Highlands and Islands Enterprise

Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) is the Scottish Government's regional economic and community development agency for the Highlands and Islands, an area covering roughly half of Scotland's landmass but with a small and widely dispersed population. Its remit spans the northern mainland, the Western Isles, Orkney, Shetland and the Inner Hebrides, and it works to strengthen businesses, infrastructure, skills and community assets in these areas. HIE's origins lie in the mid-20th-century effort to reverse depopulation and weak economic activity in the north and west of Scotland. The Highlands and Islands Development Board was established in 1965 as one of the UK's first regional development bodies; it was later reorganised into Highlands and Islands Enterprise in 1991, taking on a structure that combined a central agency with a network of local enterprise companies. Further reform in the 2000s brought the local enterprise companies back in-house, creating the single organisation that operates today. As a non-departmental public body, HIE is funded largely by the Scottish Government and is accountable to Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Parliament. It is not a conventional commercial company: it does not sell products to consumers, but instead provides grants, loans, equity investment, advice and property support to businesses and social enterprises, and invests in infrastructure such as business parks, broadband and research facilities. It also supports community land ownership and social enterprises, which are unusually significant in the region. HIE's work is closely tied to major regional assets and sectors, including renewable energy and the offshore wind supply chain, life sciences and research institutions such as the University of the Highlands and Islands, tourism, food and drink (notably whisky, seafood and aquaculture), creative industries and the space sector, with the Sutherland spaceport development being a notable example of its support for new high-growth activity. It also plays a role in responding to economic shocks and in supporting fragile communities. HIE is headquartered in Inverness and maintains area offices across the region. Its brand is associated with regional development policy rather than consumer goods, and its public profile is strongest among businesses, community groups and public bodies in northern and western Scotland.

The Highlands and Islands of Scotland entered the 20th century with a fragile economy dominated by crofting, fishing and limited industry, and with a long history of emigration. In the decades after the Second World War, policy makers increasingly saw state-led regional development as the answer to depopulation and underinvestment in the north and west. The Highlands and Islands Development Board (HIDB) was created in 1965, one of the first bodies of its kind in the United Kingdom, with a mandate to promote economic and social development across the region. It combined grant-giving with direct investment, property development and community support, and became closely associated with projects such as industrial estates, tourism promotion and support for new industries. In 1991 the HIDB was replaced by Highlands and Islands Enterprise, which was structured as a small strategic core working through a network of local enterprise companies (LECs) covering sub-regions. This model was intended to bring decision-making closer to communities. A further reorganisation in the 2000s, following a national review of enterprise networks in Scotland, dissolved the LEC structure and integrated their functions into HIE as a single organisation with area offices. Over the following two decades HIE's agenda shifted toward innovation, renewable energy, digital connectivity and strengthening the region's higher education and research base, including support for the University of the Highlands and Islands. It also became involved in emerging sectors such as space launch and the offshore wind supply chain, and in community land ownership, which expanded significantly in the region. HIE has operated under periodic budget pressure and public-sector reform, and its role and funding have been debated in the Scottish Parliament. It remains the principal regional development body for the area, working alongside local councils, Scottish Enterprise and UK-wide agencies.

• 2000

  Reorganisation of Scotland's enterprise networks integrates local enterprise company functions into HIE.

• 1991

  Highlands and Islands Enterprise replaces the HIDB, operating through a network of local enterprise companies.

• 1965

  Highlands and Islands Development Board established as a regional development body for the north and west of Scotland.

A public-sector regional development agency rather than a commercial brand, positioned as the main economic development partner for businesses and communities across the Highlands and Islands of Scotland.

• Business growth grants and loans

• Equity investment for regional businesses

• Community land and asset support

• Property and infrastructure development

• Skills and workforce programmes

• 2026.08.25

  HIE acquires assets of Sutherland Spaceport Ltd[2]HIE收购Sutherland Spaceport Ltd资产hie.co.uk

  Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) acquired the assets of Sutherland Spaceport Ltd (SSL) from joint liquidators Chad Griffin and Graham Smith of FRP Advisory. SSL, established in 2020 by Orbex, entered liquidation in June after Orbex entered administration in February. HIE plans to review how the site can best be used to create jobs and support the UK space sector.

Read more

1. 1Highlands and Islands Enterprise official websitehie.co.uk
2. 2HIE收购Sutherland Spaceport Ltd资产hie.co.uk