had been much disappointment about the lack of disabled access, which kept some folk from attending events. The facilities are also out of date and the building is draughty with no insulation.
Recently the hall installed a wind turbine under the islands’ Wind2Heat scheme, which is helping to keep the building warm.
LAG chairman Douglas Irvine said they had been very impressed with the application. “We consider this to be a very strong project because of how well the hall is used and how much it means to the surrounding community.”
Several other community groups had been disappointed when the SRDP funding ceased, but efforts have been made to help them all, Mr Irvine said.
Meanwhile Shetland Rugby Club has been awarded £31,000 to pay half the cost of a full time rugby development officer to increase participation in the sport.
Shetland Islands Council has been awarded funding to cover half the cost of two projects – £4,100 for a youth participatory budgeting project to help young people aged 12 to 25 decide on new projects and apply for funding; and £4,375 towards a two year pilot to purchase and manage external funding search engine software for private and public use.
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