Rural Services: Making it Happen First Scottish Rural Services Annual Conference The Highland Council, Inverness 3 – 4 September 2001 Conference Report Produced by Glenaffric Ltd November 2001 Glenaffric Ltd eLearning Consultants 14 Lewiston, Drumnadrochit, Inverness, IV63 6UW Tel: 01456 459106 Fax: 0870 052 9151 Email: [email protected] Web site: www.glenaffric.com Contents Introduction.....................................................................................................................................4 Conference Programme...................................................................................................................4 Keynote Speech...........................................................................................................................5 An International Perspective........................................................................................................8 Targeting the Community Fund at Rural Areas..........................................................................13 Workshop 1: Cross-cutting themes ............................................................................................16 Workshop 2: Service-specific themes ........................................................................................19 SCVO Presentation – workwithus.org .......................................................................................21 Question Time Panel Discussion ...............................................................................................21 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................22 Summary.......................................................................................................................................22 Conference Visits..........................................................................................................................23 Visit 1 – Loch Ness and Drumnadrochit ....................................................................................23 Visit 2 – Inverness and Nairn.....................................................................................................23 Appendix I – Delegate List............................................................................................................24 Appendix II – Organisers’ and Presenters’ List..............................................................................31 Appendix III – Presenters’ Biographies .........................................................................................35 Page 3 of 39 Rural Services: Making it Happen Conference Report Introduction The First Scottish Rural Services Annual Conference was held at The Highland Council in Inverness on Monday 3rd September 2001. An optional programme of visits was also arranged for Tuesday 4th September. The conference was jointly hosted by The Highland Council, the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) and the Scottish Executive, and organised on their behalf by Glenaffric Ltd. The conference followed the publication by the Scottish Executive in December 2000 of the Scottish National Rural Partnership (SNRP) report ‘Services in Rural Scotland’. The event was attended by 86 delegates drawn from all over Scotland, including the Western Isles and the Northern Isles. Some delegates from other parts of the United Kingdom also attended. Delegates were drawn from a variety of backgrounds, including public sector organisations (eg Local Authorities and Local Enterprise Companies, Health Boards/Trusts, Rural Partnerships), voluntary sector organisations (eg CVS, Community Transport, Voluntary Action), Community Councils/Associations, and community trusts. Conference Programme 10.00 Coffee and Registration 10.30 Welcome: Convener of The Highland Council, David Green Keynote Speech: Ross Finnie MSP, 10.40 Minister for Environment and Rural Development 11.10 An International Perspective, Helen Thomson, The Countryside Agency 11.40 Workshop 1: Cross-cutting themes: • Wiring it up - Threats and opportunities to rural services of ICT • Joining up Public Services • Meeting the service needs of young people • Community Capacity Building • Taking services to the people - Mobile and peripatetic services 1.00 Lunch 1.45 SCVO Presentation – workwithus.org Targeting the Community Fund at rural areas 2.00 Adriènne Kelbie, Director for Scotland, Community Fund 2.30 Workshop 2: Service specific themes: • The future of the retail sector • Village Halls • Sustainable Childcare Services • Telemedicine/health • Information and Advice 3.45 Coffee Question Time Panel Session chaired by Martyn Evans, 4.00 Scottish Consumer Council 4.30 Close Page 4 of 39 Rural Services: Making it Happen Conference Report Keynote Speech Ross Finnie MSP, Minister for Environment and Rural Development I am delighted to be here this morning to address the first Services in Rural Scotland conference. Like Councillor Green, I am keen that there should be a more equitable distribution of service delivery across Scotland, and I congratulate Highland Council and the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations for coming forward with the proposal for a conference focussing on the issue of rural service provision. I am pleased that the Executive has been able to offer its support. Being able to access basic services is something that so many of us take for granted – but I know that for many living in our rural communities, accessing such services is becoming more difficult, for a variety of reasons. That is why the Executive has identified rural service provision as a key priority, and why we commissioned the ‘Services in Rural Scotland’ report. This morning I will outline what the Executive has been doing to take this issue forward, and how we might all work together to improve the services available to rural Scotland. The Executive has put in place a mechanism for giving increased consideration to rural issues. Our Department of Environment and Rural Affairs, and my post as Minister for Environment and Rural Development, reflect the high priority that the Executive is now giving to rural Scotland. The Executive’s cross-cutting Ministerial Committee for Rural Development, which I chair, ensures that every department in the Scottish Executive considers rural needs when developing policies. One of the key issues that I identified at an early stage as important to rural Scots was service provision. This is why service provision is highlighted as a key issue in ‘Rural Scotland: A New Approach’, which outlines our vision for rural Scotland and our new joined-up approach to rural development. It clearly states that ‘We will improve access to services essential to our life and work, and ensure that quality of life will depend on what you need, not where you are’. While I recognise that the provision of services is crucial to the sustainability of rural communities, problems are often caused by distance and sparsity of population, realities which we must accept. However, the Executive is determined to continue to develop, in partnership with rural communities and other service providers, new and innovative ways of improving access to quality services. Services in Rural Scotland Following the publication of ‘Rural Scotland: A New Approach’, I asked the Scottish National Rural Partnership to convene a group which would bring together service providers to identify innovative approaches to providing services in rural areas, and to consider how these examples might benefit and be replicated in other parts of rural Scotland. The report, ‘Services in Rural Scotland’, a copy of which I believe you all have, was presented to me here in Inverness in January 2001 and contained many important messages for voluntary, public and private organisations responsible for service provision in rural areas. And I am pleased to see that the programme for today’s conference picks up on many of the report’s key themes. Most importantly, it stresses how important it is for service providers to work closely with rural communities to assess the services they require and the priority they attach to them. The report advocates that more community involvement in decision-making in service delivery is required. In particular, groups that have not been involved in the past, such as young people, need to be empowered. The report also recognises that service providers in the public, private and voluntary sectors need to work together, in partnership, to reduce costs and share knowledge and experiences. This includes the joint provision of services, either through the shared use of staff, buildings or vehicles, or by making use of agency arrangements. The report also highlighted the variety of ways which services can be delivered. We have moved a long way since mobile libraries. ICT developments offer the opportunity to deliver information remotely and also the opportunity to access services interactively, such as booking appointments with GPs on-line. Service providers also need to make more use of mobile and peripatetic methods of delivering services. As I’ve indicated, the report demonstrated that there are already many examples of good practice and innovative approaches to delivering services in rural areas. This confirms what I have found on my many visits. However, what we have not always been so good at is telling other people about Page 5 of 39 Rural Services: Making it Happen Conference Report successes and good ideas which