Adam Lyon

Residents at the Little Sisters of the Poor care home in Greenock completed a 12-week programme of personalized virtual travel sessions delivered by The Turnstyles Enterprise CIC. Using VR headsets, participants revisited meaningful locations, explored destinations including Rome, New York, Paris and Singapore, and experienced a safari in Uganda. Staff, relatives, volunteers and members of the Sisters also took part. The Turnstyles plans to expand the programme across Inverclyde, beginning with activity at Alt-Na-Craig House.

Inverclyde recorded a 1.8% increase in households since 2005, the smallest rise among Scotland’s council areas, compared with a 13% national increase. Council leader Stephen McCabe attributed the weak growth to population decline, home demolitions and changing household sizes, while noting that new housing and refugee programmes had partly offset the trend. Inverclyde also has one of Scotland’s highest proportions of dwellings with council-tax exemptions and the highest mainland share of properties in bands A to C. McCabe said demolitions at Clune Park and Kelburn contributed to the figures and argued that building more higher-value homes could strengthen the council’s tax base.

Television crews were seen filming the second series of the BBC’s Rebus adaptation in Greenock, including scenes near the sugar sheds and on Brisbane Street. Richard Rankin reprises the role of detective John Rebus, with new cast members joining returning actors. Written by Gregory Burke, the series explores Rebus’s personal and professional turmoil and the connections between violent crime, law and finance. The drama is based on Ian Rankin’s long-running Inspector Rebus novel series.

Plans have been lodged for BT to install a nearly three-metre-tall Street Hub on the pavement outside 55 West Blackhall Street in Greenock. The unit would include advertising panels, free public Wi-Fi, free calls to UK numbers, USB charging ports and a 999 emergency button that shares callers’ precise location. The proposal is being considered by Inverclyde Council under planning reference 26/0142/IC.

Two Inverclyde organisations have received active-travel funding through the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport’s Transport Scotland-funded People & Place Programme Community Fund. Belville Community Garden Trust was awarded up to £14,503 for its Bellville Bike Bank project, which offers bicycle repairs, refurbished bikes and cycling sessions, while Inverclyde Community Development Trust received up to £12,000 for its Community Tracks project. The funding is part of £567,586 allocated to 29 community groups across the SPT area to encourage sustainable travel and improve access to cycling.