The organisation was created in the year 2000 by representatives from 11 key communities as a result of their work on cultural issues during The Dùthchas Project. The current legal structure was established in 2007 and is a Company Limited by Guarantee registered in Scotland (Company No. 331267) with Charitable Status (Scottish Charity No. SC038792). It was formed to manage the Mackay Country Project; an initiative started to bring together communities from across a wide region of over 1,200 sq km formed from the 4 parishes of Eddrachilles, Durness, Tongue and Farr in the North West of Sutherland. Two and a half thousand people live in Mackay Country; at least 30,000 people visit Mackay Country each year.

 

Mackay Country’s charitable aims are:

• To encourage active participation of the wider community in identifying, safeguarding and keeping alive their cultural heritage including the Gaelic language.
• To bring together arts, culture, language and the environment in an exciting way to establish a clear identity for the area.
• To working in partnership with other community groups, private businesses and the public sector to create economic and social benefits from the area’s heritage.
• To enabling active learning, skills transfer and research at all levels.

 

Mackay Country is operated soley by volunteers. There is no employed staff. Experts are commissioned during projects.

 

Board members all bring a crucial set of skills and energy to the work of the organisation. Mackay Country’s greatest strength is the large number of supporters and volunteers in each and every community. These are the people who come up with ideas about what they want us to do and put their backs into making it happen. We are unusual and fortunate in having such a range of ages from school pupils to the oldest members of our communities who all help out and learn in their own ways

​

In 2021 The company and charity were dissolved and a working relationship was established with Strathnaver Museum