25 August 2023 Issue 2542 © ULLAPOOL NEWS

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NEW INFORMATION – IMPORTANT NEWS REGARDING THE SHORT TERM LET LICENSE DEADLINE 1/10/23:
WARNING – TO ALL “EXISTING HOSTS/OPERATORS” of short term lets/holiday lets/B&B’s etc. YOU WILL BE DEEMED A “NEW HOST/OPERATOR” from the 1st October 2023, if you have not submitted your STL application to the Highland Council and paid for it by the 30TH SEPTEMBER 2023.
Anyone who is currently regarded as an “existing host/ operator” of a holiday let (STL), that is that they were trading before October 2022, must at least send in their on-line STL application to the council and pay for it by the 30th September 2023, in order to maintain their “existing host/operator” status, and be able to continue to trade.
If you miss the deadline, then you are regarded as a NEW OPERATOR, and as such, will not be allowed to trade, take bookings or operate until such time as your STL license has been approved. With only and estimated 10% of applications having been received so far, the Association of Scottish Self Caterers advise that it may take up to 9 months to get your application processed, and will likely take a minimum of three months if all the conditions and paperwork compliance has been met. You will not be able to trade until the STL has been awarded. Anyone operating without a license will be liable for a £2,500 fine and a possible criminal record. It seems unlikely that the Scottish Government will extend the deadline.
If your paperwork is not yet quite complete, it would be advisable to get your application submitted and paid for as soon as possible, with the proviso of sending in the up to date certifications etc. as soon as they are completed later on.
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AN TALLA SOLAIS NEWS
We have had a busy summer so far at An Talla Solais with exhibitions, workshops and classes!
Our Members’ Show 2023 opened this month with bumper submissions and a host of exquisite work. It is open Wednesdays to Sundays until the 1st of October. It is a superb exhibition of paintings, drawings, sculpture, textiles and ceramics by our Members.
We have been busy with workshops too. Our Wild Flower Meadow outside the Gallery inspired us to get drawing and on our Volunteers Day on the 1st of June we started a collection of drawings which flourished into a series of workshops for all the primary and nursery school classes. These became a host of blooms which have now been made into a paper meadow collage and is on display currently in the entrance to the Village Hall.
We started our VIP ( Volunteer Initiative Programme) this June. The first group involved with this project have brought us “Life in the Loch” a series of free community ceramic workshops led by Steve Patterson. These workshops welcomed people to come and make some ceramic creatures inspired by our sea theme and some superb marine marvels have been produced. These are going to be on display from the 8th of September alongside the Members’s Show. They will be for sale on general release from the 11th of September after the makers have had first dibs to buy theirs, if they wish. Thanks to the Volunteers in the VIP group for getting this project together and delivering it with a splash! And thanks to the Ullapool Harbour Trust for their generous support with this project too.
The VIP project is a rolling scheme. The next project we will be launching is the Grounds and Garden Club which will start this Autumn. We would like to extend a huge thank you to all our valued Volunteers who continue to support the work we do. Thank you to the team who have skilfully and expertly helped hang our current Members’ Show and to those who enthusiastically and generously give their time and energy sitting at the exhibition desk and allow us to open our exhibition 5 days a week. Your support and time is greatly valued by so many.
If you would be interested in getting involved and Volunteering with us, or to hear about more up coming opportunities and projects please get in touch with charlotte@antallasolais.org or mhairi@antallasolais.org
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News from Ullapool Medical Practice
Education, Education, Education!
Many patients who attend the practice are used to meeting medical students from Aberdeen, who come to Ullapool Medical Practice for 5 week placements. We are continuing to welcome several students a year from Aberdeen, and now also have a student, Noah, who is with us until June next year. He is on the ScotGEM (Scottish Graduate Entry Medicine) course, which started in 2018. This course was started with the main aim of increasing the numbers of Doctors of the future who choose to work in rural areas. ScotGEM medical students meet patients from day one of the course and get out into rural communities all over Scotland. There is a lot of evidence that students who spend time in remote and rural areas are likely to want to work there in the future. So there are lots of reasons why we are pleased to be playing a part in this course! As ever, it is through meeting, talking with and examining patients that students learn the most, so thank you in advance to anyone who plays a part in this.
