Newtonmore Community Plan

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Newtonmore Community Plan for the period to mid 2002 was agreed via a series of rapid appraisal questionnaires and public meetings organised by Moray Badenoch and Strathspey Enterprise. Various bodies have responsibility for implementation or progress on parts of the plan. The plan is detailed below. The plan will be updated from time to time as progress is made. The plan is now increasingly out of date, irrelevant and overtaken by events and changing perceptions, but there seems to have been no follow up by MBSE and no interest whatever in doing so. It may well be that in 2005, Newtonmore Community Council may need to repeat the exercise under their own steam.

PRIORITY	LEAD RESPONSIBILITY	SUPPORTED BY	TARGET	PROGRESS SO FAR as at 20 September 2006
Build small houses for young people to buy/rent	Scottish Homes Highland Council Highland Small Communities Housing Trust	Community Council	Identify and acquire appropriate site(s) by May 2002	Some houses have been built in Loch na Leoba place, but relatively few currently local residents on the housing list were offered a place and more affordable housing is still required. Thereare now a few more properties available for private rent than there were, but there is still some demand, mostly from incoming workers in the hotle and care home sectors
Upgraded children’s playground	Playpark Committee Community Council	Highland Council	Funding secured and equipment installed by April 2002	completed
Renovate Village Hall	Village Hall Committee	Highland Council MBSE Lottery and Private Trusts	Plans agreed and funding applications made by April 2002	there is still no progress with renovation
Improved community services	Community Council	Highland Council Northern Constabulary	Action on dog fouling, grass verges and cycle paths and higher police profile (during leave periods) by April 2002	Highland Council cleaning services now improved, planting improved, police presence, which had improved, is now less than it was Police presence on the street is now non-existant, and causing concern
More employment	Highland Council	MBSE Business Association	Greater promotion of industrial estate units by April 2002	some new take up achieved industrial units fully taken up
Smarten up village centre and entrance	Business Association Community Council	Highland Council MBSE	Enhanced colour in gardens, more hanging baskets and complete relandscaping of village square by Summer 2002	relandscaping at village square completed. Only remaining issue is lack of weatherproofing in the information signs at the square. Baskets and tubs more obvious on street- baskets better in 2006, but project for more tubs and baskets planned for 2007
Amenities skip	Community Council	Highland Council	Increased awareness of skips and address issue of fly-tipping by April 2002	recycling of paper and cans by doorstep collection now introduced and bottle banks still in place at car park behind Capercaillie restaurant. New recycling facilities at Kingussie, but still no amenity skip
More speed traps or bumps at both ends of village to reduce speed of lorries	Community Council	Highland Council Northern Constabulary	Increased use of speed traps and investigate chicane at southern end of village	police speed traps have been used more frequently. No likelihood of chicane or bumps on main roads as the road is a trunk road. Clune Terrace surface texture introduced, failed to have much impact. currently about to introduce monitoring period / counter to gauge size of problem
Better public transport	Community Council	Badenoch & Strathspey Transport Co. Transport Companies	Improved rail timetable, get sleeper to allow people to board at station and lobby bus companies to stop in village by Summer 2002	constant lobbying, but both bus and rail operators are intransigent. No real backing from Badenoch and Strathspey Transport Co, but still pressing. Services have actually diminished in 2002, with the withdrawal of the Summer Fort William service which HC declined to subsidise. Bus services now slightly more evenly spread through the day and much better on Sundays, but still non existant for evening local travel. New commuter train introduced from Kingussie to Inverness, with bus from Newtonmore to connect with it, but connection not advertised and train services stopping at Newtonmore still wholly inadequate.
Attract a bank	Community Council Business Association	Highland Council	Promote awareness of existing post office services by end of year. Lobby for Universal Banking facility when developed	existing services at Post Office promoted. Universal Banking Facility proposals by government seem to have made little progress so far. Service from Bank of Scotland has declined since Halifax merger, Royal Bank still providing a mobile service
More central government funding to assist local economy	Business Association	Highland Council MBSE	Lobby Central Government on an ongoing basis	ongoing Business Association to become a community company

The following projects outwith those defined by the rapid appraisal process are under way in Newtonmore at present, or have been implemented since the rapid appraisal process

Complete refurbishment of Main Street
During winter 2003/4 the entire Main Street road surfaces, pavements and street lighting were completely re-furbished to very high standards following pressure from Newtonmore Community Council and Business Association, and the intervention of Fergus Ewing MSP, whose efforts to secure Scottish Executive funding allocation for this trunk road project were instrumental in allowing the project to go ahead.

Newtonmore Winter Lights Association
In conjunction with the refurbishment of the street surfaces and lights, Newtonmore formed a winter lights association to raise funds for the complete renovation of the village's winter decorative lights. An ambitious scheme was put in place and a large sum was raised allowing the complete new set of lights to be switched on before Christmas 2003. Further lights have been added to extend the lighting scheme out to the edges of the village in 2004.

Clune Terrace Path and Kick Park Project
A project to create an all abilities footpath in an area of scrub woodland below Clune Terrace, and a kick park at the top of the Terrace has been completed. The project involved re-grading, surfacing of the kick park, tidying up of the scrub woodland, re-planting and creation of a path to wheelchair standards.

Tourist Information
Local Tourist Information Centre created April 2002, working in partnership with Highlands of Scotland Tourist Board - a local means of promoting the village.

Resource Centre
Newtonmore Community Web Association have secured two additional computers for public internet access through the Digital Scotland Initiative of the Scottish Executive - as a result, NCWA have invested in additional equipment to create a local resource centre with photocopying, scanning, digital camera printing, cd/dvd burning and laminating (to A3 size) all available to the public.

Newtonmore Promotional Leaflet
Newtonmore Business Association have completed a new promotional leaflet for the village, which is available to all businesses in the village for use when responding to enquiries and is distributed to local Tourist Information Centres

Jack Richmond Memorial Woodland Trail
A short extension to the Wildcat trail, near the Railway Station, has been created by Newtonmore Community Woodland and Development Trust, with wild planting, and an all abilities path to wheelchair standards. The trail will be formally named in honour of the late Jack Richmond in the near future.

Clan Macpherson Museum refurbishment Project
The museum was fully refurbished and improved during 2005/6 and now has an extensive catalogued clan library

Folk Museum Newtonmore Promotional Displays
Displays promoting the attractions and facilities of Newtonmore have been created at the Car Park of the Highland Folk Museum on the edge of the village, to help persuade visitors to the folk museum to come into the village as well. Reports from the museum indicate that these displays are well used by visitors.

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