BLARBUIE Woodland Project and the Dalriada Project collaborated for two days of woodland activity in the woods by Argyll and Bute Hospital and the Mid Argyll Community Hospital.

FOR MANY years, Strachur and District Piping Association have nurtured the musical talents of local youngsters.

FISH and chips was the aim of the game in Cairndow last Friday but not in an entirely edible sense.

LOCHGILPHEAD High School teacher, Dieta Korbel has returned safe and sound after leaping 10,000ft from a plane.

COLOURFUL art displays should brighten the entrance to Lochgilphead High School over the next few weeks as primary pupils from across Mid Argyll take part in the Heartstone exhibition.

Pupils from S1 and S2 at Lochgilphead High School took part in a litter pick near the school grounds with teacher Mr Braid. The event was organised by the Eco Schools committee and was part of the Keep Scotland Beautiful campaign The youngsters picked up 15 bags of rubbish, and the two bags of glass they found lying around will be recycled.

A SHORTAGE of members forced Inveraray Community Council to dissolve last week – but it now means that other people in the town have the chance to stand for election.

A SEVEN-STOREY power station to be built at Achnabreck will create up to 30 jobs and be a ‘huge boost to the local economy’ say the developers.

WORRIED parents of primary school children in Lochgilphead say their youngster’s lives are being put at risk every morning when they cross the road.

A LOCHGILPHEAD restaurant has been shortlisted for a top culinary award just six weeks after opening its doors to the public.

ONE OF Mid Argyll’s most historic landmarks is to be sold on the open market.

A TARBERT conservation group are in the running for £1million to transform the small fishing village into a ‘green’ community.

AN ARGYLL councillor, who was until last week a member of Argyll and Bute Council’s licensing committee, said he is determined to hold on to his seat despite being convicted of drink driving at Oban Sheriff Court this week.

A LORRY toppled over and crashed through a garden wall in Tarbert on Saturday – and local residents described it as a ‘miracle’ that no one was seriously hurt.

A YOUNG Tarbert woman will run through the streets of Edinburgh this weekend dressed in traditional Japanese clothing to raise funds for Pancreatic Cancer.

ACHNABRECK could soon house a seven-storey power station if planning permission is given the green light by councillors.

ARDFERN residents travelled to Poland last month to watch local couple Bea and William Goudy tie the knot.

KILMARTIN House Museum has paid off its mortgage and founder’s loan after a successful appeal.

MID ARGYLL Transport Volunteers have decided to increase their mileage radius back to 100 miles following a review of their financial situation.

At the group’s annual general meeting on April 3 it was agreed that trips to Glasgow would be reinstated as of May 1.

The increase has reintroduced as a result of clarification that the groups funding will be continued until March 2009.

Trips will be restricted to three per person per year so that hospital check ups can be attended but not used for on-going treatment, admittance or release from hospital.

It was also decided to raise charges.Mileages will be calculated on a round trip, for example – pick up points destinations and back.

The group needs new drivers particularly in the Lochgilphead and Ardrishaig areas.

Morag Robins of the Mid Argyll Transport Volunteers said: ‘We would appeal to anyone who owns a car and can spare a few hours per week to consider becoming a driver, you will be reimbursed at a rate of 40pence per mile.’

Anyone interested should contact Morag Robins on 01546 602000 or Joan Robertson on 01546 603364.

MID ARGYLL Transport Volunteers have decided to increase their mileage radius back to 100 miles following a review of their financial situation.

BOATS of all shapes and sizes were lowered into the water at Ardrishaig last Saturday.

THE BATTLE to save Argyll and Bute’s sheltered housing accommodation is not lost, according to the housing association that provides it.

MID ARGYLL drivers have managed to escape the predicted fuel crisis this week - but local businesses are feeling the strain of a 30 per cent rise in fuel prices this year alone.

RESIDENTS of a Cairnbaan housing estate are reminding drivers to stick to the 40mph speed limit amid fears a child could be injured as a result of speeding motorists.

A RECORD number of 160 competitors flocked to Inveraray last weekend to take part in the Inveraray Junior Piping and Drumming Competition.

LOCHGILPHEAD Community Council met at the town’s community centre on Monday night for their monthly meeting.

THE LOCHGAIR Association held its annual beach clean last Saturday.

THE latest moves to restore the Campbeltown to Ballycastle ferry have been described as ‘the last chance’ to prove its viability.

