Highland Council unveils plan to 'embrace and enhance' quality of life in the Highlands

Reconfiguring our Asset Base

The Highland Council has launched a £2bn Highland Investment Plan over 20 years to modernize our school estate, reduce our asset footprint, and retrofit key buildings to high standards for staff and customers while ensuring energy efficiency.  By co-locating functions and partner services, we are creating central service hubs.  Highland faces a housing challenge, needing 24,000 new homes over the next decade. The Council is working with public and private partners to accelerate land supply and expand development capacity. We are also investing £40m in our transport network over three years and developing an in-house bus service, significantly reducing costs compared to private sector contracts.

Corporate Solutions

The Council has a history spanning centuries with many of our land and building assets recorded in older registers, including deeds dating back from 1617, some written in medieval Latin. 

Using existing digital technology, our Terra Tracker consolidates data into a map-based system, improving asset management and operational efficiency.  A clearer picture of our land supports ambitious housing and renewable energy projects while identifying income opportunities.  Digital transformation enables solutions to complex business challenges, saving the Council time, money, and resources while enhancing online services.  We are committed to making customer interactions easier and ensuring timely updates on enquiries.  Additionally, we are streamlining senior leadership and structures to provide more effective, locally accessible services across Highland.

Income Generation

As part of our three-year budget plan, the Council is prioritising job protection and finding creative ways to boost income.  We have fully implemented discretionary powers from the Scottish Government to increase Council Tax on second homes and long-term empty properties. This generates income for financial sustainability while encouraging properties back onto the market for rental or ownership.  We are working with Skye businesses to enhance tourism revenue and the visitor experience. The Storr Project has improved access to the Old Man of Storr with upgraded parking, paths, EV charging, motorhome waste disposal facilities, a shop, toilets and community centre to meet sustainable tourism needs.  Inverness Castle is undergoing a major transformation into a top visitor attraction.  These initiatives showcase our efforts to drive regional economic growth while developing more visitor schemes.  Additionally, we are refining our fair charging and commercialisation strategy to ensure the long-term sustainability of Council services.

Net Zero, Energy Investment & Innovation

Severe weather and climate impacts are already affecting communities across the Highlands.  We have experienced an increased frequency and severity of flooding, landslides, and wild fire events, increasing the need to build climate resilience and sustainability.  This is one of the many reasons why The Highland Council is committed to realising its vision for Net Zero and backing this up with a major investment programme.  Energy developments can bring major opportunities to reduce energy consumption or increase new sources of energy supply, creating potential cost benefits and new sources of income.  We set out a vision of Highland in our Future Highland programme as a centre for global renewable energy, by capitalising on our immense natural resources to deliver alternative energy solutions, including developing solar, wind and wave solutions.
We already have several successful solar arrays and hydro schemes, including the Ness Hydro Scheme, an award-winning hydro-electric scheme which offsets our reliance on grid supplied electricity and reduces our carbon footprint by harnessing the power of the River Ness into a renewable energy source.

We are exploring larger scale renewable energy schemes to provide energy to our estate and the national grid as well as improving our energy efficiency.  From the two billion pounds of investment in this plan, there are other community wealth building benefits. The major construction pipeline it will establish will bring jobs and a structured means to build and sustain our supply chain, strengthening the Highland business base.

See further info our website www.highland.gov.uk/deliveryplan