Community Announcement: Ballyhaugh Steering Group Award
Development Coll are delighted to announce that the Ballyhaugh Steering Group have been awarded a Stage 1 Scottish Land Fund (SLF) grant*. This award will be used to conduct community engagement, carry out technical reports, and develop an options appraisal, feasibility study and business model for how the Hebridean Centre might remain an important part of Coll’s economy and community.
The Hebridean Centre is to be the subject of a community-ownership feasibility study.
The study will be taken forward by Duncan MacPherson Consultancy, whose personnel have extensive experience working in the field of community building and business development across the northwest of Scotland. Over the coming months, they will produce and present a grounded, realistic prospect for the future of the Hebridean Centre as a community asset. The results of this study, and the community response to it, will inform a decision on whether additional funding will be sought to purchase the property on behalf of the Coll community.
The first engagement session with Duncan MacPherson Consultancy will be held this Friday (the 21st of November) between 15:30 and 18:30 at An Cridhe, both in-person and online. Community members are cordially invited to drop by and speak with Duncan’s team about their work and the project. For more information or a link to the online meeting, please contact the steering group at: ballyhaughsteeringgroup@outlook.com. Cake and nibbles will be provided.
* The SLF supports rural and urban communities to become more resilient and sustainable through the ownership and management of land and land assets. Funded by the Scottish Government and delivered in partnership by The National Lottery Community Fund and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, The Scottish Land Fund offers grants of up to £1 million to help communities take ownership of the land and buildings that matter to them, as well as practical support to develop their aspirations into viable projects.