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Val Sweeney


Senior reporter

Val Sweeney is an award-winning and experienced journalist. Having worked on several newspapers in the north of England in various roles as a reporter and feature writer, she joined the Inverness Courier in 2001.

Fundraising midnight run on airport runway to return as charity celebrates 20th anniversary

12 April 2025
Fundraising midnight run on airport runway to return as charity celebrates 20th anniversary

Fundraising midnight run on airport runway to return as charity celebrates 20th anniversary

12 April 2025

The popular Run the Runway event is returning to Inverness Airport to raise funds for cancer support charity, Maggie’s.


Fire-hit retail units demolished as police inquiries continue

11 April 2025
Fire-hit retail units demolished as police inquiries continue

Fire-hit retail units demolished as police inquiries continue

11 April 2025

Demolition work has started on a row of shops destroyed in a massive blaze at an Inverness business park last month.


Open letter signed by community groups and trade unions calls for visitor levy to be used to tackle housing crisis

11 April 2025
Open letter signed by community groups and trade unions calls for visitor levy to be used to tackle housing crisis

Open letter signed by community groups and trade unions calls for visitor levy to be used to tackle housing crisis

11 April 2025

Groups and trade unions have joined forces to step up calls for a proposed tourist tax in the Highlands to be used to address the housing crisis.


Reindeer herders issue plea to drone users after herd ‘spooked’

09 April 2025
Reindeer herders issue plea to drone users after herd ‘spooked’

Reindeer herders issue plea to drone users after herd ‘spooked’

09 April 2025

Reindeer herders in the Cairngorms have issued a plea to drone users after the herd was spooked by a machine flying overhead.


Controversial plans for visitor levy prompt 4000 ‘very mixed’ responses during consultation

09 April 2025
Controversial plans for visitor levy prompt 4000 ‘very mixed’ responses during consultation

Controversial plans for visitor levy prompt 4000 ‘very mixed’ responses during consultation

09 April 2025

About 4000 “very mixed” responses were received during the public consultation on the possible introduction of a visitor levy for the Highlands.


Controversial plans for visitor levy prompt 4000 ‘very mixed’ responses during consultation

08 April 2025
Controversial plans for visitor levy prompt 4000 ‘very mixed’ responses during consultation

Controversial plans for visitor levy prompt 4000 ‘very mixed’ responses during consultation

08 April 2025

About 4000 “very mixed” responses were received during the public consultation on the possible introduction of a visitor levy for the Highlands.


Ukraine-bound aid from Highlands will make huge difference, says solicitor in war zone

06 April 2025
Ukraine-bound aid from Highlands will make huge difference, says solicitor in war zone

Ukraine-bound aid from Highlands will make huge difference, says solicitor in war zone

06 April 2025

A solicitor in Ukraine has outlined how aid from the Highlands will make a huge difference as Russia ramps up its attacks on her homeland.


Mentoring scheme to expand in Highlands with £1000 donation from freemasons

01 April 2025
Mentoring scheme to expand in Highlands with £1000 donation from freemasons

Mentoring scheme to expand in Highlands with £1000 donation from freemasons

01 April 2025

Mentoring services for young people following a difficult start in life are being expanded in the Highlands thanks to help from a masonic lodge.


Proposed tourist tax should be used to address housing crisis, say Living Rent Highland campaigners

31 March 2025
Proposed tourist tax should be used to address housing crisis, say Living Rent Highland campaigners

Proposed tourist tax should be used to address housing crisis, say Living Rent Highland campaigners

31 March 2025

Campaigners have delivered a petition to Highland Council’s headquarters calling for a proposed tourist tax to be used to address the housing crisis.


Brother and sister prepare for ‘toughest foot race on earth’ to raise funds for Highland charity

30 March 2025
Brother and sister prepare for ‘toughest foot race on earth’ to raise funds for Highland charity

Brother and sister prepare for ‘toughest foot race on earth’ to raise funds for Highland charity

30 March 2025

A trainee solicitor will attempt what is known as “the toughest foot race on earth” in aid of a Highland charity helping people with complex needs.


