News / In brief for 20 September 2011
Funding for post office
THE POST office at the Toll Clock shopping centre, in Lerwick, has received £25,000 in grant funding from the Scottish government.
The money is said to be intended for staff training and installing an engraving machine, and comes under the Scottish Government’s post office diversification fund.
On Wednesday, Scottish enterprise minister Fergus Ewing announced a total of 48 grants to post offices in 24 areas across the country.
Classical recital
CLASSICAL pianist Mami Shikimori and Master Violinst Masayuki Kino will this week return to Shetland to perform a programme of works, including Kreisler, Falla, Khachaturian and Wieniawski.
The concert will take place in the Lerwick Town Hall at 7.30pm on Thursday 22 September.
Shetland Arts music development officer Bryan Peterson said: “This is an exceptional opportunity for local audiences to experience a performance by two of the world’s foremost instrumentalists in the grand surroundings of the Town Hall. Truly a concert not to be missed”
Tickets, priced £12 / £9 are available from the Shetland Box Office, Islesburgh Community Centre, 01595 745 555 or online at www.shetlandboxoffice.org
Credit Union milestone
THE SHETLAND Credit Union, which opened its headquarters at the Hillhead, in Lerwick earlier this year, has now extended its services in the form of outreach sessions in the country area.
The first of these sessions have been held in Brae, Firth and Mossbank, with plan afoot to also provide the service in Yell and Unst.
A spokesman for the local bank said that it had now also a standing order facility in place to allow people to save regularly without having to go to an office to deposit cash.
Sufficient funds have now been deposited so that it can offer loans to members who have saved with them for three months, he added.
The Shetland Credit Union can be contacted on 01595 69 1044, e-mail: secretary.sicu@googlemail.com or via their website at: www.shetlandcreditunion.org
Half of Shetland’s tobacco sellers still to register
THE COUNCIL’s trading Standards Service is reminding tobacco sellers in Shetland that they have less than two weeks to get their names on the government’s tobacco register.
Trading standards manager David Marsh said: “From the 1 October, any business that wants to sell tobacco products must be registered. After that date, it will be a criminal offence for an unregistered business to sell tobacco products.
“Unfortunately, despite the fact that the scheme has been open since April, only just over half of Shetland’s tobacco retailers are on the register so far.
Registrations can be done through the www.tobaccoregisterscotland.org website, by contacting the Scottish Government on 0131 244 2169 or by asking the local trading standards office for a paper form.
Building Standards praised
Shetland Islands Council’s building standards service has been praised by the Scottish Government following the submission of its service plan for 2011/12.
Head of the building standards verification team, Mark Rae, said: “The quality of the submissions has improved year on year and gives a good overview of what you do and how the service aligns with the wider council and its priorities.”
Building standards manager with the SIC, Alan Jarden, said: “The council’s building standards service is committed to providing an excellent service to our customers and ensuring that the construction of new buildings and the alteration or conversion of existing property meets building standards.”
Chairman of the development committee, councillor Alastair Cooper added: “We can all have total confidence in the service and the application of its high standards to buildings and conversions throughout Shetland.”
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