About us

The Sutherland Partnership is a Community Planning Partnership, a not-for-profit company set up in 1998, in Scotland's northern Highlands, to help further the Scottish Executive's aim of helping communities participate more fully in local democracy.

For more information on the Scottish Executive view of Community Planning, and for an onward link to Scotland's Community Planning Task Force, click here.

To read the current Sutherland Partnership Strategy Document, click here.  This document will expire this year, and its replacement will be written in the light of the Highland Single Outcome Agreement, of the recently-produced LEADER Development Plan for Sutherland (see our "News" page) and of the outputs of the forthcoming Sutherland Summit one-day event to be held in Lairg on 14 September 2009. 

The Sutherland Partnership aims to help communities in Sutherland to be fully involved in the decisions which affect them.  It does this in two ways:

By acting as a forum in which Partner Organisations can discuss matters of common interest

By taking direct action, through Sutherland Partnership staff, to drive forward work on issues of importance to Sutherland's communities and individuals.

The Sutherland Partnership is run by a full-time manager, and also employs a number of part-time staff.  They answer to Partner Organisations through a Board of Management which meets three-monthly.  To read the most recent approved minutes of the Sutherland Partnership Board, click here.

During its eight years of existence, Sutherland Partnership has been involved in promoting activity in the economic, social and environmental fields.  Examples have included social inclusion initiatives, community transport innovations, graduate placement programmes and assistance to communities in planning, and drawing down funding for, community building programmes.

Important current work includes:

Building on the Sutherland Partnership Strategy document to bring economic, social and environmental development to Sutherland.

Rolling out, and promoting, the exciting new North-West Highlands Geopark.

Helping individuals overcome obstacles to employment, through the work of "New Futures Sutherland" and "Working for Families Sutherland".

Helping community groups achieve their aims, by helping them identify suitable sources of funding for their initiatives.

Photo: A view of Dornoch from the north, with the cathedral spire visible, and the Dornoch Firth beyond.