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Funding setback for proposed Ceòlas centre

October 12, 2015

by Iain Smith

Plans to establish a purpose-built Gàidhlig music, culture and heritage centre in South Uist have been thrown into doubt after a bid to secure funding from the Big Lottery Fund was unsuccessful.

Ceòlas, working in partnership with Lews Castle College UHI, is leading plans to establish the ambitious £9.56million centre. Together they proposed to erect a purpose-built education and performance centre that would provide year-round education alongside performances of an international standard in music, song and dance as well as other aspects of Gàidhlig culture and heritage. Detailed plans for the new centre had been drawn up and, after consultation with the local community, a site was identified for the new facility in Daliburgh.

Ceòlas recently submitted a funding bid for £1.365 million towards the cost of the project to the Big Lottery Fund. However, it has emerged that at this stage the Big Lottery Fund has declined to offer the project any funding.

It had been hoped that the new centre would be completed by June 2017.

However, despite the disappointment of the failed bid, Ceòlas chair Mary MacInnes insists that efforts to secure funding from other sources will continue.

“We are obviously very disappointed that our application to the Big Lottery Growing Community Assets fund was unsuccessful,” she said.

“Nevertheless, we remain very confident about the project’s viability and are positive about the wide-reaching social and economic benefits that it will bring to our community. We are continuing to work closely with our partners at Lews Castle College UHI to identify alternative funding sources to make up the shortfall in our capital investment plan.”

Ceòlas is already preparing other funding applications, and the board will meet later this month to discuss the way forward for the project.

Photo: Visualisation of the proposed new centre at Daliburgh (John Renshaw Architects)

This article was edited on 14th October 2015 (1629).

Ceòlas in full swing!

July 7, 2015

Griogair Labhruidh leading a singing class.

Ceòlas, this year celebrating its twentieth anniversary, is now well and truly underway.

105 students are enrolled for the summer school, currently taking place in Daliburgh, South Uist.

Although the bulk of participants have travelled from different parts of the UK, they are joined by several students from Germany and Switzerland, along with budding musicians, dancers and linguists from places like Japan and Romania.

Throughout the week, tuition is offered in fiddle, pipes, singing, dance and Gàidhlig in venues across Daliburgh.

Tutors this year include Mairi MacInnes, Paul McCallum, Margaret MacLellan, Howie MacDonald, Dwayne Cote, Fin Moore, Griogair Labhruidh, Leanne Aucoin, Jayne MacLeod, Patsy Seddon, Angus Nicolson and Alasdair White.

Attendance figures this year are roughly the same as last year, said Ceòlas organiser Mary Schmoller.

She added that while a core group of students return to the summer school year-on-year, the majority are first time attendees.

“A lot of our students are the same people returning each year,” said Mary.

“About 20 or 30% are year-on-year regulars, meaning that the rest are new to Ceòlas.”

Mary added that a particularly encouraging area of growth for Ceòlas is the increasing number of young people taking part.

“What we are also seeing now is a group of teenagers, many of whom have island links though they are based on the mainland, coming along to take part, which is good to see.”

This year, for the first time, Ceòlas is offering people the opportunity to drop-in for a single class or more on an informal basis.

According to Pauline MacDonald, vice-chair of Ceòlas, the uptake for drop-in classes has so far proven promising.

“We had three people along on Monday,” she said, “two of them have now signed up for the whole week. Including them, we had eight come along to drop-in today.”

Angela MacKinnon and Cathy MacDonald from BBC Radio nan Gàidheal interviewing Griogair Labhruidh. Their programme on Ceòlas will be broadcast in October.

Another new development for Ceòlas this year is the offering of Continued Professional Development (CPD) for teachers at the summer school.

Ceòlas’ Gàidhlig Development Officer Liam Crouse is leading on the programme, through which teachers attend classroom-based courses in the morning and activities in the community each afternoon, working on language skills.

Ceòlas is working with Strathclyde University and University of the Highlands and Islands on the CPD programme, which will also be offered during the symposium planned later in the month. Nine teachers are enrolled to undertake CPD training during ‘’S e ur beatha’.

Last night Ceòlas hosted a Piping Concert attended by some 200 members of the community. Its public programme continues this evening with the ever popular ‘house ceilidhs’ taking place across South Uist tonight.

Hebridean Connections appoints Uist and Barra training officer

June 18, 2015

Sue Wilson.

Hebridean Connections, a pioneering digital archiving project involving comainn eachdraidh (historical societies) and other heritage organisations in the Outer Hebrides, has appointed a training officer for Uist and Barra.

Sue Wilson, who lives in Berneray and has been closely involved with Comunn Eachdraidh Bheàrnaraigh over the past eight years, is the new training officer.