ALONG with S1 and primary seven pupils from Tarbert Academy other primary seven pupils from associate primary schools in the area visited Glasgow Science centre recently as a chance for them to get know each other as they prepare to move into S1.

They took part on a variety of discovery and learning activities in Glasgow’s Science Centre. 

As Tarbert Academy is a three-years to 18- year olds’ school, senior students also accompanied this excursion. 

MID ARGYLL Athletics Club has been brought back from the brink of ending its training sessions due to a lack of storage space and facilities at the new high school site.

UNSAVOURY artwork has blighted Lochgilphead in recent weeks and local residents have had enough.

A DELEGATION of politicians, officials and business people from Northern Ireland were due to fly into Campbeltown yesterday to join their Scottish counterparts for a summit meeting on the future of the Northern Ireland ferry.

A WELL-known school teacher from Lochgilphead will defy gravity later this month when she jumps 10,000ft from a plane.

Matthew Tanner from Kilmartin Primary won the Primary Brass Solo competition at the recent Mid Argyll Music Festival. The 11-year-old from Slockavullin is pictured with his Robert Lesley Cup.

Look out for a feature on the history of the Mid Argyll Music Festival, which will appear in The Argyllshire Advertiser in the next few weeks.

A CHILDREN’S playpark created out of boggy waste ground has become the latest success story for a scheme that has raised millions of pounds for villages within Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.

ARGYLL artist Barrie Richards is the latest painter to hold an exhibition of his work in Lochgilphead’s Dochus Centre.

A CREW of volunteer fire fighters from Minard have received recognition for the roles they played in rescuing a man from a burning house.

SCOTTISH rock group Franz Ferdinand will lead the band list at Inveraray Castle later this year as the Connect Music Festival returns to Argyll.

THE OPERATING company responsible for the maintenance of the A83 has pledged to spend nearly £6 million improving the ‘disintegrating’ road.

‘ARCHIE’ a wee lurcher pup, was found wandering on the Lochgilphead to Oban road at the weekend and he now needs to be either reunited with his owners or found a new home.

TRIBUTES were paid to more than 250,000 allied troops at an emotional memorial ceremony in Inveraray last Thursday.

MEMBERS of Mid Argyll Rotary Club were out in force last Saturday for a Co-op bag pack at Lochgilphead to raise funds for the library of African literature at the Mthunzi Centre in Zambia.

MEMBERS of Lochgilphead Christmas lights committee have spoken of their disappointment this week at damage to lights in the town.

SURROUNDED by family and friends Bill (82) and Margaret (93) Studholme celebrated an impressive 60 years marriage last week.

INVERARAY and District Accordion and Fiddle Club held its monthly meeting in the Argyll Hotel on March 12.

LOCAL residents near Kilberry are furious that nobody is taking responsibility for an abandoned car that left the road and landed in a field.

TRIBUTES were paid to more than 250,000 allied troops at an emotional memorial ceremony in Inveraray last Thursday.

ARDRISHAIG residents are set to form a new community trust to ensure the Ardrishaig Masterplan is sympathetic to the needs of the community.

INVERARAY and District Pipe band received a welcomed boost to their club funds last week in Oban.

ARGYLL and Bute MP Alan Reid has condemned the new management structure at Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) as ‘geographic madness’.

AFTER more than 13 years at the helm Argyll and Bute Council’s chief executive is calling it a day.

ACHNAMARA man Bob McIlwraith has narrowly missed out on a gong at Forward Scotland’s Champions for Sustainable Communities awards.

A MID ARGYLL teenager is recovering this week after being ‘rescued’ from an island off Skye suffering from toothache.

MID ARGYLL Youth Project has a new team at the helm in the form of two young and enthusiast leaders.

LOCHGILPHEAD residents have lost their long battle to save the town’s sports centre.

The building will be razed to the ground to make way for new houses as Argyll and Bute Council accepted an offer of over £1.3million from Fyne Homes for the building and Lochgilphead High School last week.

ARDRISHAIG’S Bridge House Hotel may be closed for business but that did not stop its angling section from lifting top honours in the annual Keltic Lady Inter-Pub Sea Angling Championships.

PIPERS, singers and budding thespians took to the stage last week for the first instalment of this year’s Mid Argyll Music Festival.

GUIDES in Ardrishaig are on the hunt for a new leader.

