Community Council

Just found myself falling asleep in front of the TV – not a good sign at only 18.45! So have put dinner in the oven and am endeavouring to find some words to string together……..

Overtired due to late night and early morning I think! Yesterday evening I went along to a Community Council (CC) meeting. In Orkney each island or group of parishes has its own CC, with members being elected by the local community. The CC (think it’s similar to Parish Councils in England?) generally meets to discuss local issues and help find solutions or lobby other agencies to help find solutions. Each CC will also be given funds from various government agencies, for which various clubs and organisations can apply. Each CC is answerable to the local authority, and there is usually an “officer” from the local authority at each meeting, plus our local authority councillors. Graemsay has three Community Councillors (of which I’m one) and we are combined with three areas on the island of Hoy. We have meetings every few weeks, and last night was one of them.

The CC can make recommendations on certain issues, and it is a useful forum to discuss island matters such as the upkeep of roads, lack of water connections, proposed changes to medical facilities etc and pass on thoughts and feelings of the community to other agencies and representatives.

The meetings rotate around each area, and last night we were in North Walls – which is about the halfway point on Hoy in terms of habitation. As we don’t have evening boats the two of us from Graemsay had to stay overnight in a B&B. To my delight the folk at the B&B had just got two collie puppies, so I spent my time before the meeting playing with them. Unfortunately the doggies had been in the byre and I suspect I carried the whiff of something not very exotic to the meeting!

It also meant rising early to get the boat home this morning. Fortunately Irene and I forwent the pleasure of calling in at the local pub last night (Note – we did *not* go to the pub!!) as we knew we had an early start in the morning. However it was a beautiful if chilly morning and the sail round to Graemsay was very calm and beautiful.

But the peace was broken when I got home and was met at the door by a demanding Fitzi-cat who made his displeasure at being abandoned for one night well and truly felt…… he still hasn’t forgiven me and is stomping around and demanding food as if he hasn’t been fed for a week. Needless to say I left him plenty for his dinner AND breakfast – but he conveniently forgets that