In this week’s update, ACT Chair Anne Widdop captures a week of mixed fortunes: some grant disappointments balanced by real progress on Bill’s Shed and the Land, Sea and Island’s Centre, plus some exciting work from volunteers. Spring is tentatively arriving in Arisaig, and so is a fresh wave of community energy.
You can catch these updates every week on our Facebook page. And if you’d like to get involved or just say hello, we’re always glad to hear from you at info@arisaigcommunitytrust.org.uk.
ACT Diary: 8th March 2026
It’s been a week of changeable weather as we see out the end of the winter. Some days torrential rain, leaving most of us sheltering indoors, other days cold and crystal clear. Like the dormant plants starting to tentatively poke their heads above the soil, people emerged into the bright sunshine to tackle a myriad of outdoor jobs. The village has been a hive of activity framed by the spectacular view across to Eigg.
Like the weather, it’s been a week of mixed fortunes for the Trust. A couple of grants I applied for were a big fat NO. The £400K for an extension to the Land, Sea and Islands Centre, was one of them… £23M worth of applications for a £2M pot! Despite many hours devoted to the application, I still think it was worth the candle. I do burn an actual candle when writing late into the night, as I scratch away, quill in hand, makes me feel more worthy. The Coastal Communities Fund also said no to a revised Housing needs survey and a renewable energy study. Both are important to enable the Trust to continue to understand how the village infrastructure needs to evolve and to inform what we do.
It’s not disheartening, other funds will appear. I remain optimistic!
The volunteers have been busy, Peter F and Steve W working at Bills Shed on Monday and Tuesday, you may notice that work is well underway. Can’t wait to see the Shed transforming into a beautiful 2 person holiday let. With 100% of the profits reinvested in the village, it gives us much needed cash to do so much more.
Diane and I continued to tidy up the Land, Sea and Islands Centre, it’s getting ready to reopen next weekend, deep clean pending. Thanks too to Alison S who has been keeping me right with the history of the Heritage Centre development. Also been working with Zoe on planning the toilet’s spring makeover. Zoe really is an unsung hero of the Trust, she is so diligent and I love working with her. We’ve tentatively put out a date of 21/22 March to try to organise a work party. If you can spare an hour, please let me or Zoe know!
I also met with Sarah and her partner Jonathan, who moved to the area six months ago. No one moving here will go un-noticed! They are a generous, bright and amazingly talented couple who are looking forward to helping the community. Sarah is a hugely experienced Marketing professional and has offered to take on all things marketing for the Trust. Yipee! Jonathan has many strings to his bow, not least as an IT developer, and we have been hatching a plan, but I’ll keep that under wraps until we can make an announcement.
Massive thanks to all the Board, who’ve all been busy progressing projects, and to Sarah, Jonathan, Peter, Zoe and Alison.
If you want to get involved, there are lots of ways you can do that. You can join the Volunteers WhatsApp Group, or just drop us an email and ask Zoe to add your name to the list info@arisaigcommunitytrust.org.uk or just talk to one of the Directors.
Cheers! Anne