After four years at the helm, current leader Mary Semple is leaving at the end of June.

A TARBERT youngsters’ project to build a Loch Fyne skiff is in ship-shape condition.

Tarbert Yacht club has seen a great deal of activity over the winter with 30 youngsters shaping hull sections to build a construction jig.

AN ASTONISHING 24 per cent of all deaths in Scotland every year are the result of smoking and yet many of us continue to puff away regardless.

Last week saw this year’s No Smoking Day and The Argyllshire Advertiser met the woman whose job it is to help people in Mid Argyll and Tarbert give up the weed.

THE OBAN Times welcomed a new addition to the team earlier this year with the appointment of Argyllshire Advertiser reporter Jennifer Sutherland.

FIVE jobs are to go at Highlands and Islands enterprise (HIE) in Lochgilphead following the Scottish Government’s proposed reorganisation last year.

A TARBERT businessman with more than 10 years experience took over a well-established Ardrishaig company this week.

SHELTERED housing throughout Mid Argyll is under threat after the withdrawl of more than a quarter of a million pounds of funding.

With sales of ethically-sourced goods doubling in the last year, the Co-op has been doing their bit by switching to Fairtrade tea for its own-brand range.

A CONSULTATION is to take place in Cairnbaan next week to discuss mental health provision over the next four years.

Plastic bags may become a thing of the past in Argyll with local groups trying to stamp them out in favour of environmentally-friendly alternatives.

Tarbert Conservation Initiative (TCI), recycling group The GRAB Trust and local residents met on February 14 at the Templars Hall to discuss phasing them out in the village.

AN INVERARAY guesthouse owner is ‘over the moon’ after a planning decision which stopped him running his business was overturned on appeal.

Howard Spicer and his wife Susan moved to the village in spring last year, intending to open Rudha-Na-Craige as a six-bedroom bed-and-breakfast.

However, planning permission was refused by Argyll and Bute Council, due to issues with access from the property onto the A83.

IN a game of two halves, the long-running saga of the former Lochgilphead High School and sports centre site was played out in public last Wednesday, February 29.

From council discussions last year, the land the buildings sit on looked to be going to Fyne Homes if their plans were acceptable – tying in the purchase with their development of the former Mid Argyll Hospital site next door – in an attempt to meet social housing needs and put some money back in the bank.

However, some in Lochgilphead felt they should have a say in the matter, applying pressure in the right places to ensure a public meeting was held to discuss the community’s views.

On Wednesday, each side got their chance.

TARBERT Harbour Board’s Consulting Engineer has undertaken the annual inspection of the East Pier and is advising that its use by vessels like the P.S. Waverley should be prohibited.

He states ‘The East Pier has continued to deteriorate; it is in worse condition than was observed during last year’s inspection and is in significantly worse condition than was observed in March 2006.’

MID ARGYLL is to add another yachting event to the calendar next year – with up to 20 yachts taking part in a regatta in July.

The inaugural Mylne Regatta 2009 next summer is open to any yacht designed or built by A Mylne & Co and will begin in Glasgow on July 10.

IT’S been a difficult year since Mary Stewart took on the role of Environment Warden for the Mid Argyll, Kintyre and Islay area.

With such a large area to cover, progress is necessarily slow but some results are beginning to shine through after a lot of hard work.

MID ARGYLL Round Table have donated £2000 to the ARMS Centre in Lochgilphead for their Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy unit – an amount that should pay for the unit for a year.

On top of this, the Round Table wish to take a more active role in sponsoring the centre, offering assistance in a variety of ways.

COUNCIL tax payers will benefit from a freeze in rates as Argyll and Bute Council set its budget for the next three years.

Additional investment of £26 million will be allocated for roads and £17 million to the school estate in a unique budget which saw the entire council support the plans.

After 18 months of closure, ACHA have re-opened the Kingsway Play Area in Tarbert after a major refurbishment of the equipment and grounds.

ACHA, represented by Jane Hepburn and Iain McLeod, met with local mums and kids to formally re-open the play park on Friday, February 8.

Ford Community Project have had further reason to celebrate, following their recent purchase of land for a community centre, after receiving a £1000 prize from the ‘Dragon’s Den’.

The competition was held in Dunoon by the Argyll and Bute Social Enterprise Network (ABSEN) alongside a trade fair to promote new businesses with social or environmental objectives as well as commercial ones. The profits from a social enterprise are reinvested in the business or community rather than being distributed to shareholders or owners.

