Ardgour Community Council
Welcome to our Ardgour Community Links Profile!
About:
The Ardgour Community Council is dedicated to representing the interests of the Ardgour community. By engaging with residents and collaborating with local authorities, the council works to enhance the quality of life in the area.
Meetings and Minutes
Regular meetings are held to discuss community issues, development plans, and other pertinent topics. Residents are encouraged to attend these meetings to voice their opinions and stay informed about local affairs. Meeting minutes are made available to the public for transparency.
Get Involved
The council welcomes active participation from all community members. Residents can attend meetings, join sub-committees, or volunteer for community projects. Engagement ensures that the council accurately represents the community's needs and aspirations.
Community Bikes
Ardgour Community Council maintains 3 electric bikes which are available for free use by members of the Community over 18. They can be taken for longer periods up to a week.
By kind co-operation of Ardgour Ales, they are stored and charged at the Brewery and a simple agreement needs to be completed before use.
The Bikes are:
2 Trek Verve road bikes , one Extra Small and 1 Small - but neither re very small and would suit an adult
1 Trek Powerfly off road mountain bike
If you would like to take advantage of this, please contact Fergus Stokes at Ardgour Ales or pop in and see if one is free
Contact Information
Facebook: Stay updated on council activities and announcements by following the Ardgour Community Council Facebook page.
Email: For inquiries or to raise community concerns, residents can contact the council via email. secretary.ardgourcc@gmail.com
For more information or to get involved, please reach out through the provided contact channels or attend the next scheduled meeting.
NEWS
Ardgour Community Council has announced the return of their small grant for young people in Ardgour who are beginning or continuing further education studies this year.
Full criteria can be viewed here, and application forms are available by emailing secretary.ardgourcc@gmail.com.
Applications must be submitted by 31st August and will be considered at the September meeting.
Please help spread the word to any eligible young people in the area.
What is the difference between Ardgour Community Council and the Ardgour Glensanda Development Trust?
Similarities
Both the ACC and AGDT are voluntary organisations and both are working on your behalf to improve the facilities, services and community connections in the Ardgour Community Council area
Both have the ability to award grants to local people and organisations with ACC typically offering grants of less than £1,000, with AGDT typically able to offer grants of more than £1,000.
Local residents are welcome to express their views to either body (or both) and subject to certain requirements, and are welcome to join either committee when there are vacancies.
Differences:
Ardgour Community Council
Community Councils are voluntary local bodies run by residents to represent their community's views, acting as a crucial link with the Highland Council and other public bodies on issues like planning, services, and local projects, holding public meetings, and working to improve community well-being through local initiatives and consultation. They serve as the most local tier of representation, advocating for needs, informing decision-makers, and organizing local activities, all within a statutory framework provided by Highland Council. In order to be a community councillor, local residents must be over the age of 16; live within the specified community council boundary and on the electoral register for that area. Elections are held every 4 years, but if there are vacancies, councillors can co-opt willing volunteers onto the community council.
The Highland Council website guide is here:
www.highland.gov.uk/info/772/politicians_elections_and_democracy/364/community_councils
See also :https://www.ardgourcommunitiestogether.net/ardgourcommunitycouncil or
The Ardgour Community Council (ACC) area runs south to north from Kingairloch, to Inversanda, Ardgour and all the way up the lochside to Garvan. Members of the public can attend their monthly meetings, via Microsoft ‘Teams’ or in person when they have a meeting in the village halls. Its main role is to represent the views of local residents to public agencies.
The ACC is a voluntary group and therefore does not own any assets and cannot employ workers. It can however award grants to local community groups and individuals (for example a student leaving to study) and will consider applications of less than £1,000. In some cases, applicants might wish to seek funding from both the AGDT and the Ardgour Community Council to reach their required target.
Ardgour Glensanda Development Trust
The AGDT is also a voluntary group but as it is incorporated as a registered Scottish Charity it can own assets and employ staff. Trustees of the charity can be elected at each AGM, with trustees able to serve for 6 years before stepping down but can retire at any point. There are many Development Trusts across Scotland working hard to help regenerate their local area, creating jobs, acquiring assets on behalf of the community, raising funds and running projects and social enterprises.
The voluntary Trustees run the charity but do pay staff to help with this. They typically meet about eight times per year, sometimes ‘in person’ and sometimes online.
It currently has two main roles.
In 2024, following widespread consultation, the Ardgour Place Plan was created and subsequently adopted by Highland Council as our ‘blueprint’ for future developments and a list of community aspirations. The main role of the AGDT is try to initiate local projects to deliver these aspirations, sometimes supporting local organisations (for example the local village halls), and sometimes running projects itself, often referring to a local working group of volunteers for guidance and assistance. The Trust staff and Trustees work very closely with the Community Council who are also trying to deliver the Place Plan by influencing government bodies.
The AGDT is also responsible for administering the ‘Ardgour Area Fund’ – a pot of money that has been gifted to the community by the Glensanda quarry operators as compensation for losing a mountain between Kingairloch and Lochaline. Despite transport trials by the communities and former operators (Yeomans), no employment was realised for people in Morvern or Ardgour).This means that local constituted groups can apply to the Fund for grants to help them achieve their objectives. The Trustees normally consider grant applications four times per year, and all details are on the Ardgour Communities together website.
https://www.ardgourcommunitiestogether.net/
For a local resident to attend an AGM and vote, and elect new Trustees (or stand for election themselves, they need to join the charity by signing a Membership Application Form. Effectively this means local people ae always in control of the charity.