Land Management Training Project

Where does our funding come from?

Funding for land based businesses and community groups based wholly or partly within the eastern boundaries of the Cairngorms National Park (Strathdon, Deeside, Angus Glens, Atholl & Glenshee ) is part-financed by the Scottish Government and the European Community (Cairngorms Local Action Group) LEADER 2007-2013 Programme. Part-funding for the western area (Glenlivet, Tomintoul, Moray, Badenoch & Strathspey) is provided by the European Social Fund. The Cairngorms National Park Authority provides match funding Park-wide.

Aims

Through supporting training for land bases businesses and community groups, the Land Management Training Project aims to:

• Develop young people
• Enhance knowledge and skills
• Increase business efficiency and effectiveness
• Increase business competitiveness
• Increase job retention
• Create sustainable communities

What is a land based business?

Examples include estates, farms, crofts, outdoor recreation providers, golf clubs, horticultural nurseries, fishing and forestry. Many of these businesses also are involved in or provide services to the important tourism sector.

What is a community group?

A community group can be a group of people from the same area or village with shared interests or similar circumstances. It may include volunteers and may be a company limited by guarantee, a housing association, an unincorporated association, a friendly society, etc. It will have a formal constitution and/or bank account.

How can we help land based businesses and community groups?

Land based businesses
Through providing grant support for training, we want to help land based businesses (including the self employed in this sector), based wholly within or partly within the Cairngorms National Park, to be competitive and adaptable. We especially want to encourage young people, already in employment with these businesses, to develop their knowledge and skills. We can provide grants of 60%, 40% and 25% towards training costs, depending on the age of the employee and the type of training undertaken.  Please see Eligibility Criteria and Training Topics for further information. There are different forms for the East and West side of the Park, download the data protection form, application form and guidance here.

Community Groups
Through supporting training and awareness raising events, we want to inform local communities and groups and to provide them with the knowledge and skills to empower themselves to be vibrant, thriving, sustainable and inclusive communities. We can do this by providing grant funding of up to 40% for training which community groups have identified as a need. There are different forms for the East and West side of the Park, download the data protection form, application form and guidance here.

Public Benefits Training and Signposting
The Land Management Training Project can bring together expertise to deliver bespoke awareness raising or training events within the National Park. It can also help land based businesses and community groups to identify training providers and provide direction to available opportunities. Download our leaflet here.

What type of training is supported?

Please see Eligibility Criteria and Training Topics for further information. Examples of training topics are provided, but these are not exhaustive.

Are there any training topics that cannot be supported?

• We cannot fund training that is a statutory requirement.
• In the past, we have supported training in basic chainsaw, basic first aid and refresher courses. We won’t provide assistance for this type of course in the future, but we will continue our support for advanced level courses.

Contact

For further information about the Project, please contact Fiona Morris or Sam Masson at:
The Cairngorms National Park Authority
14 The Square
Grantown-on-Spey
Moray
PH26 3HG

Tel. 01479 873535
Fax: 01479 873527

Email: training@cairngorms.co.uk