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3 COMHAIRLE NAN EILEAN SIAR (OUTER HEBRIDES)

Project Background and Rationale

Background

3.1 The Cultural Pathfinder project in Eilean Siar is set within the context of an area characterised by: a strong cultural heritage including the Gaelic language and culture; the remote nature of many of the islands; and the difficulties with infrastructure outside of the main population centres. The Cultural Pathfinder project aimed to develop inclusive and sustainable cultural entitlements and to explore processes best suited to engaging local and remote communities.

3.2 Consultation with communities across the Eilean Siar was central to the Pathfinder project, which had two main phases: consultation with stakeholders in the cultural sector and consultation with community groups and individuals.

3.3 From the outset, these consultations were intended to inform the development of a suite of Cultural Entitlements. Following the change of direction from the Scottish Government regarding 'entitlements', the project focussed on consultation and understanding the culture of the Eilean Siar in order to help shape future strategies for culture, language, heritage and Community Planning.

Aims and Objectives

3.4 The initial aim of the Pathfinder as outlined in the Evaluation Plan was "to develop inclusive and sustainable cultural entitlements for the Outer Hebrides in accordance with the Outer Hebrides Cultural Strategy and the Language Plan and to assess best consultation processes in a rural context, so that the lives of people living in these areas are ultimately improved through cultural engagement".

3.5 The original objectives of the project were:

• to genuinely engage the local community, partner agencies and organisations in the process of developing cultural entitlements;
• to establish cultural entitlements which represent all sectors of the community and culture;
• to reinforce existing and establish new opportunities for on-going feedback and discussion with all stakeholders during and beyond the Pathfinder process; and
• to share 'lessons learned' through monitoring and evaluating the process.

3.6 Following the Scottish Government's policy move, away from entitlements to wider community access linked with Community Planning, the Pathfinder aim was revised, as follows: "to find a method of consulting as wide a range of stakeholders as possible and to engage the community as fully as possible in the process."

3.7 The project objectives were altered slightly given the change of direction and language around entitlements. The objectives now focussed on engagement and consultation to identify priorities rather than on identifying cultural entitlements.

3.8 The Steering Group for the Pathfinder felt that the outputs should include new processes for consulting with the community, clarification of future priorities for cultural provision and cultural providers in the area and lessons learned for policy makers at the local and national levels.

Funding

3.9 The total budget for this project was £34,285. This was made up of £19,400 from Cultural Pathfinder Programme and match funding from SNG Gaelic (£1,000), HTE Innse Gall (£2,400), HI-Arts (£1,090), Scottish Arts Council (£3,000), Cn ES Education (£7,015) and Scottish Government (£380 for travel expenses to Pathfinder Collaborative). Staffing resources were provided by the Council as 'in kind support'.

Strategic Fit

3.10 The Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Pathfinder Project was developed in the context of national policies for culture (e.g. Scotland's Culture). During the initial stages, the Pathfinder sought to develop cultural 'entitlements' based on the draft Culture Bill. A change of emphasis at the national level led to a re-focus for the Pathfinder, although it is acknowledged in the report that the project was largely influenced by the idea of 'entitlement'.

3.11 The agreed National Performance Framework of Indicators and Targets for the Single Outcome Agreements ⁴ also influenced this Pathfinder at the strategic level and while the national outcomes and national indicators inform a broad spectrum of local authority services, those with relevance to - or which can be delivered with the help of - arts and culture were considered in designing the Pathfinder project.

3.12 At a local level, the Cultural Pathfinder project fits well with the Outer Hebrides Cultural Strategy and the aim was to use the outcomes from the project to enhance the strategy, which covers four interlinking aspects of culture: Language; Heritage; Arts; and Creative Industries.

3.13 The Cultural Strategy was developed by the Outer Hebrides CPP and the Gaelic Language and Culture Forum as well as representatives from other agencies and partner organisations. Two key themes of the strategy are 'Access and Preservation' and 'Community Development and Lifelong Learning'. Culture and planning for cultural provision is already established within Community Planning and until recently, there was a dedicated forum - the Gaelic Language and Culture Forum.

3.14 Further local policies that influenced the Pathfinder project at a strategic level include: 'Community Planning in the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar'; 'Social and Economic Impact of the Arts in the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar'; and the 'Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Language Plan'.

