The Council tug, Thor of Scapa, and pilot vessel, Scapa Pathfinder, assisted the Caledonian MacBrayne Isle of Mull ferry which had suffered engine troubles on Tuesday, off Orkney.

The vessel is currently berthed at Lyness and repairs are being carried out.

Progress continues to be made on improvements to the Fostering, Adoption and Adult Placement (Continuity Care) Services in Orkney.

The Care Inspectorate published inspection reports into the Council-run services on 29 November 2022 highlighting a number of areas of concern.

The Council’s St Magnus Café will be hosting the Samaritans of Orkney national annual campaign event known as “Brew Monday” on Monday 16 January.

The third Monday in January is sometimes referred to as “the most difficult day of the year” but this is a myth. Samaritans say there’s no such thing as “Blue Monday” – everyone has good and bad days, and those aren’t for the calendar to decide. 

Orkney Health and Social Care Finance Officer, Joan Jones, is also the Director of Samaritans of Orkney. She said: “We say it's time to stop this myth about Monday being 'blue' and instead start a conversation over a brew! ​Reach out and connect with family, friends, colleagues and loved ones.

 

Orkney will play host to the International Island Games in 2025 – the largest event ever to be held in the county – and a major part of its success will be a huge team of volunteers working behind the scenes to help make it happen.

Games Director, Kirsty Talbot, believes that now is the time to build on the volunteer capacity within sports clubs in the county to create a really solid foundation for the Games.

Following the Full Council decision during December 2022 to launch a financial support scheme to help folk meet the challenges of the cost-of-living crisis, officers are finalising the detail of how the scheme will be administered.

Further details will be announced later this month, with payments made from February onwards.