Also in the news / Also in the news 2 March 2026
- Drumquin plans
- Praise for Active Schools programme
- No NHS decision on World Cup bank holiday
PLANS are afoot to bring B&B accommodation back to Drumquin in Brae.
The building’s new owner Paul Fraser and his wife Karen aim to initially have four downstairs rooms as a B&B, with change of use planning permission sought, although there is no target date yet for it to be up and running.
Paul Fraser said the pair are also applying to have another three rooms in the building able to be utilised for “commercial use” at some point in the future.
They are not planning on reopening the restaurant part of the building.
Drumquin, which has eight bedrooms, previously ran as a guest house and a restaurant before going on the market in 2020.
A COUNCILLOR says he believes the value of the Active Schools programme to the community “completely outstrips” any cost to the local authority.
Lerwick South member John Fraser also sought to praise the “tremendous” work of the local Active Schools team at a meeting earlier today (Monday).
Active Schools is a national programme, jointly funded through sportscotland and local authorities, which aims to provide opportunities for pupils to participate in sport and physical activity in extracurricular time.
Shetland Islands Council receives around £242,000 from sportscotland a year for the scheme, which – supported with council funds – supports the employment of seven staff.
An update report presented to Shetland Islands Council’s education and families committee on Monday highlighted how there were 1,323 participants locally in 2025.
There were a total of 145 people involved in delivering sessions, from coaches to supporting volunteers – although there was a recognition that recruiting and retaining volunteers can be a challenge.
The most common sports were football, netball, multisports, badminton and hockey, but some others included cricket, dance, squash and fencing.
Active Schools also supports projects like fun days for children with care experience, the ‘kit for all’ scheme and an intergenerational programme which brings primary school pupils into care homes.
There are also leadership training opportunities and a young ambassador scheme.
Lerwick South councillor Neil Pearson also praised the scheme but noted the concerns over “volunteer fatigue”, adding that sport and other activities are at risk of losing numbers.
NHS Shetland says it has yet to receive formal instruction from the Scottish Government regarding the so-called World Cup bank holiday on 15 June.
As such, a spokesperson said they are unable to comment on the matter at this stage.
Although it is a national bank holiday, it is up to individual organisations to decide how they approach it.
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