The Badenoch and Strathspey Committee has approved the use of over £120,000 worth of funding for five local projects across the region.
The funding comes through the Place-Based Investment Fund (PBIP) administered by the Scottish Government to help regions recover from the effects of the pandemic.
Highland Council was awarded nearly £2million in funding for 2021/2022 for various projects aimed at safeguarding communities.
In September 2021, Badenoch and Strathspey received a grant of £129,222 to use to support regeneration and wealth-building projects.
Five projects were chosen on February 15 to receive funding are:
- Kingussie Shinty Club will receive £50,000 for Market Stance Pitch’s floodlighting and fences.
- Kingussie K6 Memorial Project will get £20,706.40 to provide a permanent memorial to the 60 soldiers and officers of Force K6, Royal Indian Army Service Corps, who died during WW2.
- Grantown Initiative’s Burnfield Public Convenience Project is to get £23,900 for the refurbishment of Burnfield Public Convenience, including motorhome waste disposal.
- Boat of Garten Community Company’s will receive £10,000 for new floodlights at the Woodland Wheels Pump Track.
- Grantown Initiative will get £15,000 towards its £80,000 project to regenerate Dulaig Play Park and install new play equipment.
Projects will help regenerate communities across the area
Russell Jones, president of Kingussie Shinty Club welcomed the funding which will help towards “creating a high quality sports facility at the Market Stance”.
He said: “Kingussie Camanachd Club is highly delighted to hear the news that our application to the Place Based Investment Programme is successful and we have been awarded £50,000.
“We have exciting plans to construct sports fencing and floodlighting at the Market Stance playing field this summer.
“The much-needed new facility will be available to the entire community for a range of sports and activities. It is a number of years since the playing field was in use and it is an exciting prospect that it will be upgraded and used again this year to its full potential.”
Nash Masson, owner of Ride Scotland, who is behind the Woodland Wheels project, said: “Woodland Wheels is a community-led project that over the last three years has aimed to build a pump track in Boat of Garten.
“We successfully built the pump track last year and the PBIF is a great contribution to phase two, which is installing the lighting.
“This will greatly increase the user hours, especially through the darker winter months and based on this being successful we hope to have the lighting installed in the next couple of months.”
“The pump track has been something that the community has been pursuing for almost 20 years.
“Four years ago, it was the number one thing that came out of Boat of Garten’s big consultation, which assessed what the residents wanted to see on the old curling site.
“It was a great opportunity for us to rejuvenate a derelict site but also provide a facility for locals and visitors alike.”