Activities and Processes

3.15 The Cultural Working Group, a group of council officers with a remit for culture (including education, economic development, arts, community education and Gaelic language) and the CPP were involved in designing the Pathfinder. The Cultural Working Group also acted as a steering group for the project which was managed by a dedicated project manager. Consultants from Fablevision, Theatre Hebrides and Creative Services were commissioned to deliver the activities of the Pathfinder. Local artists were also engaged in the process.

3.16 The Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Cultural Pathfinder was carried out in two phases. The first phase involved three methods of consultation: facilitated meetings; one-to-one meetings; and an online questionnaire. Phase one was intended to invite existing cultural and public agencies, organisations and individuals to contribute their ideas to the project.

3.17 According to the final Pathfinder report, fourteen meetings were held and these were attended by a total of fifty-nine people. Participants included representatives from the public and cultural sector as well as voluntary, arts and community organisations with an interest in arts and heritage.

3.18 Phase two involved wider community-based consultation, and used imaginative and participatory approaches to engage individuals within communities. External consultants and artists were commissioned to deliver these consultation events.

3.19 A series of creative workshops were held across the Eilean Siar and many techniques were used including: drama; poetry; image; film presentation and reminiscence theatre. The creative workshops were designed to encourage expression and enable participants to express their views.

3.20 A total of 55 creative workshops were held, covering the full geographic area of the Eilean Siar. Overall, 593 people participated in the workshops. Participant groups included primary and secondary school children, older people, and local sports groups. One workshop was attended by disabled people and others specifically focussed on older people and younger people.

3.21 In order to raise the profile of the Pathfinder and encourage further debate, a conference was held by the Outer Hebrides Community Cultural Network in November 2007. This provided an opportunity for the Scottish Government, local authority representatives and community organisations to come together to discuss issues and challenges. This conference facilitated learning and discussion of culture across a range of themes including heritage, language and culture.

3.22 Further activities included an online questionnaire, a documentary film called 'Island Voices' which gathered consultation feedback throughout the creative workshop process and work within local schools.

3.23 In working with local schools, the Pathfinder joined up with local authority Creative Links Officer and Cultural Co-ordinators. School children were encouraged to contribute to the 'Island Voices' film and to participate in drama workshops. This work sought to highlight the richness of activity and to show where children and young people could contribute to cultural activities. Several groups of children and young people from all over the islands were brought together in their local communities to share their interest and activity in film. From this, two separate film projects were started - one in Uist and one in Stornoway.

3.24 Drama workshops were held in Stornoway for children and young people as a method for consulting with them. Building on these, additional workshops were added and formed a partnership between the local authority and the Gaelic Media Service (now MG Alba) and this provided a platform for a new project with a cultural theme in addition to the Pathfinder activities.

3.25 Another activity aimed at children and young people was the Slighean tro nah-Innse Gall exhibition that aimed to map out the cultural opportunities available for young people. The exhibition aimed to reinforce the arts education strategy as well as informing the Pathfinder project.

3.26 An online survey was also prepared and hosted on the Council's website. It was open to the whole community and was advertised in local press and on the websites of the key agencies involved in the Pathfinder project.

3.27 The Pathfinder project joined up with other projects to deliver activities and gather information to inform other strategies such as the arts education strategy. These activities were developed later in the programme.

Achievements and Impacts

3.28 The achievements and impacts presented are mainly those outlined in the final report and other associated documents.

3.29 In line with the Evaluation Toolkit, the Evaluation Plan for the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Pathfinder identified indicators in relation to Activities, Participation, Satisfaction, Impacts and Value for Money. This section discusses the achievements and impacts of the project using evidence from the Evaluation Plan, Cultural Pathfinder report and consultations with the project manager and strategic partners.

Activities

3.30 In the Evaluation Plan, a number of activity based indicators were identified and the project has achieved some of these.

3.31 A consultation on cultural entitlements included in the Outer Hebrides Community Appraisal was planned to be carried out using questionnaires to every household. This was partially achieved. The demands from a range of other sectors for information from the questionnaire limited the number of questions related to culture and as such, a limited amount of evidence was gathered. However, the exercise was considered useful in providing information and feedback from the whole population.

3.32 Further outputs related to consultation sessions on Barra, Uist, Harris and Lewis with young people, older people, minority groups and key stakeholders, agencies and community organisations were achieved through the two phased approach to consultation. The period of consultation was longer than originally expected due to logistical constraints and weather. Further, the costs involved in carrying out these consultations were higher than expected mainly due to transport costs.

