Highland Council has appointed main contractors for the first projects to be delivered under its new £2.1bn Highland Investment Plan (HIP).

Morgan Sindall, Morrison Construction, Robertson Group and Ogilvie will work on seven key multi-million-pound projects across the region from Thurso to Inverness.

The HIP is a £2.1 billion, 20-year capital investment programme led by the Council to deliver improvements to local infrastructure and services and will be financed through a combination of capital investment and a dedicated annual allocation of 2% ring-fenced Council Tax revenue.

This includes £750 million of investment over the next five years.

A key element of the HIP is the creation of community hubs, known as Points of Delivery (PoDs), supporting a move towards a single public estate incorporating schools, offices, depots and partners, creating more integrated community-based facilities.

The first projects to have preferred main contractors appointed are:

• Beauly Primary PoD – Morgan Sindall

• Charleston Academy PoD – Morgan Sindall

• Dingwall Primary PoD including St Clements School – Robertson Group

• Fortrose Academy PoD – Morrison Construction

• Inverness High School PoD – Ogilive Construction

• Thurso PoD – Morrison Construction.

• Tornagrain Primary PoD – Robertson Group

The appointments will allow contractors to be involved in the consultation, design and pre-planning stages of the HIP projects.

Convener of the Council, Cllr Bill Lobban, said: “The HIP is a ground-breaking and innovative long-term infrastructure investment programme, which will create transformative change over the next decade, With these contractors now appointed, we can move to the next phase of our planning, including further engagement with our communities and design and pre-planning activities.”

The preferred main contractors join HIP project teams which include architects NORR, Holmes Miller and the in-house Highland Council Design & Construction team, along with consultants from a wide range of disciplines including Currie & Brown, Doig & Smith, Turner & Townsend, DSSR, Goodson Associates, Brown & Wallace, Atkins Realis, Fairhurst, Rybka, Harley Haddow and Etive.