Playtime in Lochaber

HELEN SEMPLE rounds up some recent projects in Lochaber.

LIFE IN LOCHABER is as wonderful as ever with this fantastic weather making this paradise on earth the best place to be, and no midges – too hot for them apparently. Bliss.

As for the Arts, the community continue to be busy with Arts programmes and projects throughout the area. Groups who have received funding from Highland 2007 are gearing themselves up for their projects next year, and funding applications to other grants bodies are flying thick and fast.

Unfortunately the grants from the Highland Council to voluntary Arts organisations, apart from Promoters, have been cut completely, and this has been a sad beginning to the Summer, but if anybody needs help with filling in forms for other grants , please give me a shout as I`m getting well used to finding additional funding these days.

Both Ali Berardelli and I (as job share partners) have been working on projects over the past three years funded by money sourced from the Lottery New Opportunities Fund, the Scottish Arts Council and the Nevis Partnership.

Ali recently left her post as Arts Development Officer, and I am now a solo part time officer in Lochaber with the summer playschemes coming up fast!

We provide activities for 80 children per day in Fort William, and there are playschemes throughout the Lochaber area for primary school children with Arts, Sports and Outdoor activities, and this year Science workshops as well.
 
Other than that, I am working on a Big Lottery funded project looking at developing Outdoor Play areas for preschool groups in Lochaber.

This is a very exciting project as we have an experienced Landscape Artist running the project to develop ideas and help redesign and make new elements for the outdoor spaces, and I hope to have a resource pack of ideas, materials and funders to give to other groups once this initial project is completed in October.

Another development in the area that I am supporting is the new gallery at The Lime Tree in Fort William. This will provide a fantastic high-spec gallery space capable of showing works by Picasso, Goya, etc.

The Friends of the Gallery community group have secured funding to deliver a programme of exhibitions, including a collection of Picasso prints this year.

The development of the Northern Periphery Project and the Lochaber Music Partnership as a Community Cultural business in Lochaber is another exciting project, with the need to sustain Arts activity within the voluntary sector a driving force behind the CCB model.

We supported a successful Music Matters day last November, with a seminar on Community Cultural Businesses and a market place event with a Craft Fair and information from Arts organisations on display as part of the Northern Periphery project, and aim to support this project into the future.

Other work includes further funding applications for an Artist in Residency programme throughout the area and a Lochaber-wide youth film competition project. Have a great Summer !

Helen Semple is Arts Development Officer for Lochaber

© Helen Semple, 2006