Iomairt aig an Oir Initiative at the Edge was instigated by the then Scottish Office in 1997, and launched in March 1998, to concentrate attention and effort on tackling the problems faced by the most fragile rural areas of northern Scotland.

A total of 46 fragile communities were identified, with eight particularly vulnerable communities selected as pilot areas. Four of these pilot areas were in the Western Isles, namely Uig and Bernera, the Bays area of Harris, Eriskay and Lochboisdale. The other four were Westray and Papa Westray, North Sutherland, Ardnamurchan and Colonsay.

Hugh Donaldson, national co-ordinator for the initiative and based in Ardnamurchan, manages the project on behalf of the steering group and is line-managed by the HIE strengthening communities group.

Use the link, above right, to visit the initiative's web site.