Staffin Community Trust
About Staffin Community Trust
Staffin Community Trust ~ Urras an Taobh Sear was established in 1994 by local people determined to tackle the challenges faced by our rural district, in the Isle of Skye, in the Scottish Highlands. which has crofting and Gaelic at its heart.
SCT works with, and for our community, in the north-east of Skye. SCT is a charity and its project work is supported by Highlands and Islands Enterprise's Community Capacity Building Programme.
Our Objective
Staffin Community Trust is an ambitious, forward-thinking and resilient organisation which has delivered a range of projects in north-east Skye for three decades.
To date, SCT's work have resulted in a direct spend of £3.1 million in Staffin with major capital work projects delivered.
The SCT’s objective is to improve Staffin’s economic prospects, stimulate social and cultural activities and improve services, with the Gaelic language an integral part of that. SCT is also trying to develop as an organisation which can sustain itself through income-generating developments.
Our community is classed as economically fragile by the Scottish Government. A lack of permanent all-year round employment/affordable housing, an ageing and falling population and the loss of our young people in search of work elsewhere, are just some of the major challenges.
SCT has two members of staff and is governed by a board of eight volunteer directors drawn from the community. Staffin was the only community in Skye and Lochalsh to suffer a population fall in the 1991 Census and members of the local community council led moves to establish a development trust to try and reverse this decline.
SCT strives to work closely with other key organisations in the district including Staffin Community Council, the Staffin Community Hall Association, Columba 1400, Sgoil Stafainn and of course local businesses.
SCT's projects have included the £1.6million housing, health and business development at Taighean a' Chaiseil and the delivery of two phases of the Skye Ecomuseum project between 2006 – 2020, including new footpaths, car parking, a viewing platform, interpretation and extensive activities programme.
Our Projects
Six family houses, a new health centre called Tobar na Slàinte and two business premises were built at Taighean a' Chaiseil. This mixed-use development has won four awards to date, including one for its design. More importantly Taighean a’ Chaiseil is a home, a place where Staffin residents can access medical care and where people can work locally.
The Staffin Harbour development is a transformational infrastructure project for this area of the West Highlands. It will be an economic spark in helping create new jobs and businesses to retain our young people and families, whilst supporting key industries including fishing, aquaculture, marine and on-shore tourism.
Board & Staff
Director and TreasurerAngus, a crofter and retired secondary/primary school teacher at Portree High and Bun Sgoil Stafainn, was one of the founding members of SCT in the 1990s. Angus, who lives in Ellishadder, said he wanted Urras an Taobh Sear to help Staffin build on its strengths and take the lead in economic improvements for the community. He has the challenging job of monitoring the SCT’s financial incomings and outgoings, as treasurer, which is no easy task given the scale of some of its projects.
DirectorIan is from the crofting township of Digg and after leaving school he spent four years in the fishing industry, followed by 20 years in the North Sea. Ian now runs his own business, mostly in construction and agricultural industry services. He has a keen interest in local history, traditional Gaelic, music and language. A crofter and keen sheepdog competitor Ian has helped run the hugely successful Staffin Sheepdog Trials at Ellishadder backed by a small army of helpers. The annual event has not only drawn in extra visitors to Staffin but has raised thousands of pounds for a local cancer charity over the years.
DirectorDugald, who lives in Ellishadder, first established the Staffin Museum in 1976 when he was only 19-years-old. He has a rich source of knowledge about the Trotternish peninsula’s history, archaeology, landscape and geology. Since Skye’s first dinosaur find in 1982, Dugald has been involved with local research that continues to identify dinosaur remains. In 2002, the discovery of Middle Jurassic tracks which showed the footprints of an adult dinosaur with young has attracted international interest. Dugald’s museum has gone from strength to strength and attracts thousands of people a year. In 2017, he was awarded the Mary Anning Award from the Palaeontological Association which respected palaeontology academics, Dr Steve Brusatte of the University of Edinburgh and Dr Neil Clark at Glasgow’s Hunterian Museum, presented him with. Dugaldhas played a leading role in the creation of the Skye Ecomuseum, he is a key member of the group tasked with the current Druim nan Linntean project.
SecretarySìne has connections with Lewis and Islay but has lived in Skye since 1985. Through her work with Lasair (Iomairt an Eilein Sgitheanaich) she delivers Gaelic-medium activities to young Skye people. Examples are The John Muir Award and the musical tuition project, Èist. Along with others she has been instrumental in shaping and delivering the Druim nan Linntean | Skye Ecomuseum project. Sìne is keenly aware of the tremendous growth in recent years of visitors to north-east Skye. She is firmly behind efforts to deliver a warm welcome, good food, comfort and accommodation along with generous spirited interaction and interpretation, so that people who take the trouble to visit may have a meaningful experience in the landscape and community of Staffin.
DirectorCalum was raised in Stenscholl and attended the old Staffin Primary School and Portree High School as a youngster. He later moved to London and served as a police officer in the Metropolitan Police for eight years. He returned home to Staffin in 2009 and now lives in Digg, where he owns self-catering accommodation and helps his father on the family croft in Stenscholl. Calum restored one of the oldest dwellings in Staffin, The Old Inn, near his family home several years ago. He joined SCT because he has a particular interest in the Staffin Slipway development, having been brought up a short distance away
DirectorAllan is a native of Staffin who left Skye at the age of 17 to study Gaelic at university in Aberdeen and later went on to train as a chef. His work took him to Killin in Perthshire for several years and a spell in the catering department of Eden Court Theatre in Inverness. He returned to Skye in 2017 to move in with his now wife Jacqueline and went on to start his own business, The Hungry Gull, which is based at Staffin Community Hall and operates as a brunch cafe in the daytime and drive thru takeaway in the evenings.
Programme ManagerAngus Murray is the programme manager for the Skye Ecomuseum / Druim nan Linntean project. Angus, who hails from Benbecula, manages a comprehensive activities programme. It includes a educational pack for primary schools, children’s craft and storytelling events, health walks and yoga for older residents, archaeology/wildlife events/workshops, local history, business forum, guided walks and tours, etc. He has also managed the ecomuseum’s re-branding and marketing and the design and delivery of the project’s digital and physical interpretation across Staffin.
Development OfficerHugh is the SCT local development officer. The post is funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise through its Community Capacity Building Programme. Hugh, who is from Garafad, works for SCT on most of its major projects and is in close contact with the directors, local residents and other key Staffin organisations/businesses, plus the public and private sector.
Support Us
Urras an Taobh Sear – Staffin Community Trust was set up to represent everybody who lives within the community of Staffin and to develop projects which are beneficial to the social and economic welfare of the district.
At present SCT is delighted to have more than 100 people now registered as members and would like to grow that as much as we can. SCT would like to have as many Staffin people, or those with strong links to the district, join as members as possible – and it is very straightforward.
Minutes
The board of Urras an Taobh Sear – Staffin Community Trust - meet on the last Tuesday of every month, barring July and December. Meetings are open to members of the community.
Follow this link to access all the meeting minutes from the last three years.
Explore Staffin
