The Crofting Counties are to be expanded following a public consultation. Arran, Bute, Greater and Little Cumbrae, Moray and parts of Highland not currently within the Crofting Counties are to be designated as new crofting areas. Scottish Ministers are allowed to designate new areas of Scotland where crofts can be created, with the approval of the Crofters Commission. A Scottish Statutory Instrument proposing this extension of crofting areas will be laid before the Parliament shortly. Speaking at the Highlands and Islands Convention, Environment Minister Michael Russell said, “Crofting has a real role to play in not only maintaining vibrant populations and thriving communities in Scotland’s less accessible areas but enabling them to grow and prosper. We want to see inclusive and dynamic crofting communities and the designation of new crofting areas will aid the sustainable economic growth of these areas. The consultation provoked a number of responses but it’s fair to say that a strong majority were favourable. We will now look at extending the Crofting Counties Agricultural Grants Scheme (CCAGS) to the whole of the Highlands and Islands Enterprise Area to ensure crofters in the new area can fully benefit from this funding.”

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6 October 2008
© Rural Gateway

Natural England has today (Friday 3 October) published new Environmental Stewardship (ES) handbooks to provide farmers with a comprehensive guide to ES and how to apply. A dedicated Environmental Stewardship phone number has also been established: 0300 060 1115; and for the first time applicants for Entry Level Stewardship schemes (ELS) can now apply online at www.naturalengland.org.uk The new handbooks, which cover every available ES scheme, apply to all agreements starting on or after 1 October 2008. The handbooks have been re-designed and include information on new options and changes to the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) bringing farmers up to date on how ES can help their farm business and how they can apply. Almost £3 billion is earmarked for ES and other agri-environment schemes from 2007-2013, under the RDPE. Dr Helen Phillips, Chief Executive of Natural England, said: “Environmental Stewardship remains essential to the health of our natural environment and the success of certain species and we know this can go hand in hand with a successful farming enterprise. We will work closely with the farming industry to ensure these ES schemes continue to work for the benefit of farming, the countryside and wildlife.” View the handbooks: www.naturalengland.org.uk/planning/grants-funding/es/default.htm
View the ELS: www.naturalengland.org.uk/planning/grants-funding/es/els/online.htm

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6 October 2008
© Natural England

The results of our Great Rural Debate on Schools poll are in. We asked you if a rural community can thrive without a local school? Just over 60 percent of voters said no. The Great Rural Debate on Schools was launched to tie in with the recent consultation on the Scottish Government’s proposals to change the way school closures are handled. The issue is a complex one - and we recognise that the poll is just a snapshot. To kickstart debate, Dr Kate Braithwaite from Carnegie UK Trust and north-east parent Paulina Johnston gave their views on the subject. Rural Gateway members have been adding comments about the issue. You can read these valuable contributions and comments, and join the discussion at Great Rural Debate on Schools: http://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=2373&d=11&h=24&f=46

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3 October 2008
© Rural Gateway

Environment Minister Michael Russell has announced proposals aimed at developing crofting communities, in response to the final report from the Committee of Inquiry on Crofting. Some of the government’s proposals do not go as far as those set out in the Committee of Inquiry’s report. For example, the Committee called for the abolition of the Crofters Commission, but the government proposes a reconstituting of the organisation. Speaking in Parliament Mr Russell said, “I believe that empowering crofters to take decisions about crofting is central to securing the future of the sector. By reforming the Crofters Commission to make it more democratic and accountable we will return power to those who know what is best for crofting and their communities. One of the priorities of this Government is to support and develop rural communities and I feel today’s proposals will do exactly that. Crofting makes a unique and significant contribution to remote rural areas through economic, social and environmental benefits and has a pivotal role in the world famous cultural landscape of the Highlands and Islands.”

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3 October 2008
© Rural Gateway

Views on how farming and crofting can continue to be supported and sustained in ‘less favoured areas’ are being sought from this week. Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment Richard Lochhead launched a consultation on the Less Favoured Area Support Scheme (LFASS) for 2010-2013. Speaking during a parliamentary debate on hill farming and less-favoured areas, Mr Lochhead said, “We have a clear and ambitious agenda for Scottish agriculture in the 21st century: a dynamic and competitive industry which supports the sustainable, economic growth of our rural communities. Less-favoured areas comprise 85 per cent of our agricultural land and are therefore an integral part of our agenda. LFASS provides £61 million a year to support over 12,500 farming and crofting businesses. The recent loss of livestock from our hills is a matter of serious and growing concern to the Scottish Government. A decline in activity threatens the viability of communities and impacts on food production and our environment. This consultation is therefore vitally important. It will enable us to work in partnership with the industry so we can respond to the challenges we face and ensure hill farming and remote rural communities can look forward to a viable future.” When the Scottish Government submitted the Scottish Rural Development Programme (of which LFASS is a part) to Brussels in summer 2007, changes in the European regulations on LFASS were expected to take effect from January 1, 2010. European approval was therefore sought (and gained) for an interim LFASS to run during 2007, 2008 and 2009.

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29 September 2008
© Scottish Government

Second-tier organisations in Scotland have been awarded £6.4m by the Big Lottery Fund. The 15 grants include £981,000 to the Scottish Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux , £777,000 to the Poverty Alliance and £588,000 to the Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Sector Organisations Scotland . The 15 infrastructure organisations received the awards from the BLF’s Dynamic, Inclusive Communities fund.

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24 September 2008
© John Plummer, Third Sector Online

The Scottish Government will meet voluntary sector representatives in November and January to measure progress in forging a closer relationship. Earlier in the month, a task group including senior figures from the SCVO and local and central government was set up to achieve targets on issues such as better partnerships and funding relationships, and improving the capacity of the third sector.

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26 September 2008
© David Ainsworth, Third Sector Online

The NSPCC will open a new base in Edinburgh in a bid to expand its ChildLine services in the country, according to reports. According to the BBC, the new base will allow the information line to launch new text and online services and to bring more volunteers onboard. The expansion is part of the NSPCC’s plans to double the services in Scotland by 2011 and raise £11 million for the country. Elaine Chalmers, head of ChildLine in Scotland, told the news provider: “We need ongoing support from the public, businesses and others to make sure every child’s cry for help is heard.” The government has given £55,000 over the past two years to help set up the Edinburgh base and expand services in the Aberdeen and Glasgow branches.

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23 September 2008
© CAF

A crime reduction charity in Scotland has called for a greater focus on community sentences and bail supervision to reduce offending after the prison population reached record levels. The comments from Sacro follow remarks made by the Scottish Prison Service’s chief executive Mike Ewart. He said prisons were in a state of emergency because of overcrowding. The prison population has reached 8,137, although the capacity is only 6,625. Mr Ewart called for a cap on the number of those being incarcerated. Sacro said short custodial sentences were ‘next to useless’, arguing there was a wealth of evidence to support this view. In 2005/06, sentences of six months or less accounted for 83% of prison terms handed down, while the average time served was 24 days. ‘This is not long enough to help prisoners address their offending behaviour but it is long enough for them to break ties with their families and communities and build new, less positive ties within prison,’ Sacro said.

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24 September 2008
© NewStart

Are you campaigning to keep your local school or post office open? Or campaigning against a windfarm in your local area? Maybe you are trying to keep your village’s telephone box? Do you want to have your say on television? If so, BBC’s Landward programme with Nick Nairn want to hear from you. The BBC are currently looking for local campaigners to speak in front of the camera about issues that are important to them.

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23 September 2008
© Rural Gateway