« Previous | Contents | Next »
Listen
Application form
Please make sure you have read all the notes carefully before you start to fill in the application form. This application form can either be completed by hand or electronically - it is available on the Planning homepage at www.scotland.gov.uk/planning. Please complete all five sections. The deadline for submitting applications is 8 September 2006. An acknowledgement letter will be sent to the person who has completed this form.
1 Please provide a name and contact details of the lead organisation responsible for this work.
Name | Mike Greaves |
Job title | Head of Development and Strategy |
Organisation | The Highland Council, Planning and Development Service |
Address | Glenurquhart Road, Inverness, IV3 5NX |
Telephone | 01463 702260 |
Fax | 01463 702298 |
Email | Mike.greaves@highland.gov.uk |
2 If this is a joint application, please list the other partners who had a key role. You should also inform your partners that you are nominating the project for an award.
1 Highlands and Islands Enterprise | 2 HIE Inverness and East Highland |
3 Cromarty Firth Port Authority | 4 Inverness Harbour Trust |
5 Network Rail | 6 Scottish Water |
3 Tick the category of nomination
Title of entry | Inner Moray Firth Ports and Sites Strategy ( IMFPS) |
Please complete the form on the following pages by providing a brief summary of the piece of work you have entered. You must also conclude with a key reason as to why you think this work merits an Award. Only the two A4 pages supplied here can be used and your text must fit within the boxes. The font size should be no less than 12pt.
The judging criteria are set out below. Please tick only the key criteria relevant to your entry:
You must describe, in your written submission, how the criteria which you have ticked relate to your project.
Description of project
The Ports and Sites Strategy was developed in response to the downturn in the oil fabrication/heavy engineering industry in the Highlands after 2000. It reviewed the availability and suitability of key strategic ports/industrial sites around the Inner Moray Firth and examined potential business activities that might be stimulated there in each case. A Working Group, comprising six elected Members from Nairn, Inverness and Ross & Cromarty together with representatives from HIE, the LEC and the two relevant Port Authorities was charged with drawing up a strategy for the area that would refocus business promotion and encourage the implementation of key infrastructural developments allowing the Inner Moray Firth to continue to act as the "engine room" of the Highland economy. |
Context - describe the background to the project
The severe downturn in oil and gas fabrication work at the Highland's two main facilities at Nigg and Ardersier in 1999-2000 signalled a need to examine the surfeit of major industrial sites and ports around Inverness and the Inner Moray Firth. The National Planning Framework recognises that the Inverness city region acts as an economic hub for the wider Highland economy. With the end of such an "era" came a realisation of new economic opportunities for which uniquely different strategic sites should be targeted. However, "land rich" as the Highlands are, so to has been the cumulative under-investment in transport and other infrastructures. Turning the corner here also required a strong case for spend to upgrade these networks and enable site development. |
What are the aims and objectives of the project?
The key aims and objectives behind the establishment of the Strategy are to: - Establish Nigg Yard as a multi-purpose/user, world class engineering facility.
- Identify specific industrial, business & strategic regeneration projects for six other sites.
- Lobby for high quality road links with Scotland's other cities and principal markets.
- Reduce rail travel times between Inverness and the Central Belt.
- Upgrade regional waste water facilities and ensure strategic water supplies to facilitate future developments
Ensure a national market for Highland renewable energy resources and establish state of the art regional waste arrangements |
Timescale - over what timescale has the project been developed?
The Strategy has been structured to cover the period up to 2050. It arose from the Halcrow study (2003), commissioned by HIE, DTI and The Highland Council as a Ministerial response to the fabrication downturn. The Working Group was established in November 2003 and has been meeting on a regular basis with key stakeholders such as Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scottish Water, Network Rail, Port Authorities as well as marine users and local communities. With the Strategy now finalised the Working Group continues to meet regularly to lobby and monitor implementation of the Action Plan. |
Action - explain the process and action taken
As a result of the work undertaken by the Halcrow Group the potential for seizing certain emerging opportunities was highlighted, particularly in relation to renewable energy and the potential of the facilities at Nigg. The Highland Council established a Working Group to engage with all the key agencies and site owners to take forward the development of a Strategy for users of these sites. A draft document was produced and a process of consultation undertaken including public meetings held in Inverness and Invergordon. A large number of written submissions were received from local people and communities with an interest in the continued regeneration of their areas and the final strategy document was consequently revised. Following consideration by the Highland Council's Ross & Cromarty and Inverness Area Committees, the Strategy was approved as supplementary planning guidance by the full Council on 31 May 2006. |
Explain the role of the key partners
The Highland Council, HIE and the DTI agreed to work together to establish a strategic framework for the future use of industrial sites and port facilities in the Inner Moray Firth in June 2002. The Council led the process by establishing and servicing the Working Group, while the key partners contributed their time and expertise towards the development of the Strategy. Agencies such as Network Rail and Scottish Water and Transport Scotland contributed valuable expertise, crucial to the successful conclusion of the Strategy document. The two Port Authorities brought their considerable experience of the realities of operating busy harbour facilities and were able to transcend short term commercial rivalries for the longer term benefits which a coordinated approach to future developments would bring. |
Results - what results were achieved?
The Ports and Sites Strategy adopted as supplementary planning guidance in May 2006, which provided a platform for lobbying Ministers and other key players for prioritising partner investment programmes and as a material consideration in determining future planning applications. Closer working relationships developed amongst all the partners. Continued collaboration in order to monitor progress towards the implementation of the Strategy. |
Conclusion - in summary, why does this piece of work merit an Award?
This Strategy is all about creating the right conditions for sustainable development in the Inner Moray Firth. The downturn in fabrication activity saw the demise of a major economic resource worth in excess of £100m annually for the area and had severe implications for the communities affected, particularly the highly skilled and now peripatetic workforce. The partnership approach adopted towards creation of the Strategy has meant that agencies, communities and businesses have been actively involved in working together to ensure that the area's industrial, infrastructural and transportation systems are "fit for purpose". The Strategy is a pivotal framework for supporting and developing existing businesses while at the same time ensuring that new market opportunities such as those arising in the renewable energy and regeneration sectors can be readily exploited. It is expected that both the Strategy and the Working Group will play a significant role in driving forward the next iteration of the National Planning Framework (2007/08). |
Date
« Previous | Contents | Next »