3.33 Plans to post cultural entitlement questions on the Council's cultural website were not carried out. The e-questionnaire and interactive ideas exchange for the project steering group were felt to provide sufficient information and a decision was made not to put the questions on the website.

3.34 The Pathfinder project exceeded the number of individuals it planned to consult and feedback from project managers and stakeholders suggests that this was an area of real success. However, it was also noted that a more structured, less organic approach to the consultation process may have been easier to manage and deliver.

Participation

3.35 A number of indicators were identified in terms of participation, and, on the whole, these were achieved. Targets for attendance at public sessions on the four islands were achieved and in some cases exceeded.

3.36 Other identified outputs related to the number of hits on the Council's website - 13,300 on the Council's arts and culture website and 400 on the Council's Cultural Pathfinder website were logged, indicating that this was achieved. The e-questionnaire was less successful, and only 31 returns were received compared with a target of 50. Reasons cited for this were that people were possibly unaware of the online questionnaire and that perhaps people were less comfortable with an online questionnaire compared with face-to-face discussions.

3.37 The targets for individual consultations with young people, older people community representatives and key stakeholders were achieved. Individual consultations with individuals from minority groups were also included as an indicator - this was partially achieved. It was acknowledged in discussions with project stakeholders that levels of consultation with minority groups did not meet original expectations and that in some cases practical difficulties were to blame.

Satisfaction

3.38 Satisfaction indicators related to the satisfaction of project participants, key stakeholders, target groups and the public with the outcomes and processes used during the Pathfinder activities.

3.39 The Evaluation Plan reports partial achievement of most of these indicators. It is reported that whilst the Cultural Working Group was satisfied with the overall outcome and process, the reporting and presentation process will contribute further to achieving this output. It is expected that the satisfaction of key stakeholders will also depend on the presentation and final reporting stage of the Pathfinder project.

3.40 In terms of public satisfaction, feedback from the consultation events indicates that the public and specific target groups were satisfied with their involvement and the methods used in the workshop events.

Impacts

3.41 The Pathfinder aimed to impact cultural strategy, audience development and participation and to share lessons with other local authorities. It has partially achieved this.

3.42 The project indicators suggest that the Council would develop a programme of cultural events to meet the needs and aspirations of the community following the Pathfinder. This is yet to happen, and is awaiting the outcome of discussions at the Cultural Working Group two-day conference carried out in Autumn 2008. This event, bringing together cultural agencies, cultural groups and the council will help to shape cultural strategy, structures and activities.

3.43 Improving access to events and audience development were not achieved and after consideration, the Steering Group felt that this is a medium to long term outcome that could not be achieved during the life of the Pathfinder project. However, discussions around culture, exposure to artists and increasing awareness of cultural activity across the Eilean Siar were identified as key outcomes by project stakeholders. Therefore, it may be too soon to assess whether the Pathfinder has increased awareness and access to cultural events and activities.

3.44 A key indicator that has been partially achieved has been using the Pathfinder project to prioritise and focus resources of the Council and strategic partners. The information generated from the Pathfinder is already being used in the Arts Education Strategy and is expected to help inform the Community Plan. Further discussions at the Autumn Community Cultural Network event will help to progress this further.

3.45 Shared learning has been achieved by the Council. An action plan of activities will take forward the outputs from the Pathfinder. Learning will be shared with internal and external partners at the autumn event. Consultation feedback s indicated that the learning from the Eilean Siar Pathfinder could be easily shared with other rural councils and that many of the activities could be replicated in similar areas - particularly those spanning large rural communities.

3.46 Overall, the Pathfinder showed immediate impacts in terms of engagement, participation and awareness of cultural activities. Further impacts are expected to be realised in the medium to long term.

Value for Money

3.47 In assessing value for money, the Council reported that value for money has been achieved by the project in terms of the resources that were used to deliver the large scale consultation exercise, carry out the evaluation and co-ordinate activities at a strategic level. Additional funding contributions were made to the project by the Education Department and this enabled further consultation to be carried out - this was felt to add further value to the project.

3.48 Each of the project stakeholders involved in consultations reported that the project offered value for money and delivered more than originally expected. It was also noted that the Pathfinder provided an opportunity to carry out large scale consultation, and that it was unlikely that funding from the Council would have been made available to do something similar.

