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Sinclair’s Bay Social Spaces serves up over 200 lunches by halfway point





One of the Sinclair’s Bay Social Spaces sessions in Reiss.
One of the Sinclair’s Bay Social Spaces sessions in Reiss.

A Social Spaces project involving three village halls in the east of Caithness has served up more than 200 lunches at its halfway stage.

Sinclair’s Bay Trust launched the third year of the initiative last month and it is said to be meeting an important social need during the “long and lonely” winter months.

The 10-week project opens the doors of three village halls, providing a place for the community to meet and to share a hot drink and lunch.

It began in 2023 as a response to the cost-of-living crisis and sought to provide warm spaces within the community while also offering refreshments. It was rebranded in 2024 in response to community feedback to reflect the social benefits.

Sinclair’s Bay Social Spaces is supported by session facilitators June Frame and Kerry O’Keefe, with catering provided by Nadine Stewart.

Kerry, who is also the community development officer for Sinclair’s Bay Trust, said: “Last week we reached the halfway point of the project and we’ve already served over 200 lunches and many more hot drinks.”

The sessions are attracting ever-increasing numbers.

Members of the community enjoying a Social Spaces session in Staxigoe hall.
Members of the community enjoying a Social Spaces session in Staxigoe hall.

Sinclair’s Bay Trust chairperson Maysie Calder said: “We are thrilled that this project continues to be well supported by the Sinclair’s Bay community.

“It’s a project that is close to our hearts. The winter months can feel long and lonely and Social Spaces meets an important social need in our community.”

Kerry remarked that feedback is positive, with those attending describing it as a “must-go event” and encouraging others to go along.

“People tell us they enjoy the company and chatting, catching up and reminiscing with others,” Kerry said. “They’ve also told us that they enjoy part in our weekly quiz at the sessions.

“The catering always gets great reviews too.”

This year the initiative has been supported financially by Thistle Wind Partners and the National Lottery Community Fund. Maysie said: “We are extremely grateful to our funders who enable this project to continue.”

Sinclair’s Bay Social Spaces is free to attend and open to Sinclair’s Bay residents. It takes place weekly from 11am to 2pm on a Wednesday in Keiss hall, on Thursday in Staxigoe hall and on Friday in Reiss and Killimster hall. The sessions are scheduled to conclude on Friday, March 21.

Sinclair’s Bay Trust, the local development trust for the area of Sinclair’s Bay, aims to make Sinclair’s Bay a better place to live, work and visit.

Keiss hall is one of the venues for Sinclair’s Bay Social Spaces.
Keiss hall is one of the venues for Sinclair’s Bay Social Spaces.

Another project the trust is delivering is Sinclair’s Bay Creatives.

Maysie explained: “We’ve recently secured funding from Stroupster Wind Farm Community Benefit Fund to continue and extend Sinclair’s Bay Creatives as a subgroup of the trust.”

The informal strand of Sinclair’s Bay Creatives, a social space to meet to be creative, is free to attend and takes place at Keiss hall from 7pm-9pm on the last Wednesday of the month (excluding July, August and December). It will be joined this year with a more formalised strand.

“We are excited to be in a position this year to extend Sinclair’s Bay Creatives to include artist/practitioner-led workshops,” Maysie added.

Workshops will be advertised via email and interested individuals are invited to get in touch with the trust to note their interest.

Also being delivered is a collaborative community photography project called A Year in Sinclair’s Bay.

“Every month, we invite submission of photographs taken in the area that month by our immediate and wider community as well as visitors,” Maysie said.

“We share submissions on our social media channels on Facebook and Instagram. It is a really lovely way to get the community involved and celebrate the beauty of Sinclair’s Bay and record the area throughout the year.”

The project is now in its third year. Last year Sinclair’s Bay Trust featured some of the photographs in a collaborative project with Wick Voices as well as using them to create a calendar which sold close to 150 copies.

The trust’s largest project to date, the Caithness at War heritage trail, was launched last spring in collaboration with Wick Development Trust.

Three village halls provide a place for the community to have a hot drink and lunch.
Three village halls provide a place for the community to have a hot drink and lunch.

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