News From Orkney Islands Council

Access to the countryside will be under discussion at a conference in Orkney later this month.

“Our conference is aimed at land owners and land managers, to increase awareness of current issues around the Land Reform Act, explain the detail and implications of the recent Core Path Plan review undertaken by Orkney Islands Council, and the exciting developments around the Orkney Native Wildlife Project.”

Fifteen years after the historic Land Reform Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament, Orkney Local Access Forum will be considering the impact locally both now and in the years ahead.

Councillor Steve Sankey, who chairs the forum, said:

Steve Sankey

“We’re excited about this conference for a variety of reasons.

“A decade and a half since legislation was changed to give people rights of responsible access to the countryside, we thought a gathering was a good idea for us all in Orkney to assess progress and to look ahead.

“We’ve visiting speakers from south, such as David Henderson-Howat, the Convenor of the National Access Forum, and our own Lord Jim Wallace who played a key role in the progression of this important piece of legislation through the Scottish Parliament.

“To bring things bang up-to-date, there will be important sessions on the world-leading £7 million Orkney Native Wildlife Project.

“We’ll also look at the recent review by Orkney Islands Council of the county’s Core Path network. It should be a very interesting day, and I’d encourage anyone with an interest in access and land management to come along.”

The conference takes place on Friday 30 November at the St Magnus Centre in Kirkwall.

To book a place by 19th of November  contact Orkney Local Access Forum secretary Barbara Scollay by email b.scollay@gmail.com or by phone 01856 761691 (evenings and weekend).

More details are available here:

http://www.orkneycommunities.co.uk/OLAF/index.asp?pageid=691169