BID Fort William Monthly Newsletter July 2026

Welcome to this month’s update. You’ll notice this newsletter lands a little later than usual – our Board met today, so we wanted to make sure this update captured the outcomes fresh, and we were also keen to include a report back from yesterday’s Round Table with Stephen Flynn MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport.

In this newsletter: Event Grants awarded to the Glen Coe Marathon and Lochaber Piping Society; progress on the Ben Nevis Industrial Estate, High Street and Middle Street; the Lundavra Butterfly project and wider planting; an update on Post Office representations; a thank you following our Cherry Tree event; and a report back from the Chamber of Commerce Round Table with the Cabinet Secretary.

As always, if you’d like to get involved or have an idea for the town, we’d love to hear from you!

What’s Been Happening

Ben Nevis Industrial Estate

The Van Man and his team have been busy at work on the estate – make sure you’re following us on Facebook for updates, and our thanks to them for their continued efforts – it’s looking a lot better already!

We also held a meeting with businesses on the Ben Nevis Industrial Estate. This was a really constructive session, and our thanks to everyone who attended. Key outcomes included improved signage for the estate, further place-making improvements building on the work already underway with the Van Man, and the formation of a coordinated group to communicate and liaise with the Council on ongoing issues such as lighting ahead of winter.

High Street

Improvements continue on the High Street, with thanks to James Stewart Home and Property Maintenance and our volunteers. This has included everything from smaller jobs like sticker removal to larger ones such as fence painting, tidying noticeboards and bench painting. Head in town this weekend and take a look for yourself!

Middle Street

With High Street works progressing, the team has begun scouting Middle Street as the next area of focus. Some early tasks have been completed for the businesses along Middle Street such as weeding and general tidying.

Planters & Landscaping

The Lundavra Butterfly planting is looking beautiful, this is a project completed by Lundavra Primary School, and a lovely addition to the area. Planters around the town continue to be maintained, and we’re now turning our attention to improving the waterfront area.

Post Office

We’ve continued discussions with the Fort William, Inverlochy and Torlundy Community Council and other relevant bodies regarding the Post Office. There’s a good amount of work going on behind the scenes to help move this forward, and we’ll share more as soon as we’re able to.

Event Grants Awarded

Congratulations to the Glen Coe Marathon and the Lochaber Piping Society, both successful in securing Event Grant funding. Events like these allow for more opportunities for entertainment for our residents, bring visitors into the area and support local trade – exactly what our Event Grants are designed to encourage.

Cherry Tree Event – Thank You

Our thanks to everyone who came along to our Cherry Tree event, asked questions and got involved. We’ll be progressing to the next stage shortly. Keep an eye on our social media, where we’ll be posting a link to sign up. Thanks again to Highland Cinema for hosting us!

Representing You Where It Counts

We joined the West Highland Chamber of Commerce yesterday for a round table with Stephen Flynn MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport. BID Fort William attends these sessions as part of our ongoing work with local stakeholders on behalf of levy payers.

One of the issues raised was the single road in and out of Fort William, and the impact it has on businesses, residents, tourists and emergency services, a problem many of you will recognise. Attendees were clear about the effect it has on the local economy.

From discussions we’ve already had with levy payers, we know a lot of you are fed up with more discussion on the issue of the traffic – and honestly, we get it. The irony wasn’t lost on anyone in the room that Stephen Flynn was late due to traffic.

Right now, being in the room means two things: we can make sure the issues our levy payers raise with us are put directly in front of the people making national transport decisions, and we get early sight of what’s actually coming down the line nationally. That matters because it means the projects we’re planning locally aren’t done in the dark. We’re not going to spend time and effort on something only to find out six months later it clashes with a national plan we didn’t know about.

Shout Out – Nevis Centre

Don’t miss the Nevis Centre Family Day this weekend – we’re pleased to have donated £50 in Shop Local vouchers to support the event, giving families another reason to spend a little of their day, and their money, right here in town. It’s a small way of backing a great local event while sending footfall towards you, our levy payers. See you there!

Have a suggestion?

We are here to support all the businesses within the BID area and always happy to hear your ideas. The BID is about working together to make Fort William better, so get in touch and get involved.

[email protected]
07448 533 127

Book in a Time to Meet

Email Mary – Your Project Manager