Council campervan scheme to miss £500,000 target

Highland Council expects to miss its target to raise £500,000 from a voluntary scheme aimed at holidaymakers who visit the area in campervans and motorhomes.

For a £40 seven-day pass the visitors can park overnight in some of the local authority's car parks, and get daily access to showering facilities in leisure centres.

The initiative, launched in July last year, was also designed to generate funding for infrastructure improvements and biodiversity projects.

But in a new report officials said only £20,000 was expected to be raised in its first financial year.

Another aim of the Highland Campervan and Motorhome Scheme was to tackle anti-social behaviour by some visitors who avoid using designated campsites.

The problems have included overnight parking and the emptying of chemical toilets at roadsides and in laybys.

According to figures published in 2022, almost 36,000 motorhomes visit the Highlands in a year.

Highland Council said it would not be appropriate for it to comment on the report before councillors had a chance to discuss it later this week.

But Jim McGillivray, an independent councillor for East Sutherland and Edderton, said he was always doubtful the scheme could be a success.

He told BBC Scotland News: "I just couldn't see it getting any traction at all.

"This year I can't see it getting very much traction again.

"It's just another hassle the council has become involved in for limited return."

Anne Edwards, a campsite owner and chairwoman of Highland Caravan and Camping Parks Association, said the council needed to work with the sector to find a better solution to anti-social behaviour.

She said in other parts of Europe it was illegal to park overnight on roadsides.

Ms Edwards added: "The council is inviting people to the area and saying 'it's up to you if you want to pay or not'.

"People are not going to pay because they think they can park in a layby and call it 'wild camping'."

There is some positive news for Highland Council in the report.

The local authority is forecast to raise £5.4m from council tax on second homes/long-term empty properties in 2024-25.

The annual target is £5.3m.

A new visitor centre at The Storr, a well-known landscape on Skye, is expected to achieve its annual target of generating £300,000 in income.

Officials said plans were also progressing to expand the centre's facilities.

An online shop is to go live in May and a new booking system for guided walks is due to be available for the spring/summer tourist season.

The centre is also to be made available for weddings.

Highland Council said The Storr had more than 293,000 visitors last year.

The landscape has remnants of volcanic activity from 2,800 million years ago and The Old Man of Storr is among its most recognisable geological features.

It has featured prominently in films, including 2012 sci-fi hit Prometheus and the opening scenes of 1973 horror The Wicker Man.

The report also said other Highland locations had been identified for potential visitor service improvements in the future.

They include Smoo Cave, a large sea cave in Sutherland, and the Black Isle's Chanonry Point, where dozens of people gather in the hope of spotting dolphins.