My colleague Liz Syred and myself are part of a small organisation called 'Women of Influence' and we seek to be social shapers and influencers in our communities. We do this by delivering training, life coaching, community development, forum events and week-end retreats.
We are currently exploring the possibility of setting up a community cafe in Merkinch which local people could come in for a nice cuppa and healthy meal / snacks. It would be a really quality environment and a place which could become a flagship venue for the Merkinch area. We would plan to have a kids play corner, nice music and magazines / books also some little gifts for sale. It would also be a training cafe for people who are needing job placements to develop their skills.
We also hope to deliver some emotional support as well through life coaching, counselling and debt advice. If anyone would like to give comments which would help up in developing this new idea, please contact:
Elsie Normington
elsien@uwclub.net tel; 01463 239563 or 077 3495 8800
Liz Syred lizsyred@tiscali.co.uk
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As the new Merkinch and South Kessock Community Warden, I was ‘out and about’ getting to know my area, when I stumbled upon the idea of revamping the seating on Kessock Road.
I could quite clearly see that the seating there had obviously been well used but it was high time that it was replaced as most of the seating had sunk into the ground and was rotten. I did a little research to see what types of modern benches were available and personally liked the idea of carved benches. Having looked online for ideas I happened to come across Iain Chalmer’s website chainsawcreations.co.uk. His work was ideal and he had previous experience of seating projects, specifically for the community. He was also happy to work from drawings from members of the community and to transform them into stunning benches. PERFECT!!!
I decided to work with the Merkinch Primary School as I wanted to instil a sense of pride for their environment into the children who live in the community. Also, children have such great ideas and enthusiasm and I wanted to channel this into the project. The Head teacher, Fay Broadley, was very supportive of the project and allowed me to work with groups of children to design benches that are inspired by the wildlife living in the Firth. The ranger Katy Martin, was also very helpful and provided me with lots of images of the wildlife and information for the children to use for their drawings. We had a total of 60 designs submitted and myself and Iain went through the designs and selected those that best lent themselves to his skills and were most practical for a bench.
The project was delivered through Merkinch Greenspace and was funded by Merkinch Partnership and Highland Council Central Ward, with a small contribution from Merkinch Community Council. Due to the project having received such a positive response a similar project is now being considered for the Merkinch Local Nature Reserve.
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If you go down to Merkinch today you may be in for some questioning! A consultation is taking place to find out what visitors to the Merkinch Local Nature Reserve (LNR) would like to see happen to the Highland’s only Local Nature Reserve.
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This is taking place as part of the development of a 3-year management plan for the LNR. It’s all part of the preparation to find out as much as possible about what local people think of the site and what is good and not so good about this special area.
Three local consultants; Toni Clark, Bill Taylor and Phil James will produce a plan that looks at the past, present and future of the Merkinch LNR. As well as speaking to people on the site and in Merkinch, they are keen to hear from anyone with any information on the site’s history and any records of plants or animals that have been seen on the site.
By the end of March this year the plan will be completed and all those involved with Merkinch LNR are excited to see what it will come up with, and where funding could be found to take forward the suggested works.
But it’s not just a plan that’s happening - there will soon be some more concrete features to be seen on the site, well stone actually. Two, 7 foot tall Caithness flagstone entrance markers will be installed on the canal footpath at the western end of the LNR and another at the turning circle by the old ferry slipway. These have been funded by Community Economic Development programme administered by HIE Inverness and East Highland and SNH.
If you have any information on Merkinch LNR please contact Jonathan Willet, Highland Biodiversity Officer on 01463 702274 or jonathan.willet@highland.gov.uk .
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MERKINCH PARTNERSHIP SPORTS DEVELOPMENT DAYS
Merkinch Partnership has recognized sports development as one of its priorities in the regeneration agenda in Merkinch. A working group was formed in August 2007 to draw up a Sports Development Plan for the area. The overall vision of the Plan is to introduce young people to sports activities and make these activities more accessible and affordable, in order to achieve the following outcomes:
Promoting healthy, active lifestyles for young people and providing an alternative to playing on the streets.Creating opportunities for young people which will help them build confidence and realize their potential. Encouraging diversion from crime in young people
Allowing young people to make the best use of their leisure time
The Sports Plan also aims to recruit volunteers from the local community who will have the opportunity to access coaching qualifications.
As a first step in the realization of the Plan, the Partnership is holding 2 Sports Taster Days for Merkinch School, targeting pupils aged 8 to 12 yrs. The sessions will be led by qualified coaches assisted by school staff and volunteers from the local community.
The events are being funded by the Community Regeneration Fund through Merkinch Partnership. Sponsorship has also been received from GaelForce, Tescos and Les McLaren.
The taster days will act as the springboard for the next step in the Sports Plan – to set up after school sports activities in Merkinch which will be open and accessible to every child in the area. The Partnership is also working on a Transport Scheme which would allow local children access to sports clubs operating in other areas of the city. For more information contact Merkinch Partnership Officer Anne Sutherland on 01463 718989 or Merkinch Partnership Chair Peter Corbett on 01463 238159.
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