The Highland Council has announced a new twenty year, £2 billion Highland Investment Plan.
The Plan will see wide ranging investment across communities in the Highlands, with over £1bn of capital investment in schools and roads over the next 10 years in phase one of the programme.
Convener of the Council Bill Lobban said: "What is proposed is a ground-breaking, long term infrastructure investment programme for the Highland area, which will create jobs and economic prosperity across the region and constitute transformative change over the next 10 years.
"It is a radical solution to the significant challenges we face in maintaining and renewing our asset base. The Highland Investment Plan responds to the widespread public support for further investment in the school estate, as well as emerging critical issues that we face in dealing with schools with RAAC and HACC. We cannot simply rebuild schools like for like, and where possible, we will explore retrofit and co-location opportunities.
"Importantly, we are seeking to maximise our spending power to create innovative Community Points of Delivery for a wider range of public services in one location that can meet wider community needs as part of a strategic plan for communities."
Leader of the Council Raymond Bremner said: "The Highland Investment Plan will be one of the biggest investment programmes in Scotland and the largest ever for Highland.
"In addition to improving our school estate, the planned investment will help to address the on-going challenges we face in maintaining over 4000 miles of Highland roads and sustaining rural communities.
"The previous three years have seen increased funding for the roads capital programme. The capital review of September 2023 provided roads additional capital investment of £7.8m over five years and in March, members agreed another £40m over three financial years.
"A long-term investment programme for roads and transportation will ensure a sustainable approach to investment, contractor procurement, and opportunities to attract match funding from developer contributions or other external funding sources. There will also be significant local contracting and business opportunities and wider community economic benefit associated with the delivery of the Investment Plan."
The first 10 years of the Investment Programme will see investment in an initial phase of projects which will be place-based. These include Dingwall, with £400m investment to redevelop education and community facilities across the town in addition to housing, infrastructure and depots; with a similar approach in Thurso; Alness; Brora; Dornoch; Goslpie and Invergordon.
Schools identified for investment in phase one include Beauly, Charleston, Dunvegan, Fortrose and Inverness High School.
Initial seed-funding of £2.8m will create £50m of capital to start the investment fund. Ringfencing 2% on council tax each year will generate capital to maintain the funding plan over the long-term. The funding will be agreed each year by Council as part of the budget setting process.
Time and date
CONSTRUCTION DIRECTORY
Latest Construction News
22/11/2024
SP Energy Networks has announced a major investment in Britain's electricity grid, selecting 19 preferred partners to deliver a £5.4bn supply chain programme. This significant initiative aims to meet increasing energy demand and facilitate future growth. The selected companies, many of which are ...
22/11/2024
Edinburgh City Council has launched a 12-week public consultation on a new strategy to revitalise Princes Street and the wider Waverley Valley. The vision aims to create a more vibrant and welcoming city centre, attracting investment, supporting businesses, and enhancing the visitor ...
22/11/2024
Ener-G Services Limited, a leading UK electrical engineering company specialising in renewables, marine, and offshore sectors, has expanded its operations in Westhill, Aberdeenshire. The company has leased Unit 6E at Kingshill Commercial Park, a 2,500 sq ft space, on a 5-year lease. This new ...
22/11/2024
A consortium of leading scientists, industry experts, and academic institutions has joined forces to accelerate Scotland's offshore wind sector. The £2.5 million project, led by the University of Edinburgh in collaboration with the University of Dundee and the Forth and Tay Offshore cluster (FTO), ...
22/11/2024
The Port of Aberdeen and Turner & Townsend were highly commended in the 'Engineering, Construction & Infrastructure Project of the Year' category at the APM Project Management Awards 2024. The award recognises excellence in project management and the positive impact on end-users. The £420 million ...
22/11/2024
South Lanarkshire Council's £10 million fire safety improvement programme has reached a significant milestone, with CCG (Scotland) completing installations in over 1,700 high-rise residences across East Kilbride and Cambuslang. The Glasgow-based construction firm has been working closely with the ...
22/11/2024
SSEN Transmission, a key player in the UK's energy transition, is set to further expand its workforce and move into a new, sustainable office space in Glasgow. The company's commitment to net zero and the increasing demand for green energy workers has led to significant growth, with the number of ...
22/11/2024
Scottish Water is investing in the upgrade of its Loch Eck clean water plant in Dunoon. The project involves replacing outdated dry well pumps with new, more reliable pumps capable of operating in both wet and dry conditions. WGM Engineering, an RSK Group company, has been tasked with carrying out ...
22/11/2024
Scottish Land & Estates has expressed serious concerns over the Scottish Government's Land Reform Bill, particularly the provisions that would allow ministers to force landowners to sell large estates in lots. Sarah-Jane Laing, the organisation's chief executive, stated that while the land-based ...
22/11/2024
Clark Contracts employees have once again shown their commitment to community engagement by volunteering at Silverburn Park in Leven. On Thursday, 21st November, 16 members of the team spent their day planting over 400 trees and carrying out other landscaping tasks. This latest volunteering effort ...