Community / Crown Estate funding to increase
A POT of funding which is used to finance community projects in Shetland is set to increase by around £200,000.
Shetland Islands Council will receive £1.57 million in the latest round of funding from the Scottish Crown Estate.
Money is distributed by the Crown Estate to Scottish local authorities from revenue it generates from marine assets out to 12 nautical miles.
The latest Shetland settlement covers 2019/20, and it is an increase on the previous award of £1,359,806.
As it is based on net revenue, the funding allocation is likely to fluctuate each year.
Owing to Shetland’s island nature, the latest settlement is one of the largest given out in Scotland. Only the Highland, Western Isles and Argyll and Bute councils will receive more.
The money is used locally in what is now called the Shetland Islands Council Coastal Communities Fund.
It has already funded projects the length and breadth of the isles.
Some of the schemes have included pontoons for a new Cullivoe marina, the Fair Isle Bird Observatory rebuild and a Papa Stour kirk redevelopment.
In total nearly 30 projects have been supported in Shetland so far, with a total grant commitment of £1.594 million.
Shetland Islands Council’s economic development service manager Tommy Coutts said the value of the latest allocation was “great news”.
“Our allocation has been extremely useful in providing grants to community projects throughout Shetland via the Coastal Communities Fund, and this funding will allow us to continue to support our communities in this manner,” he said.
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -
- Remove non-local ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