3.49 Other outcomes related to value for money included the promotion of cultural events, improved cultural planning and improved communication between officers, stakeholders and community organisations. These are not good indicators of value for money and it is unclear how these have been measured. From consultation feedback, project partners indicated that each of these has been partially achieved. The medium to long term nature of these outcomes means that more time is required in order to fully assess whether these have been achieved.

Contribution to Strategic Objectives

3.50 We have identified a number of key strategic objectives to which each of the projects would be expected to contribute. Here we provide an assessment of the extent to which the Eilean Siar Pathfinder project has successfully:

• engaged under-represented groups in arts/cultural activities;
• encouraged collaborative working within and/or across authorities;
• engaged CPPs and other partners/stakeholders;
• delivered effective consultation with communities;
• delivered something that is truly new and additional; and
• considered and ensured the sustainability of its impacts.

Engaging Under-Represented Groups

3.51 The focus of the Eilean Siar Pathfinder was to engage the whole community in the consultation process and this was successful. Indicators set out in the evaluation plan provided targets for engaging a number of young people, older people and people from minority groups. This was largely achieved through the consultation activities.

3.52 In total, during Phase One of the project, 59 people attended consultation meetings and during Phase Two, 593 people attended creative consultation sessions held in various venues and locations across Eilean Siar. The specific targets for young people's attendance at consultation sessions and consultations with older people are reported as being met. The target number of consultations with individuals from minority groups was set at 15 and this is reported as being partially achieved. The minority groups that the Pathfinder attempted to engage with included disabled people, people with mental ill health and migrant workers. There was limited success in engaging these groups due to some practical difficulties around access (for disabled people) and issues around English language requirements for migrant workers. It is recognised by the steering group that more work needs to be done to engage under-represented, minority groups living in Eilean Siar.

3.53 Work with schools, activity and sports clubs engaged young people in consultations and creative, participatory methods helped to ensure their voices were heard. Feedback from the consultations carried out for the Programme evaluation suggest that the Pathfinder activities managed to engage and work with young people in a new way, through using workshops and arts activities, and lessons will be taken from this and will inform future consultation events. It was reported that consulting with young people has always been fairly difficult and the Pathfinder highlighted potential opportunities for the future.

3.54 From information provided in the final report, the creative sessions gathered views from a good spread of people in terms of age and gender. Consultation feedback and the project proposal submitted to the Scottish Government indicates that the appointed consultants were asked to engage minority ethnic groups and people with disabilities in the consultation process however this did not happen during the fieldwork. It is suggested that this was largely due to practical difficulties - weather and travel.

3.55 By targeting all areas of the isles, the project ensured that all communities had an opportunity to participate. It was reported by consultees that there is often criticism of initiatives, projects and activities due to the tendency to focus these on Lewis. By consulting with communities across the islands, using venues in local areas and engaging local artists in the workshops, the Pathfinder managed to engage those who are often under-represented due to geographic limitations. In terms of the engagement of particular groups such as young people and women, the project has been successful. For minority groups and disabled people, the Pathfinder has been less successful in capturing their views.

3.56 Overall, the Pathfinder engaged with a range of people living across Eilean Siar - from Ness in the North of Lewis right through the islands to Barra in the south. It successfully engaged people by using local facilitators, by offering consultation events in Gaelic and English languages and by travelling across the four islands to maximise coverage (despite practical problems with travel). The commitment to consultation shown by the Council and the consultants commissioned to carry out this work helped to secure buy-in from participants.

Collaborative Working

3.57 The Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Pathfinder was led by the Cultural Working Group.

3.58 A Cultural Pathfinder Ideas Exchange was set up for the duration of the project and enabled steering group members and consultants to regularly log in and become involved in online discussions about the Pathfinder project. From feedback this was a successful method for ensuring ongoing communication between the steering group and consultant teams.

3.59 At the Council level, the Pathfinder has helped to forge stronger links and better working relationships between various departments. During the project, the Education Department became more actively involved, and feedback suggests that the department was keen to explore cross-sector approaches to delivering culture. The Education Department provided some additional resource to the Pathfinder project to facilitate further consultation with young people and children and the outputs from this were used by the Pathfinder project and to inform the Arts Education Strategy.

