Highland Council service arrangements for Christmas and New Year  

The Highland Council has notified its service users and customers of its opening hours and service arrangements over the festive period.

The Service Centre will close at 4pm on 24 December. It will be open on 29, 30 and 31 December (opening times 10am to 4pm). Closed 1, 2, 3 and 4 January 2021 and open 8am to 5pm from 5 January 2021

All council Service Points will remain closed to the public until further notice.

Inverness Registration Office will close at 4pm on 24 December.  Staff will be available by appointment only on 29, 30 and 31 December (10am to 4pm).  It will be closed 1, 2, 3 and 4 January and will reopen for appointments from 9am on Tuesday 5 January 2021.

Urgent death registration appointments will also be available on 29, 30 and 31 December at various offices across Highland, please contact your local Funeral Director who will advise.

Coronavirus Helpline

Call 0300 303 1362 for support including emergency food for those in crisis including those who have to self-isolate and have no other way of getting food supplies.

Online services

Contact the Council anytime online to report a problem, ask for something or make a payment:

• Report  (external link)
• Request 
• Pay 

Recycling Centres

Recycling centres will be closed 25 and 26 December and 1 and 2 January.

Christmas and New Year Collections:
If your usual collection for recycling or refuse falls on Friday 25 December or Friday 1 January 2021 you will have a different collection day. Please check the sticker on your bin for your alternative collection day. You can also find details on the Highland Council website www.highland.gov.uk/bincalendars

Boxing Day refuse and recycling collections remain the same this year.

For further information about recycling in the Highlands visit: www.highland.gov.uk/recycle

Council out of hours telephone numbers

Health and Social Care – 0845 769 7284

Roads, flooding, street lighting – 01349 886690

Housing – 01349 886691

Registration – 07818 588 203

Emergency out of hours telephone numbers

All trunk roads – BEAR Scotland – 0800 587 1107

Gas Freephone – 0800 111 999

NHS 24 – call free on 111 if you are ill and can’t wait until your regular NHS service reopens

Police Scotland – 101 for all services

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service – 01463 240999 (24 hours)

Scottish and Southern Electric Freephone – 0800 300 999

Scottish Water – 08000 778 778 (24 hours)

SEPA Floodline – 0345 988 1188

SEPA Pollution hotline – 0800 807060 (24 hours)

The Highland Council and NHS Highland are reminding Highland residents of the importance of reaching out for help if this is needed over the festive period.

If someone is concerned about their own or someone else’s mental health, then it is important to contact their GP or to call NHS 24 on 111. 

If there is a concern someone is in immediate danger then emergency services should be called on 999.

There is also a range of other helpline support in place for people needing to speak with someone:

• Samaritans – 116 123 (calls are free and do not show on a phone bill)
• Breathing Space – 0800 83 85 87
• Mikey’s Line – 07786 207755
• Ewen’s Room – 0800 689 3317
• National Scottish Domestic Abuse Helpline – 0800 027 1234
• LGBT Helpline Scotland 0300 123 2523
• Childline – 0800 1111
• CRUSE Bereavement Care Scotland – 0845 600 2227

Should you be concerned about a vulnerable adult, whether for care, welfare or mental health reasons, you can contact the following numbers:

• ​Adult Protection Concern helpline – 0800 902 0042 in office hours and out of office hours or during holiday periods – 0845 769 7284.

Restrictions tightened due to spread of new variant of COVID-19.

Scotland will significantly tighten protections against Coronavirus (COVID-19) to prevent the spread of the new, highly contagious strain of the virus.

Following confirmation that the new variant of COVID-19 spreads substantially more quickly, the First Minister announced that Scotland needs to act now. 

To keep people safe, the First Minister announced:

• the planned easing of restrictions around Christmas will be limited to Christmas Day itself, and not the previous 5 day window that was planned
• legal household limits will still apply – a maximum of 8 people from 3 households – however advice is to minimise the numbers. Where possible, people should celebrate the festive period at home in their own household and meet with others outdoors
• other than for specific exemptions, travel between Scotland and the rest of the UK will not be legal
• travel within Scotland will be allowed on Christmas Day
• from Boxing Day, all of Scotland will have Level 4 restrictions applied, including the closure of non-essential retail and hospitality. The only exceptions will be Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles, and the other island communities where restrictions have been reduced in recent weeks, who will be placed in Level 3
• from Boxing Day, in line with existing law, travel across local authority boundaries between areas in Level 3 or 4 will not be legal other than for specific exempt purposes

The First Minister also set out new plans for the return of schools in the New Year. Teachers will return to work as planned and children of key workers and the most vulnerable children, will return to schools as planned.

