Members of The Highland Council's Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee have given the green light for the boundary of the Grantown-on-Spey Conservation Area to be extended to encompass buildings contemporary with the Georgian foundations of the town with the later Victorian and Edwardian expansion.

The Conservation Area Appraisal has been supported by a project Steering Group involving local members, The Grantown Society, Cairngorm National Park, the local Community Council, the Grantown Initiative and Voluntary Action Badenoch and Strathspey.

The report presented to Committee today follows a six week public consultation and takes account of comments received during this process.

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As well as an on-line portal to capture comments a public drop event held in the town last year was well attended and gave people the chance to ask questions and get answers on how the changes to the Conservation Area boundary may affect them

Local Councillor and Convener of The Highland Council, Cllr Bill Lobban said: "Grantown was designated as a Conservation Area in 1975 and this has been the first formal review undertaken since. It is not the intention of a Conservation Area to prevent development. It is about making sure that any development is appropriately sited and designed to reflect the special characteristics and what is important about Grantown and its historical development of the area.

He added: "I would like to thank everyone who got involved and took part in the consultation, including members of the public, local community groups and our partners Historic Environment Scotland and the Cairngorm National Park. Their input has helped us get to this stage. The logical next step is continue to work together to develop a Conservation Area Management Plan."

The Appraisal will be used to inform the future management of the Conservation Area and will be material consideration in any relevant future planning decisions.