THOSE interested in the fate of the former Lochgilphead High School site will have an opportunity to get involved next week – with two events taking place on Wednesday, February 20.

Fyne Homes will be presenting their intended use of the site in the afternoon with a public meeting held by Argyll and Bute Council in the evening.

STRIKE action which crippled council services in Argyll in recent weeks has been called off with trade unions in talks with the local authority, as The Argyllshire Advertiser went to press.

Trade unions Unite and Unison suspended the industrial action after a rally in Dunoon at the end of last week.

FORESTERS in West Argyll have been blown away by the discovery of a prehistoric rock carving that has been uncovered during the recent storms.

For over 60 years, the rock art has remained hidden and protected from the elements by a huge tree in Forestry Commission Scotland’s Achnabreac Forest, which was blown down around three weeks ago.

Plans to introduce beavers to Mid-Argyll are still proving to be controversial despite a favourable outcome for the Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) in their recent consultation on the matter.

The two-month long consultation, from October 1 to November 30 2007, had revealed that over 73 per cent of respondents from Mid Argyll were in favour of a trial introduction in Knapdale.

A LOCAL swimming club has found itself high and dry after its Monday class was cancelled with no notice.

The Fit for Fifty group turned up for their class at Mid Argyll Swimming Pool as usual last Monday to be told the time had now been allocated to schools. They had not been warned of this on their previous visit.

THERE is anger among Tarbert residents as they feel they are being let down again over the state of their roads.

The residents of Garval Road and Garval Terrace have been waiting for over a year to get the road fixed after a pipe blockage caused part of the road to collapse. A section of the road is fenced off as it is dangerous.

PLANS for a 100ft barge restaurant in Tarbert Harbour have been discussed at a public inquiry on Tuesday, February 5.

The plans were accepted by Argyll and Bute Council’s planning department with some conditions attached (called a section 75 agreement) such as the colour of the boat. It would also be given permission for five years before its status was re-evaluated.

JUST one main issue, and around half a million pounds, separates two sides in an industrial dispute which has seen 1,500 council workers in Argyll take three days of strike action this week over new employment contracts.

Schools, care homes, libraries, ferry services, buses and roads throughout the area are affected by the strike which began on Tuesday, February 5 and was due to end today (Friday).

Tarbert Harbour Authority has welcomed news that the Scottish Government is set to review the arrangement which has seen them pay ‘tens of thousands of pounds’ to the Crown Estate.

The new Marine Bill is to look at the system which sees Aberdeen harbour only pay £500 in a ten-year period while smaller concerns such as Tarbert pay much larger sums.

Alan Macdonald, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Tarbert Harbour, said: ‘I welcome the review but we’ll have to wait and see what the outcome is. The Crown Estate are changing the way they work so it’s the way they do things in the future that is important.’

A BIG step forward in the Kilmory Home Farm project was taken on Thursday, January 24, when, in the first phase of the conservation of the building, the Forestry Commission took down some trees which were affecting the building.

The Council is working in partnership with Strathclyde Building Preservation Trust to find a viable use for the Home Farm. The trees were damaging the roof and walls of the buildings, and leaves were blocking the drainpipes.

SCOTLAND’S transport minister Stewart Stevenson has admitted that there is no magic wand to solve the problems of the A83 on the Rest and Be Thankful and that money cannot be magiced out of nowhere to solve the problems of the road.

He was speaking at an SNP public meeting at Lochgilphead Join Campus to a crowd of 50 people about about the transport problems facing the area.

THERE was chaos on the A83 on Tuesday after a wood lorry lost its load at the Corran on the road to Ardrishaig.

The road was closed for over an hour as other lorries and a crane was called to remove the load and the trailer from the scene.

INDUSTRIAL action by council employees is set to cause further disruption over the coming weeks with staff refraining from overtime and strike action next week.

One of the worst affected services will be the roads department with no roads being gritted out of usual working hours.

With two regular players missing through illness the Lochgilphead Soccer Centre Under 11s fielded an untried defence as they opened against Keyline in the latest round of the Oban Express Primary Football League.

Tarbert Harbour Authority has welcomed news that the Scottish Government is set to review the arrangement which has seen them pay ‘tens of thousands of pounds’ to the Crown Estate.

PLANNING permission was granted for a house in West Loch Tarbert, despite the objections of local residents.

