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“The festive season is with us once again, that special time of peace, love and celebration. “For many people, this can be a difficult time. My thoughts and wishes are with them. I know that there are many, many people in our communities, throughout Argyll and Bute, who will do all they can to provide comfort and hope amid the festivities. I thank them for all their work, at this time and throughout the year.

Local coastline initiatives will share £1.158 million funding allocated to Argyll and Bute from the Scottish Government’s Crown Estates Fund. At the Council's Policy and Resources Committee, councillors agreed that the funding should support projects across Argyll and Bute: ·         Tobermory railings and flood prevention scheme - £145,000  ·         Rothesay pontoons improvement - £151,000  ·         Helensburgh flood mitigation - £300,000 ·         Campbeltown flood defences - £270,000

More girls than boys in Cowal would like to pursue a career in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) when they leave school, according to a survey carried out during an exciting and innovative event at Dunoon Grammar last week. Primary five pupils from schools across the peninsula went along to Dunoon Grammar for “Mission to Mars” – a STEM event organised by the Digital Learning Team and supported by the school and Science Grrl Glasgow.

Argyll and Bute Council has welcomed the success of a £500,000 fund in attracting new residents and jobs to the area. At the meeting this week of the Policy and Resources Committee, councillors reviewed a report on the economic impact of the Rural Resettlement Fund which showed that 193 new residents, including 56 children, relocated to Argyll and Bute thanks to Fund support.  Of that number, 18 people with families relocated to take up a job on one of our islands, resulting in 53 new inhabitants in these communities across Argyll and Bute.

Moves to expand Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) and implement 1140 hours of funded ELC in Argyll and Bute by August 2020 are on schedule, Argyll and Bute Council’s Community Services Committee has confirmed. The expansion in childcare, from 600 hours to 1140 hours, is part of a Scottish Government initiative aimed at providing young people with a high quality experience that can make a significant contribution to their development, and help close the poverty related attainment gap.

Caring pupils at Clachan Primary School have been hard at work over the last few months, preparing 48 Christmas cakes to give to retired residents in the local community. The annual school tradition dates back more than two decades and sees the children bake, package and hand-deliver the cakes to elderly people in the village.

Welcome to Argyll and Bute Council’s weekly news round-up. Thank you for reading it. If you have ideas on how we could make it more useful for you, we’d love to hear them. Please let us know by emailing press@argyll-bute.gov.uk Support extended for care experienced children and young people Argyll and Bute Council has reaffirmed its commitment to improving the educational attainment and life chances of care experienced children and young people.

Helensburgh Town Centre has just been designated a new conservation area by Argyll and Bute Council.  The designation recognises Helensburgh’s special architectural and historic qualities and will promote the high quality built environment. The next step is to prepare a Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan. This plan defines what is special about character and appearance of the conservation area and how the way the space is used may change.

Ongoing investment in Argyll and Bute’s roads continues to halt deterioration and overall condition of the roads shows continued improvement. And Argyll and Bute remains in the top five fastest improving Scottish Local Authorities in terms of road condition. The Annual Status and Options Report (ASOR) summarises the council’s road assets as at April 2018 and sets out future options that can be considered in terms of investment.

A council contribution of £270,000 capital funding towards a flood protection scheme for Campbeltown will go forward to be considered as part of the budget process in the 2020/21 financial year. This was agreed by the council’s Economic Development and Infrastructure Committee on Thursday 5 December, which also approved the preliminary confirmation of the Campbeltown Flood Protection Scheme (CFPS).