A baby boy with head injuries was transferred from Westray to Kirkwall by lifeboat on Friday.

The lifeboat was called upon at 10.30am on Friday because the air ambulance helicopter, which was on another mission, would not be available until 12.30pm.

However, a Scottish Ambulance Spokesman said: "We offered the doctor to send the MoD helicopter, but the doctor declined that offer."

Orkney has the highest number of childminders per population in Scotland.

According to a report by the Care Commission, Orkney has 11.8 childminders per 1,000 of the population aged between 0 and 14.

The results from the Review of the Quality for Childminding show Orkney’s percentage is nearly double the Scottish average.

For more information on courses available and how to become a registered childminder, contact Sandra Leslie at the OIC on 873535 ext 2625.

As required by the Scottish Executive, the OIC is about to launch a survey into childcare needs in Orkney.

All families with children under the age of 14 will receive a questionnaire focusing on the current provision in the islands.  Young people will also receive a separate questionnaire, which looks at the activities available from their point of view.

Forms will be distributed through schools and groups while the young people’s questionnaire can be downloaded from Young Scot website at www.youngscot.org/local/orkney_islands/

Both should be returned by September 30.

Police in Orkney have seen a reduction in crime since the Kirkwall town centre CCTV system went live nearly five months ago.

The major state-of-the-art project has led to increased community safety, reduced crime and antisocial behaviour and has proved its worth as an “excellent” tool for crime prevention and detection, according to a report before the Northern Joint Police Board in Inverness on Friday.

Orkney Meat has announced an additional premium for “Gold Standard Lambs”.

With immediate effect farmers will now enjoy an extra 10p per kilo for lambs that hit the company’s target weight and grade.

A vessel fell foul of sea conditions off Hoy on Friday - the second in a 24 hour period.

Shetland Coastguard received a 999 call from the sole occupant of the small vessel Naomi, which had fouled its propeller.

The Stromness lifeboat was launched and a number of vessels in the area stood by until she arrived on the scene.

The Naomi had drifted down towards Hoy’s Green Head before a line was put on board and she was towed back to Stromness.

The Dennis Head Old Beacon in North Ronaldsay has been voted to go through to the final of this year’s BBC Restoration Village.

Last Friday, viewers were called upon to choose between three Scottish buildings: Dennis Head Old Beacon, North Ronaldsay, Orkney; Greenlaw Town Hall in Berwickshire and the Cromarty East Church in Ross-shire.

The result means that the beacon will be one of eight buildings to be featured in the live grand final in September. Here a nationwide vote will decide which building should be given a new lease of life with money raised throughout the course of the series.

Two creel fishermen were rescued from a boat aground at the Taing of Selwick in northern Hoy on Thursday afternoon..

Shetland Coastguard received a Mayday from the creel boat Challenger about 2.50pm. The Coastguard helicopter Oscar Charlie, which was on a training operation in Orkney at the time, was diverted to the scene but was not actually needed.

The men were tranferred to the Stromness lifeboat and taken back to the Mainland.

A heritage centre for Eday got the go ahead from councillors on Thursday.

Members of the OIC community development fund sub-committee agreed a grant of nearly £180,000, half the total project costs of £360,000 ­.

The facilities proposed include a cafe, restaurant, pub, heritage and interpretation display areas, reading and archive room and a tourist information area.

Holm Community Association is able to forge ahead with plans for changing facilities at their new playing field.

Councillors at the OIC community development fund (CDF) sub-committee meeting on Thursday recommended approval of a grant of £28,739 ­ 25 per cent of the total project cost of £114,956.

A project to promote Orkney's disappearing dialect among youngsters, will see a new calendar distributed to all primary classes in the county.

Sheila Garson, the OIC’s cultural co-ordinator for heritage, developed the calendar, which aims to create an interest and understanding of the Orcadian dialect and promote a sense of identity.

The three-year project aims to eventually have classes submitting Orkney dialect words and phrases for inclusion in future calendars. This will give children ownership of the project and help ensure that the individuality of islands and parishes are represented.

Plans for a community garden in Finstown have been put on the back burner, after councillors expressed concerns over who would pick up the bill for ongoing revenue costs.

At Thursday's meeting of the OIC CDF sub-committee, councillors agreed to defer a decision on funding to obtain more information and to visit the site.

The OIC has spent nearly £2 million for advice from external consultants in the past three years.

The biggest slice of cash - £450,000 - has been used to pay for expert knowledge on how best to look after the county's multi-million pound oil reserve fund.

But the expendature was defended this week by OIC chief executive, Alistair Buchan, who said the OIC could not achieve its ambitious programme of capital projects and improvements with engaging specialist professional help when necessary.

Up to 2,000 people from Orkney are to be recruited onto a major new study, aiming to identify the genes that cause the common bone-thinning condition, osteoporosis.

Families from Westray, Sanday, Stronsay and Shapinsay, as well as the West Mainland are being asked to volunteer for the £240,000 study being funded over three years by the Arthritis Research Campaign.

Orkney has been selected because the population is both isolated and stable, and specific genes will be easier to track down and identify.

