Work starts on £615,000 office scheme in Western Isles
Work begins next week [w/c Monday 4th November] on a major office
development in South Uist which aims to bring almost 40 jobs to an area
which is regarded as economically fragile.
The £615,000 scheme for a site near Daliburgh School is part of the
Islands-wide drive by Western Isles Enterprise to provide advance office
space which is proving attractive to inward investors looking for ready-made
offices, a stable workforce, and a good lifestyle.
WIE chief executive Donnie Macaulay said the enterprise company was dealing
with a growing number of requests for office space from locally based
information technology and Internet-based companies, as well as more
inquiries than ever from off the Islands.
London-based computer consultancy firm, Enterprise Management Consultants
(EMC Ltd) have just taken occupancy of an advance office developed by WIE in
Ness, Lewis. Negotiations continue in relation to already completed offices
at Gleann Seileach in Stornoway, while work is nearly complete on offices at
Shawbost, Lewis. The other major building completed recently, at Lionacleit,
Benbecula, is already occupied by Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
Because of the general lack of suitable properties for this kind of work
throughout the Western Isles, WIE believes it can play a major role in the
location of business activity by working to provide office space in a range
of areas which have a potential workforce available.
The offices at Daliburgh, which are being built by contractors Macinnes
Brothers of Uachdar in Benbecula, are expected to create the opportunity for
up to 37 fulltime jobs or their part-time equivalents, once completed. In
addition, around 30 people will be involved in the construction work which
is expected to be complete in April next year.
Public transport links to Daliburgh are relatively good because of the
two-year secondary school located near the office site while there is a
range of other social facilities for a population which has a high
proportion of young people compared with the rest of the Western Isles.
Outside interest in the Islands is being generated by the Work-Global ICT
Business Development Programme (part funded by the Highlands and Islands
Special Transitional Programme) which is deliberately targeting areas of the
UK with large amounts of ICT office-based operations where organisations
trying to expand are facing high property costs.
Market research has also indicated there is a growing interest from
public-sector organisations facing the requirements to disperse their
operations.
In addition, the improvements in transport links in the area around
Daliburgh including the Eriskay Causeway and Sound of Barra ferry service
which were developed by Comhairle nan Eilean Siar with assistance from WIE
means there is a bigger pool of people to draw from than in previous years.
A previous community appraisal study found that a total of 94 people said
they had left the area because of lack of employment opportunities and 74
were interested in returning. Individuals who may be interested in
employment opportunities once the building is completed can register on the
Work-Global skills register by contacting Angela MacLeod on 01851 880225 or
online at www.work-global.com.
Work will officially begin on the Daliburgh building next week. Mr Macaulay
said that businesses were increasingly finding that while it often took
longer to get staff in post in areas beyond main conurbations, because of
people relocating back to take up jobs offered, "the experience is that when
people take up these jobs they stay with the business for the longer term,
providing significant reductions in training costs through low staff
turnover."
He went on "Our experience elsewhere in the Islands shows that a key factor,
in bringing new jobs and economic activity to an area, is the availability
of good quality accommodation. These new buildings will meet that need and,
combined with our developing telecommunications infrastructure and the
strong skills-base of the local workforce, should be very attractive to
prospective tenants."
WIE currently provides a range of property types. The new rural
offices/teleservice centres are widening WIE's range of properties on offer,
aligning property developments with areas formerly dependent on now
declining traditional industries in order to create a more diverse economic
base.
