Local authority in the running for top prize

North Lanarkshire Council is in the running to be named Local Authority of the Year.

The council has been named as a finalist in three different categories at the Municipal Journal Awards (MJ Awards).

It’s the only council in Scotland to be shortlisted for the prestigious honour.

It is recognition of the scale of North Lanarkshire Council’s place-based investment, which has continued at pace over the last year, as well as the financing of wider community projects including essential infrastructure, connectivity, the digital economy and new-build housing, while also maintaining its current stock of council homes and facilities.

The outdoor education work involving young people at the Rainbow Pavilion at Strathclyde Country Park, which opened in August last year, has also been recognised as a finalist for Place-based Approaches to Health Equity.

The shelter was innovatively designed and co-created with school pupils using old mobile phones and tablets to create rain-screens and other sustainable materials.

It enabled pupils to continue receiving the physical and mental benefits of outdoor education in a fun, safe and comfortable environment. In the first four months, 33 schools and 969 pupils benefited from the new facility.

The council’s health and social care team has also been recognised in the Care and Health Integration category for their work to improve care for adults and older people in care homes.

And the local authority is up alongside colleagues at South Lanarkshire Council for the Best EV Charging award for their joint Project Pace, which delivered 167 EV chargers across 44 EV charging hubs in Lanarkshire.

North Lanarkshire Council chief executive Des Murray told the Advertiser: “It’s a great honour to be a finalist, particularly for Local Authority of the Year, as we have achieved so much over the last year, despite the pandemic.

“However, the people behind all the work with the rainbow shelter, what we have done and continue to do to improve outcomes for adults and older people in care homes and the enormous amount of work achieved across all our services are the ones who deserve this recognition.

“Without them, we couldn’t continue to deliver high-quality services that benefit the people and communities in North Lanarkshire.”

The winners of each of the categories will be decided in June.

Colourful crew The work involving youngsters at the Rainbow Pavilion at Strathclyde Country Park has also been recognised as a finalist for Place-based Approaches to Health Equity