*****

*****
NEW INFORMATION – IMPORTANT NEWS REGARDING THE SHORT TERM LET LICENSE DEADLINE 1/10/23:
WARNING – TO ALL “EXISTING HOSTS/OPERATORS” of short term lets/holiday lets/B&B’s etc. YOU WILL BE DEEMED A “NEW HOST/OPERATOR” from the 1st October 2023, if you have not submitted your STL application to the Highland Council and paid for it by the 30TH SEPTEMBER 2023.
Anyone who is currently regarded as an “existing host/ operator” of a holiday let (STL), that is that they were trading before October 2022, must at least send in their on-line STL application to the council and pay for it by the 30th September 2023, in order to maintain their “existing host/operator” status, and be able to continue to trade.
If you miss the deadline, then you are regarded as a NEW OPERATOR, and as such, will not be allowed to trade, take bookings or operate until such time as your STL license has been approved. With only and estimated 10% of applications having been received so far, the Association of Scottish Self Caterers advise that it may take up to 9 months to get your application processed, and will likely take a minimum of three months if all the conditions and paperwork compliance has been met. You will not be able to trade until the STL has been awarded. Anyone operating without a license will be liable for a £2,500 fine and a possible criminal record. It seems unlikely that the Scottish Government will extend the deadline.
If your paperwork is not yet quite complete, it would be advisable to get your application submitted and paid for as soon as possible, with the proviso of sending in the up to date certifications etc. as soon as they are completed later on.
*****
AN TALLA SOLAIS NEWS
We have had a busy summer so far at An Talla Solais with exhibitions, workshops and classes!
Our Members’ Show 2023 opened this month with bumper submissions and a host of exquisite work. It is open Wednesdays to Sundays until the 1st of October. It is a superb exhibition of paintings, drawings, sculpture, textiles and ceramics by our Members.
We have been busy with workshops too. Our Wild Flower Meadow outside the Gallery inspired us to get drawing and on our Volunteers Day on the 1st of June we started a collection of drawings which flourished into a series of workshops for all the primary and nursery school classes. These became a host of blooms which have now been made into a paper meadow collage and is on display currently in the entrance to the Village Hall.
We started our VIP ( Volunteer Initiative Programme) this June. The first group involved with this project have brought us “Life in the Loch” a series of free community ceramic workshops led by Steve Patterson. These workshops welcomed people to come and make some ceramic creatures inspired by our sea theme and some superb marine marvels have been produced. These are going to be on display from the 8th of September alongside the Members’s Show. They will be for sale on general release from the 11th of September after the makers have had first dibs to buy theirs, if they wish. Thanks to the Volunteers in the VIP group for getting this project together and delivering it with a splash! And thanks to the Ullapool Harbour Trust for their generous support with this project too.
The VIP project is a rolling scheme. The next project we will be launching is the Grounds and Garden Club which will start this Autumn. We would like to extend a huge thank you to all our valued Volunteers who continue to support the work we do. Thank you to the team who have skilfully and expertly helped hang our current Members’ Show and to those who enthusiastically and generously give their time and energy sitting at the exhibition desk and allow us to open our exhibition 5 days a week. Your support and time is greatly valued by so many.
If you would be interested in getting involved and Volunteering with us, or to hear about more up coming opportunities and projects please get in touch with charlotte@antallasolais.org or mhairi@antallasolais.org
*****
News from Ullapool Medical Practice
Education, Education, Education!
Many patients who attend the practice are used to meeting medical students from Aberdeen, who come to Ullapool Medical Practice for 5 week placements. We are continuing to welcome several students a year from Aberdeen, and now also have a student, Noah, who is with us until June next year. He is on the ScotGEM (Scottish Graduate Entry Medicine) course, which started in 2018. This course was started with the main aim of increasing the numbers of Doctors of the future who choose to work in rural areas. ScotGEM medical students meet patients from day one of the course and get out into rural communities all over Scotland. There is a lot of evidence that students who spend time in remote and rural areas are likely to want to work there in the future. So there are lots of reasons why we are pleased to be playing a part in this course! As ever, it is through meeting, talking with and examining patients that students learn the most, so thank you in advance to anyone who plays a part in this.
*****