3.60 Gaelic Language Promotion and Heritage department were also involved in the Pathfinder project. This was largely through steering group involvement. Steering group consultees reported that the Pathfinder was instrumental in removing some of the barriers and tensions related to joint working across Council departments. Tensions between Gaelic language, heritage and arts and culture have acted as a barrier to joint working in the past and, through the consultation exercises, the Pathfinder project helped to highlight the crossovers and the fit of Gaelic and heritage with culture. A key benefit of the Pathfinder, reported by consultees, is that it pulled together culture and Gaelic for the first time and did not deal with each in isolation.

3.61 Consultation feedback indicated that the Pathfinder helped to highlight activities being delivered across the Eilean Siar and increased Steering Group members' awareness of what is being delivered by colleagues in other departments.

3.62 It appears that the cultural agencies in the Eilean Siar were not involved at the strategic level during the project. It is acknowledged in the final report that the Pathfinder highlighted a gap in formal strategic planning within the Council, and between the Council and external partners, due to a lack of appropriate structures.

3.63 However, cultural agencies and organisations were involved in consultations and in the two-day conference event. Consulting with the cultural agencies throughout the Pathfinder has paved the way for future joint working and initiatives. A second two-day conference event was planned to launch the Pathfinder report and engage cultural agency representatives in discussions regarding a Cultural Partnership for the Eilean Siar. It is envisaged that this Partnership would meet regularly throughout the year and would include members from the Cultural Working Group and representatives from the cultural sector in the Eilean Siar. From the Pathfinder report, it is envisaged that the Cultural Partnership will also include representatives from Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Police, NHS, Gaelic agencies and the voluntary sector.

Engaging Community Planning

3.64 Community Planning in Eilean Siar initially recommended that the council should be involved in the Pathfinder programme as it represented a positive step for the council and fitted with its priorities for culture. Community Planning continued to be involved as the Pathfinder progressed and regularly received reports on activity.

3.65 The role of CPPs changed as the project developed due to structural changes within the CPP. Community Planning was recently restructured and the Gaelic Language and Culture Forum was removed from the structure. This has potential impacts on planning for culture provision in future and the new Cultural Partnership that has emerged from the project, if embedded within council structures, may have a role to influence and inform planning for culture provision by engaging Community Planning at a strategic level.

3.66 It is envisaged that Community Planning will provide in-kind support and advice to the new Cultural partnership. Feedback from project partners suggests that the Single Outcome Agreement ( SOA) will help to steer some of the work of the new Partnership and that the Partnership will examine how culture can help to deliver some of the outcomes of the SOA.

Effective Consultation with Communities

3.67 The Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Pathfinder Project effectively consulted with community groups and individuals living across the Eilean Siar.

3.68 A range of consultation events, using creative and participatory techniques, helped to engage community members and overall, these proved successful. The consultant team and Steering Group were keen to ensure all communities in Eilean Siar had were engaged and consulted during the project and this was achieved as events and activities were held on Barra, Uist, Harris and Lewis.

3.69 The attendance levels at the creative workshops indicate that engaging and consulting with communities was successful. Feedback from participants, reported in the final report, indicates that participants were positive and happy to be involved in the process.

3.70 It is suggested in the final report that some techniques such as drama were perhaps less successful due to individuals' reluctance or lack of confidence. However, overall it is reported that the consultation workshops worked well.

3.71 Engaging freelance artists and artists from the local community helped to give communities ownership of the workshops, and enabled people to connect more with the process. Conducting workshops in Gaelic language was also positively received. The cultural sector was engaged in helping to deliver the Pathfinder activities as well as in participating in events. The cultural agencies were not represented at the strategic, steering group level.

3.72 Feedback from consultations carried out for this evaluation indicates that the creative workshops worked well in breaking the mould and encouraging people to talk. The film was also a successful tool in capturing and promoting people's views of Eilean Siar and their culture. It is acknowledged that the project was perhaps over ambitious about trying to reach all communities and some of the activities developed more organically than others. Whilst this enabled good results to be produced it was felt that the lack of structure was a drawback.

3.73 The online questionnaire that was used to illicit responses from the community was the least effective consultation technique and this is acknowledged in the final report and by those consulted for the evaluation study.

3.74 Overall, the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Pathfinder project effectively consulted with a wide range of community members. Community members from across Eilean Siar were given an opportunity to participate in the Pathfinder project.

Additionality

3.75 The Cultural Pathfinder Programme provided the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Cultural Working Group with an opportunity to carry out large-scale consultations with cultural agencies and organisations and community groups and individuals living in the Eilean Siar. From consultation feedback it is clear that without the Pathfinder programme, the large scale consultation activities would not have been possible.

