Work to start on new £8m Gaelic centre on Skye to 'protect language' and address 'chronic shortage of beds'
The new centre is projected to bring an economic boost to the island by providing full-time jobs
Work is to start on a new £8m Gaelic language and culture centre hoped to boost the local economy and preserve culture in a region on Scotland’s most visited island.
The new centre – Ionad Thròndairnis (Trotternish Centre) – will be built at Flodigarry on the north end of the Trotternish peninsula on the Isle of Skye.
It aims to protect and develop the Gaelic language, provide jobs and encourage young people to stay in the region.
The building will include a large function hall, classrooms for language, music and heritage education, a library and digital archive and a cafe and restaurant.
The community trust behind the development said accommodation will be included onsite for the users of the centre but also to address a chronic shortage of beds in the island region.
While the area is internationally recognised for dinosaur footprints, with 160 million year old evidence of ornithopods, and its links to Hollywood after being a film location for blockbusters, including Macbeth starring Michael Fassbender and Ridley Scott’s Prometheus, the Trotternish Trust said it is among the most deprived areas in rural Scotland when it comes to measures of income, employment and access to services.
According to the centre’s business plan, the development is due to employ 10 full-time staff and provide part-time jobs and seasonal work.
The Trotternish Trust, behind the development, said it will also prioritise keeping young people in the area.
Margaret Nicolson, chairwoman of Ionad Thròndairnis, said: “Gaelic is still alive as a community language in this area. I can speak Gaelic to many people, every day, in the shops and in the community.
“There are people moving into the community and – although they don’t speak it themselves – very often they will send their children to the Gaelic-medium schools, and so I can speak Gaelic to those children.
“This is still a Gaelic community, and the new centre will be a great boost for the language.”
She added: “The new Ionad Thròndairnis will provide a great economic boost.
“It will provide around ten new full-time jobs, which is very big in rural Skye, and further seasonal and part-time jobs. So maybe 15 people employed. And, as a community-run trust, money will stay in the community.”
Preliminary work at the new site will start within the next few weeks with archaeology checks, drainage work and further planning at the site.
The Trust said the new centre will fit directly into Government policy which could see the area designated an Area of Linguistic Significance.
Community Land Scotland, the lead organisation representing community landowners across Scotland, is supporting the new development.
CLS’s director of communities and operations Linsay Chalmers said: “This is a great project born of a lot of hard work by a lot of people from the community. Supporting the rich Gaidhlig language and culture has always been a central part of our work with community groups.
“We all know the language adds significantly to the health of the communities where it is still used.
“A place like Trotternish is one of the Gaidhlig heartlands and it is fantastic that the community has taken the initiative to support and strengthen the language and in turn strengthen the economic and social wellbeing of the north of Skye.”
The centre is due to open in 2028. It has been supported by Bòrd na Gàidhlig and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
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