The decision follows unsuccessful attempts to obtain funding for the estimated £90,000 - £110,000 refurbishment costs needed to bring the building up to the standards expected by today's tourists.

Faced with the increasing running and legislation costs, the SYHA decided it would be more prudent to continue to reinvest in their hostel in Kirkwall.

The major activities planned for 2005-2006 are replacement windows and external doors; kitchen and bathroom upgrading; re-roofing and external wall cladding.

Voluntary Action Orkney, in conjunction with the Orkney Islands Council, has produced the handbook, designed for the independent community halls.

Jointly funded by OIC and Orkney Enterprise, the handbook will be updated annually and will be available from VAO's website at www.orkneycommunities.co.uk/vao.

An open day at the hyperbaric chamber in Stromness allowed the public to see how the facility works.

The Orkney Hyperbaric Trust provides treatment for divers with decompression sickness.

The chamber, at the new premises at the Old Academy, Stromness, was open from 10am until 1pm.

Westray's electric car was officially launched by Orkney MSP and Deputy First Minister, Jim Wallace, on Friday.

The vehicle is charged by five small turbines and will provide transport for elderly and disabled residents.

Scottish Power Green Energy Trust and the Scottish Energy Efficiency Office supplied funding of £71,500.

The company has pledged to donate all breakfast takings on their ships' sailings to Cancer Research UK (Scotland). Restaurants on board the Hamnavoe, Hrossey and Hjaltland were offering a special breakfast menu at a cost of £4.85, all of which will go to the charity.

NorthLink marketing projects manager, Elaine Tulloch, said: "We ran similar events for our passengers at the same time last year and they proved a real success, raising more than £600 for Cancer Research."

Social work director, Harry Garland, also warned of further cuts, as a result of financial pressures and staffing difficulties.

Islands councillors agreed with "great reluctance" at Thursday's social work committee meeting, to recommend that a home care waiting list be set up, with patients' needs assessed and put in order of urgency.

Highlands and Islands MSP, Jamie McGrigor, has asked the Scottish Executive to ensure air ambulance cover is not compromised following Tuesday's accident in Argyll.

In a letter to health minister, Tom McCabe, the MSP asked what effect the incident, involving a Loganair-operated air ambulance, would have on air ambulance cover.

Mr McGrigor said the Executive needs to assure people in Orkney, Shetland and in the Western Isles, that there would be no reduction of air ambulance cover for both emergency and routine procedures.

Members of the OIC's social work and housing committee were told on Thursday that the new posts would address the "critical" staffing shortfall in the assessment and care management team, and meet legislative requirements.

This team provides services to adults with physical and learning disabilities and mental health needs, to older people requiring assistance because of physical frailty, dementia or other health conditions, and to their carers.

After years of campaigning, a new Burray school has been given the go ahead by islands councillors.

The application was considered at the environment, planning and protective services committee on Wednesday.

Planning permission was granted, providing foot, cycle paths, drainage and landscaping are put in place.

Work is expected to begin within five weeks.

Philip Riddle, the chief executive of VisitScotland, has confirmed that Orkney's tourist hub will continue operating as "VisitOrkney".

The assurance was given at a meeting with Orkney MSP, Jim Wallace, held to raise concerns that the local island identities were being lost inside the larger VisitScotland.

Speaking after the meeting, Jim Wallace said, "VisitScotland had already given undertakings that calls to their call centre seeking information on Orkney should be passed to Orkney so that callers get real local knowledge and it had also been agreed that control over the Orkney tourist website would remain in Orkney. "

The Genesis arriving at Kirkwall pier

Kirkwall Lifeboat was launched on Wednesday night after a Buckie fishing boat fouled her propeller in the North Isles.

The Genesis got into difficulties while travelling through the North Sound, between North Ronaldsay and Papay. The lifeboat put a line on board the stricken vessel, to hold it until the coastguard tug Anglian Sovereign arrived.

The Genesis was towed into Kirkwall pier on Thursday morning.

Members of the OIC's environment, planning and protective services committee approved the development on the Back Road, behind the existing Lighthouse Flats.

Subject to planning permission being granted, work is to start on the Orkney Housing Association project in July or August this year.

A planned housing scheme on the outskirts of Kirkwall was granted planning permission on Wednesday, despite protests by neighbouring landowners.

Councillors on the OIC's planning committee agreed to grant planning permission for four houses to be built on the site, by the Highland Park and the Lynnfield Hotel, initially, with an additional nine to follow.

The Comet Stone, Stenness. Part of the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site.

The research agenda for the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site is now available.

The document, edited by Jane Downes, Sally Foster and Caroline Wickham-Jones, with Jude Callister, is the most up-to-date overview of the present state of knowledge of Orcadian archaeology of all periods.

The research agenda is available as a free download at www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/orkneyresearch.

The Research Agenda was grant-aided by Historic Scotland, Orkney Islands Council and Orkney Heritage Society, with support from Orkney College UHI.

A consultation meeting took place in Kirkwall on Wednesday night to discuss proposals for a centre for Nordic Studies at Orkney College.

The centre would study and preserve the Nordic heritage of Orkney and Shetland and teach literature, language, history etc.

Orkney's new state-of-the-art library and archive building in Kirkwall is still without a manager - despite advertising twice.

