Rhoda Grant

I was delighted to visit Highlife Highland’s botanic gardens in Inverness and was amazed by the additional projects this charity offers. I was shown round their orchard and nursery and their fantastic GROW and BEE projects.

Trainees and volunteers help run the projects and all of the produce which is grown on site is then sold to the visiting public, used in their adjoining café and donated to a local Foodshare facility.

Promoting good health and wellbeing are two of the fundamental aims of this fantastic charity and I was really grateful to Ewan Mackintosh (Manager), Rona Macfarlane (Horticultural Trainer GROW project) and Steve Walsh (Chief Executive) for their time and hospitality.

About

Born in Stornoway, brought up on the south shores of Loch Torridon in Wester Ross and now living in Inverness, Rhoda has experience of living in both rural and urban areas of the Highlands and Islands, giving her the knowledge to understand the various challenges faced by our communities.

Rhoda has worked in both the public and private sectors in the Highlands. Employed for a number of years with the public sector trade union Unison and The Highland Council, then as a Member of the Scottish Parliament between 1999 and 2003, then again from 2007.

Rhoda has held many Shadow Cabinet roles including Rural and Connectivity Cabinet Secretary, Shadow Women and Equalities Spokesperson, Shadow Health Minister, Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Shadow Minister for Economy, and Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Justice. She is currently the Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Land Reform, Islands.