Opportunity Black Isle (Black Isle Place Plan)

October 2024 update: The Highland Council has now registered The Black Isle Local Place Plan. Read on for more information...

Plan Opportunity Black Isle is our opportunity to create and deliver a plan for Black Isle that we are proud to call home, fit for future generations.

The aim of this ‘Local Place Plan’ is to provide a Black Isle wide vision for a more sustainable and resilient future, bringing together actions by the local community, the Council and others covering big issues like getting about, housing, community facilities, and nature and the environment.

Preparation of the plan is led by the local community, funded by The Highland Council. There have been three stages of community engagement beginning in March 2023, as the diagram shows.

Stage 1 included nine community drop-in events around the Black Isle between March and May 2023 plus an accompanying online survey and work with secondary schools. You can see the display boards use in stage 1 here.

During stage 2, results and analysis of the stage 1 engagement were shared at two community events in June 2023, attended by around 60 people, where discussion focussed on possible ways forward. You can see the results of those discussions here. Online surveys of primary school pupils and their parents also took place.

Stage 3 began in August 2023. The aim was to agree what should go into the draft Plan and work out how to avoid it sitting on a shelf - including how to reset the relationship between the community and the public sector. It comprises a few different activities.

A number of activities took place between August and November 2023 to help develop what should be in the draft Plan:

Black Isle-wide community discussion workshops on 15th and 16th September 2023 in Cromarty and North Kessock. The presentation slides shown at the start of those workshops include an initial draft outline of the plan, and can be seen here. This will change, it is not the final version!
An online form for anybody who missed those events or had extra thoughts after them. This ran for 6 weeks until mid November 2023.
A series of focus groups with Community Councils, community organisations, young people, businesses and the public sector.
Postcards were sent to every household in the Black Isle in October 2023 with a simple question: What does the Black Isle mean to you? The answers will help ensure that the Local Place Plan, and how it is implemented over the coming years, will help to protect what's special as well as improving things that could be better.

The draft Plan was published on 19th January 2024 for consultation until 16th February, with a full and summary draft available online and in local libraries and the Black Isle Leisure Centre. Thanks to all those who took the time to read and comment on the draft Plan.

The finalised Black Isle Local Place Plan was approved by the Highland Council in summer/autumn 2024 in two complementary ways:

It was adopted by the Black Isle and Easter Ross Area Committee "as a tool to inform and support decision making about the Black Isle" on 5th August 2024 (see agenda item 5).
It was registered as a Local Place Plan on 4 October 2024. This means that it will be taken into account in preparation of planning policy (particularly the forthcoming Highland-wide Local Development Plan).

For more information, please email Becky Richmond or Nick Wright (tel: 07900 334110).