For the majority of pupils the holiday period will be extended until 11 January and learning will begin online from then until at least 18 January.

All these measures will be kept under regular review.

The First Minister said:

“Last week it was confirmed that a new variant of the virus had been identified in the UK, and I advised Parliament that a small number of cases of it had already been identified in Scotland.

“While further analysis is required to establish this one way or another, we already have a concern that this strain may be driving what appears to be faster transmission in some hospitals and care homes.

“That’s why we have decided to act and to act firmly.

“Firstly, we are asking everyone to redouble your personal efforts in sticking to the rules and following FACTS.

“Secondly, we intend to maintain a strict travel ban between Scotland and the rest of the UK. This will remain in place throughout the festive period. We simply cannot risk more of this strain entering the country if we can possibly avoid it.

“Thirdly, we now intend to change the law to allow mixing indoors in a bubble on Christmas Day only. The household limits will still apply – a maximum of 8 people from 3 households  – is the law. But the advice will be to minimise numbers as far as possible.

“My message is stay home, stay safe and enjoy Christmas. That is in your own interest and the interest of everyone you love.”

Speaking about beyond Christmas, the First Minister said:

“To limit, as far as we can, the risk of this strain spreading further than it has within Scotland, we intend to apply Level 4 measures to all of mainland Scotland for a period of three weeks from one minute after midnight on Boxing Day morning.

“The only exceptions will be Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles, and the other island communities where we have reduced restrictions in recent weeks, who will go into Level 3 but with strict restrictions on who can travel to and from those islands.

“The situation the new strain presents means that until we are sure it is firmly under control – until we are sure we are not facing the same situation as the south of England today faces, we must slightly change our plans for the way our schools work.

“Schools still open next week will close as planned – we are not changing that. They were then due to reopen from 5 January with all councils areas back by the 7.

“Instead of that, here is what we are ow going to do – for the children of key workers – such as nurses in our hospitals – schools will open and stay open as normal. They will also open as normal for the most vulnerable children. All teachers will also return to work as scheduled and planned. For the majority of pupils, however, the holidays are being extended until 11 January. Starting on that date, learning will be online until at least 18 January.

“After that, assuming we are confident we have the virus under control we will aim to reopen schools more fully but at least until then, schools will go online only other than for the children of key workers and the most vulnerable.”

https://www.gov.scot/news/new-guidance-issued-for-the-festive-period/

Hi there, 

I would like to introduce myself and the service we offer which may be able to support people in your community.  I hope to shine a light on Fair Start Scotland which has been successfully operating in Highlands and Islands since April 2018. The service, perhaps more important than ever, provides help to people who find themselves unemployed and looking for work. Additionally, our delivery has built in specialist provision for those who may also have health issues or disabilities.

For those who take part, they will meet with a dedicated advisor who will provide tailored personal support and guidance for up to 12 months to help them on the journey into work. The service is customised for the individual and also offers continued support for up to 12 months after starting work, supporting sustained employment.

Since April of this year, Triage are pleased to have taken up the delivery of the Fair Start Scotland service across various areas within Highlands and Islands. Triage is an established organisation with a long track record of successful delivery,  you can find out more about us from our website: www.triagcentral.co.uk.  

At Triage we believe our story can be best told by the participants we support. I have attached our new newsletter for you, providing some recent good news stories, more information about the service and how it is being delivered. 

If you feel that there is someone within your community whom we could provide support, or if you have any questions yourself, I would be more than happy to personally discuss our service and the support we provide. 

Yours sincerely,

Ryrie 

Ryrie Oag

Fair Start Scotland Delivery Manager

Highlands

Mob: 07807 063 729

Email: ryrieo@triagecentral.co.uk