A charity-run kart racing track in Inverness has been officially recognised as one of the region’s top attractions.
Bosses at the Inverness Kart Raceway said last night they were “very proud” after learning that tourism agency VisitScotland had awarded it five stars.
The £1million track opened in February last year with the help of a £150,000 grant from energy giant SSE to purchase the site at Fairways Business Park.
All profits from the venture go directly to the local DAY 1 charity, which set up and owns the facility, to sustain its mentoring and employability services.
Track general manager Michael Golding was delighted that VisitScotland had bestowed its highest grade on the circuit.
He said: “Since the first employee started with Inverness Kart Raceway there has always been a clear focus on offering a five star customer experience.
“The initial meeting with Visit Scotland to discuss the Quality Assurance grading was aided by thinking about the business as a whole attraction, making sure there was the attention to detail throughout which would allow us to provide a high quality facility and in turn receive five stars.
“We are very proud of our social enterprise, 100% of the profits from Inverness Kart Raceway are transferred to DAY 1, which helps fund the work with vulnerable young people from within our community, which DAY 1 has been dedicated to for the past 10 years.
“We would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank those stakeholders from the business community for their sponsorship of Inverness Kart Raceway and DAY 1.
“The young people who benefit from the DAY 1 services have asked to add their congratulations to Inverness Kart Raceway on achieving five stars from Visit Scotland.”
Former First Minister Lord McConnell hailed the track as a model for the rest of Scotland when he toured the site in June.
The Labour peer leads the panel which selects projects to benefit from a fund set-up by SSE to distribute windfarm cash to Highland communities.
Founded in 2005, DAY 1 helps young people aged 14 to 17 in Inverness-shire who are struggling with formal education and are unlikely to find employment.