Who we are and what we do
The Orkney Islands lie just 20 miles from the northern mainland. With a declining and ageing population, we Orcadians are only too aware of the need to work together to nurture our three greatest income sources: farming, fishing and tourism.
We have 20 very active community councils spread throughout the islands, with around 150 of the 20,000 population directly involved as elected councillors. Some of our community councils have set up development trusts, to take on important island assets, secure funds for their modernisation or run local services for direct community benefit.
Together, our community councils are involved in a wide variety of initiatives, including tourism, heritage, catering, inter-island transport and even a private water supply.
How we got going
Our first community councils were elected in 1976, following local government reorganisation three years earlier. It was widely agreed that there needed to be community-based forums on the islands to develop closer links between communities and service providers. Community councils made sense to people here - they gave them more influence over decisions which affected them and provided the council with important feedback on local opinion.
James Stockan is Vice-Convenor of Orkney Islands Council…
"The community councils here were set up to create empowerment and are held in high regard by the local authority. This relationship is based on mutual respect and is completely non-political. There is a real sense of collective endeavour; people know we all have to work together to bring about change here."
How we organise ourselves
Our community councillors are all elected volunteers with a strong commitment to their island communities. We all work together, consulting our communities, deciding our priorities and then securing the funds to turn them into reality.
Community council elections are held every four years, coinciding with those of the local authority. The entire community is invited to vote by secret postal ballot. Around half the councillor positions are contested, which shows the level of interest and involvement there is amongst our different island communities.
Orkney Islands Council has set up a community council liaison office in Kirkwall which acts as a two-way communication link between the council and our 20 community councils. Staff attend every community council meeting to provide information and advice. Each community council also has its own computer and office equipment.
Where our funding comes from
Every community council receives an annual grant of £3,500 from the council to cover its running costs. Annual grants for specific projects are also made available, with the money allocated on the basis of population size, but with a weighting towards those islands most in need of support. These grants are for collective community projects - new sports facilities, recreational activities, travel and traditional local events, such as ceilidhs, which are an important part of community life.
Our community councils have always been ambitious, so not surprisingly there is never enough annual grant funding to meet community priorities. A seedcorn fund has been available since 1998, set up to help get small projects on the islands off the ground and attract funding from other agencies. Its main focus has been on giving a boost to the island economies and it has been a real success story. A number of important projects would not have started without it and a wide range of external funding has been drawn in that might not otherwise have come to the islands.
What we've achieved so far
Maureen Spence works for Orkney Islands Council, leading the community council liaison team. She is enthusiastic about the work they do...
"I feel the biggest achievement is that the community councils have steadily built up their strength and credibility and are now very well respected by Orkney Islands Council; the close working relationship means that very little happens unless there is local community support. The community councils have definitely empowered our island communities."
Transport is a big issue, particularly for our more remote islands. Several community councils have focused on improving transport connections, to boost their local economies. Westray is a typical example. Ten years ago the island was struggling with its population of 600 people falling by 10% a year. The community council secured a crucial change in the ferry timetable so that people could day trip from the mainland and the ferry landing has also been moved to the south end of the island. These changes may seem small, but they have made a huge difference for the community on Westray.
Danny Harcus has been a community councillor on Westray for over 20 years and has led the transport initiative on the island....
"Letting local people take the lead on projects like this is just common sense. After all, we know what is best for our communities because we live and work here all the time."
What we've achieved so far
The community council's role in setting up development trusts has been a major achievement on the islands and has enabled us to pursue a wide variety of initiatives. It has unlocked a lot of funding which we would not otherwise have been able to get our hands on. The green and fertile island of Shapinsay is just six miles long, linked by car ferry to the mainland. The old smithy is a listed building, owned by Orkney Islands Council and leased to the community council. Formerly a rather damp and forbidding building, it was refurbished by the local Heritage Trust in 2004 and has now been brought back to life as a major visitor attraction. The bulk of the £200,000 cost was secured from Orkney Islands Council's Community Development Fund for the New Millennium, Heritage Lottery, Orkney Enterprise and the Manifold Trust. Shapinsay Community Council was the initial driving force behind the project, helping establish the heritage trust on the island, providing some pump-priming funding and enabling it to attract more extensive charitable and public funds for the renovation work.
Sheila Garson is a local community councillor and chair of the Shapinsay Heritage Trust... "There was a lot of support from the community council. The Smithy was a very important project as your heritage is what gives you identity and a place in your community. Being a registered charity opened a lot of doors for us." Papa Westray is one of our smallest and most northerly islands, with a population of just 70 people. Nevertheless, it has its own community council and a separate Development Trust, working alongside a Community Association and Community Co-operative. Few adult members of the community are not involved in some way. The community council provides the vital link between these community organisations and Orkney Islands Council, leading on some things, funding and supporting others.
Neil Rendall is a Papa Westray community councillor.
"As community councillors, we do most of the spade-work and the complaining on the island; it usually takes quite a time to get things changed. The work is not always exciting, but somebody has to do it and we make sure it's done!"
The problems we've overcome
Our community councils are, in some ways, a victim of their own success; some community councillors feel they are 'consulted to death'. Their role as a sounding board for local communities means they often feel inundated with irrelevant, onerous or mundane consultation documents.
Nevertheless, their commitment and dynamism means they are always looking for more money than is available to complete ambitious community projects. Setting up development trusts has helped tackle this problem, bringing additional investment to the islands. Working together is not always easy when you can't just jump in a car or get on your bike to go to meetings with the council so we have spent a lot of effort making sure our transport arrangements work well... and they do.
What we've learned
We have learnt four important lessons about community empowerment. Firstly, if community councils want to do more than just be consulted or have influence over major decisions, then setting up a development trust is a good way forward; secondly, that a strong working relationship with the local authority benefits both organisations; thirdly, that sometimes getting the little things right is more important to communities than high profile projects; and lastly, that there can be a limit to how much volunteers can be expected to do. It is all about getting the balance right - something we feel we have managed to achieve in the Orkney Islands.
What's next for us?
The community councils are, in many ways, the glue which holds our remote island communities together. Membership is increasing and the work they do is universally appreciated; so our aim is to ensure we keep this going. Our development trusts will take on new and innovative projects to improve island life. We also want to maintain the same level of the support from the council and the close working relationship we have built up in recent years.
Want to find out more?
You can find out more about how our community councils work by contacting us at...
Community Council Liaison Office
Orkney Islands Council School Place
KIRKWALL Orkney
KW15 1NY
Tel: 01856 886 354