Our Strategic Contribution

Scotland’s Economic Strategy

Investment: We provide a community based approach to our work, attracting grants and resources, and fostering partnerships which benefit our area. We invest in skills development to improve resilience and sustainability.

Inclusive Growth: Our team supports those looking to enter or return to the job market. Our training provides skills and qualifications to those looking for work and young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET).

Scotland’s National Performance Framework

The framework is for all of Scotland. The framework aims to;

create a more successful country
give opportunities and increase the wellbeing of people living in Scotland
create sustainable and inclusive growth.

We contribute by reducing inequalities in our area and promoting economic, environmental and social progress. We help to support the values and aspirations of the people of Forres. FACT delivers projects that help people realise their potential, be inclusive, empowered, resilient and safe. Our projects help people to be competitive, entrepreneurial, included, skilled and able. Our projects are designed to deliver an exemplary schedule of support and training. We work with other community organisations to build their capacity.

HIE Operational Plan

The purpose of HIE is to generate sustainable and inclusive economic growth across the region. The vision is for the Highlands and Islands to be a highly successful and competitive region in which increasing numbers of people choose to live, work, study and invest. We support this plan by;

Aiding growth of successful tourism businesses and social enterprises
Providing support to other voluntary organisations and networks that aid our collective resilience, and support the culture of our area
Provide employment, volunteering and graduate experiences
Our community tourism work has supported the Tourism Scotland 2020 Strategy, Moray Speyside Tourism and the Tourism Business Improvement District.
Our work to support The Forres Town Centre Action Plan has encouraged the development of and given a voice to small to medium sized enterprises in our town.
Securing the future of the Town Hall through the Community Empowerment Act (which legislates for community asset transfers) helps keep the High Street vibrant.
Our community consultations have ensured we have used a strong social enterprise model to design and secure social impact.

Fair Work Employer

As a Fair Work Employer FACT is also a member of Living Wage Scotland. We pride ourselves on the way our staff are treated, supported and mentored. We ensure that all staff receive the necessary training to enable them to carry out their roles effectively and efficiently. As a fair work employer we strive to nurture and develop our staff with family friendly and inclusive policies. FACT does not employ staff on zero hours contracts and treats its employees with respect and values their opinions. We treat all our staff fairly and equally irrespective of gender.

A New Future for Scotland’s Town Centres (2021)

We contribute to the vision set out in this report that, “flourishing and vibrant towns centres are essential for the social and economic wellbeing of our country”. We have supported the Forres voluntary and business community to face and tackle some of the significant and serious challenges that have hold the town centre back from flourishing. We will continue to work collaboratively to support the recommendations of this report and the ‘town centre first’ approach.

Volunteering For All Framework

Moray 10 Year Plan (Local Outcome Improvement Plan)

The plan has a number of objectives which we support;

Growing, diverse and sustainable economy
Empowering and connecting communities

We contribute to this by:

Supporting local businesses through using and signposting to their products and services.
Aiding the vibrancy of Forres town centre through our activities and events and bringing people on to the High Street.
Offering employability training for those furthest from the workplace.
Developing and delivering projects that create volunteering places, jobs and graduate training places.
Helping clients deal with long-term health conditions and signpost them to the right agencies and support.
As an anchor organisation for the Forres area, we work in partnership with a number of organisations to deliver services and activities that benefit the area.
We support and engage with over 50 groups that use the Town Hall.
FACT’s projects including the Cameron’s Champions Older persons befriending project, Forres Online digital inclusion project and the Skate Park project all stem from consultation and engagement with the local community and are being developed with the aim of increasing the opportunities for empowering and connecting our community.

Moray Economic Strategy – 2019

The vision of the Moray Economic Strategy is to have;

“a place that is thriving because of an increasingly diverse economy and a growing population that celebrates success and values both education and training”

“a distinctive and ambitious place that generates opportunities for everyone which in turn helps to drive up average earnings, retain balanced demographics and encourages strong communities to flourish”

The social economy and the contribution that FACT can make to this aspect of the Economic Strategy should not be undervalued. As the anchor organisation for the area, FACT works with a wide range of organisations to help them source funding and resources, identify training needs and work with them to build their capacity. For example our direct intervention has helped Moray Waste Busters bring in over £150,000 worth of additional funding to its organisation over the last 2 years. Our digital inclusion project has enabled us to support those furthest from the workplace. We have used developer contributions to install fast broadband into the Town Hall to aid and improve free connectivity.

Spirit of the Community document (2014)

Following the changes and recruitment of new Community Councillors in both Findhorn/Kinloss, Finderne, Dyke and Forres, and through attending monthly meetings of Community Councils, Forres Area Forum & Forres Area Community Trust, it became apparent that each was working on similar themes and keen to engage with the community. Representatives organised an event called ‘Spirit of Community – Coming Together’. Over 100 people attended. The goals identified for the community have underpinned the development of our FACT strategy. The full report can be viewed here.

Forres Area Growth Plan (2013)

This plan notes lots of positive assets in Forres but also identifies issues to be tackled, in particular the increasing older population and the need to create a strong resilient community that can look after its own. Town centre renewal and economic development was also key. This plan was based on the 2012 survey and other consultation and sets out a range of proposed initiatives from town centre renewal to young people and skills development. These themes have been adapted to form our current priorities and have been responsive to the changes that our community has experienced in the last 7 years.

Moray Council’s Planning for Real programme – Greener Spaces Forres 2020

This programme was led by Forres Community Council and supported by FACT and the Forres Area Forum. In total, over 300 members of the local community attended the model building phase of the project and another 400 took part in the consultations. The process highlighted the issues, needs and solutions related to green spaces, public land and buildings in the area.