In her new post, Sue will be offering to train comann eachdraidh volunteers in a range of digital skills, including how to add information to the Hebridean Connections website. More generally, she will be responsible for working to build closer links with heritage organisations in Uist and Barra, and also for delivering part of Hebridean Connections’ digital inclusion programme, which provides basic training to community groups and individuals.

“Based on my experience of adding historical information to the Hebridean Connections website on behalf of Comunn Eachdraidh Bheàrnaraigh, I know what a fantastic resource the website is and how it can help to boost local tourism,” said Sue.

“But I also know about the challenges that voluntary organisations face in terms of resourcing projects. My hope is that I can bring this experience to bear during discussions with local heritage organisations, and help to find ways for them to take advantage of our website as a ready-made platform suitable for drawing the attention of the whole world to their archives.”

“Any heritage organisations from Uist and Barra that wish to join Hebridean Connections as full members can make use of our website free of charge,” added Tristan ap Rheinallt, Project Manager at Hebridean Connections.

“This includes having their own pages on the website, advertising their products, and adding as much or as little information as they want to the data set. Sue Wilson can provide all the training they require to help them with this, and again it is free of charge.”

Sue, having been a teacher on the mainland, made her home on Berneray in 2006. Between 2007 and 2009 she was employed to work on the Dileab Bheàrnaraigh project for Comunn Eachdraidh Bheàrnaraigh. Her work involved researching and building up an archive to be held on the island, and then using the collected material as a basis for displays in the local visitor centre. The family history database that she set up now contains information about more than 6,000 people who have links to Berneray. Towards the end of the Dileab Bheàrnaraigh project, Comunn Eachdraidh Bheàrnaraigh began to share some of this information on the Hebridean Connections website. This is a process that Sue has continued on a voluntary basis, and it was also as a volunteer that she managed the society’s more recent emigration project, A’ tilleadh ar n-eachdraidh dhachaigh.

“We see this new post as essential to building closer ties with heritage organisations in Uist and Barra,” commented Donnie Morrison, chairman of Hebridean Connections. “We are delighted to welcome someone with Sue’s inside knowledge of comainn eachdraidh activities to the team.”

The new post was created following the award of a funding package totalling £145,000 to support the Hebridean Connections for a one-year period to the end of March 2016. The funders involved are the Scottish Government’s People and Communities Fund (PCF) (£80,000), the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) (£40,000), Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (CnES) (£20,000), and the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) (£5,000).

About Hebridean Connections:

The Hebridean Connections project is a partnership of ten comainn eachdraidh (local historical societies) in the Outer Hebrides. Prior to 2015-16, it was funded over a two-year period by the Scottish Government’s People and Communities Fund (PCF), Highland and Islands Enterprise (HIE), and Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (CnES).

The project followed on from an earlier initiative that resulted in the development of an innovative website containing tens of thousands of linked historical records. During the period 2013-15, this website (www.hebrideanconnections.com) was completely redeveloped by the University of Aberdeen under the dot.rural programme, and then greatly expanded with the addition of new information. Training of historical society volunteers in technology-related skills was given a particular emphasis during this phase, as were the benefits of volunteering in terms of health and wellbeing.

The Hebridean Connections project is managed by the Islands Book Trust.

Irish Minister of State praises Taigh Chearsabhagh – Blasket Centre collaboration

April 14, 2015

Rock Citadel of the Blasket Islands.

Simon Harris TD, Minister of State with special responsibility for the Office of Public Works (OPW), has praised an event which effectively represents the twinning of two cultural centres in Ireland and Scotland with a simultaneous launch of exhibitions in both centres.

The Great Blasket Centre in Kerry is hosting an exhibition entitled ‘Sgeulacht Hiort – Scéal Hiort – the St Kilda Story’ from Taigh Chearsabhagh in Lochmaddy, North Uist. Meanwhile, Taigh Chearsabhagh is hosting an exhibition from the Great Blasket Centre called ‘Fairscin Inise’, a compilation of historic photos from the Great Blasket which has already been shown in the Blasket Centre.

The two exhibitions recently opened simultaneously in both centres with musicians, artists and special guests from both countries present to celebrate the occasion.

Mr Harris said: “I am delighted to convey my best wishes to this collaboration.

“The OPW Great Blasket Centre or Ionad An Bhlascaoid is such a evocative visitor centre, perched as it is on the Dingle Peninsula, telling the story of the heritage of the Blasket Island, the islanders and their way of life has a resonance with the story and heritage of the Isle of North Uist in the Outer Hebrides.

“I have no doubt that both exhibitions will be well attended and enjoyed by all.”

Funding setback for proposed Ceòlas centre

Ceòlas in full swing!

Hebridean Connections appoints Uist and Barra training officer

Irish Minister of State praises Taigh Chearsabhagh – Blasket Centre collaboration

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