PICTURES: Launch of open MRI scanner at Inverness clinic marks a first in Scotland

03 March 2025
PICTURES: Launch of open MRI scanner at Inverness clinic marks a first in Scotland

PICTURES: Launch of open MRI scanner at Inverness clinic marks a first in Scotland

03 March 2025

A private independent clinic in Inverness has become the first in Scotland to buy a state-of-the-art open MRI scanner.


The Traitors’ creepy clown dancers from Highlands and Moray return in US version of TV show

03 March 2025
The Traitors’ creepy clown dancers from Highlands and Moray return in US version of TV show

The Traitors’ creepy clown dancers from Highlands and Moray return in US version of TV show

03 March 2025

They were given a 10 by Strictly’s Claudia Winkleman in her role as presenter of the BBC TV reality show, The Traitors, filmed in the Highlands.


Highland house where witching ritual filmed for TV series is on market at £1.25m

25 February 2025
Highland house where witching ritual filmed for TV series is on market at £1.25m

Highland house where witching ritual filmed for TV series is on market at £1.25m

25 February 2025

A Highland house visited by Alan Cumming and Miriam Margolyes for their TV series, Lost in Scotland, is up for sale at £1.25 million.


Rock legend Bryan Adams set for Bare Bones performance in Inverness

24 February 2025
Rock legend Bryan Adams set for Bare Bones performance in Inverness

Rock legend Bryan Adams set for Bare Bones performance in Inverness

24 February 2025

Rock legend Bryan Adams is set to appear in Inverness this spring.


Stoltman brothers present Fortrose teenager with hoodie for 1000 hours of voluntary work

23 February 2025
Stoltman brothers present Fortrose teenager with hoodie for 1000 hours of voluntary work

Stoltman brothers present Fortrose teenager with hoodie for 1000 hours of voluntary work

23 February 2025

A Black Isle teenager has been presented with a special hoodie by strongman brothers, Tom and Luke Stoltman, for her work as a volunteer.


Highland’s biggest free book festival, Ness Book Fest, to return to Inverness in autumn with theme of Nature

15 February 2025
Highland’s biggest free book festival, Ness Book Fest, to return to Inverness in autumn with theme of Nature

Highland’s biggest free book festival, Ness Book Fest, to return to Inverness in autumn with theme of Nature

15 February 2025

The Highland’s biggest free book festival is set to return to Inverness this October under the theme of nature.


WATCH: Lack of affordable housing in the Highlands adding to crisis in recruiting care staff

11 February 2025
WATCH: Lack of affordable housing in the Highlands adding to crisis in recruiting care staff

WATCH: Lack of affordable housing in the Highlands adding to crisis in recruiting care staff

11 February 2025

A lack of affordable housing in the Highlands is fuelling the social care staffing crisis, care homes across the region are warning.


Inverness doctor with family in Gaza says Donald Trump’s Gaza plans are ‘morally incomprehensible’

08 February 2025
Inverness doctor with family in Gaza says Donald Trump’s Gaza plans are ‘morally incomprehensible’

Inverness doctor with family in Gaza says Donald Trump’s Gaza plans are ‘morally incomprehensible’

08 February 2025

Proposals by President Donald Trump for the US to take over Gaza and relocate its people are ‘morally incomprehensible’, says an Inverness doctor.


Gold award for breastfeeding support provided by Highland Council and NHS Highland

06 February 2025
Gold award for breastfeeding support provided by Highland Council and NHS Highland

Gold award for breastfeeding support provided by Highland Council and NHS Highland

06 February 2025

The high level of support provided to breastfeeding mothers in the Highlands has been recognised with a gold award.


Inverness-born author Ali Smith on longlist for Highland Book Prize 2024

28 January 2025
Inverness-born author Ali Smith on longlist for Highland Book Prize 2024

Inverness-born author Ali Smith on longlist for Highland Book Prize 2024

28 January 2025

New fiction by Inverness-born writer Ali Smith is among the work longlisted for the Highland Book Prize 2024.


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