The investigation will be carried out by a team of researchers from the University of Edinburgh, led by Professor of Rheumatology, Stuart Ralston, and Royal Society Research Fellow, Dr Jim Wilson, who comes from Orkney.

OIC officials will meet representatives from Orkney’s key industry groups on Friday to discuss how the Strategic Reserve Fund is used to support projects in the county.

The council is inviting suggestions about how to use the Development committee’s £1.1m allocation from the Strategic Reserve Fund to encourage economic development in Orkney.

Talisman has confirmed that a drugs operation, in conjunction with Kirkwall police, was carried out at the Flotta oil terminal on Tuesday.

The terminal took part in a planned site visit from police officers with sniffer dogs at 11.30am on Tuesday morning. The operators confirmed on Wednesday that no illegal substances were found during the routine search.

Orkney communities have responded swiftly and enthusiastically to the news that electricity regulator, OFGEM, have granted approval for the implementation of a Registered Power Zone (RPZ) in the isles.

The announcement made in late June by Scottish Hydro-Electric Power Distribution Limited, potentially creates a further 15MW of generating capacity within the Orkney grid, which had previously been full.

The Highlands & Islands Community Energy Company (HICEC) has been working with eight communities in Orkney who have already expressed serious interest in pursuing Community owned, income-generating projects and have lodged a first stage application to Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) on their behalf. 

A specialised offshore construction vessel has taken up position off Eday to start installing the UK's first grid-connected tidal turbine.

The jack-up barge, christened Octopus, is standing in 15 metres of fast flowing water and will serve as a stable platform for the team tackling the engineering challenge.

Developed by Dublin-based OpenHydro, the turbine will generate electricity for the National Grid while undergoing a comprehensive test programme at the new Eday-based marine laboratory belonging to the Stromness-based European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC).

Harray bed-and-breakfast, Rickla, has been shortlisted for this year’s ‘tourism Oscars’, the Thistle Awards for the second year running.

Named as a finalist last year, Rickla is one of three businesses in the running for the ‘Customer Care: Guest House/B&B’ Award, sponsored by VisitScotland.

A man, who has been banned from Hoy while he awaits a trial, was released on bail at Kirkwall Sheriff Court on Tuesday.

Raymond Andrew Sutherland, 37, of Dundas Street, Stromness, denies assaulting a woman at a property in Bosquoy, Kirkwall, on last night, Monday.

Sutherland is charged with doing this while of bail for another alleged assault.

He was released with the special condition that he does not return to Hoy or does not approach the woman. A trial has been set for November 2.

Councillors have made a decision on what action should be taken by the OIC in respect of the council's equal pay liability.

However, no announcement will be made until all employees have been informed of the outcome, OIC convener, Councillor Stephen Hagan, said on Tuesday.

The matter was discussed in private at a special meeting of the policy and resources committee this morning, and ratified at full council less than an hour later.

Councillor Hagan said: "A press release will not be available until staff have been informed which is only right and proper; that will take a number of days."

The Royal Bank of Scotland will formally open its new Kirkwall branch on Thursday, following a £300,000 investment to modernise the existing building and increase facilities for customers.

In particular the upgrade will ensure customers with disabilities have greatly enhanced access to the branch.

The branch, which was designed and built over 170 years ago, has undergone a major refurbishment programme, including the complete reconstruction of the rear part of the building.

Fifteen years on, a programme on the South Ronaldsay child abuse case was screened on BBC2 on Tuesday - featuring, for the first time, some of the families involved in the affair..

At dawn on the February 27, 1991, police and social workers raided the homes of four families in South Ronaldsay after claims involving non-existant Satanic child abuse.

Two months later, the Crown Office announced that none of the parents - who had always protested their innocence - would be charged with any offences. An inquiry into the affair, conducted by Lord Clyde, began in Kirkwall the following July.

An English journalist is visiting Orkney next week to discover the county’s romantic side.

A press trip organised by VisitScotland will see Jennifer Hough from the Oxford Mail and Times spend two days experiencing what Orkney has to offer those seeking a romantic island break.

Over 500 people raised over £47,000 in one of the biggest fundraising events ever to be held in Orkney on Saturday night.

The Cancer Research UK Relay for Life ran from 8pm to 8am, with 33 teams taking part. The event saw a candle of hope ceremony and a lap of the Pickaquoy running track by those who have beaten the disease.

On the night, £45,000 was banked, with a further £2,000 pledged from those still to hand in sponsorship money. Totals have yet to be taken from the raffle and refreshment tents, meaning that the overall figure will rise further.

A final figure will be announced on August 31.

Northern Isles MP Alistair Carmichael has revealed the petrol prices in Orkney and Shetland have risen by 13 per cent over the past year.

A survey of 18 filling stations in Orkney and Shetland shows the average cost of a litre of petrol in the isles is now £1.05. The average price at the same garages in April 2005 was just 93p per litre.

Commenting Alistair Carmichael said: “The isles continue to suffer because of unfair fuel prices. Since April last year petrol has gone up by 13 per cent. This hits local communities who have no choice but to use cars.”