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Community consultation event to help 'map' Thurso


By Staff Reporter- NOSN

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THURSO residents, community groups and agencies are being invited to a consultation event next week as part of a project to identify gaps and inequalities in service provision.

Joan Lawrie has been running a series of community consultations since taking up her post as Thurso development officer with Caithness Voluntary Group under the Scottish Government-funded Aspiring Communities programme in January.

She has been speaking to users of Ormlie Community Association, Caithness Citizens Advice Bureau and Thurso Community Café as well as other groups in the town.

People will be asked to identify what is good about Thurso, what is bad about Thurso, and what needs to be improved.
People will be asked to identify what is good about Thurso, what is bad about Thurso, and what needs to be improved.

The main aim of the project is to consult with those who are experiencing inequalities and return this information to the Caithness Community Planning Partnership to help in shaping the area based on the priority needs identified.

As part of the consultation process an event is being organised by Joan on Tuesday, March 26, at Thurso Youth Club with residents, groups, service providers and agencies invited to attend and help to map Thurso.

A large map of the town has been designed and those attending will be asked to consider among other topics the facilities, services and activities available for health and wellbeing: how do individuals get around the town, what is good about Thurso, what is bad about Thurso, and what do people feel needs to be improved?

Joan explained: “This consultation exercise is firstly designed to be something different from normal. People can come along and draw on the map, stick notes to it, get creative if they want to, or for those who choose to have a quieter voice simply tell me their viewpoint or pass over a note.

"Using a huge map of Thurso will allow those attending to see the town in context. For example, someone might enjoy a walk on Thurso beach to help their mental wellbeing, but they live in a far-off area of the town and experience a mobility issue to get there, so that’s a barrier to their wellbeing.

"We can consider all of this by using our map and it gets people thinking in a way that they might not by having a questionnaire. Last year at Thurso Community Development Trust we received 1200 responses by asking 'How good is our place?' and this consultation event builds on that by looking at the town in a different way and asking those who may not have contributed then to get involved now in an accessible, innovative and informal way.

"In the past few months I have found that there is great work going on in the town, but not everyone knows what is available and where. This gives us a starting point to mapping those in addition to consulting our community in a new way.”

The March 26 event in the youth club will take the form of drop-in sessions running from 2pm-7pm. Refreshments will be provided along with a friendly welcome and chat about Thurso.

All are welcome to attend – community group representatives, facility and activity providers, residents of Thurso and anyone else who may be interested. Further details are available from Joan by email at joan@cvg.org.uk.


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