Rural services

Support is being made available for third sector groups and community organisations through the Scottish Government funded Accelerate programme.

Delivered by Community Enterprise, Accelerate is a fully funded programme providing mentoring and guidance to help third sector groups and community organisations become more financially sustainable.  It offers an average of six days’ free support tailored to suit the needs of the organisations.

The NFU Scotland has launched a Diversity and Inclusion review in order to encouraging an increase in Union involvement from a wider cross-section.

NFU Scotland has launched a research project to explore ways in which all diversities can become more involved in its work. It will be centred around a “Diversity Discussion”, involving a series of interviews, and an online survey and roadshow which is due to commence on 8 July for one week.

Ayrshire Rural and Islands Ambition (ARIA) Fund  has now launched for new applications for the 2024-2025 session. 

This year just over £400,000 of funding is available for both revenue and capital projects.  There are two funds, the Main Fund, and the Community Asset Maintenance Fund.   

A consultation has been launched by the Scottish Government to identify ways to support the future of crofting across rural and island Scotland.  

Village halls are often the heart of a community. They are places for people to gather, learn, access services and have fun. Making sure they are well run and maintained is an important but not always easy role, often fulfilled by committed volunteers and workers.

Farmers and land managers in the central belt, who are thinking of planting trees but don’t know where to begin, are now being offered free woodland assessments from Scottish Forestry.

The offer applies to farmers in the central belt from Ayrshire, Inverclyde, Dunbartonshire right across from the west to Fife and the Lothians in the east.

The recently published paper by the OECD on social innovation in rural areas sheds light on an often overlooked aspect of rural innovation: the unique challenges and opportunities that rural contexts present.

First Minister John Swinney has announced a £5 million package for Scotland’s island communities. 

The funding package will support Island communities to tackle local issues and invest in new opportunities that will help deliver a more prosperous future. This funding reflects the First Minister’s four priorities of eradicating child poverty, growing Scotland’s economy, investing in green energy and infrastructure and improving public services.