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Oh no, they’re not…oh yes, they are! The festive shows will go ahead in Orkney’s schools this Christmas with communities welcome to attend for the first time since 2019!

There may have been no room at the inn, but there’s plenty of space within our schools for folk to come along and enjoy the nativities and concerts as safely as possible.

Orkney Islands Council looks set to establish a funding pot to support Orkney-based organisations to collaborate with projects and partners that are funded by  the Nordic Atlantic Cooperation.

Elected members at this week’s Policy and Resources Committee agreed recommendations that a £20,000 funding pot should be established with a maximum funding award of £5000.

Orkney Islands Council is grateful to all the people and organisations for their help and support with these events.

Orkney’s Kali Morris may be only seven, but she’s getting quite accustomed to receiving a special delivery in the post! 

The P3 pupil at Firth Primary recently received two Royal letters, which have pride of place in her “Royal box”, joining another she was sent some time ago.

The Council is reminding parents and carers that most schools in Orkney will be closed tomorrow, Thursday, as a result of the planned industrial action by teachers in a national dispute over pay.

The only facilities open are: Eday (nursery/school) North Walls (nursery/school) Papay (nursery/school) Rousay (nursery/school) and the nurseries only at Dounby, Glaitness, Papdale and Stromness Primary. Both the Strynd and Willow Tree Nurseries will be open and Shapinsay will be partially open in both the primary and nursery sections.

A group of ten young Naval officers from the HMS Prince of Wales laid a wreath at the Royal Oak memorial within St Magnus Cathedral and performed a short ceremony of remembrance on Friday (18 November).

The group were on a battlefield study trip as part of their Cultural Study programme, and have been to Fort George and Culloden before spending a week in Orkney to visit Lyness, HMS Tern and the Ness Battery among other sites.

In the Cathedral, their “Act of Remembrance” commenced with the reading of an eyewitness account from Ordinary Signalman Kenneth G. Conway, a survivor of the HMS Royal Oak, and ended with the Naval Prayer and Naval Hymn.

One of the visiting group, Sub- Lieutenant Yanislav Yurkevych, said: “Being able to come to Scapa Flow and pay our respects to the many war memorials, particularly that of HMS Royal Oak, has been a sobering chance to reflect. Seeing the graves of naval officers the same rank as us, but many of them much younger, certainly puts things into perspective.”

A lifelong ambition to open a purpose-built art studio became a reality for Orkney artist Ingrid Grieve earlier this year thanks to assistance from the Council.

Toumal Art Studio sits within Ingrid’s garden in Orphir and enjoys breathtaking views across Scapa Flow – an area, among many others throughout the county, to provide an endless source of inspiration for the artist.

This year 11 local athletes are benefiting from the sportscotland Athlete Travel Award Scheme (ATAS). The Scheme is an ongoing partnership between sportscotland and the participating local authorities in Highlands & Islands - Orkney Islands, Western Isles, Shetland Islands and Highlands Councils.

Orkney Islands Council are extremely grateful to also have a partnership with Stagecoach which allows us to enhance and extend our programme in Orkney.

Coca-Cola has issued a recall on a limited number of Coca-Cola Zero Sugar multipacks with Christmas cardboard. Some packs have been wrongly boxed and may contain Coca-Cola Original taste.

This may pose a risk to certain consumers.

Pack size: Multipack of 24 x 330ml cans

Batch code: 301WA1, 302WA1, 303WA1, 304WA1, 305WA5, 306WA5, 307WA5 and 308WA5

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) issued a risk statement regarding the recall.

This explained that there is a "potential risk to consumers who need to manage their sugar intake".

The FSA stated: "Coca-Cola is recalling the above product. Point of sale notices will be displayed in all retail stores that are selling this product.

"These notices explain to customers why the products are being recalled and tell them what to do if they have bought the product."

The 10km surveillance zone around the avian flu infected premises in Tankerness has been lifted, Scottish Ministers have confirmed.

This follows the completion of preliminary cleansing and disinfection, and mandatory surveillance requirements and means that all zonal restrictions within this area have been lifted.