The single storey house is to be built at Achavit, north of Dunmore Cottage, with a series of conditions attached, including an assurance that trees on the owner’s land will be maintained.

A BIG step forward in the Kilmory Home Farm project was taken last week, when, in the first phase of the conservation of the building, the Forestry Commission took down some trees which were affecting the building.

The Council is working in partnership with Strathclyde Building Preservation Trust to find a viable use for the Home Farm.

SCOTLAND’S transport minister Stewart Stevenson has admitted that there is no magic wand to solve the problems of the A83 on the Rest and Be Thankful and that money cannot be magiced out of nowhere to solve the problems of the road.

A MID ARGYLL restaurant has come up trumps once again with a prestigious award from Michelin inspectors.The Kilberry Inn in South Knapdale has received a Michelin Bib Gourmand award for the third year running, which recognises ‘moderately priced menus which offer good value for money and serve carefully prepared meals’.

THERE was something fishy about Tarbert Co-op last Friday when staff swapped their uniforms for waders and waterproofs to take part in an SOS day for the RNLI.

A 60-year-old man is in a critical condition following a house fire in Furnace last Thursday, January 24.

Strathclyde Fire and Rescue personnel from Minard, Inveraray and Lochgilphead attended the sitting room blaze at 1.37am and discovered there was someone in the semi-detached house

THERE was chaos on the A83 on Tuesday evening after a wood lorry lost its load at the Corran on the road to Ardrishaig.

THE YOUNG people of Tarbert are being asked what they think about their heritage and the village’s conservation area in particular.

Tarbert and Skipness Community Council has formed a working group with Argyll and Bute Council’s conservation officer Jenny Carlile to look at Tarbert’s Conservation Area.

The group has prepared a brief for a competition to be held for young people at Tarbert Academy seeking their views on the Conservation Area.

It took a while, but Kirsty Dickson and Kirsten Paterson from Mid Argyll’s Coisir og Dhail Riata finally got their prize from last year’s national Mod.

The two singers won gold in the Royal National Mod in Lochaber but the trophy wasn’t available at the time. They were finally presented with the award at a ceilidh in the Argyll Hotel, Lochgilphead, two months later.

They took first place in the under 16’s category for Beginners Duet, also achieveing success with the choir.

THE staff at Fyne Homes Ltd decided they weren’t going to send each other Christmas cards in 2007 and instead decided to give the money to a local charity or fund.

Along with the donations people were asked to nominate their favourite good cause.

A CONTROVERSIAL planning application that caused a bitter feud in a small community has been refused.

Mid Argyll, Kintyre and the Islands area committee turned down Viv Dobbie’s application to build two earth sheltered houses on the banks of Loch Craignish in the centre of Ardfern. But Mrs Dobbie revealed she will appeal the decision, and fight on to build what she describes as ‘environmentally friendly’ shelters.

UNION members in Argyll & Bute Council will be taking industrial action in response to what they refer to as ‘the heavy handed tactics of their employer’ in a dispute over single status.

The industrial action, due to start on Thursday, January 17 2008, includes overtime bans, a work to rule and strike action. Unite and Unison, the unions that are organising the action says this will have ‘a massive effect on council services throughout Argyll & Bute such as ferries, roads, waste collection, home care, burial services and schools.’

The new Tesco Express store in Lochgilphead opened its doors for the first time on Friday, January 11.

The new store, which is combined with an Esso petrol station, opening on the site of the old Fyneside service station which closed at the end of August last year. Tesco took on staff from Fyneside, as well as recruiting 18 additional staff from the local area to work in the new store.

A MAJOR study into housing needs in Mid Argyll and Kintyre is taking place this year.

Over 1,000 households are being interviewed over a six-week period starting on January 7 in the survey commissioned by Argyll and Bute Council.

The study aims to identify the range of housing needs of residents to inform future decisions on investment and policy within each community.

A LOCHGILPHEAD-BORN cycling champion has died after his bike collided with a Highland Council van outside Fort William on the A82.

Jason MacIntyre, 34, died in hospital from his injuries after the accident, which happened at 1.30pm near a council depot entrance at the notorious Carr’s Corner.

Residents of Ford celebrated the news this week that they finally own the area of land needed to build a new community centre.

The community have been working towards this since 2004 and have now received confirmation that the purchase from the Forestry Commission was complete.

