Adventure park staffing hit by lack of homes

Landmark is one of the Highlands largest visitor attractions

A lack of affordable housing in the Cairngorms National Park has been revealed as a factor behind recruitment problems at one of the Highlands' largest visitor attractions.

Landmark Forest Adventure Park in Carrbridge said it was unable to open some of its summer activities next month because of difficulties recruiting new staff.

A shortage of affordable homes for people who want to live and work in the national park has been a long-running issue.

Mark Tate, of the Cairngorms Business Partnership, said last year saw many businesses having to make the same difficult decisions as Landmark's.

Landmark said the vast majority of its activities, including its dinosaur attraction, would be open from 1 April.

But it said its Skydive, RopeworX and Pinnacle attractions would be among those closed, while others would have restricted hours.

Landmark said: "This is obviously not a situation we welcome following the disruption of the last two years, but we are continuing to do everything we can to rectify the situation.

"We are hopeful that the situation will improve and we will be able to open more of the park very soon, perhaps from May."

'Difficult decisions'

Mr Tate said: "As we head into what promises to be a busy Easter and summer season the biggest challenge facing businesses is recruitment.

"Last summer we saw lots of businesses having to take very difficult decisions, like Landmark have done, to limit their offering to ensure they can continue to deliver the exceptional experiences our visitors and residents have come to expect."

He said efforts were being made to increase provision of housing in the national park, including the launch of the Cairngorms Housing Partnership.

The partnership is making four mid-market rental properties available in Aviemore to local employees as part of a pilot project.

The Cairngorms National Park Authority has also proposed increasing the availability of affordable homes as part of its new five-year plan.

Last month, a senior Highland councillor said changes to rules on short-term lets were needed immediately to address a housing emergency in Badenoch and Strathspey, which is in the national park.

Under plans Bill Lobban has put forward, planning approval would be needed before a property could be offered as a short-term let.

The lets usually involve self-catering holiday accommodation.