"Keep service points open" urges strath MSP
Councillors in Badenoch and Strathspey are currently urging the public to get involved in a consultation exercise over the area’s service points which are once again at risk.
Proposals for changing customer service provision in 22 locations across the region are being considered, and could see the range of services at the facilities in Grantown and Kingussie being scaled back significantly.
Highland Council is proposing that 13 service points should act as community hubs, offering the full range of services and dedicated appointments for essential services.
One of the new hubs has been earmarked for Aviemore, while in other areas there will be what are termed ‘access points’ available for a more limited range of services. Kingussie and Grantown both fall into this category under the latest proposals, with access points proposed in the new £2 million Courthouse once it is restored and in the library in the Strathspey capital.
Council staff and members of the public are now being asked for their views on proposed changes to how the council services are currently provided.
Dave Thompson, SNP MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch has urged a re-think, describing the move as “counter-productive”, and has pressed for the service points to remain open across the region.
On Thursday (January 29) Mr Thompson said: “The community re-branding as part of the proposal is supposed to save money, but that is counter-productive when the service points currently serve our remotest communities so well, employ many staff, and already contribute economically to the sustainability of connected rural life”.
He stressed: “I would urge all interested parties and particularly those folk who wish the service points to remain open to contribute to the public consultation, which will run until the middle of March”.
The consultation document and feedback forms can be found at http://www.highland.gov.uk/customerservicesreview