TWENTY-TWO windows were smashed at council offices in Lochgilphead over the New Year causing damage totalling over £5000.

The roads department at Manse Brae was targeted between December 29 and January 1 in a spate of vandalism in Mid Argyll.

Kilmartin House Museum has received a donation of up to £50,000 which could help pay off their debts as their 10th Anniversary appeal moves into its final phase.

The 10th Anniversary Appeal was launched in June with the aim of raising £100,000 to pay off the Museum’s development mortgage and founder’s loan. Early repayment of these historic debts would place the organisation on a much more secure financial footing for the future and save the Museum around £70,000 in interest payments over 18 years.

Mid Argyll tenants are becoming more energy efficient thanks to a scheme being rolled out by Argyll Community Housing Association (ACHA).

ACHA tenants in sheltered housing and all new ACHA tenants are been given two energy saving light bulbs each in a partnership with Scottish Gas.

AN ARGYLL woman has become chairwoman of the UK’s biggest credit union.

Deirdre Forsyth, aged 61, who has lived in Ardrishaig for the last 16 years, became the first women to take up the position within the Scotwest Credit Union.

Deirdre had been Argyll and Bute Council’s corporate services manager until her retirement last year.

WITH the final report completed on the regeneration of Ardrishaig, members of the community have a final chance to comment on the framework which could shape the village’s future.

SEVERE winds ripped the roof from the PE department at Lochgilphead’s new joint campus on Tuesday night.

School children and staff were sent home on Wednesday for safety reasons after large strips of the roof peeled off in the 70 mph gales.

THE DUKE of Argyll says he is ‘ecstatic’ after controversial plans for a wind farm on his estate were narrowly approved.

The Duke’s delight came as Argyll and Bute Council approved proposals for a 14-turbine wind farm at Stacain, overlooking Loch Awe – despite its planning department recommending that the plans were turned down and more than 100 letters of objection.

An Economic Summit took place in Inveraray last month looking at sustainable economic growth in Argyll and Bute.

The summit brought together a wide range of public, private and voluntary sector stakeholders to discuss the opportunities for economic growth in the area, and included a keynote speech from Argyll and Bute MSP Jim Mather, Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism.

NEW technology could transform cardiac treatment in Mid Argyll, according to a Lochgilphead-based doctor.

Dr Adrian Ward has proposed a new outpatient service in the Mid Argyll Community Hospital which is linked to Glasgow’s Royal Infirmary by video link.

Last year was a busy year for Tarbert Youth Group and things don’t look like slowing down in 2008.

Work on an extension to Tarbert village hall which will be devoted to the group is set to begin in January and completed by the autumn. This will provide Tarbert’s youths with their own space for the first time and allow services to develop. An after-school club is also planned on the premises.

A HOLLYWOOD film about a creature in Loch Ness which is about to open in American cinemas - was actually filmed in Argyll.

The Water Horse – Legend of the Deep is expected to be a box office hit in America when it opens on Christmas Day.

A MAJOR trade union has voted to take strike action to protest against the new contract being offered by Argyll and Bute Council.

UNISON members were balloted on industrial action after failing to come to an agreement with the council on various terms and conditions including working hours.

This is the latest development in a long-running saga around the Single Status policy which aims to equalise pay and terms for staff across the public service.

THE Lorn Ward in the Argyll and Bute Hospital is to close next year with dementia services being transferred to the Mid Argyll Community Hospital.

Three new 10-bed wards are being created in the hospital covering different areas of care. Knapdale will house a dementia ward for patients from Mid Argyll and New Lorn will be for patients from Argyll and Bute. Glassary Ward will be reduced to 10 beds for elderly assessment and rehabilitation for Mid Argyll patients.

CHILDREN and staff at Badden Farm Nursery were delighted to welcome Her Grace the Duchess of Argyll to officially open the After School Club and new extension. The Duchess originally opened the nursery in 2003.

A HOSPITAL patient who is believed to have deliberately set himself on fire on Christmas has died from his injuries.

The horror incident took place at Argyll and Bute General Hospital in Lochgilphead at around 8pm on Tuesday.

AN elderly Ardfern couple have been left without a cooker over Christmas and are lucky to still have a house after their Aga exploded at the start of the month.

Sandy Mackilligan, 76, and his wife, 69, returned home after visiting friends to discover their kitchen a blackened mess – hours after a new control unit was installed on the cooker.

