The Tool Club in Craigton Avenue was officially opened by Councilor Corbett on Tuesday 18th May. The Club, who took their inspiration from the very successful Milnafua Tool Club in Alness, is part of the South Kessock Safety Karers Project and was part funded by the Highland Council’s Housing Services Department.

"This day has been a long time coming, at least 1 ½ years and has taken loads of commitment from everybody that has been involved." stated Keith Bootle, Project Manager for the South Kessock Safety Karers, speaking prior to Councillor Peter Corbett cutting the ribbon and declaring the club open. Keith went on to thank all those involved in the Project, from the Area Housing and DLO Manager’s, Tulloch Construction, who donated the container which the tools will be stored in, to Margaret Laidlaw who came up with the initial idea. Keith also thanked the volunteers at the South Kessock Safety Karers for all their hard work and encouragement and to the Alness Project’s Gerry Welsh for pointing them in the right direction. The Club, open to residents of South Kessock, is run entirely by volunteers and is hoping that in the future the equipment will be available for hire by the wider community. The club will be run on a membership system, which is £5 for 6 months and £10 for 12 months, and equipment available to hire range from a carpet cleaner to a lawn mower. Shirley Brown and Margaret Laidlaw have both attended a Portable Appliance Testing course at Inverness College, and they will be responsible for making sure that the equipment is in sound working condition before allowing it to be hired out and as Shirley said "It’s a very highly responsible job. Checking the equipment will be vital. If I don’t check and pass it before it goes out someone could get hurt, so I shall be making sure that everything is checked fully."

Opening hours for the Club will be limited at the start, however, as more volunteers are enrolled, the longer the opening hours will be. So if you are interested in helping out at the Club you can give them a call on 718912 or pop into the Project Office.