CalMac on the look out for new Community Board members

West coast ferry and harbour operator CalMac is looking to appoint four new members to its Community Board. 

The Board was set up in 2017 to act as the voice of the communities CalMac supports on strategic ferry issues. Since then it has worked on a number of initiatives including service improvements and infrastructure development with a focus on economic sustainability. 

The Board comprises 13 members, plus a chair, and is completely separate and independent from the company. 

'We are extremely grateful to the Board Members who have worked with us over the past two years, helping shape our services and enabling us to be more responsive to the needs of the communities we support. We are now looking to build on this with new talent,' said CalMac's Director of Community and Stakeholder Engagement, Brian Fulton. 

The Board meets four times a year with travel and reasonable out of pocket expenses reimbursed. 

Applicants need to be willing engage with a variety of community groups to seek out their views on ferry services and reflect these views back to CalMac. 

Key achievements since the Board was formed included successfully lobbying the government to release more funds for a new ticketing system. It has also been instrumental in bringing in service improvements such as the new mobile maintenance team brought in to improve fleet resilience. 

'The Board have been a driving force helping us understand the needs of the communities we support,' said Brian.

'They have been involved in a huge number of areas of the business; from helping increase the amount of local produce we use on board to making it easier for local suppliers to gain access access to our the supply chain.

'Currently they are working with us on a new socio economic study that will provide an evaluation of the wider benefits and value the ferry service brings to west coast communities.'

'There are many and varied ways Board members can get involved in helping to deliver long term service improvements, it's a great opportunity for anyone with an interest in how our ferry services evolve to play a meaningful role in that process.'

Applicants can apply here