THE pranksters calling themselves Lochgilphead/Ardrishaig Pot Holing Club have been at it again with a festive message for Scotland Transerv.

Last week a sign appeared asking prospective members to call 0800 373635. This turned out to be the number for Road and Lighting Faults as they encouraged people to voice their anger over the state of the roads in the area.

A PLAN to build two ‘earth houses’ near a listed building on Loch Craignish has led to nearly 130 objections, mostly from villagers in Ardfern.

Argyll and Bute Council will now hold a public hearing early next year before ruling on the planning application which would see the two environmentally-friendly houses built on land near the Galley of Lorne Hotel, a listed building.

TARBERT Conservation Initiative (TCI) has received a welcome boost with a cheque for £300 by the Scottish Co-op board to help with the skiff project.

TCI Chairman Robert McPhail said: ‘The initiative and their project partners are grateful for this assistance from the Co-op community scheme and local youngsters will benefit from the additional tools we will be able to purchase.’

MORE problems have occurred at a sewage overflow in Ardrishaig as Scottish Water struggle to keep the problem under control.

A blockage in the pumping station at Oakfield Road has meant that the sewage has not been pushed forward and has instead been spilling out of the overflow at Brae Road.

THERE will now be a consultation on the former High School site in Lochgilphead. However, it may not be what everyone is hoping for.

Argyll and Bute Council had previously stated that they were entering into talks with Fyne Homes to discuss possible disposal of the site. They also told The Advertiser that there would be no public consultation on its future – causing anger among local residents. Many view the site as a public asset with multiple uses, not necessarily houses. Some have suggested keeping the sports pitch, making a village hall or a canteen for the hospital. The consultation they demand on its future will now take place but at a later stage in the process.

WITH the A83 open again at the Rest and be Thankful, albeit single lane with traffic lights, questions are being asked about how to stop this happening again.

The landslide last month had a devastating effect on local businesses and individuals as they were forced to travel via Dalmally – adding an hour to the journey. Businesses in Tarbet, Arrochar, Cairndow and Inveraray reported significant drops in their takings.

Since the recent landslide there have been a number of ideas put forward to mitigate the effects of another slip.

NEW nutritional treatments for mental illness are being advocated by a Craobh Haven resident, following a six-week fact-finding mission to North America and Australia.

However, British psychiatrists remain unconvinced of their worth.

Chrissie Sugden works as a support worker for a mental health charity in Lochgilphead and has recently completed a MSc in Nutritional Medicine. She visited the USA, Canada and Australia as part of a Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship, investigating new treatments for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and autism.

FEARS about the closure of a group for elderly people with mental health problems in Lochgilphead have been allayed after NHS Highland left staff and clients in the dark about its future.

The Monday Club, based in Smiddy House on Smiddy Lane, was originally a club for people with dementia when it started 18 years ago. It has existed in its current form for eight years, providing its clients, many of whom suffer from depression, with entertainment, company and mental exercise.

PLANS are underfoot for a major new energy plant at Achnabreac as part of a series of developments in Argyll by one of the emerging biomass industry’s leading players.

Northern Energy Developments Ltd are developing plans on a site extending to two hectares currently owned by Forestry Commission Scotland. The company has agreed a 30-year lease on the site which is currently occupied by trees and is considered suitable for industrial development in the council’s local plan.

A CIVIC reception was held in Inveraray’s Argyll Hotel on Saturday to celebrate the astounding success of Inveraray Pipe Band since their formation two years ago.

The band, largely made up of under-18s, won the novice juvenile grade at the World Championships this year. This added to the success at the Scottish and British Championships, Cowal Games and a host of other achievements.

ONE year into the Kilmory Home Farm Project and the determination of some young Mid Argyll women to improve the facilities in the area is gaining momentum with every day that passes.

The group has come up with some bold ideas for the site with the potential to transform the tourist industry in Mid Argyll as well as provide the community with an important resource.

AN APPRENTICE electrician from Lochgilphead has won a national award for his skills with a major building firm.

Jonathan MacLeod was honoured for his apprenticeship in Rok Tulloch’s South division, based in Glasgow, at a ceremony held at the Drumossie Hotel in Inverness.

RIVERSIDE Rascals Day Nursery in Lochgilphead has received a glowing report from the Care Commission following a recent inspection.

The report looked at child protection, active and energetic play, infection control and codes of practice laid out by the Scottish Social Services Council.