MORAY’S LEADING COMMUNITY news website has been saved from possible closure by a group that also exists on a voluntary basis to serve local communities.
For the next year insideMoray is to be supported by Forres Groups Action Ltd (FGA), a local group working within the Royal Burgh of Forres to promote community organisations, enabling them to work together and attract new, motivated volunteers.
FGA was founded 11 years ago from the North West Moray Rural Partnership which in turn had been a development from the Forres Community Forum. Born from a concern for youth in the local area the main thrust of the efforts made by the FGA is targeted on people living within the catchment area of Forres Academy.
The sponsorship of insideMoray is being provided by an individual who, while not wishing to be named, is appreciative of the joint efforts being made in Moray by both the FGA and insideMoray through promoting communities in the area.
“When I learned that insideMoray required sponsorship to ensure that the service continued I felt someone had to step forward,” the contributor said, adding: “I have been for some time a supporter of the aims of both the FGA and insideMoray, a community service that provides all of Moray with accurate and honest reporting of local events.
“The FGA has a stated aim of promoting and supporting community groups and organisations – exactly the same aim of insideMoray. The very fact that thousands of people in Moray have made the community news site a part of their daily lives makes it an essential source that needs to be supported for the benefit of everyone in the community.”
The Editor Comments
“From the start I have sought to ensure that insideMoray remained first and foremost a community asset. This has been difficult to achieve but I am sure that most of our regular readers appreciate and share those aims.
“However, I was becoming concerned that while we have been supported by one or two companies and organisations in our community it was becoming increasingly more difficult to attract the necessary sponsorship to pay the basic costs of running the service – costs that were increasing along with the thousands of new readers we were gaining month on month.
“It did appear that we may have to pair back the service significantly – or even close it completely. I was delighted then to receive support in the name of the FGA, not to put too fine a point on it – they saved the day.
“Our community service still requires support – we have sufficient to meet about 50% of our costs over the next year, but we would appreciate hearing from any groups or companies in Moray who believe that a partnership with insideMoray might be to our mutual benefit.”