Islands business resilience fund: island communities impact assessment

1. What are the aims, objectives and impacts of the Fund?

The Scottish Government’s creation of the Islands Business Resilience Fund (IBRF) responds to ongoing disruption to ferry services due to a combination of constrained vessel capacity, breakdowns, vessel repairs and delays in replacement vessels. These issues have led to an increase in cancellations over the past three years.

The majority of Scotland’s islands rely upon ferries for access, but not all have experienced the same level of disruption.

The objective of the IBRF is to provide targeted financial support to businesses on islands that have been most disproportionately impacted by ongoing ferry service disruptions. It aims to support resilience, by way of a one-off financial award, to those businesses on the most affected islands to help them maintain operations.

The targeted nature of the IBRF means that not all islands will receive funding. This reflects an evidence-based assessment of the varying levels of disruption experienced across different ferry routes and the way those ferry routes serve islands, with funding prioritised for islands where the cumulative impact on businesses has been most severe and sustained.

To ensure effective use of the limited funding available, work has been carried out in collaboration with Highland and Islands Enterprise (HIE), which has expertise in supporting island businesses and delivering funding across island communities. HIE’s input has informed the development of the IBRF to ensure it is targeted in the most impactful way to reach those most in need.