Moniack Mhor has a history of running residency and outreach programmes that bring rewards to both resident writers and the local community. In previous years our Writers Across Frontiers project saw Kurdish writer Choman Hardi taking up residency at Moniack Mhor, followed by Singaporean writer Suchen Christine Lim. Both of these writers were able to bring creative writing skills and a broad cultural outlook to schoolchildren in the Highland area. Recent residences have seen Laura Hird, Margaret Elphinstone and a returning Choman Hardi take creative writing visits into local schools.

Some outreach work has also been recently undertaken by our centre directors, both published writers with wide-ranging teaching experience. In October 2008 we carried out a day-long session of Scots language workshops at Merkinch Primary School in Inverness, and were able to contribute creative writing workshops at the 2008 Highland schools Advanced Higher conference. Further discussions are currently under way to create new writing workshops for 6th year pupils in the Highland region in 2009.

Creative writing workshops for teachers during in-service days are also proving a  popular item on the Moniack calendar, with dates set for February 12 and 17 2009. Visiting teachers will come for a day visit from as far afield as Glencoe, Dunvegan, Dornoch, Grantown, Alness, Strathgarve, Nairn and Mallaig, as well as the more local schools at Mulbuie, Charleston, Culloden, and St Joseph's Inverness.

We are planning various projects for 2009, some subject to funding applications, and will update these as  the year progresses.