3.76 The Pathfinder has raised the awareness of strategic partners about the cultural activities and experiences of people living in the islands. It enabled a cross-island approach and this has been important. The Pathfinder also provided an opportunity to try new methods for consultation that had not been tried before and these proved successful particularly in consulting young people by using new methods and approaches - something that has always proved difficult for the Council.

3.77 Finally, the Pathfinder provided project partners with an opportunity to reflect on the structures for culture, Gaelic, education and heritage within the Eilean Siar and enabled individuals move above the silo level and view culture more holistically.

Sustainability and Legacies

3.78 The sustainability of this project is unclear. Following the consultation and reporting period, the Cultural Working Group intended to launch the Pathfinder report at a two-day conference for cultural agencies and community groups working in cultural provision. At this event, the Cultural Working Group aimed to discuss the concept of the Cultural Partnership and how this might work in practice. There is a vision to create a new platform for culture that will include the private and third sector. In taking forward the ideas for Cultural Partnership, the Cultural Working Group will determine the sustainability and legacy of the Pathfinder project.

3.79 In terms of consultation activity, the project delivered a large scale consultation exercise and partners do not expect that this will be continued. However, lessons from the consultation will be taken forward into future consultation exercises and community-based work.

3.80 The legacy of the Pathfinder is increased national and local profile for Eilean Siar Culture and a robust platform for partnership working. The increased profile of Eilean Siar culture was felt to be important by consultees who indicated that involvement in the Pathfinder has raised the awareness the other Pathfinder organisations and the Scottish Government about the culture and heritage of the region.

3.81 The second legacy of a robust partnership that will take cultural issues forward within the Council structures and gain political support is viewed as a key vehicle in giving credibility to culture. It is unclear at this stage whether this new partnership will be established and whether it will manage to facilitate and influence change at a strategic level within the Council. With Gaelic language and culture represented on the partnership, the barriers between the two areas of policy and delivery may be addressed based on Pathfinder evidence.

Overall Assessment and Key Lessons

3.82 This Pathfinder project originally aimed to develop inclusive and sustainable cultural entitlements and to explore a process best suited to engaging local and remote communities. With the change in direction regarding cultural entitlements, the Cultural Working Group was initially unsure about how to proceed. However, the project continued with its original objectives but rather than focus on entitlements, it focussed on finding out about culture, cultural awareness and cultural participation across communities in Eilean Siar and it was successful in achieving this.

3.83 A large scale consultation exercise was carried out across Eilean Siar and over 700 people participated. Logistical difficulties made it challenging to consult with communities in remote rural areas but the consultant team re-scheduled events and worked hard to make sure that events took place. The consultation process involved local artists and locally based consultants and this worked well in securing participation from community members.

3.84 Given the scale of the consultation exercise and logistical difficulties this project was perhaps over-ambitious and some aspects of the work developed as the project progressed. It is acknowledged by project partners that a more structured approach would have eased the delivery of key outputs.

3.85 This project worked well in terms of collaborative working but it could have worked better at engaging cultural organisations working in Eilean Siar as they were not involved at the strategic level of planning and directing the project. The showcase events in 2007 and 2008 should help to build relationships between the public, voluntary and private sector and the proposed Cultural Partnership should strengthen this approach.

3.86 The Eilean Siar project facilitated greater learning about and understanding of citizens' views of culture and Island Voices, the DVD produced by the project has had a great impact on those who have seen it. The DVD provides a good insight into the views of residents who view culture as tradition, heritage, language, folklore and engagement with arts and arts activities. For many citizens in Eilean Siar, culture is a way of life and it is difficult to separate culture and island heritage

3.87 Community Planning in Eilean Siar was fully involved in the Pathfinder project from initial application through to the final report and was also represented on the Cultural Working Group. The Cultural Working Group identified a gap in formal strategic planning between the council and external partners as well as within the council itself. A lack of formal structures that allow or encourage communication emerged as a key issue during the Pathfinder. In moving forward from the Pathfinder, it is envisaged that a new Cultural Partnership will be established and this will bring external cultural agencies and organisations together with Community Planning and the Council.

3.88 The Eilean Siar Pathfinder successfully engaged and consulted with a wide range of community members, community and voluntary organisations, and to an extent, cultural agencies and organisations. In addition, the Pathfinder has helped the project partners move along the road of collaborative and joint working and to approach planning for culture in a wider, broader sense.

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