Islands councillors at Tuesday's meeting of the Recreation and Culture committee heard that the OIC would not be advertising the post for a third time for a time.

"We are reviewing the situation," said Alan Clouston, assistant director (community and recreation). "We have advertised twice and the feeling is now to leave a bit of a gap until we re-advertise for a third time.

"We have an arrangement in place so the ongoing management of the library and archive can continue."

Two organisations are likely to benefit from grants from the OIC's recreation and cultural services committee.

It was recommended this week that the Stromness Golf Club benefit from an award of £2,219 towards the purchase of a greens aerator and tines.

Meanwhile, members also recommended the Shapinsay Agricultural Society be awarded £1,250 towards the cost of purchasing safety gates for the annual show.

The first of the two OIC websites due to go live on Monday, appeared online on Tuesday afternoon.

The site, www.scapaflowhub.org, aims to raise the profile of the proposed Scapa Flow hub project, as well as other initiatives and developments in the Flow.

The second site, www.orkneyharbours.com, became available to some Internet users on Tuesday morning.

Rural Development Minister, Ross Finnie, visited the company's stand on Tuesday, at the International Food and Drink Exhibition at ExCel in London's Docklands.

The exhibition, which is expected to attract some 25,000 visitors from around the world, features 1,350 companies exhibiting food and drink from over 43 countries.

Mrs Graves was presented with her award at a ceremony in Glasgow, on Saturday.

The SQH is designed to prepare teachers for the key role of school leadership and help them develop the skills they need.

The search for two men, missing after a Loganair Islander air ambulance crashed off the Mull of Kintyre, in south-western Scotland, was called off on Tuesday afternoon.

The plane, one of three operated for the Scottish Air Ambulance at Kirkwall, Lerwick and Glasgow, was en route from Glasgow to Campbeltown. Contact was lost just after midnight. The cause of the accident is unknown at present.

The Loganair Islander planes have served Orkney's island communities since September 1967.

Seaweed could provide answer to environmental problems relating to fish farming, as well as generate secondary income

According to Dr Maeve Kelly, from the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) in Oban, the environmental impact of sea-cage fish farming could be significantly reduced by the cultivation of seaweed on site.

Dr Kelly said: "Fish excreta and waste fish food, primary components of the matter lost from fish-farms to the environment, provide well balanced nutrients for marine plant growth.

"By using seaweeds of commercial value, for potential consumption by humans and for cultivated shellfish, the fish farmer could also generate a second income."

Twelve participants, who were selected to join the network, benefit from regular group meetings and workshops, executive coaching and 24 hour advice and guidance from the Institute of Directors (IoD).

Liz Foubister, from Aurora Environmental, said: "We have all found membership of the Network really worthwhile. It offers us a unique range of support services and programmes, without the inconvenience of having to leave Orkney."

Sergeant Angus MacLeod said police acted after receiving a report from the island expressing concern over visiting travelling salesmen.

He added that inquiries are ongoing to establish whether there has been a breach in trading standards regulations.

Orkney MSP and Deputy First Minister, Jim Wallace officially opened the wind farm at Spurness, in Sanday, on Friday.

Mr Wallace then moved on to an event to mark the handover of a roof-top turbine to the nearby Sanday School.

Mr Wallace said: "I am delighted Scottish and Southern Energy have donated a turbine to the school which will provide electricity, help cut energy bills and play its part in the children's education. Small contributions like this can make a big difference."

Archive story: SSE confirm acquisition of Sanday wind farm

Almost £150,000 of grants were approved by Orkney Enterprise (OE) in February 2005.

Among the approvals was £10,000 to the Westray Development Trust, to cover costs of the island's development officer, and £3,675 to the Orkney West Mainland Agricultural Society, for the upgrading of the Dounby Showpark.

A large proportion of the £149,808 total approvals, was £105,000 to OE, for the Initiative at the Edge officers for Sanday, North Ronaldsay, Stronsay and Eday.

Archive story: Four islands designated 'Initiative at the Edge'

Police have issued a warning after a quantity of prescription drugs were stolen from a vehicle in Stromness on Friday.

A car, at Hamnavoe, Stromness, was broken into on Friday afternoon and several items removed, including a pack of Dihydrocodein medication.

Sergeant Angus MacLeod said: "If anybody comes across these tablets, they should hand them into the nearest doctors' surgery or police station."

Two new Orkney Islands Council websites were due to be launched on Monday - but as we updated our site on Monday afternoon, they had yet to appear on the Web.

A site to raise the profile of the proposed Scapa Flow hub project, as well as other initiatives and developments in Scapa Flow, is due to appear at www.scapaflowhub.org.

The idea came from the Container Hub Steering Group, who felt that more information should be made available to the public.

Orkney Harbours new website, at www.orkneyharbours.com, plans to allow visitors to view live weather information and keep up-to-date with changes to harbours and buoys.

Wintry weather and strong winds on Sunday night, caught out motorists with a number of incidents across the county.

Police received numerous reports of cars getting stuck in drifting snow, particularly at Wideford Brae.

At 7.05pm, two motorists were involved in an accident at Grainshore, Hatston. No-one was injured and both vehicles sustained minor damage.

The weather also hit power supplies, with an estimated 100 households expected to have their power reconnected by afternoon today.